New do and no poo

Check out my new do!

With all the hair pulling I've mentioned here and there it was time to finally get the locks chopped off (though I wasn't quite ready for a "busy mother's haircut"). Every time I ran to Jason begging him to free my hair from Drew's death grip he would remind me, "I thought you were going to get your hair cut!" So I finally did. Here it is with curls.

I'm not sure I like the cut with the curls, but goodness knows I'm not going to straighten it myself- that's a job pretty much left solely to my stylist!

Not looking too shabby considering my hair has not seen or touched shampoo in 40 days. Yes, you did read that right, my hair has not been washed in over a month. Before you go running off to try and avoid my stink, let me explain.  I have showered, I just haven't washed my hair with shampoo or conditioner in 40 days.

Why on earth would I do that?  It's called "no poo."  It's pretty simple- you don't use shampoo (thus the "no poo").  You wash your hair every once in a while with conditioner, or baking soda, or apple cider vinegar, or any other combination of homemade concoctions, but you don't use store-bought shampoo.  I came across this idea on another "Mommy blog" and was intrigued so I googled "no poo."  Surprisingly all the search results that came up were hair-related and not constipation related as you might expect.

I'm not going to attempt to convert you, but if you're interested in some of the reasons you might go "no poo" and the various methods you can use you can check out this article.

Or you can read this mom's experience of herself and her family going "no poo" (read from bottom up to start at the beginning of the "story"). This story does end with the mom going back to shampoo, but still very interesting.

Besides the supposed "health risks" of the chemicals in shampoos (which truthfully is not my main concern), it's supposed to be great for your hair.  All of the blogs that I have read where people are doing it say they've gotten tons of compliments on their hair. And it's supposed to be especially great for curly hair.  Curly-heads apparently have, on average, about 20,000 less hairs on their heads than straight-haired folks.  That means 20,000 less hair follicles and 20,000 less oil-producing pores.  Therefore curly hair has a tendency to be dry and "thirsty", and, unfortunately, curls need moisture in order to not be frizzy.

So, basically, I did this to see if I could achieve great hair. I'm tired of my curls and was ready to spend $200 to get a keratin treatment to straighten it (the opposite of a perm).  I haven't fully eliminated the idea of getting a chemical straightening, but I figured I'd like to give this "no poo" thing a try to see what it does for my hair. I also figure that while I'm on medical leave and don't have a need to be presentable every day, this was a great time to try it out.

Here's how the first week went (you can click on the pics if you want to see them larger):

Day 1

I didn't get a picture today because I didn't really think about it.  I washed my hair with just water today, no conditioner either.  It was a little tangly when I combed it afterward, but not as bad as I thought it would be.  Usually when I get out of a pool or any kind of water and let my hair dry by itself it feels like straw. Surprisingly not today.  It is definitely frizzy, but it feels soft and light.  I'm surprised that it doesn't look greasy at all.

Day 2

I showered and rinsed my hair with just water.  I got out, combed it, then scrunched it dry with a t-shirt instead of a towel (yet another thing I read was better for preventing frizz).

I am impressed with the way it curled with NO PRODUCTS in it!  It never does that!  Granted, it's been years really since I've tried to just let it dry naturally (I either put gel in it right after getting out of the shower, or if I'm too lazy for that I pull it back into a pony tail) but when I used to it was always a big fuzz ball.  No curls. No waves. Just frizz.  Today my hair looked just about the way it usually does when I use gels, a little more frizz around the edges than normal, but I actually have some ringlets!

By the end of Day 2 my hair was definitely looking pretty greasy. It usually doesn't look greasy until the next morning, not by evening the same day.

Day 3

Again, showered but didn't use anything on my hair, just scrubbed my scalp and hair with water.  Scrunched dry with a t-shirt.

My hair is taking FOREVER to dry today.  I wanted to take a picture during Drew's first nap, but I'm having to wait since it's still damp. I'm not sure why it's taking so long. The curls are a lot like yesterday though, it's as if I put product in my hair.  Still some "halo-like" frizz, but fantastic curls and body too.

My hair feels a little heavier today and definitely has the greasy look on top.  Thankfully curls tend to do a good job of masking greasy-looking hair since it's already "stringy" and the light glints off of it in different directions, not allowing the eye to really see that grease-slick look. I'm not liking the greasy feel so I think I will try a baking soda and/or apple cider vinegar rinse tomorrow.

Funny how in the same "photo shoot" my hair goes from looking pretty great to looking horribly stringy! Bleck!

 Day 4

I couldn't stand it any more so I did a baking soda and apple cider vinegar wash today.  I put 1 tbsp. of baking soda in a plastic cup then 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar in another and brought them into the shower with me.  I filled each with one cup of water while in the shower. I started with the baking soda.  It made my hair feel "squeaky clean," until I rinsed it out, then it felt straw-like and tangly.  So then I slowly dumped the apple cider mixture on my head and my hair suddenly felt softer.  Seems backwards to me... but hey, it worked!  Hair came out clean looking and much lighter than yesterday.

I really liked my curls today, they had a nice shape and were not frizzy at all!  

I like the baking soda/apple cider vinegar rinse!

Day 5

Back to just water rinsing today.  Looked a tad greasy already, and for some reason the curls were kind of limp and frizzy today. Time for a baking soda rinse again already? They do say that your hair needs time to adjust.  Just like breastfeeding is a supply and demand kind of thing, your hair does the same thing.  When you quit breastfeeding there's going to be a short time of overproduction of milk, same with the production of oil on your head.  

Day 6

My hair hair was much less frizzy than it has been this whole time.  I liked it!  Definitely greasy by the end of the day, but not as heavy feeling as I expected seeing as it has been 2 days since it was "washed". Funny how the picture makes it look super greasy...

Day 7

 After just a water rinse, as usual, it's definitely still looking greasy, but not as bad as it did at the same point last time (three days after a wash).  It's not as heavy feeling. I'm trying to extend the time between "washes," but am debating if I can make it one more day without a wash.  I like clean hair!

Since then it's more or less been the same thing. I've been able to go longer and longer between baking soda/apple cider vinegar washes, stretching 3, 4, even 5 days. I do have to "wash" it by scrubbing it in hot water every day in the shower, but it's been very easy to do.

The thing I like best is that I don't have to put gel or mousse or hair spray in my hair- it now curls so nicely on it's own without any of that! My hair is also very soft and shiny. The stylist at the salon commented on how healthy my hair was. :)

I don't know how long I'll stick with it- there are days I just crave the suds and lather of shampoo, but so far it's been a fun experiment!

And just so I don't leave you craving photos of Drew, check out his "do". He's been sporting a bit of a "mohawk" lately due to a section of darker hair right on top that likes to puff up.

Heehee, it looks like he's taking a picture of himself, just like mom!