The No Poo Experiment

This Experiment is Officially Over

2010-10-12T09:32:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

It's official, I'm bored with limiting myself to just baking soda to clean my hair. There isn't anything wrong with it, I still like it, however I have painted myself into a box by limiting myself to one cleaning method, and I hate boxes!

So this experiment is over. My full farewell is on my primary blog here, and all of these posts are archived there just in case I ever decide to close this blog.

I still plan to use baking soda, I just no longer wish to limit myself. Life should be fun, and limits are definitely NOT.

I would still love to hear from you, and hear your stories. I will still use baking soda when I desire to clean my hair, just as I will use shampoo when I desire, but if presented with just one option, no problem!

So farewell, my readers! It has been a pleasure. Remember, life is not about painting yourself in a box, it's about having fun--and it's okay to change if something is no longer enjoyable.

Peace,
~Annie

The Minimalist Cleaning Method

2010-08-15T22:18:00.000-07:00

I finished my first book, The Minimalist Cleaning Method. Contained within the pages is not only the recipe to clean your hair with baking soda, but many other recipes for all around the house.

Price: $9.95

Visit the website by clicking the picture to order your own copy of the Minimalist Cleaning Method. Your home will thank you.

Round 2: Two Month Update

2010-08-01T18:51:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to let you know I'm still here! Life is still going on and I still have my hair!

Why do we try things like using alternatives to shampoo? Is it to save the world, to be different or just be cheap?

I must confess: I didn't start this to save the world. That was actually the farthest thing from my mind! I just wanted a less expensive method to wash my hair.

It works, BTW. Quite well. I cannot tell you that using baking soda on my hair has worked miracles or saved a tree but it does work.

I can tell you that it feels good to walk past the shampoo aisle at the store.

I can tell you that it feels good to no longer have to deal with the dregs in the bottom of shampoo bottles.

I cannot tell you that using baking soda instead of shampoo with give you brownie points with the ecologically conscious, cause frankly I don't care if it does or not.

I can tell you that you are in fact WASHING your hair when you use baking soda--just not in a method that is commonly accepted. I get hit with questions about that sometimes.

You won't get pretty smells or fancy bubbles but you will get clean hair if you use baking soda.

When I first started this I thought I would be one of those who didn't do much at all to my hair except rinse it with water, but cleaning it with "something" was a necessity and baking soda worked. Maybe in that aspect this experiment is a failure, who knows? I'm sorry but my hair has to be clean, period.

I don't see myself buying shampoo in the near future--I currently have no desire. However I may decide to use shampoo in the future and I plan to with a clean conscience, and you should to!

Don't let this web site or that blog shame you into being or doing something you don't want to do. If you feel it is gross not to use shampoo then lather away I don't care!

If you want to try this and you hate it that's okay. I doubt the world will end because you tried something you didn't like!

If you do try it and like it great, but if not who really cares? In a hundred years neither of us will be here and the no-poo movement will have probably changed to something totally different and incredibly high-tech like cleaning our hair with some laser bath that doesn't involve water at all!

So if you try this try it out of a sense of fun, or try it cause you are broke and want to save a buck but don't try this cause all of your buddies are trying it or because you want to save the earth. While enough of us together may actually accomplish something I doubt we will see anything happen that we can point to and say "Hey, I caused that!"

Anyhow, happy August! Go out and have some fun, or just stay home and hug your kid.

I'm thinking of you, wherever you are.

Peace,
Annie

Round 2: One Month Update

2010-07-01T09:52:00.000-07:00

I have actually made it through the first month without mishaps!

My hair is still growing well and I am using the baking soda instead of shampoo still. It hasn't been an issue at all. I have heard that using a vinegar rinse brings out highlights in brown hair so I may start trying it to see if it actually works because I didn't really pay attention in the past.

Using baking soda instead of shampoo is an excellent idea for those who wish to save money (a box of baking soda cost around fifty cents and lasts a very long time), reduce the amount of plastic bottles and waste coming in their home (those bottles add up), reduce the amount of oil used in this nation (to make the bottles, to haul the weight of the shampoo and bottles around, reduce the amount of energy used to make the shampoo) or for those who simply wish to buy less stuff.

I have came to a point where I don't really think it is a deadly sin if I use shampoo on occasion but for the sake of this blog I will continue to abstain at present.

One thing I have noticed with this economy is that there are millions of people that are losing their only source on income--unemployment. As a result a lot of people will be forced to tighten their financial belts and may not have money for shampoo. Baking Soda is a definite alternative in this case. You can't exactly get a job if you hair is dripping grease you know!

Round 2: Day 12

2010-06-12T19:47:00.001-07:00

Here I go again with the second round of the Great No Poo Experiment. I have went a whole twelve days without shampoo on my head, or lice-infested children to worry about! Whoopie!

Like I said I’m not upset at the child—the little thing had no control over it. The mother on the other hand….yeah, I’m still a touch miffed. She could have at least warned us or at best treated her kid before showing up at that cookout!

Anyhow with the heat I am having to clean my hair more often but the baking soda is doing a very good job. I have no complaints whatsoever with the condition of my hair after using baking soda to clean it.

I have noticed that one must be careful to really rinse well when using baking soda. If you don’t then some of the baking soda can be left in your hair and it feels icky against your scalp. Easily enough corrected by rinsing really well.

I still don’t use ACV (apple cider vinegar) as a conditioner. I don’t need it. I think we have been so conditioned by marketing to buy this and use that and as a result we think that we HAVE to condition our hair but in fact if it is cleaned gently enough the oils aren’t stripped out and we don’t need it.

My hair feels healthier since I stopped using shampoo. I know when I used the lice shampoo my hair felt like straw and my scalp burned a bit from the chemicals… Guess I’m no longer accustomed to putting chemicals on my hair.

Anyhow it is over and done with the only recourse being to start over. I was on a roll though!

Sigh.

My hair is growing longer. I’ll see if I can get the kid to take a good pic of me so you can see it in the next few days. I’m warning you though—my hair is still growing back and it looks a bit rough. I refuse to have it trimmed or styled until it grows back more. There is no point in removing hair when I am trying to grow it all back!

LiveJournal Tags: no poo

Starting Over

2010-06-07T19:34:00.001-07:00

Okay, so now I’m back to square one with this experiment. It was going pretty good, and I liked how my hair did when I used baking soda so I’m at it again.

Today I washed my hair with baking soda.

Now, if I can avoid any mishaps we shall see how long I can go without using shampoo again. I was doing pretty good there, ya know!

Perhaps it was the strong chemicals, or perhaps it was because my hair has not had any strong chemicals for months, but that lice treatment actually burned my scalp a little bit. It was actually tender for a few days—ouch!

I’m done being upset with that lady. I don’t blame the child. I’m through with being annoyed and ready to get this blog back on track. Since it was Memorial Day when I treated my hair with that gunk, does that sound like a fair restart date or should I pick another?

Setback

2010-05-31T15:28:00.001-07:00

Okay, I am really ticked off right now.

I was invited to a cookout a friend was having so instead of working I decided to go. Everything went well at first. One of the guests (the gf of a relative) had a cute little kid in tow. Thing is, at first she would not allow the child off of her lap. She sat on the floor by the front door and eventually moved to a folding chair nearby and would occasionally remove the band from her daughter’s hair, play with it and put it back in a ponytail.

I didn’t think a thing about it. Several people offered her chairs but she refused. Eventually she allowed her daughter to play in a rocking chair (one of the nice upholstered types) with another child before finally leaving.

A half hour later my host gets the message: that child was infested with lice.

Yuck!

After they left I claimed the rocking chair where the kids were playing! Sat back in it and everything!

So here I sit with lice shampoo on my head.. all my work of going months without shampoo totally lost.

I’m sorry folks but I am not taking a chance of catching those things—they are too hard to get rid of and just plain gross!

The clothes I was wearing are getting sanitized, even my purse. I am like totally grossed out. My host is incredibly embarrassed, and rushed off to purchase every lice treatment he can find at the time I left. He has already called to apologize.

I watched this woman play with her daughter’s hair, thinking it strange cause normally when you take a ponytail down it is to tidy it, you know? But instead she would just play with it a bit, examining it before sticking it back up in an even messier ponytail. I really think she knew before she walked in that door.

While thankful that she did not allow the child to move around more than she did I am upset about the fact that she came in the first place if she remotely suspected that her daughter had lice.

You just don’t do that, you know?

I am so totally grossed out! What in the world possessed me to claim that chair after the kids left I will never know!

Sigh.

Oh well. Claim it I did, so pay the price I will. I am so happy it wasn’t MY house she brought her child to!

Anyhow, I am shampooing my hair now, will use this robi-comb thing on it during the week, and plan to shampoo it again in seven days just in case any of the nasty things touched me!

I do not fault people for catching lice: please do NOT get me wrong! I do fault people for taking infested children out in public or to other people’s houses. If you even suspect you or your kid has them you treat that stuff, and everything your stuff has touched.. you DON’T go spreading them around to everyone else!

Like the saying goes: It’s no sin to get them but it is a horrible sin to keep them, or in this case spread them around!

Well, time to rinse this junk out of my head.

I am sooo pissed off right now. Months of work with this experiment just gone totally down the damn drain all because of a single inconsiderate parent.

Four Month Update

2010-05-28T07:39:00.001-07:00

As of May 26th it has been four whole months since I stopped using shampoo.

Wow. I actually didn’t realize it had been that long!

I still like my hair. Nothing has happened to it other than the fact that it is growing longer (yay). My hair gets just as dirty and just as clean using the baking soda as it did when I used shampoo.

Main difference: I use baking soda to wash my hair, and absolutely nothing as a conditioner. I simply do not need a conditioner anymore.

I no longer have shampoo in the house. When the novelty wore off my daughter switched back to shampoo so I gave her all that I had left. I even take baking soda with me when I go to friend’s houses for an overnight stay.

Honestly I don’t think it would hurt anything to go back to shampoo on occasion but why should I bother? This works, it works well and works a whole lot cheaper than buying shampoo at the supermarket!

Here’s an easy tutorial for washing your hair without shampoo. It doesn’t take anything fancy and cleans just as well as what you are used to. Just make sure you rinse really well—that is the one thing I emphasize.

It feels good passing up the shampoo section at the local store. It feels really good! Just to know that you don’t have to spend two dollars, five dollars, ten dollars and higher to keep your hair clean is a blessing in itself.

BTW, here’s a picture I did as a joke earlier this month when I could finally get my hair into a teeny tiny ponytail.

Not the best picture of me but I wanted you to know that four months’ into this I still have hair and it still looks perfectly normal.

If you are tired of spending all of that money on something you wash down the drain break out a box of baking soda and use a little of that instead. Just mix with a little water and use it just like shampoo. It won’t lather but it will get your hair just as clean, I promise!

Have a nice day!

Day 86

2010-04-16T17:55:00.001-07:00

Hello! Just wanted to check in with everyone! It is now 86 days without shampoo! I use baking soda diluted in a cup of water instead, and I don’t use ACV—no need for it!

My life is totally normal and other than my sister no one really knows that I have went shampoo-free.

I find that the baking soda works well in removing any grease or dirt my hair may contain and I have to use it less than I normally had to use shampoo, which is really nice.

The best part is passing the shampoo aisle at the store! I love the freedom to keep on walking right on past—the freedom to spend my money on what I want and not what corporations say I need!

When I was a kid I would watch those shampoo commercials with all of the lather and want to BE them. I would bathe and scrub up wasting loads of soap and shampoo! What a waste, but I didn’t know any better back then!

I would love to hear stories of others who have left the commercialized world of shampoo behind for a simpler solution—in fact, I would love to feature YOUR story here in this blog for others!

After all, it gets boring just chatting about my hair—lets’ talk about yours.

Day 66

2010-03-27T19:57:00.001-07:00

I am still living life without shampoo, and frankly I do not miss it.

I use baking soda and water to clean my hair once or twice a week. It needs nothing more frequent unless I use a lot of hair spray or gel. No one has noticed that I have discontinued using shampoo, though I have gotten several compliments on how well my hair looks!

My hair is soft and full of body now, but as it is still rather short I have a couple of spots in the back that want to stick up, so I now wear a cap around the house to avoid spending an hour each day getting it to lay right as it grows back in. When going out I style it however.

I no longer use acv on my hair. I find I do not need it.

My daughter is still going no-poo as well she says. All I know is that her hair is soft and beautiful.

I wish I had known about this a long time ago, and that I had had the courage to try this when I first stumbled upon it. Not only is my hair in better condition, but a sprinkle of baking soda is a LOT less expensive than shampoo and conditioner!

Have you ever tried going without shampoo? Did you like it, and are you still doing it? If not, have you considered trying it?

Honestly, I was very surprised at how clean my hair is without shampoo. I seriously doubt I will ever use shampoo again, honestly. It does take some getting used to, however—it feels strange NOT to lather your head down whenever you take a shower!

Day 54 - Shampoo is Not Necessary

2010-03-15T20:22:00.000-07:00

The last couple of times I "washed" my hair I used baking soda but no apple cider vinegar rinse. My hair is doing just fine.

If I have learned anything from this experiment it is this: Shampoo is NOT necessary for clean, healthy hair.

It really isn't. My hair is clean, sweet-smelling, and actually softer now than it ever was when I used shampoo on it!

I think of all of those bottles of expensive shampoo I have poured on my hair over the years, and frankly it makes me angry. Angry that I was stupid enough to fall for their lies.

They say that to succeed in business you create a product then create a need in people for the product. They sure did that with the shampoo industry!

The worst part of the whole ridiculous thing is the fact that I still find myself reaching for the shampoo bottle that sits on my shelf. There are times when I have to fight with myself to keep from grabbing that bottle.

Just like an addict.

What makes us this way? I know of a method that is inexpensive, ecologically friendly and actually works, and yet I find myself trying to go back to giving my money to big business!

If you ever get the opportunity, try going without shampoo, for just a little while. Instead of shampoo use baking soda and water to clean your hair and experience the difference yourself.

You don't have to make a big deal out of it--in fact I would recommend that you don't tell anyone for a while.

Just try it as a little secret project, where no one can try to dissuade you because they think your hair will be "dirty." I promise you that it won't. Just use the baking soda mixed in water to clean your hair, you won't even really need the ACV if you are worried about the smell...

Day 44

2010-03-05T08:39:00.000-08:00

My hair is still doing fine without shampoo. I use the baking soda/acv rinse once or twice a week, primarily because I use hair gel and hairspray on my hair so it builds up.

My daughter who does not use these products only uses the baking soda/acv rinse once every 2 weeks. Her hair looks so nice that I actually asked her if she had went back to using shampoo! She has fine, dry hair that is really taking well to the no-poo method.

I still feel strange when going places and hugging people. I feel like my hair may be dirty and people notice but don't tell me. As a result I have my sister and my daughter do the look and sniff test on it regularly. Both tell me my hair smells fine and looks very clean.

How is it that my hair can be so clean using as little as I do on it? How can it be that I no longer have issues with psoriasis after that one bout, when I have been told all of my life that I needed special products to keep my hair clean?

Part of me knows the answer: companies created a need to sell their product. I guess they really did their job well, cause we are all convinced that we need it!

Day 37

2010-02-26T07:50:00.000-08:00

Still living without shampoo. I have started using baking soda more often on my hair, though I don't always follow it with an ACV rinse.

It works quite well--just take about a half a teaspoon of baking soda and mix in a cup of warm water. Pour on your hair and rub in well. If your hair is greasy at all the baking soda will saponify and seem a bit slimy. Rinse well when you are done.

You could take an old shampoo bottle and mix up the baking soda in advance a bottle at a time, but the mixture would not be as warm as if you mixed it fresh unless you heat it back up again. However you could add some essential oil for scent if you made it ahead.

Day 32

2010-02-21T15:27:00.000-08:00

My hair is still without shampoo. Today I went among some of my friends who haven't seen me for ages... I received several compliments on how young I looked with my new hairstyle, and how wonderful my hair looked...

None of them had a single clue that I no longer shampoo my hair...

Life is good.

I took some pictures of my hair today so that you can see for yourself what it looks like. Yes, my hair is very short--I'm growing it out from a love shave when my cousin had brain surgery. As a result it isn't a perfect style but you can still see the condition of the hair itself...

Day 28 - I Want a New Term!

2010-02-17T21:30:00.000-08:00

This evening I used baking soda with an acv rinse on my hair.

It is softer than ever, it seems.

When I went to visit my sister she didn't even mention the experiment--I don't think she noticed anything different about my hair.

No one seems to notice except an occasional comment on how it is growing out or the fact that it is styling well these days.

It is wonderfully soft anymore, without a trace of the strawlike feeling I normally have when I use a curling iron on my hair with any regularity. Even the psoriasis is back under control.

I must admit that this is an incredibly frugal way to care for one's hair and I look forward to seeing how well it lays when it gets longer.

It has been almost a month since I stopped using shampoo on my hair. Despite concerns that my hair would be greasy or dirty--it is not. It is softer now--it reminds me of the hair a young child would have.. It definitely has more body to it, and I style it using a curling iron, holding it in place with a little hair spray.

I recommend anyone who is curious about this method to try it. Honestly, just do it. The first week was the hardest for me, but I used a bit of corn starch to absorb the extra grease instead of reaching for the shampoo.

I do believe if anyone asks me what I am using on my hair I am going to tell them that I am using a natural cleaner on my hair and conveniently forget the name of what I'm using. No one would believe me if I told them I am not using shampoo on my hair, you know?

There really needs to be a term for this other than "no-poo." Seriously. That name makes me think of something totally unattractive, and I'm sure it strikes others the same way. Perhaps we can say that we are cleaning our hair using an all-natural eco-friendly mineral method. We wouldn't be lying, cause baking soda is a component of the mineral natron after all, and if water isn't eco-friendly then I don't know what is! To include the apple cider vinegar we could always say we use a fruit extract rinse....

Day 26 - Continued Success

2010-02-15T06:15:00.000-08:00

The tea tree oil is working - the dandruff from the psoriasis is greatly reduced.

I have figured out a better way to distribute the oil on my hair. When I bathe, take a cup of warm water and add a few drops of the tea tree oil. Mix well and spread evenly on my hair, rubbing into my scalp. It takes a lot less tea tree oil this way, so the scent fades faster and distributes better.

My daughter had played with my hair and decided to attempt to go no-poo herself. Her hair is very fine and normally quite dry so we will see what happens with her as well.

So far her hair looks totally normal. I didn't even know she had went no-poo until she told me. She said she hasn't been using shampoo for about two weeks now, since she discovered that I was trying it and how well my hair looked.

Day 22 - Disaster Averted (I Hope)

2010-02-11T07:19:00.000-08:00

The tea tree oil is apparently helping. The dandruff from the psoriasis is greatly reduced--almost back to what I would consider "normal."

I am going to try the oil on the couple of psoriasis patches I have on my elbow and knee to see if I can determine a difference there as well.

I massage the tea tree oil into my scalp then just rub a bit nilly-willy on my hair to make sure I get everything. The only disagreeable part of it is the smell. It does give a bit of a tingle to my scalp I must admit!

I just rinsed my hair with warm water and put more tea tree oil on it. I am seeing a few more flakes, possibly from the heavy scrubbing I did with the oil--but still less than I did the other day.

Hopefully this stuff will work, though I wonder what is worse: the dandruff flakes or the smell of the tea tree oil!

Day 21

2010-02-10T12:14:00.000-08:00

I ended up putting more tea tree oil on my scalp. Placed it on my fingertips and rubbed it in good, then rubbed some through my hair. My scalp tingled for quite a while so I think it is doing something.

This morning I still have flakes but not as much as I had yesterday and the days before. Not sure but will continue with the tea tree oil. If it is the tea tree oil I feel the flakes will continue to reduce.. if not it's back to the drawing board, cause I really don't want to use shampoo on my head. My hair behaves so much better without it!

Day 20

2010-02-09T14:18:00.000-08:00

Psoriasis Roadblock

As of three days ago every shake of my head released an incredible flurry of dandruff from my psoriasis.

It is embarrassing. Horribly so.

These past few days I had used the vinegar rinse on it after reading that it would help the flakes. It didn't work on my head. I tried tea tree oil, which didn't work either. I must admit by the time I tried the tea tree oil I didn't use very much though.

So today I took a dime-sized (maybe a little less) dram of my coal-tar shampoo and worked it through my damp scalp. It didn't even lather I used so little, if that gives you any idea.

I let it sit for a few minutes then rinsed it out thoroughly. No itching but my head is still flaking. My hair still appears like it does after cleaning it with water and/or vinegar, so the little amount of shampoo apparently didn't strip the oil from my hair, which is good. I'm hoping it didn't reverse my progress thus far.

I wish I had the liquid they used to sell for psoriasis on scalps to pour on it.. I like how well my hair does without the shampoo, but the air around my head looks like a snowstorm when I shake my head!

I don't know what to do. I don't want to start using shampoo again, but the tiny amount I tried doesn't seem to have helped any.

Does anyone have any ideas?

I think I'm going to take more of the tea tree oil and work it through my hair. My scalp doesn't seem dry, but my psoriasis is in overdrive. Oh, I wish summer was here! I could get out in the sun and that would clear it up... I only have to worry about my scalp in the winter because I spend enough time in the sun to keep it under control otherwise...

Day 15

2010-02-04T18:32:00.000-08:00

I went to my sister's house and asked her to inspect my hair yesterday.

After feeling it and smelling it she was convinced I was using something to clean it.

I don't think she believed me when I told her the last few days nothing but warm water has been used on my head.

I've gotten a couple of compliments from others about how well my hair looks lately. Wondering if it is a fluke, or if I'm onto something here...

Day 8

2010-01-28T07:24:00.000-08:00

I awoke to a very fluffy head of hair today. I used to consider my hair to be greasy, but I am wondering if I should reconsider that classification.

Normally I detest bangs cause they never look right but today these are perfect--and I didn't do anything to them!

I had to give it a little definition with a curling iron, but only in spots like the cowlicks on the back of my head. I put a bit of hairspray to keep it in place, cause it looks so nice I actually want it to stay this way!

My head does not itch, nor does it feel greasy when I run my fingers through it.

They say that the next week or so should be rough. We'll see.

So far I am still undecided at whether this is a good idea. I find it odd that a process that is supposed to free me from hair care now has me obsessing over how clean or dirty my hair is!

Squeaky Hair

2010-01-27T20:26:00.000-08:00

Actually I was going to bed but I came back to share this with you cause I find it fascinating!

Remember last night when I put the pinch of corn starch on my hair to eliminate the greasy feel? Well I thought about it all day and it was starting to gross me out--the thought that this powder was in my hair. My hair looked clean, acted clean, was not greasy at all, but the thought of that corn starch was bugging me!

I decided to rinse my hair to get rid of the corn starch. I didn't put baking soda, acv or anything in my hair other than warm water... the water actually came out clean but that wasn't the strange part.

I ran my fingers through my wet hair and it squeaked! I know, you guys are like "so?" but my mother always told me to run my fingers through my hair after I shampooed and if it gave a squeak you knew that your hair was really clean. Apparently that was how they judged hair cleanliness when she was a child!

I do not recall the last time my hair squeaked after I washed it! I can just imagine my mother nodding satisfactorily at my now-clean head of hair--but no shampoo or soap or any type has touched it for a week now! I used baking soda/acv the one day (Sunday?) and that has been it! Last night I used a sprinkle of corn starch on it to control that greasy feel and today I used only water.

The back of my head is starting to curl as it dries and the top is fluffed like a punk rocker. I'm just going to scrunch it and see what happens!

I am skeptical as to how long I can keep this up, for I have psoriasis in my scalp. However I am pleasantly surprised with the results thus far. I told my sister about it tonight and her concern was that my hair would stink. So far I don't think it smells.

I guess I need to get someone to do a sniff test, but my sister lives five hours away and I'm afraid to tell anyone around here what I'm doing. What can I say "sniff my hair and tell me if it stinks--I haven't washed it since last week!" Goodness, can you imagine what the neighbors would think! (wow, I sound like my mother there!)

Anyhow I'll try to post a decent pic in a few days - if I can't take a decent one I'll get my sister to take one for me when I see her in the next couple of weeks!

Have a nice night!

The Great No Poo Experiment

2010-01-26T20:17:00.000-08:00

After reading numerous posts about life without shampoo I have decided to give it a try. Last year I shaved my head in sympathy of my cousin's brain surgery so why not this year try life without shampoo while my tresses grow back out?

Anyhow, for the record I'm posting a pic taken shortly before I decided to give this a try - a random shot taken at the Mall at the request of the kid. This will have to stand as the "before" pic.

The last day I used shampoo on my hair was Wednesday, January 20, 2010. I didn't really think about it - being winter I don't like to wash my hair everyday regardless to be honest, but when it starts getting greasy it drives me insane!

When Sunday January 24th rolled around I made the final decision and instead of shampoo used the baking soda and water mixture to clean my hair. I was amazed--I thought I was rinsing my hair well, but the water in the sink afterwards was so soapy it looked like a child's bubble bath! I followed up with the acv rinse and discovered that my hair was light and fluffy - a big bonus at this stage of hair length!

Since then I have not had to use any hair gel on my hair, though I have curled it a bit with a curling iron to give some definition to the new-found body. In the "before" pic you see here my hair was covered in hair gel just to make it look like hair! Today I used a bit of hairspray on it though.

By tonight (January 26th) I could run my fingers through my hair and feel the grease, but the appearance of the hair was NOT greasy and the hair was well-behaved. I was going to either give up and wash it or treat it with the baking soda/acv routine tonight until I found a no poo post that suggested rubbing a pinch of corn starch through the hair and brushing it out.

I tried it and the greasy feel is gone! My hair does not look powdery or dirty either. I'm going to upload a pic taken with my phone in hopes that you can see.

Tomorrow will mark one-week of life without shampoo. Will I make it to week 2? Better yet, I shaved this mop last July - is my hair ever going to grow back?!?

I'll try to post a better picture later but wanted to give you a basic idea of how it looks - it isn't exactly styled right now as I've been playing with it, but you can see it is a LOT fluffier....