yolking my mane

Today ends the 10th day I've lived shampoo-free! Having long hair and being somewhat vain (or maybe just fastidious?), it has been quite an adventure. And there is not yet an end in sight, as I suspect many other experiments will follow. The no 'poo thing is a movement and each participant must make their own way as their poor scalp tries to detox and readjust to a whole new ballgame!

So far I've done: two baking soda washes followed by black tea/rosemary rinse, one clay wash followed by apple cider vinegar rinse, and another bs wash with acv rinse. In between I've done a few dry shampoos, a couple using cornstarch & rice powder and one with oat flour that wasn't as good.

If that sounds like a lot of washing, well, it is. Because, for those of you unfamiliar with the no 'poo thing, there's a transition period where your scalp continues to produce the same amount of sebum as it was producing when you used harsh shampoos that strip your hair down and then coat it with silicone! Also, I'm actually really brushing my hair now (rarely did before), to move the sebum along to condition the ends.

Anyway it's not looked dirty (well, maybe on day 3 or 4) but it does feel extremely different, sort of waxy, as if I went to the salon and they put some styling product in it (I never use stuff like that). Reminiscent of a horse's mane compared to my old synthetic wig! It actually has had moments of looking quite fabulous. It's noticeably thicker and heavier.

Nonetheless, I'm worried the baking soda is building up or something. I want to cut the waxy feeling and so dug around some more forums and found my next recipe. Egg yolk, cinnamon and essential oil wash, followed by a vinegar orange oil rinse. I'll be sure to follow the cold water instructions for that one as I don't want to be picking omelet out of my mane.