lady torso photo hair in braids Keep your hair clean with natural hair care recipes and tips including homemade "no-poo" baking soda DIY shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, and natural citrus hairspray!
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All-Natural Hair Care Guide (DIY Shampoo Recipe and More)

Keep your hair clean with natural hair care recipes and tips including homemade "no-poo" baking soda DIY shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, and natural citrus hairspray!

Keep your hair clean with natural hair care recipes and tips including homemade “no-poo” baking soda DIY shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, and natural citrus hairspray!


I’m not quite sure how I started using natural hair care methods. I certainly didn’t plan on it and I didn’t do it cold-turkey. But I’ve come to the point where I can say that I haven’t washed my hair in 9 weeks.

Gross, I know, right? But I haven’t and after a few bumps in the road, I can confidently say that my hair does NOT smell dirty and that is softer than ever!

How about a little hair autobiography before I share the “no-poo” DIY shampoo and other natural hair care recipes?

My Hair Story

I have for most of my life been blessed with a head of very thick straight hair. It’s been neither oily nor dry and I’ve not had to fuss with it too much.

That is until I started having babies.

Keep your hair clean with natural hair care recipes and tips including homemade "no-poo" baking soda DIY shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, and natural citrus hairspray!

I didn’t notice anything with my firstborn. Way back then, I was sporting a pixie cut until I decided to grow my hair long to donate.

When my second child was born I began to have to deal with this teeny little wave in the center back of my head. Nothing a round brush and a blow dryer couldn’t handle, but the situation has become increasingly worse over the years. As the waviness has increased, so has the dryness. (A common problem for those with curly or wavy hair I understand.) I kept pulling vigorously and drying it straight. Of course, I didn’t want to use a straight iron and damage the hair because, by this time, it was getting pretty long.

I had begun to notice that my hair was much more manageable and less frizzy on the days where I skipped washing it and I found myself skipping a day or two here and there more and more. Over the years, I was needing to skip even more days in order to maintain a presentable, frizz-less style.

It had progressed to the point where, just a few months ago, I was washing my waist length hair every 5 or so days using an itchy scalp as an indicator that it needed to be washed.

(I can’t believe I’m admitting this to you!! How embarrassing!)

When I did wash, I would shampoo just the top and condition just the bottom because the top seemed the “oiliest” (if you can even consider it that) and the bottom was still super-dry despite my daily brushing with a 100% all-natural boar bristle brush. (LOVE my boar bristle brush!!!)

When I was fed up with my husband making fun of me saying I looked like this guy, I went in for my donation cut and walked away from the wash tub with curly hair.

I was so shocked. I thought I had straight frizzy hair and it never occurred to me that one can develop curly hair over time!

It’s been quite a struggle for me. I feel like an entirely different person. For so many years now I’ve been wearing a smooth appearance. That was my “style” and I liked it like that. I’ve had to learn all about what works for curly hair and what doesn’t. (No more towel after a washing. You have to “plop”.)

One of the things that work best for people with curly hair is to avoid shampooing. Curly hair is naturally dry and shampoo dries it out even more. All this time I had been letting my hair tell me what it needed and it was leading me in the right direction. I committed to not washing my hair full-time and that was, like I said, 9 weeks ago.

Please excuse the excessive use of fill light in order to make the curls visible on my dark ole head of hair, but this is pretty much how they look once dried after washing. I think the most noticeable difference between three and nine weeks is the improvement of wave around the crown.

All-Natural Hair Care Guide

So what have I been doing?

Well, first I realized that I needed to concentrate on repairing my scalp. The shampoo had left it very dry and very itchy and I was able to fix the damage by simply massaging food-grade aloe vera gel into the scalp. The relief was quick and within a week I would say I had stopped scratching my temples altogether!

After experimenting with various recipes, I have settled on a plain baking soda DIY shampoo made by just boiling a quart of water and adding a 1/4 cup of baking soda. I started by rotating between that and using a castile soap based shampoo and it stripped my hair mightily and left it feeling extremely greasy whereas, on the baking soda days, my hair was softer than I have ever remembered it being.

DIY Shampoo – Baking Soda Cleansing

1-quart boiling water
1/4 cup baking soda

Add the soda to the water and mix or shake in a bottle until dissolved. (I use this bottle.) Cool prior to use. Apply liberally to hair and scalp, shaking first if necessary. Massage into scalp and hair then rinse well.

For the rinse, I was less than excited about trying apple cider vinegar on my head. Like with the problem solved by citrus vinegar, I can barely stomach the scent of it. After some experimenting, what I ended up with is a rinse that is refreshing and pleasant smelling. I think that the tea tree oil and peppermint both bring a nice balance to the vinegar.

Keep your hair clean with natural hair care recipes and tips including homemade "no-poo" baking soda DIY shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, and natural citrus hairspray!

DIY Hair Conditioner – Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse

3/4 cup water
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 Tablespoon aloe vera gel
1 Tablespoon honey
8 drops peppermint oil
8 drops tea tree oil

Combine all ingredients in a bottle and shake well. (I use one like this.) After cleansing, squirt all over scalp and hair. Allow it to sit for a few minutes and enjoy the tingle. Rinse well. (You may use more to combat the harsh apple cider vinegar scent if you’d like. Smell your concoction, it should be somewhat pleasingly minty, but will still have a slight vinegar undertone.)

Our hairstyles are low maintenance around here, requiring very little product and we’ve discovered a satisfactory substitute for hairspray as well. A simple spray is made by reducing chopped chunks of citrus in boiling water. It smells wonderful and even acts as a potpourri while you’re preparing it.

Keep your hair clean with natural hair care recipes and tips including homemade "no-poo" baking soda DIY shampoo, apple cider vinegar conditioner, and natural citrus hairspray!

DIY Citrus Hairspray

1 orange, peel removed and chopped in pieces
1 lemon, peel removed and chopped in pieces
2 cups water

Add all to a small saucepan and boil until reduced by half. Strain and add to a bottle outfitted with a spray pump. Use as you would hairspray, but keep refrigerated or it will begin to smell badly after a few days!

A few cons to this is that it is obviously less of a convenience. You have to prepare your hair care, but ultimately, it takes just a few minutes. A second would have to definitely be that it is cold. Shampoo and conditioner are much warmer than water-based DIY shampoo. But I just try to trick myself by using the word invigorating to describe it rather than freezing. It has a much more pleasant connotation, don’t you think?

I’m not done experimenting with different recipes. I have a few deep conditioners that I’d like to try and also a recipe for a natural gel. I’ll post them if I have any success, of course.

Now it’s your turn to chime in. Please, please, please if you “no-‘poo” join me in confession. What is your favorite DIY shampoo? What tips and tricks do you have to share?

Edited: I tried to answer many of the questions asked here in a “No-Poo FAQ” follow-up post so they might be a bit easier to navigate through.

Check out these other awesome all-natural DIY beauty recipes!

Lots of recipes and advice for gentle, natural hair care- This is so simple & look at the difference it made!! |www.reformationacres.com

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88 Comments

  1. So glad you liked it! I've been experimenting with shampoo/conditioners again since getting my hair cut (which made it curlier) and I think what I'm finding is that this way is once again working best!

  2. I made the conditioner and was pleasantly surprised with the results. Plus, my hair did not smell like vinager at all. I added both the tea tree and the peppermint oils. Thank you.

  3. Hi
    I read a book recently about curly hair and it says in there about a no poo technique which I have been trying for the last few months and my hair has been amazing ever since. Basically I just dont use shampoo at all as it dries out curly hair, I only use conditioner to wash my hair. I try to choose conditioners with some sort of oil in it I.e. Argan oil, coconut oil etc. I still use hair products and the conditioner washes everything off no problems. After washing my hair I put some argain oil hair oil or even a bit of pure coconut oil, rub it through my wet hair and then I wrap my hair in a microfibre hair wrap. Leave it for about half hr and when I unwrap my hair a beautiful head of curls just come out like I never knew I had!

  4. My daughter stopped washing her hair a year ago – at her own request (she was 9) and has the most beautiful, mid back, wavy dark brown hair. The hair dresser who trims her hair raves about how soft it is and undamaged and the scalp condition is excellent.

  5. Are you still using this method? After using it for a couple of weeks, my hair was drying out. I read several articles about people saying that after using baking soda for over a year, their hair was snapping off. In further research, I saw that baking soda destroys the pH of your hair. :/ Do you have any other ideas?

    1. I am still using this method. I would say my hair is no drier now than before I started. It definitely improved it for a long while then I was once again needing to go longer and longer between washing to keep it from getting dry and frizzy. I’m back up to washing once a week. I’d describe my hair week as having a dip in the middle. Post washing, it’s great for a day or two, then gets dry and frizzy and then the day or two before wash day it’s smooth and normal again. Problem is that’s when my scalp is ready for a scrubbing 🙂

      I think if I were washing every day or every other day it would be much, much drier. So if you’d like to keep trying perhaps stretch out the length between washing. Experiment. See what works best for you.

      I have read that about the pH. My unproven speculation is that the alkaline BS is balanced by the acidic ACV and it all works out fine in the end. And if you weren’t using it as often then the impact wouldn’t be as great. As far as hair damage goes, I went a year (or was it 2) after starting this without getting my hair cut. When I went in the lady said it was the healthiest hair she’d ever seen. After that I bought a straight iron and used it for a couple months and since then haven’t been able to get it to recover. I trimmed it myself a few times and still had the most horrible, frayed, split ends I’d ever had in my life. I went last week and had several inches taken off in the hope that it will recover. I’m currently split end free, straight iron free, and keeping an eye on the ends to see if the damage comes back. If so, I’ll update everyone.

      1. Quinn, how did you go after having your hair cut? Did you get more split ends and dryness, or did it stay healthy?

        I’ve been using something similar to your ACV rinse to wash my hair. I’ve been using ACV, water, and tea tree oil. I did buy some lavender oil to add in, but I put it somewhere when we moved house earlier this year and I haven’t wanted to spend the money for another one. Oh well!

        I tried the honey, but it seemed to make my hair oily. I’m guessing that my hair is naturally more oily than yours.

        Using this mix has completely eliminated my itchy scalp. I was so excited!

        Thank you for sharing this with us. Your hair is gorgeous! Wish my hair was curly.

        Blessings.

        Kerryn

        1. I’m so glad that you’ve found something that is working for you! I DID get all my split ends back… and they’re really more than just your typical fork at the end, but they split 5,6,7 times up the strand. Here’s where it gets interesting: I have been using regular shampoo/conditioner since getting my hair cut about a year ago- 2 different lines, one from the salon (organic something or other) and then most recently this shampoo. I REALLY love this new one. It makes my hair so soft and silky. But I think it’s safe to say after using the no-poo methods outlined here for several years with no issues before the split ends and now almost a year of shampooing that still has my ends splitting again, that my issue is going to be more one of depleted nutrition after pretty much being pregnant & nursing for about 13 years straight and not related to the no-poo method which I still can heartily recommend.

  6. All this is very interesting and useful. My hair is like your hair, they are curly, wave and frizzy, are lighter and blond and partly white, so difficult to treat and manage. My solution has been the soap of Aleppo, I also like the scent. is a very healthy choice, it made my hair more robust, strong and defined in curls, but do not use conditioner. I like the balm vinegar and lacquer ecological orange, I’ll try to make it at home, thank you for sharing these your natural experiments !!!

  7. This is so cool Quinn!! I used the baking soda, ACV method for a long time but I couldn’t stand how I always smelled like I’d been dyeing Easter Eggs all day. I love that you added mint to the ACV, maybe I should try that. I have super curly hair as well and dealt with frizz forever. I finally figured out that I needed to use shampoo and conditioner without parabens and sulfates and nasty stuff in them, so I got a curl-specific product without garbage in it and it helped tremendously. Anyway, I’m glad you found something that works for you. Your hair is gorgeous!

  8. I have been very committed to this and I haven’t been able to wear my hair down yet, and it’s been two months. I have thick wavy hair. My ends seem brittle and dry, but over all it seems stiff. Not soft and flowy like I had hoped. The underneath in the back is the only place that seems oily. Help!!!

  9. So I have decided to make the switch. I do have a question though. I reticently had highlights and color, will this pull the color out?

  10. I used to have very curly hair when I was a little girl, but recently in the past eight years it’s slowly gone away and has been just wavy. I tried everything from scrunching to curling irons but couldn’t get it back. I thought maybe it was teenage hormones and later the stress of college. I never would have guessed my shampoo was weighing it down so much. Just this past year, I decided to cut out all things that were bad for my hair, especially heating products, and had begun to simply french braid it at night to give it a curly texture the next day. This still dried it out pretty bad though. Mostly the ends.
    I’m soooo happy I found this page now 😀 I used both the conditioner and the no-poo recipe and quit my other shampoos completely. This is just my first week but after washing my hair twice over the past 5 days, I can already see massive improvement! This is the softest it’s ever been and I cant stop touching it xD. also it’s got so much more volume as soon as it dries, which is fantastic. I’ll most likely try the citrus spray soon as well. I hope I can get to a point where I have my soft, super crinkly curls back again.

    1. I am so glad you posted this comment Samantha! I’ve been co sleeping with my babies the last few years and got into the habit of braiding my hair at night so it doesn’t tickle them or they don’t pull on it when they’re several months old and I never made the correlation between that and some of my hair troubles! Maybe it wouldn’t be such a struggle… Maybe there’s hope for the future 🙂

      I’m glad that this is working for you so far and hope it continues to do so!

  11. I hope that someone hasn’t already asked this but does anyone who is using this method know if it effects color treated hair? I mean fades or strips out the color? I have some grays to cover.

  12. I stopped using normal shampoo and conditioner cold turkey, I started to use 3 parts water 1 part vinegar and then my shampoo bar from chagril came. Love love love the switch. My hair was so nasty for about three weeks but it was so worth it. I use a lil almond oil for leave in conditioner sometimes. I was scared to use the baking soda from hearing so many bad things. And my hair is wavy now also.

  13. Alright, I love the idea of the no poo method. But I have to admit after 8 months that I can’t make the baking soda cleanse work for me. My hair, beautiful, shiny, thick, awesome. I even took samples of hair and compared them to a control under microscope and had to admit, after BS and ACV, it looked shinier and smoother than a control hair. Scalp: CANNOT DEAL WITH THE AMOUNT OF GREASY DANDRUFF I GET. I tried everything. Greater concentrations of baking soda, lesser concentrations of baking soda, making sure the ACV rinse doesn’t touch my scalp, bathing my scalp in ACV, going longer between washings, washing more frequently, roughly scrubbing my scalp with salt/BS mixed together, gently massaging my scalp, leaving my scalp alone and just pouring the cleanse over it. 8 months is a good amount of time to try something out and now I know that this doesn’t work for me. I’m going to try yogurt shampoo next. Tried the honey shampoo thing and that just makes my face break out and my hair feel even greasier. I love the ACV rinse. Love it. Will continue with it forever. Till I die. Just some info pf what happened to me with this method. (Also another friend who tried with me. Same dandruffy issue, hair great)

    1. Have you tried rubbing some Tea Trea oil into your scalp. Tea Tree is excellent for dandruff and greasy itchy scalp. This was recommended to me by a professional stylist and it has worked excellently for me.

  14. This really worked for me quite well, and it was very inexpensive. But, my whole family complained of the smell so I had to stop using it. They said that after a wash and days later my hair would smell like egg and death. I suspect it was the apple cider vinegar. Is this a problem for anyone else? Since I stopped using it my hair doesn’t smell anymore. I really liked this method, so if anyone has a solution to this please let me know.

  15. Hi there! I’m very new to this “No Poo” ways and I noticed that when I use my baking soda by itself or with Dr. Bronners castile soap, my hair not only gets super wavy but it feels like there is a tacky residue left in my hair even if I rinse with ACV. Is there anything that will remove that icky feeling? But on a plus side, I’ve struggled for years with a psoriasis type problem on my scalp and this has helped lessen the itchiness and scaly build up. Whoop Whoop! 🙂

    1. I would try using less baking soda. It’s hard to believe, but less is more. Every time I add to much to the mix, it ends up feeling almost greasy and tangles up a bunch. Glad your not so scratchy! ;D

      1. Thank you! I will give it a try! So, does your hair softer as you do it? Because my hair does feel drier and a bit on the frizzy side.

        1. You can put 1 part almond oil and 3 parts water into a spray bottle and shake before spraying use as a leave in conditioner.

          1. Sweet! Thank you! Now that I’ve figured out the baking soda – water ratios, my hair is much better. My hair is still a bit on the dry side so I will look into trying the almond oil and water spray! Thank you for your suggestion. 🙂

          2. My hair is still a bit dry too- I’ve been able to make a difference using an overnight leave in conditioner made of 1 part each coconut oil, argon oil, & castor oil (for growth- it WORKS!) Maybe â…› tsp. each massaged into the scalp and then worked through to the ends. If it’s a on the frizzy side after styling I’ll take a dab of the argon oil and use it like a hair serum and smooth it over.

          3. I’ve done Jojoba oil over night to help with the psoriasis on my scalp. Since I’ve stopped using shampoo its mostly cleared up!! Praise! But I will look into your concoction! I’m always game to try something new 🙂

        2. I have been no poo for 2 months, I love it and my hair is super soft. I will have to say I have not tried the baking soda becasue of hearing so much bad dry matters. I use an organic a bar hair soap thats made out of fruit oils. Then an acv 3 to1 rinse I have been doing every other day but am going to start trying once a week.

      2. Your original post was the push I needed to start “no poo”. I did baking soda with a lemon water rinse. My hair did have a transtion period and afterwards it was beautiful. Just love it. My kids’ hair is great too! Then I had to dye my grey hairs and the quality of my hair changed to oily string. I read on someone else’s page to use more baking soda, which I did and it seemed worse. I changed to a vinager rinse thinking that might fix it, but no. So, back to your page this morning. I came across this comment that says LESS baking soda. I am going to give that a try tomorrow. Thank you for still being around answering these questions. You may have just saved me more frustration!

        1. I hope it works out for you Shonda! I’ve got to thank you for the feedback on using this with dyed hair. Probably the most common question, yet no one has once mentioned their actual experience (maybe too afraid to try? I don’t know.) So now at least I have a little something to go on.

    2. Really? Both my special needs son and I have sebhorric dermatitis on our scalps and it DRIVES US CRAZY with the itching. I simply can’t go more than 3 days without the horrid coal tar shampoo. No matter what I do for my poor boy, his hair looks like he’s been in a snow storm! Even now I’m scratching my hairline below my ear…ughh! Believe it or not, but I’m actually scared to try this because I lost a LOT of hair from this condition, and I can’t afford to lose anymore.

  16. I have been doing the no poo for about 2 months. Trying to get my scalp from itching and flaking. I have not used aloe vera, how often did you treat your scalp that 1st week and did you wash your hair using the Baking Soda wash and ACvinager rinse?

  17. I have very long, thick and uncontrollable curls. I started this no-poo method 3 weeks ago. I have to say I LOVE MY CURLS now! I "wash" every 3-4 days. After shower scrunch with a cotton t-shirt. I made a natural hair gel, distribute as evenly as possible to wet drippy hair. Place t-shirt on flat surface, tip head upside down, place hair and head onto shirt, wrap and tie. (so that all of your hair is on the top of your head) After getting completely ready, (as to let hair dry as naturally as possible) I blow dry with a good hair dryer and difuser. No more frizz, no crazy curly mess, my hair is shinier and curls bouncier than they have ever been! My color is even not dull anymore!

  18. Thanks so much for this post. 5 weeks ago I committed to doing this for 2 months. never has my hair beenbetter. it is softer, less frizzy and less tangle prone now then ever. I'm much more likely to wear it down! I only was about 1x/week so one batch lasted a whole month. I did very they EOs a bit. and one I did massage a tiny bit of coconut oil and lavender into the end of my hair when it got really staticy (its February!) It've tried the BS/ ACV before but never with this success! thanks again!

  19. don't know if i'll get a comment back but i'm very interested in trying this method but i'm also a little afraid of it. I have long thick curly FRIZZY hair. I usually have to wash it every other day because i have so much product in it. The "no-poo" method should be fine even the acv rinse but will it take out the product? I work in a office and my apperance is very…shall we say important to my boss. That sounds bad but we deal with a lot of vendors and reps and I have to look professional at all times and let me tell you my hair frizzing out over my ears is not the way to go. So hence the gel & hairspray & clips. I would love to leave my hair down more but it is very tempermental if I don't blow dry or flat iron (which makes my hair fall out in the worst way) it. So I guess my question is how do i wash/condition/dry/style this mess?
    Thoughts? suggestions? Ideas? Help?

    1. don’t dry you hair dry . mine frizzes up. I had good luck with the Dessert Essense coconut shampoo and conditioner. also only comb your hair with a wide toothed comb after condtioning to adjust your hair to natural products, plop and scunch dry with cotton tee shirt instead of rubbing to reduce frizz. . aloe vera gell and flax seed gells are good for taming and apply on damp not soaking wet hair hair. don’t use any thing with parabens silicons and sulfates they actually coat the hair but do nothing for it. I follow naturallycurly.com its helped me a ton! also almond oil helps tame frizz without being to heavy depending on the porosity of your hair.

  20. I have mixed borax, backing soda, and sugar. It works wonderfully. For my rinse I use lemon juice because I react to vinegar. My hair is so very soft and smooth. I highly recommend it to anyone.

  21. I followed the "no poo" method for strickly for 2 months and found that it made my hair very dry and almost impossible to comb through when wet. I did some research and found that baking soda has a ph that is too high, around 8, for the hairs natural ph which is around 5, so it essentially shocks the hair also stripping it of its natual oils. Apple cider has a conditioning effect because its ph is closer the hair at around 6. I am still searching out an alternitive, and while I have not tried it, one I feel more confident about is an aloe vera and coconut milk blend.

  22. i have a very bad hair fall after my second baby who was born 4 months ago. will this help with fall or worsen it any idea?
    Thanks

    1. I’ve had 7 babies and let me assure you this is PERFECTLY normal! Learning that was such a comfort to me. When you’re pregnant, your normal cycle of hair loss is disrupted and pretty much what is happening to you is you’re making up for lost time. It feels like a lot is falling out, but I’m sure it’s still not enough to be concerned.

      To answer your question, I’ve only done this through one postpartum period and I thought that its didn’t last as long as normal. However, if you find that you don’t need to wash as frequently (like me) then instead of losing a couple of hairs a day, then it seems like your losing more because the week’s worth is lost all in one washing. Something to keep in mind if you decide to give it a shot 🙂

    2. Omg I ahve had the same problem get a good raw prenatal from a health food store. Mine stopped after using that and biotin helped it come back quicker.

    1. A lot of people use ketchup type squirt bottles. If you have a dollar store by you, they have a pack of 2 for $1. I just re-use my old shampoo/conditioner bottles washed out really well.

  23. I just wanted to tell you that I just found your site and your hair is beautiful. I too am a curly girl and I have been off shampoo and away from hairbrushes for going on seven years. I’ll never go back. May the Lord bless you!

    1. Thank you Anna! I’m so glad that you’ve found something that works so well for your hair 🙂 May He bless you as well!!

  24. What is the purpose of boiling the water? Can you use distilled water?

    1. It softens up the solution and helps the baking soda to fully dissolve. If you don’t have hard country water (like I do) you could probably get away with this step. Otherwise skipping it could possibly lead to a greasy feeling.

  25. Si necesitas definir tus rizos puedes elaborar un gel fijador natural con semillas de lino. Suerte.

  26. Wow…nobody might believe but I have the same weird problem after pregnancy. My beautifull jet black long straight strands became brittly boring wavy faded black with a disgustingly itchy dandruffy sculp. Ahhh its a bit reliefe that I successfully could describe that. So I started no poo. Tried what you are doing…no success. Tried castile poo…no luck. Then I started mixing conditioner directly with castile soap and also tea tree oil for dandruff. It took care a little…but hair doesnt grow any more like before and obviously no question of being straight. The waves are not even pretty looking so I naturally curl them (socks method) the days I get mad at them. My husband is more miserable than I am…because he is bald (shaves his head) and used to be proud of his wifes hair.bleh…

    1. I have the opposite problem I had gorgeous curly hair BEFORE I got pregnant and now it is straight. It has been 2 1/2 years since my daughter was born so I fear the straight is here to stay. I might try this to bring it back… maybe??

  27. I have naturally curly/frizzy hair. I am considering this method. But was wondering if you put anything on your hair after you wash it, other than hair spray. I currently use Frizz Ease that is the only thing I have found to keep my frizz away. Do you think I could go without this?

    1. I made my own serum using camila oil, avocado oil, rosemary essential oil, and castor oil. Combined with this cleansing method, I have never loved my hair like I love it now. I love my new home made products. But the serum is a little funky smelling so I spray some perfume on my hair to cover that up lol.

      1. What is more detail about your serum? Put in hair prior to washing and let it sit, or after? Also what amount of each oil? This sounds really good!

        1. After I wash my hair I wrap it in a cotton t shirt for about 10 minutes so it won’t be soaking wet. Then after detangling I apply the serum and diffuse my hair. It gives measurements and how to make it. I also found some more on pinterest that I’m going to try.

    2. Try plain old unrefined coconut oil…i use a tiny bit just like i would frizz ease and works wonders

  28. Tried this this morning for the first time ever. OMG. The best! Will never go to shampoo again.

  29. I haven’t actually started the No Poo method yet as I have a few questions first if anyone can clarify them for me??

    First, ok so when I start my first day, I’m obviously washing with the BS and conditioning with the ACV. After that day, from what I’ve read from other posts, am I to NOT wash or condition for as many days as I can stand until I wash and condition again? Or, am I supposed to water only wash and ACV condition on my days in between the BS washes?

    Secondly, when the transition period is over, which is hopefully sooner then later, ewww!! I will hopefully have shiny, glossy hair as most people have reported and at that point am I mostly just water only washing and occasionally using the BS and ACV?

    Lastly, I know most people have said that once your hair is dry, the ACV smell disappears but I am still a little concerned and self conscious and know I’ll miss my nice smelling hair so I was wondering if anyone can recommend an essential oil smell that I can add to the ACV. I know some people have added the tea tree oil or I think lavender oil, neither of which I am a huge fan so if anyone has any other suggestions I would really appreciate it.

    Also, I have colored blonde hair, fairly straight with a very slight wave and fine but I have alot of it.

    Thanks to anyone who can answer my questions!!

    1. I have been “no-pooing” fit months now and if you get a 100% boar bristle brush and throw a few drops of your favorite essential oil on and brush your hair with that then your hair will smell how you want it to. 🙂

  30. I started this about one month ago, and man how this has revitalized my hair. since day one my hair has felt weightless and tame. i have long curly hair and it is so hard to maintain without it drying up. This new routine has nourished my hair and made it so much thicker and healthy! I tried using shampoo once about a week ago and it felt gross and dry, so now I know this is the perfect routine for my hair. thank you!

  31. I have been “trying” to go poo free for a week. Meaning, I have not used shampoo and have been using baking soda and apple cider vinegar rinse. Since Day 1, my hair has felt TERRIBLE!! I have tried different measurements of soda to water ratio as well as the cider to water ratio. I have boiled the water before adding the soda and my hair feels dirty, gritty, brittle and it’s starting to smell like I haven’t washed it in a week. Is there hope for me?? I have read that your hair will go through changes as it “detoxes” but oh my goodness, even when I feel my hair it leaves a yucky feeling on my fingers….H E L P!!!

    1. I’ve read where some take weeks to detox, so if this is something you really want to do, I would certainly encourage you to persevere. If your hair is feeling greasy, I would start by taking the honey out of the ACV and if that doesn’t work, cut back on the baking soda. On a couple occasions I decided to just wing it and guess the amount of B/S and too much definitely causes my otherwise very dry hair to feel dirty and greasy and to start clumping up. Our normal reaction to something good is- if this much is good, more must be better. Not so in this case.

  32. Jennifer S. asks, “How often do you use the baking soda cleansing rinse? Can you make a bunch of both rinses in advance? Looking forward to trying this! “

  33. I’ve been using the baking soda and vinegar method (mostly) for about 6 weeks. I had gone back to shampoo after an extended period of using my own shampoo bar and citric acid rinse (does away with the vinegar smell). Anyway, I kind of put soapmaking on the back burner for a while and went back to store bought. I have long mostly straight hair. I wash it once or twice a week. I can attest that getting away from commercial chemical soup is the best thing I can do for my hair. Mine tends to get dry on the ends from time in the wind and sun and I find that a bit of coconut oil rubbed into the ends even daily really helps.

  34. omg, THIS IS such a wonderful post with amazing information. I was about to start the cowash, but I feel much more comfortable with your tips as I love using natural products. I do not mind making them myself. I will write about them on my blog too. Thanks again

  35. Hi…hoping you can help!! My hair looks very similar to yours though mine is quite a bit longer and I’m older so my hair is even drier (due to reducing hormones…yeah!!) I have been using this method for 3 weeks now and it doesn’t seem to be working all that well. First, I HAVE TO use gel or my hair becomes completely frizzy and dried out (I have always let it air-dry so no problems with blow-drying) and in the last two wash cycles (I wash about 3 times per week) it doesn’t feel clean at all. Any tips or hints from anybody?? Thanks in advance……MarieS

    1. Hi Marie, The only suggestions I can think to offer are to maybe try aloe vera gel as a hair gel. It would probably be a lot less drying than something from the store. Second, I have been trying out a leave-in conditioner once a week- the day prior to washing or overnight (depending on whether you’ll be going out) It’s just 1/4 tsp. melted coconut oil mixed with 1/4 tsp. castor oil. (It doesn’t seem like a lot, but a little goes a long way.) I massage it into my scalp and the work it into my ends and then run my fingers through my hair to distribute it throughout then put it up in a bun. It’s been a few weeks and has help a lot of moisture back into my hair. And finally, it could just be that your adjustment period is a little longer. I would encourage you not to give up yet if this is something you’re really interested in doing! Blessings 🙂

  36. I’ve been “no-pooing” for several months and used a version of the baking soda and the vinegar conditioner. Then after a few months, my hair got dry and I started using Dr. Bronner’s and then it got heavy. I was looking at your site for some alternatives. Maybe I’ll try your versions and see if they work! Thanks.

  37. I have curly hair just like the hair posted above. I went to baking soda and vinegar 3 months ago and love it!! My hair is curly and looks just like the bloggers did. Just wavy in the beginning and quite curly now. For $1 I purchased a set of ketchup and mustard bottles to use for my “shampoo and conditioner”. I put 1/8 cup baking soda in the yellow bottle and fill with water. I shake before each use. I fill the red bottle half full with white vinegar and then add water. I leave them in the shower and fill as needed. My hair used be greasy and course requiring daily washing. Now I’m able to wash every three days. I no longer have frizzy, dry, unmanageable hair. I still use gel when I leave my hair down (mostly out of habit than necessity) but my hair is the best its ever been. I have to color my hair every 4 weeks to cover my grey and haven’t noticed any problems with the vinegar. It’s a great detangler. I’ll NEVER go back to commercial products. I, too, used WEN before this. My son no longer has dandruff since using vinegar, and we tried every antidandruff product on the market with out success before finding vinegar! It took about 3 weeks for my hair to adjust. The end of the third week was the worst, then it was like magic. Perfectly managable hair!! Good luck

    1. The vinegar smell dissipates right away. I’ve never had anyone tell me my hair smells like vinegar and I work with the public everyday.

  38. Anyone considering this – GO FOR IT!! I switched to the same baking soda wash10 months ago and love it. I used ACV for the rinse and the results were fabulous EXCEPT that every time my hair got wet (sweat, rain, steam, etc.) I smelled like vinegar! (Kinda embarrassing going to church in a rain storm and stinking up the whole sanctuary!!!) So….I began using my whey from straining out my homemade Greek yogurt and it works very nicely. I will say it is not quite as shiny as the ACV, but it is still far healthier and shiny than it ever was on shampoo/conditioner! I only wash my hair twice a week. If it gets oily before time to wash, I’ll just rub a little dry baking soda into the scalp, leave for a few minutes, then brush out.

  39. Anon says: ” My daughter has super curly hair and I do not shampoo it much. I have found olive oil to be a good deep conditioner. It has never left her hair greasy. Another good sub for hair spray is an epsome salt water spray. I cant remember the exact mixture have seen it online. Thanks for your tips!”

  40. Mama Bug Brittany says: “Hello! I am trying to talk myself into trying this : ) I have dermatitis on my scalp and I’m thinking this could really help. Plus, I have wavy-ish hair and I’d like to find a way to style it so it’s not sticky and crunchy with product. Anyway, my question for you is this: do you store the cleanser and ‘conditioner’ in the refrigerator? I have to have all the details worked out in my head before I start something : )”

    1. Sorry for the late reply, for some reason this posted in a different comment system than I keep up with. But the answer is, no, I don’t refrigerate them. I just leave them sitting on the shelf in the shower and the cleanser lasts for about a month before it’s gone, conditioner half that time.

  41. I’m on my week 4 of “No-Poo” (I don’t like saying that- I need to come up with different terminology ;-)). I have weird half wavy/ half straight hair, medium length auburn hair. It’s super spiral curls underneath, but the top is straight and puffy. So typically I either need to “scrunch” the top section to look wavy also or flat iron the whole thing. I can never, ever leave my hair to airdry without doing something to it.
    My adjustment period was about 3 washes. At first my hair just felt crummy-knotty and was ready to be washed the next day. I almost gave up. I hated how it felt when I was actually washing it- didn’t feel clean or soft or smell good like traditional shampoos and conditioners. BUT THEN! Da Da Da!! I’ve probably had the longest streak of “good-hair-days” in my life! I have gotten soooo many compliments and asked what I’ve been doing to my hair. It’s shiny and bouncy and my waves are perfect! My hair even looks redder (which I love!). I can go almost 4 days without a wash, too!
    I adjusted the recipes a bit- I mix in a dab of Honey and Aloe Vera gel with a little more Apple Cider Vinegar than recommended, and I think that’s my magic combination.
    Thanks for this info! I’ve thought about trying this for a long time, and your advice pushed me. Now, I’m trying to convince everyone I know 😉

    1. I’m so glad you’ve met with such success Sheryl! That’s wonderful! Thanks so much for coming back, updating, and sharing your adaptations! I’m excited right now about a leave-in conditioner that I’ve been trying- 1/4tsp. coconut oil mixed with 1/4 tsp. castor oil, massaged into the roots and ends, then just rubbing the excess oil on my hands over the rest (kind of like how you would a sleek n shine product) Doing this the night before I wash and boy is my hair soft and shiny!

    2. Sheryl, thank you so much for posting this. I’ve been using the bs wash and acv rinse for 2+ weeks now and I’m ready to give up. MY HAIR LOOKS, FEELS, AND SMELLS AWFUL!!!!!!! I’m just about ready to give up! It’s not shiny, it’s not soft, and it does not look healthy at all. It’s a knotted, tangled, crispy-feeling mess and I hate it. I’m trying so hard to hang on, and your post has given me to encouragement to hang on and keep up with the no-poo. This transition period sucks. I hope that my adjustment period will soon come to an end and then I can enjoy shiny, good hair days like everyone else who made the switch!