No'Poo

[Laura]

I am a full-time mama to my two babies.  I write all about natural living, breastfeeding, babywearing, homebirth and cloth diapers at Our Messy Messy Life.

What's so wrong with shampoo and conditioner?  

Shampoos commonly contain detergents which strip the hair of natural oils so  your hair gets that 'squeaky clean' feeling in the shower.  Google the facts for yourself and you will come to this basic conclusion:  detergents = bad, natural oils = good.  

What do you need?  

Baking soda and vinegar -- I use apple cider vinegar with the mother but I've read white vinegar works just as well.   Think about the baking soda as shampoo and the vinegar as conditioner.  Baking soda washes away the grime by opening up the hair cuticles and vinegar closes and softens the cuticles.

What do you do?  

 1. Gather your ingredients and find a method to pour the liquid into your hair while in the shower.  I had these two squirt bottles on hand from a time when I asked my husband to buy me two spray bottles.  Yeah, I had a good laugh when I saw these "ketchup" bottles that hearkened back to my post-childbirth days.  A cup would work just as well although these squirt bottles are really ideal.  

2. The basic ratio is one tablespoon of ingredient to one cup of water.  Before I get in the shower, I dump a tablespoon of baking soda in the bottle and add a cup of water, then add a tablespoon of vinegar to the other bottle and add a cup of water.  Initially, I had little lines on my bottles indicating the tablespoon and cup marks but they quickly washed off in the shower and now I just know my measurements by sight.  

3. Wet your hair.  Add the baking soda mix to your hair, scrubbing at your roots and rubbing all the way down to the tips.  Wait a minute or so before you rinse your hair.  Pay close attention to really scrubbing your roots during the rinse because baking soda looks suspiciously like dandruff if you don't rinse well.  Repeat with the vinegar mix.

Troubleshooting:

*You will likely notice a "detox" period in which your hair recovers from years of chemical washes.  Depending upon your hair type, your hair might seem greasy or dry for a few weeks.  Personally, my hair seemed a bit greasy but balanced out within a few washes.

* The one tablespoon: one cup is the basic ratio.  Different hair types and different water types might call for more baking soda or more vinegar.  It's really just a test of trial and error. 

* The goal of no'poo is for your hair to wean to longer periods between the baking soda and vinegar washes and eventually look good with  just water washing.  I've been using this method for almost a year and I no'poo about every other shower and do a water rinse in between washes.  Granted, I don't shower every day so this equates to using the mixes 1-2 times a week.

If you know me in real life, you might be thinking:  Ummm, Laura, your hair is always in a braid or in a knot on top of your head.  Why would I go to you for hair suggestions?  Yes.  My hair is always in a braid or a knotted up on my head for a number of reasons, not limited to the fact that Liza loves pulling my hair and my hair is so ridiculously long that I am waiting a few more months then chopping it off and donating my braid to Locks of Love.  But, my hair is softer than ever before and is the least frizzy of my entire life.  

No'poo is:  

Better for my hair by allowing it's natural oils to do their thing.  

Better for our budget because baking soda and vinegar is ridiculously cheap.  

Better for the envirorment by reducing my personal use of plastics and harmful chemicals.

Do you no'poo?

Would you no'poo?