Hello everyone!
So, it has been almost a month since I started my No Poo adventure and it has been great! I have done four washes now and look at how my hair is after those washes:
Wash 1 and wash 3 are taken after completely air drying and haven’t been tied up in buns or anything, while wash 2 was just after I undid the braids I wore for the day, and wash 4 was after I had my hair up in a bun the day before. So, I’m not sure if my hair has found some inherent waves because of the rinse.
I haven’t experienced the gross over-oily hair some have gotten during their breaking-in period, so that’s weird. My scalp was just very very itchy between my first and second wash.
Anyway, my hair is definitely softer now and a lot less brittle. It feels more dense and moist, if that makes sense, it’s not dry, okay. I also got rid of the chunky and flaky type of dandruff that would leave my scalp super itchy and gooey and gross. I don’t need to wash my scalp everyday now. I still have tiny white flakes but they’re mostly around the perimeter of the scalp where my body soap or facial wash could get into my hair. And my head only gets super itchy when it’s wash day (or every sixth day for me). I also don’t have that weird smell I get on my scalp even five minutes after I get out of the shower anymore. I think it’s called “Smelly Hair Syndrome” on the Internet.
My wash recipe has also been adjusted to best suit my hair as I see fit.
For my baking soda scalp wash, I now only use about half a teaspoon of baking soda in about a cup of water. I mix that in vigorously. I have found that my hair got very itchy when I used too much.
As for my apple cider vinegar rinse, I now mix half cup of ACV to a cup of water (1:2 ACV-water ratio), two drops of tea tree oil, and two to three drops of ylang-ylang or cinnamon essential oils. It does smell like ketchup (as my boyfriend put it) when it’s still wet and the vinegar smell is still there, but once that dries, it’s all good from there.
I have recommended this to my mom and she is now trying it along with one of her friends. I really recommend doing this instead of buying commercial shampoos and conditioners because my hair and scalp has NEVER EVER (I cannot stress that enough) felt better. If I have found this out back when I was younger, I would have saved myself the heartbreak and anguish of trying to wrestle with my unruly hair.
Spines and Seams 
Hi Erica, I’m glad I came across your blog. Like you I’ve had scalp problems that even expensive natural shampoos can’t fix. I’ve been contemplating for sometime on doing no poo but have always wondered wether it’ll work in the Philippines. Are you still no poo? How has it been? How did your mom and her friend take to it? Thanks so much! -Aileen
Hey Aileen, sorry for getting back to you so late, the reply I tried to post on mobile wasn’t posting and I have just gotten hold of the Internet today.
Anyway, I am nopoo for, what, about six months now and I have had no problem with it in regards to our country’s climate (I mean I’m assuming you’re from the Philippines, too). Granted, I work from home and I don’t get exposed to commuting and the Manila heat as much, but I have had no problems with stink or uneasiness when I do go out, even when I go on long commutes to Quiapo. Quite the opposite really, since I don’t get those gross wet dandruff clumps anymore, my scalp doesn’t feel so gross even when I sweat.
My mom and her friend are still on it, too. And they’ve both cut out the baking soda wash after a while and just water washed their hair then rinsed with the diluted vinegar.
I haven’t washed with baking soda for a couple of months now, I think. I just wash with water, massage for a couple of minutes, then rinse with the diluted vinegar including my scalp, massage that in for a longer time, and rinse really well. Basically a lot of massaging to get my scalp clean.
I really recommend going nopoo. My last cut was about seven months ago and I haven’t got split ends and my hair looks and feels better than it has ever been. Good luck!
Hi girls! I’m on the no-poo method too for 4 months now and I love what it does to my hair. I had dandruff since I was in high school and I’ve tried ALL (literally) shampoos in the supermarket to no success. I have really greasy hair and I commute to work but egg yolk washes really does great cleaning. I like BS and AVC too every once in a while.
I really should try doing an egg yolk wash. Yay for nopoo!
Hi Erica,
Searching for this no-poo thing in the Philippines led me to your blog. I also want to try this one and I want to ask you if it needs to be an apple cider vinegar or can it be any vinegar? 🙂
Hi Angelica! When I first started out I bought organic ACV from Healthy Options, but now I just use Silver Swan’s cane vinegar cuz we have no Healthy Options here in Eastern Samar. Hehe. Good luck!
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