My thoughts on the no-shampoo hair method

A month or so ago I was talking to a friend when she mentioned that she had began using baking soda and vinegar to wash her hair. Your first reaction may be "Ewww!!" or "What?!!", but there is actually a huge group of people who insist that using regular shampoo is harmful for hair. I won't go into why they think this, but if you'd like to know, just google "no-poo" (as the method is affectionately called) and plenty of websites should come up. Since a few people I know had tried it, I decided to give it a go. I went about seven weeks without shampoo, but today I decided to go back to my normal routine. What follows is some basic information on the method, my results, and why I switched back to regular shampoo and conditioner. 

Here's a quick overview of the method. Basically, you wash your hair with a mixture of baking soda and water, rinse, and then condition with a mixture of apple cider vinegar and water. Advocates for the method claim it's cheap, easy, and eco-friendly, and although it definitely is cheap and eco-friendly, I found it more of a hassle than regular shampoo and conditioner. For the "no-poo" method, you have to premix the ingredients and the resulting mixtures are very liquid-y. Once you apply the baking soda mixture to your hair, you massage it into your scalp. There is no lather, but only a gritty and slightly tingly feeling. For the vinegar mixture, you pour it all over your hair and wait. Although the vinegar smell does rinse out, the in-shower experience isn't particularly pleasant. 

My very curly hair!

Those who use the "no-poo" method also claim it helps with hair manageability- you don't need to wash your hair as often and some say they no longer need product (frizz cream, gel, etc.) at all. Since I have very curly hair, product is a normal part of my hair routine. After showering I apply a frizz cream or leave-in conditioner to the ends of my hair and a gel throughout, then run a wide-tooth comb through and I'm done. I tried not using products during my "no-poo" experience, but my hair is just too curly- it might have frizzed less, but the curls were not defined and were more limp. For a while I forwent shampoo but still used product. Some days I loved it and other days I didn't, which is how it was when I used shampoo, too. I'm not sure if my hair ended up being less greasy. I don't nomally need to wash my hair everyday, so I didn't notice too much of a difference. I started getting a little bit of dandruff, though, so maybe my scalp was getting a little too dry!

After weeks of using baking soda and vinegar, today I made the switch back. For me, the biggest issues were the smell of the vinegar, non-lathering effect of the baking soda, and the dandruff. As I mentioned before, the vinegar smell does wash out, but what's left is just a hair smell. Normally I use Herbal Essences Color Me Happy shampoo and conditioner (I don't have color hair, but it smells amazing!) and I missed having wonderful smelling hair. 

Other than the scent issue, my results may not have been typical because of how curly my hair is. Most reviews and testimonies I read online were from people with straight or slightly wavy hair who probably didn't use much product to begin with. Overall, I'm glad I tried it. Although it wasn't a big success for me, I still recommend trying it, especially if you have straighter hair. If you have any questions feel free to ask, and if you try/have tried the "no-poo" method please share your results in the comments section below!