Ditch Shampoo, Look Better

Ditch Shampoo, Look Better

Washing your hair every day with a shampoo that you bought at the salon is the American definition of being squeaky clean. Most people shampoo every day without even thinking twice. But if you’re like a lot of people, you probably find that your hair still looks dry no matter what product you use. Your stylist may tell you that you need to buy another $50-dollar bottle of shampoo and use the right styling products, but the real solution might be much simpler. Maybe you need to ditch shampoo altogether. Here’s how to do it.

The Basics

Contrary to what the name of the method suggests, “no-poo” does not mean that you don’t wash your hair. You will still wash your hair, but will use natural ingredients such as baking soda and apple cider vinegar instead of commercial shampoos. In general, you will also wash your hair less often, though, which most hair professionals recommend as an important part of making your hair healthier.

A common concern about the “no-poo” method is that it will make your hair smell bad. Fortunately, this is not true! Your hair may not be scented with strong chemical fragrances, but the natural smell of your scalp is not unpleasant. Many people also worry that it will make their hair look bad, but most find that the opposite is true. Hair that isn’t regularly stripped of its oils by chemicals is shinier, softer and more touchable.

Brace Yourself For The Beginning

Going to the “no-poo” method promises amazing results. But there’s no way around the fact that first you have to go through a transitional phase when your hair adjusts to not being shampooed. The bad news is that the first month after ditching chemical shampoo is going to make your hair look super greasy, followed by a couple months of frizzy hair. In fact, most people find that it takes about ninety days for your hair to detox and adjust. This can be tough, for sure, but stick with it and you’ll be rewarded with shiny, healthy hair at the end of it. We promise that you’ll notice your greasy hair much more than anyone else will. But if you’re really self-conscious, wear hats as often as possible.

How Often Should You Wash & With What?

There’s more than one “no-poo” method and you may want to experiment with them to see which ones work best for your hair. The most common ones are either baking soda or clay to wash the scalp. Make a paste with either ½ teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of the baking soda or clay and rub it into your scalp thoroughly and rinse. If your hair is oily, you’ll want to slightly increase the amount of baking soda.

Follow this with a rinse of apple cider vinegar, diluted with water. The amount of water you’ll want to use for dilution can vary, but you shouldn’t use more than a 50/50 ratio. If your hair is dry, you’ll want to use a bit more vinegar. Don’t worry that your hair will smell like vinegar: the scent will all be rinsed out.

In the first few months, you may want to wash with these natural methods every four days or so. As your hair adjusts, you can eventually go to washing only once a week.

These are just a few of the basics to ditch shampoo. If it’s something you’re interested in, you’ll find a lot more resources about alternate natural ingredients you can use to cleanse your hair. The important thing is getting started and getting past the transition phase. After that, your hair will likely look so great that you will ditch shampoo for good!