Seriously, if you are washing your hair every day or even every other day, STOP! There is no need and believe me your hair will style like a dream and need way less product.
I remember waaaaayy back when, I won't say exactly how many years ago this was, but it was a few. I scheduled an appointment to get my fancy Prom hair did, so I would look fantastic for the big night of my senior prom. You remember those 1,000 bobby pin updos with tight ringlets those were the days! My stylist told me not to wash my hair the day of and I thought she must be kidding. There was no way I wasn't going to wash my hair, I washed my hair every day. I shampooed, conditioned, blow dried and curled every day, because that is what I thought I was supposed to do, that is what my mother did, that is what my grandmother did, that’s what the shampoo commercials told me to do. I couldn’t go a day without washing, because my hair was so very oily.
In reality I don’t have overly oily hair, my hair was just reacting to all the washing I was doing. I was washing, striping all the oils and my scalp was working even harder to produce enough oil to compensate. There was a battle going on and I was losing, the more I washed and dried the more oil my scalp produced and the more oily I thought my hair was so the more I washed. The shampoo company was laughing from atop their giant tower of money.
Break the Cycle
I know it is easier said than done and it took me years to get to the point where I could go 4+ days without washing my hair. Girl, I am not going to lie the transition will be hard. The first step is breaking the habit and we all know how hard it is to break a habit. What you need to do is be prepared. You wouldn’t decide that you are going to be an Olympic swimmer today and just go out and sign up for a qualifing event, would you? You would probably go buy a swimsuit and some goggles first and find a pool to train in, right? Okay, don’t freak out this will be soooo much easier than becoming an Olympic swimmer!
What to buy:
1. Get yourself a great dry shampoo. You don’t have to break the bank, my favorite Batiste, is around $6 and comes in different shades. You can find it at Walmart, Amazon or Alta. What I love about Batiste is that it does a really awesome job of absorbing oil, without leaving build up on your hair. Not leaving a buildup is key, especially if you are producing a lot of oil or if you are planning on going more that 2 days between washes.
2. If you are trying to break that shower and wash your hair every day habit you might feel the urge to wash. The first step is admitting you have a problem, step two is getting yourself a good cleansing conditioner. This was the key for me finally letting go of the shampoo, a cleansing conditioner allows you to clean your hair without striping away moisture. When I was just making that transition to no shampoo, I would use cleansing conditioner every other day. It gave me the the feeling of washing my hair while keeping me off the shampoo. I slowly worked my way up to 4 days from wash to cleansing conditioner and then 4 more days before washing. I use WEN and I absolutely love it. The thing about WEN is, it is a subscription service. You have to get a minimum of 3 products per order and it is $30 per order, however I am not crazy about any of the other products and like most subscription services I ended up with more product then I need. So, when I run out I will be trying out a new cleansing conditioner. Check out this great article in Allure Magazine to find the best cleansing conditioner for your hair type.
3. Have a baby. Kidding, sort of. This is when I really embraced the not washing my hair thing, because showers became a luxury. So maybe don’t run out and get yourself a screaming infant but maybe a hobby or something to do with the time you will save not washing, blow drying and styling your hair every day.
4. A cute hat. Remember that part when I told you this wouldn’t be easy. Some days your hair is going to look extra greasy until your body realizes that you are no longer striping away all the excess oil it is producing. It will take it a little while, but one day your scalp will wake up and go ‘hey there is nothing for me to do today, i’m going on vacation!” In the time leading up to that you might want to cove up with a cute hat.
5. Tools with adjustable heat. If you are going without shampoo your hair is going to be easier to style and high heat will damage your hair. Get a curling iron/ wand, straighter and blow dryer with multiple heat settings and set them to medium or low heat. When you have more oil and more texture in your hair, your hair will hold onto body and curls and will just need a little touch up. High heat is unnecessary and just leads to damage and more trips to the salon to get the dry damaged ends snipped off.
So What Do You Have to Loose?
I love my hair so much more now. I feel free. Most days my hair is looking great in less than 10 minutes, I’m using less products that I did before because I am not stripping out the moisture. My hair holds the curl better because the natural oils make hair easier to style, exactly what my prom hair stylist was getting at all those years ago. Also, who ever feels like blow drying, especially in the summer! Check out what my hair looks like each day for 5 days in the video below.
So, what my friend is the down side here? You are spending less time getting ready, spending less money on products, your hair styles easily, less heat damage means less trips to the salon and that also saves you money! Girl stop washing your hair!!
