I can now say, with complete confidence, that there is no poo in my hair.

In yet another step on the path to my unintentional nouveau-hippie glory, I have done the unthinkable. I've given up shampoo. It's weird to hear a woman say that, isn't it? I'm going with the baking soda and apple cider vinegar routine.


And I'm surprisingly happy with it!

Is she seriously doing a blog post on her hair?

Dude, I totally am.

I have four reasons for this: it's cheap, it's easy, I don't have to worry about harsh chemicals on my head, and it has saved my poor hair!

Quick history lesson. When I was little I had fantastic hair. It was smooth and silky. I have photographic evidence:

D'awwww.
That's me at two. I'll have you know I was VERY sick that day, and still worked it like a pro.


Me at four. A little curl was creeping in by then, but it was all good. When I hit puberty, though, something horrible happened...

source
Mm-hmm. That's not an exaggeration. I spent the better part of my tween years with my hair pulled up/back/down/all around in a ponytail. By 14 I'd developed an addiction to styling mousse. It wasn't until my early twenties that my hair calmed down enough to even be considered curly, not just poofy, and it still needed mousse.

That was my favorite piercing, btw.
I had a hard time keeping my hair healthy. It wasn't shiny, it felt awful, but I didn't know what else to do. It was either crunchy and dry, or dull from the times I took a flat iron to it and scorched it into submission. Last summer I'd finally had enough and cut it all off. Freedom eventually turned into horror over what I'd done, and I've been growing it out ever since.

I went "poo free" about two weeks ago. I've read many times that it takes your scalp weeks to stop producing too much natural oil to protect your hair, as commercial shampoos strip it all away and the scalp tries to compensate, and you just have to tough it out. I haven't had this problem. It's been perfect since Day 1. My hair is soft and it's not oily at all.

Once a week I wash it with 1 tablespoon of baking soda mixed with 1 cup of water, rinse it, then use 1 tablespoon of the vinegar with 1 cup of water as a conditioner (I got the bottles in the 1st pic at the Dollar Store). And it doesn't make my hair smell gross, in case you were wondering. It doesn't smell like anything, actually. After it dries I rub a tiny bit of Giovanni Frizz Be Gone over it and that's it. The rest of the week I wash it with just water, and I don't need to reapply the serum. Perfect every time.

Here's a video of someone else talking about poo free hair:


I haven't tried any oil treatments yet, but I probably will eventually. The funny thing is, my hair is more wavy than curly now. If it stays like this, it'll be really pretty when it's longer. I could actually end up liking my hair. Finally!

I was going to be all, "And I don't have to worry about animal testing!" but I checked right before I started writing this, and evidently Arm & Hammer does conduct animal testing. Next time I will buy Bob's Red Mill baking soda instead. I'm also going to invest in a large bottle of organic apple cider vinegar. Apparently it also makes a great skin toner.

I'm increasingly interested in DIY beauty stuff like this. I'd like to learn more about skincare. I'm going to be 28 later this year, I need to start paying attention to my skin. Or is it already too late? I hope not. :/ Whatever, at least I'll have great hair.

:D