Shampoo-free...and lovin' it!

This may be hard for some to believe, but I've been shampoo-free for eight months and it's going great! It's something I never thought I'd try, but now I have cleaner hair and better curls.

So why the change? It all started with a book I saw at the library about curly-haired girls. Since my early twenties, my hair has been thinning out and my curls have turned more into waves. I'd wash my hair with shampoo every day thinking I was getting it clean, when in reality, I was stripping my hair of its natural oils. I began following some advice in the book, but ended up with really greasy hair--yuk! Not long after that, I stumbled across a post on simple mom. This had the answer!:)

To wash my hair, I mix a teaspoon of baking soda to about a cup of warm water and shake it up in a spray bottle. (Simple mom suggests one tablespoon to a cup of water; just do what works for you.:) I give my hair a few squirts and run my fingers through it to make sure the mix has been evenly dispersed. I also massage my scalp.

To condition my hair I do either one of these things: I squeeze a few lemons and do a one to one ratio of water with the juice. I've also poured some apple cider vinegar in the bottle and add some water to it. (Simple mom does 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to one cup of water.) Both of these at full strength make my hair very greasy, so adding the water is a good thing. I prefer the smell of the lemon juice, but I seem to like the results better with the vinegar. By the way, make sure you keep the bottle in the fridge if you use the lemon juice so that it keeps fresh longer.

If you want to try this out, be patient during the first few weeks. Your hair will go through a greasy stage as it's getting used to this new way of cleaning it. After a while, I'm sure you could go a day or two without washing it with the baking soda-water. I haven't tried this yet as I put mousse in my hair just about every day and I want to clean it out.

I'm so happy I've got my curls back! I just finger comb my hair as soon as I get out of the shower. I don't shake it with the towel, as that would add some frizz to my hair. I let it air dry, too. When it's almost completely dry, I put some curly-hair mousse in it.

I like this hair cleaning routine because it's healthy and economical. My hairdresser says that my hair looks good and healthy.:) A mixture in each of those bottles can last several days. Lemons, apple cider vinegar and baking soda are cheap, too!

Have any of you tried a new way of cleaning your hair? If you've been looking for a healthy, economical way, perhaps the tips in this post will help you out.:)