Week 2: A Learning Curve

I have officially made it to the end of Week 2! Huzzah! Hip hip hooray! Yessssss!

Week 2 of No Shampoo (yes, that was intentional) was a success.

Going into Week 2 I was a little scared, because my hair just wasn't feeling clean. Thanks to the interwebz I discovered that not only does my area have hard water, but that you have to approach this shampoo-less lifestyle a little differently when that is the case.

 So, all of you soft water people out there rejoice, because this will be easy for you. Rejoice and send happy hair vibes in the direction of the nearest hard water sufferer.

 So how do you deal with hard water? Well, if you really want to follow the baking soda way, then you're either going to have to boil your water or buy it distilled. I chose to boil.

So you boil it up, remove the pot from the heat and immediately at your baking soda. AND IT IS GOING TO FIZZ. Srsly, it was really cool. Anyway, it dissolved a lot better in the boiling water, and after I let it cool I transferred some to my little bottle. Then I did the same with my Apple Cider Vinegar solution. Be sure to rinse your pot out well first, or else the ACV will react to the baking soda scum left over and...I don't know if that's okay or not.

Well, I don't.

So! I double washed my hair later that day. It was a little straw-like, but at least it was clean. Since then I've reverted to focusing more on my hairline and part, since that is where oil is most visible. That seems to help prevent my ends from feeling too dry, and my hair still feels and looks healthy and clean. I am also using most of my ACV rinse on my ends and reserving only a few spritzes to seal up the rest of my hair. I've done that twice...and so far it seems to be working really well!

 Now you're ready for pictures though. Right? Yeah, I know you are.

 So, the first set are right before my shower. It had been three days since my last wash, the style is leftover from Sunday, and the makeup from Monday (these photos were taken yesterday).

As you can see, my hair does not look exceptionally dirty! From the front, it looks perfectly fine. It isn't until you really zero in on the roots that you see a bit of oily separation. 

But then, it was time to shower. 

This photo is after my shower and a touch of makeup. This is how my hair air dries. I can't wait until my hair is long again. 

So far, it feels great! And it would look as great as it feels if I took the time to style it today...which I did not. (But I put on makeup and clean clothes, so the day was not a complete loss!)