Going Shampoo Free

On my latest quest to be peculiar, I have sought out a different method of washing my hair! Stop Using Shampoo. I told my friend's about my plan to stop using shampoo and start washing my hair with baking soda and apple cider vinegar. Their response, "Isn't that how you make science fair volcanoes?" 

YES. 

But it's also a much healthier, cheaper alternative to washing your hair with shampoo! I honestly just stumbled across this method last week, read blog after blog after blog about it and now I'm trying it out! 

Method:

1. Combine 1-2 Tbsp. with a cup of warm water. 

2. Pour this mixture over your scalp. Massage through roots. Rinse out. 

3. Combine (1 Tbsp to) 1/2 cup* Apple Cider Vinegar with a cup of warm water. 

4. Pour and massage through ends of hair. Let sit for a moment. Rinse out. 

5. Repeat 2-3 times a week.    

*The greatest discrepancy that I have seen concerns how much Apple Cider Vinegar people use. A half a cup is the most that I have seen individuals using with as little as 1 Tbsp. I've been doing the 1/2 cup for the past week, but many people experiment with more or less. I might decrease a bit and just see what happens!   

Economical Benefits: Y'all Apple Cider Vinegar and Baking Soda are dirt cheap. I spent $2 on the above ingredients. (It IS cheaper to get the HUGE gallon of Apple Cider Vinegar, but I wasn't ready to be that girl, yet.) The average amount I'd spend on a (bigger) bottle of Shampoo and Conditioner would be about $5 each. I would probably use this for about a month-2 months, washing everyday. With the Baking Soda + ACV Method, I'll only wash my hair about 2-3 times a week. Plus, anything I can do to avoid the 21st Century plight of irresponsible, over-consumption - Sign Me Up!

Healthier, Natural Hair: I would shampoo my hair every day and use a spray gel to keep my curls in place. I always credited my limp, frizzy hair to the dry climate of the Mid-West - but it probably had more to do with the chemicals I was pumping into my scalp. Shampoo strips the hair of natural oils and our hair overcompensates by producing more - resulting in greasy hair. I have only been using this method for a week and my curls are already happier - they're more defined and hold throughout the whole day without being frizzy. (Another confession: I don't brush my hair.) It's probably too early to really know what effect this method will have on my hair, but it's going well so far. I do - rinse my hair with water everyday. I tend to shower almost everyday, especially when I work out, but I only wash my hair with BS+ACV every couple of days. 

Week One: My curls are feeling pretty happy so far!

Further Reading:

Simple Mom has an extensive blog post that details the chemicals used in shampoo and the benefits of the "No Poo" Method. 

Crunchy Betty (one of my favorites) talks about the history of shampoo and her reasoning behind "No Poo."

Have you tried this method?