Well, my first article about washing hair without shampoo spurned such a tizzy of interest, that I thought you all might enjoy an update.
I have been shampoo-free for over 5 months now. I LOVE it!
- I’m finding I can use a decreasing amount of baking soda and still get the same results. Also, I can now go 4 days without washing or rinsing, if I put my hair up on the 4th day.
- It’s CHEAP: I have been using the same bottle of vinegar since almost the beginning, and it’s still 1/2 full. I’ve used just 1 small package of baking soda.
- I love the way it makes my hair look! It’s a deeper, more natural and luscious color.
But mostly, my hair is pretty similar to how it was before. It’s just that now I don’t have to think about buying shampoo and conditioner (baking soda and vinegar are things we always have around the house), I don’t have to worry about what’s going onto my head and into my body, and I’m saving money.
My Containers
There were several questions about containers, how I keep from getting it in my eyes, and other similar points. So I thought I’d share with you my containers:
One is an old shampoo bottle, the other is an old salad dressing bottle. The trick is to be able to get the solution where you want it, which is why I use these bottles with long stems and small holes. It works really well, it has become totally natural for me. For me, this is just the way hair is washed now!
After using either Recipe #1 or Recipe #2 for a while, you might try using the following more diluted method.
Recipe #3: The Simple Method Diluted
1. Use an old shampoo bottle or a squeeze bottle of some variety (see photo above). Mix 1 part baking soda to 6 parts Water. Each time you use this solution, shake well to mix.
2. Squeeze the baking soda solution onto your dry scalp, then massage your scalp for several seconds. (You just need to saturate your scalp, not the rest of your hair.)
3. Leave in for 1-3 minutes, and rinse completely.
4. In an old shampoo bottle or a squeeze bottle (see photo above), mix 1 part Organic White Vinegar to 8 parts Water. You can add essential oils or herbs if you like – I add 1 cinnamon stick (which lasts through several bottles of mixture) and 1/2 t vanilla (or a vanilla stick seen in the photo above). This masks the vinegar smell, and leaves your hair with a faint scent of spices.
5. Leave on hair for several seconds, then rinse completely.
Questions? Thoughts? Ideas?
Have you tried this since I wrote about it? Do you use a different method? Have you tried to do this in the past?
Similar Posts:
- A Non-Toxic, Frugal Way To Wash Your Hair Without Buying Shampoo
- Twenty Uses For Baking Soda (Sodium Bicarbonate)
- How Have You Redefined Normal Lately?
- What Eco / Green Household and Personal Cleaning Products Do I Use?
- A Year Without Shampoo
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Well! In addition to wondering if this is okay to do with my henna, I am wondering if this just might be the solution to my hair’s turning to a greasy limp mush since I moved somewhere with super-hard water/humid climate. My hair only feels clean for around 8 hours after I wash it, and I used to have drydrydry hair and scalp. My hair is super straight like yours, and now it gets greasy so I know what you meant in the ‘before’ stage of doing this. I think I MAY start off trying this 1x a week because I have a lot of shampoo left in the house- my sis bought me a few bars from lush.com for Christmas.
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I just posted in your previous blog/page! I should’ve posted here… I am hoping you can still answer my questions, though :-) It’d be very helpful!
And I am going to add one more..is there a significant difference between using Apple Cider Vinegar and white vinegar?
How about rosemary as a herb to use? It is supposedly great for the hair.
Sounds great, Catherine – I have a friend who uses rosemary – and it’s sitting on my balcony – I’ll have to try it!
Hi Melinda- I posted on your previous blog page…and I’m still hoping maybe you could give me some advice!
I am now on week 5 of no shampoo…but I am finding that my hair is kind of dull, not really shiny, and doesn’t look at nice as it did maybe in week 2. I really don’t want to go back to using shampoo, but I miss that shine and softness, and I am frustrated. I’ve been doing the BS, sometimes with the vinegar rinse, but very sparingly.
Sometimes the bottom half of my hair seems a bit dry (despite trying to move the oil downward, despite vinegar rinse which made my hair greasy)… week 2, my hair was so much more manageable. (would hold a curl!) I;m not sure why it’s dry and a bit frizzy, which is very unusual for my hair… any advice?
only use bs on scalp(it dries the hair)only use vinegar rinse on hair(not scalp-makes it greasy)In winter when hair seems extra dry I also use Dr Bronners (1oz soap/8oz h2o) about 1tsp before u rinse out bs on hair not scalp(makes it greasy) I have been doing this since dec 07 and would never go back to chemicals. Baking soda also makes a great facial exfoliant. Wet face,dip 2 fingers in soda and massage face-monthly or bi-monthly!
I had the same experience. It seemed as though I got the greasy detox period after a couple of months of using the BS and sometimes the ACV rinse. However, it changed and now, after one year, my hair is very well adjusted and I wash it only twice a week. Sometimes I even forget when I washed it last because I haven’t noticed that I need to do it. I have dead straight, thin Nordic hair that goes to my shoulders. My advice is to hang in there and experiment with the amount of BS to water. Also, consider trying lemon juice instead of ACV. LJ works better for me. :)
Jane… I have kind of dry hair because while I am using more green methods I still Bleach my hair because I haven’t had luck with natural lighteners to get it the color I need it. I say need because I dye my hair Pink. When I use the ACV rinse in the 1:8 ratio I add 1/4 – 1/2 tsp of honey to my rinse and it helps control the FRIZZ and I’ve found that I don’t have to uses styling products to keep shape and it’s super soft and has a lovely shine after blow drying. You can leave the ACV w/honey in or rinse it out (I’ve done both, but I leave it in when I’m trying to keep a style). I hope this helps. :)
so does this work as a conditioner as well? or did you not use conditioner before?
[...] Three makeup/beauty products I cannot live without: 1. face scrub 2. wee bit of moisturizer 3. baking soda (for hair) [...]
Hi!
Is there a suitable substitute for baking soda? There’s NONE to be found in China. Alternatives that are available include baking POWDER, corn starch, yeast… I’d continue to list baking ingredients, but at this point they just seem absurd.
Thanks in advance!
is there no baking soda to be bought in China? that seems unusual…
Have you tried cocoa powder? The regular, non-alkalinzed kind. It works well for me, and it smells wonderful!
[...] Non-Toxic, Frugal Way To Wash Your Hair Without Buying Shampoo and No ‘Poo: New and Improved! (Green [...]
I having just started the “no poo” method and i’m very excited to see if it works out for me like it did for you! I just have one problem, I naturally have very dry hair that gets damaged easily and have been using olive oil as a conditioner which takes a couple of shampoos to get out. With the no poo method I am not sure what I could use as an alternative for washing it out, would baking soda do the trick? :S Thanks!!
The baking soda would dry your hair more… That is why you only use it on the roots. I would try mixing your Olive oil (I’ve heard that avacado oil works well too) with a bit of water to dilute it. Have you tried the ACV rinse I suggest it with a small amount of honey added.
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This is fantastic! I’ll have to try this. We stopped using regular shampoo a year ago because of the ingredients in it. I switched to Burt’s Bees, while my husband and three children use Dr. Bronner’s. The Bronner’s doesn’t really work for me, and although I like the Burt’s Bees, it’s expensive and I’m not that crazy about the quality of their products any more. I purchase a new brand from Whole Foods that I am going to try, but I like the idea of making my own. I’ve been on the homemade kick recently, and even started making our own toothpaste over the weekend. Thanks for sharing! Peace. :)
Love your blog by the way, and am definitely going to link to it from mine. :)
Be sure to use the aluminum free baking soda.
I’ve been “no poo” for about 2 years now and find it works great. My hair is shiny and wavier than it used to be and the new growth (post ‘no poo’) seems fine. I wash once a week in winter and about twice a week in summer. I can get by with just a rinse midweek if I am in a hurry. I do find that a COLD rinse at the end of the washing/rinsing session is key to keeping my hair manageable. Without it I get more tangles and more breakage.
I do use henna sometimes and it works fine. You can use vinegar to set henna so that won’t be a problem. I did find that henna bled out of my hair for about a week and could have stained things if I hadn’t been aware of it. That may have just been inadequate rinsing the first day.
I tried this today and I loved it, is it ok for colored hair? Thank you.
I just tried no poo on Thursday night using your recipes. I couldn’t believe how my hair felt on Friday and it’s Saturday and no itching and my hair feels great! I have shoulder length hair.
Do you know if this would work on dogs? I have two dogs – German Shephard (Lots of hair) and a catahoula leopard (short hair). I would think that if shampoo hurts my skin and hair, it would do the same for the dogs.
Thank you!
hey Melinda..I did use this method for 2 months and then strayed back unfortunely.. But now i am going to give a full effort of returning to my green roots and sticking to it. I have a condition called Contact Dermantitis and have had it all my life.. but I just found out the technichal term as it was dubbed `sensitive skin`when I was young. That`s how I found your site last year and it rang true to me because you have had simlilar issues. i have always had to watch laundry detergent, shampoo, soap, makeup, hair products..etc.
then I had a severe allergic reaction to hair dye ( although I was dying my hair for over 15 yr.s) And it has reopened my eyes!!
So I am going green..and I am sticking to it. startin with no more dying my hair. I have been a vegetarian for 6 months.. and I am with you 100% on changing normal!! thanks so much for all your effort in getting the word out!
Angel I have the same exact issue – contact dermatitis. My dermatologist did a patch test on me and found about 5 different chemicals that I’m allergic to, several of which are found in just about every commercial shampoo. I think I’m going to try no-poo, or some version of it. Excited to hear that it’s working for you!
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