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Friday, December 21, 2012

No-poo, Oh pooh.

I decided to try the "no-poo" routine about, oh, maybe 2 months ago.  No more commercial shampoo, no more commercial conditioners.  So, at a friend's suggestion, I searched the internet and found a routine I could experiment with:

1 Tbsp baking soda in a cup of water to shampoo
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar (ACV) in a cup of water to condition

And so it began.  I dissolved the baking soda in a cup or so of warm water and slowly poured it over my scalp, massaging gently,  The rest of the hair got wet as a matter of course, but I massaged it through anyway; then a good rinse and on to conditioning.  The same  routine applied to the ACV: massage into the scalp, make sure the hair is wet down with the solution, and then a thorough rinse.

The results surprised me.  A comb went through my hair easily, and it felt, looked, and smelt clean and fresh.  Not bad.  I continued with this routine every 5-6 days until last week, when my hair started looked just a tad dryer than I wanted it. 

My friend had told me she used a raw egg yolk to condition occasionally, and I, ever willing to complicate everything, went looking for a "recipe" to do what should have been a simple task.  Why keep things simple when with a little effort I can make them really complicated?  Accordingly, I found a recipe to mix 1 tbsp olive oil and a tablespoon of water into the well-beaten yolk and leave it on for 5 minutes, before I rinsed thoroughly with lukewarm water.

What a disaster!  I felt like I had rolled my hair in an oil barrel, even before I got out of the shower.  I shampooed with Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Castile Soap, rinsed thoroughly and used ACV solution to condition, all to no avail.  The comb pulled and tugged. The hair looked like I hadn't washed it in weeks, so greasy that it hung in clumps.  I deceived myself (I'm good at that.  Lots of practice.)  I told myself my hair was just wet, that all would come right when it dried. 

It didn't.  I tied it back and combed and brushed it daily before tying it back again every morning.  Today, after trying unsuccessfuly to rid my hair of the olive oil with the baking soda/ACV routine, I broke down and shampooed it with a commercial shampoo.  I then followed it with ACV solution again.

My hair is back to normal now.  I will never put olive oil in my hair again, no matter what great success others have had with it.  I'll try the egg yolk conditioner again, though, only this time it will be just egg yolk, beaten within an inch of its life so it behaves well on my hair.

2 comments:

  1. I tried no poo too, and loved it until I got sweaty and smelled like vinegar. I even tried rinsing it out really good.

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  2. I haven't had that problem. I love the way my hair feels, though, and I'm always amazed at how clean such a simple regimen can make my hair.

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