The Archives: The Merged NW/SO/WO Thread

[piratejenny]

Hi Pirate Jenny, rosewater is awesome for acne (plus it smells fab). maybe you could try massaging a little into your scalp.

That's a good idea! I will add this to my "test plan" . I'll also try the cinnamon dry shampoo you mentioned earlier. I'm occasionally using commercial dry shampoo right now (mainly because it's so easy to apply ) but cinnamon sounds good!!

[Kamir0]

Hello NW/SO peeps!

I found this thread by accident while I was experimenting with oil shampoo back in January, and starting stretching my washes while reading this entire thread and the entire archived NW progress thread.

Although I liked the effect of "shampooiling" my scalp and hair smelt rancid after about a week, which I thought was the coconut oil "turning" so I decided to switch to WO, but I hate how my hair feels and how my combs/brushes are covered in grey gunk for days afterwards... Yuck!

My last oil shampoo was either on January 21st or 28th(?), and after that I rinsed once about 5 1/2 weeks ago (March 10th?).
I rarely mist (I haven't in weeks) and I didn't oil my ends for ages, so I ended up trimming because my ends felt like hay.
I have since decided to be more flexible about it, and have oiled my ends and damaged hair with cocoa butter (which doesn't seem to turn rancid as opposed to coconut oil).

I have read several people mentioned pimples and I occasionally have some, but then again, I get blemishes on my face, chest and back too, and I did also while on shampoo, etc.
It was interesting to read that BedHead had pimples due to food allergy, and I wonder if mine could be food-related or hormone-related (I'm vegan and my diet is pretty good).

Speaking of diet, I recently started taking a DHA (omega 3) supplement again, and my scalp scritching yielded yellow gunk for a few days, rather than the usual white gunk.

As of now, my hair is pretty decent up (I rarely wear it down anymore because I'm shooting for classic length this year), the crown area is oiliest (dare I say, waxiest) and most of my ends are moisturized, save the damaged ends around my face (heat damage I think), which I trimmed again last night (much shorter than the back, because I'm also growing out bangs/fringe).
I am wearing my hair down at the moment (I work from home so it's convenient), because I think the waxiness in my crown area could be as a result of wearing my hair in this spot exclusively. I like high buns, and they help contain my bangs without pins...
I thought tucking my ends would help moisturize them, but I think my scalp is suffocated as I wear my hair up in a bun even to sleep...
I may go "air it" out in the garden later on...

I have DBF check my scalp for funky smell every day (hello paranoia) but he only says it smells stronger than before, although not in a bad way (whatever that means)... He can only smell it really close, so nobody else would be able to tell.

On another note, I follow a pretty intense workout routine at the moment (BeachBody Insanity), which makes me sweat a lot, and if anything, my scalp is happier for it, like the sweat is "cleaning" it?
I have been having baths more than showers also (due to the shower head not working) and rinsing with a jug, and I actually like it better.
My hair gets steamed up (except the hair under my bun, where it is waxiest) and it feels fluffy afterwards (as described by other NW/SOers).

I scritch and fingercomb (preen unprecisely) every day (ideally twice a day) and try to massage and preen (more thoroughly) too, but it takes ages so I sometimes feel lazy about it. My ends feel much better when I preen, and I am not sure whether massaging makes a difference, but it sure feels good.
I have trouble massaging the back of my head though, because I have neck problems, so I have to rest my forehead on the bed (I smp upside down).

I am not sure I will stay NW forever, but I definitely have decided to never use S/C ever again (my back acne has reduced tremendously).
I may experiment with herbs/clay if/when I decide to henna, but in the meantime, I won't WO (I'd much rather have greasy hair than sticky hair).
If my scalp starts smelling or if I feel like smelling pretty, I may mist with EO, or a coffee ground infusion (steeping used coffee grounds in filtered water and straining) but that's it.

I'm sure no [soap-based] product has touched my hair in ages BTW, because I am WO on the face and body (save the occasional coffee ground scrub, and aloe gel on face/coconut oil on body). I also dry brush my body (I haven't found a face/complexion brush made of plant fiber bristles so I scritch in the shower...).

Well, that's a long post.
Thanks for reading.

[Moor_tu_lyfe]

thanks, Moor_tu_lyfe! do you spray your DD's hair daily? and just a few drops of the oils in a spray bottle?

Yeah, I spray her hair daily. We just finished 2 weeks of school holidays without any spray in her hair, and occassionally, while it was still wet, it smelled a bit musty- not strong at all, and it's difficult to find a good word to describe it. I never have this problem when I spray her hair daily- it really smells a bit like perfume after the eucalyptus has worn off in the afternoon.

Because I am trying to deter the blighted little buggers (head lice) I have quite a bit of EO in the spray bottle- in a 500mL (1/2 quart) bottle, you can see about 1cm (bit less then half inch) of oil floating on top. I always shake it thoroughly before spraying, and I have to be careful not to get it in her eyes (she opens them after I have finished spraying, sometimes it must be still in the air...). I will spray until most of her hair is wet (I really don't like head lice ) but by the time she gets to school, the smell isn't very strong at all.

I'm still getting the grey sticky stuff on my brush (less noticable on comb) but am hesitant to take up JillieRose's advice- adding oil to comb. After the smell fiasco last time, I'll probably keep any additional oil off my head unless absolutely necessary. However, I might start more regular brushing/combing for a while since the oilies aren't so bad, just the waxies... maybe they need to be balanced out, and some sebum stimulation might help remove the sticky, waxy feeling that is covering my hair!

I'll keep you posted.

[LaceyNg]

Yeah, I spray her hair daily. We just finished 2 weeks of school holidays without any spray in her hair, and occassionally, while it was still wet, it smelled a bit musty- not strong at all, and it's difficult to find a good word to describe it. I never have this problem when I spray her hair daily- it really smells a bit like perfume after the eucalyptus has worn off in the afternoon.

Because I am trying to deter the blighted little buggers (head lice) I have quite a bit of EO in the spray bottle- in a 500mL (1/2 quart) bottle, you can see about 1cm (bit less then half inch) of oil floating on top. I always shake it thoroughly before spraying, and I have to be careful not to get it in her eyes (she opens them after I have finished spraying, sometimes it must be still in the air...). I will spray until most of her hair is wet (I really don't like head lice ) but by the time she gets to school, the smell isn't very strong at all.

I'm still getting the grey sticky stuff on my brush (less noticable on comb) but am hesitant to take up JillieRose's advice- adding oil to comb. After the smell fiasco last time, I'll probably keep any additional oil off my head unless absolutely necessary. However, I might start more regular brushing/combing for a while since the oilies aren't so bad, just the waxies... maybe they need to be balanced out, and some sebum stimulation might help remove the sticky, waxy feeling that is covering my hair!

I'll keep you posted.

thanks so much for explaining how you do it!

and yes, please keep us updated! it helps so much to see what coping mechanisms others are using!

[Bedhead]

It looks like I'm going to need to look into this rose water stuff, hmmm.....

Kamir0, first of all, welcome to the NW/SO thread!!
It seems a lot of what you went through correlates with what I did, and at the same time too! I also had some basic chin acne that never went away no matter what I did, and going off S&C did it. And yes, move that bun around, up down, all around, change it to a braid, whatever, I think it helps a lot. Also an extra deep massage on those waxies should alleviate the problem while you're moving things around and giving it a break.

Thanks for sharing!

---------------------------------------

On my end, the smell of my hair changed suddenly, like to a pretty smell, and since I don't use any scented things I think it just might be my hair. Also I have had 6 good hair days in a row now, and I haven't experienced any sebuminess in almost two weeks now. In fact, as the days pass my hair gets better and better. I have even worn my hair down a few times too, have received compliments on my hair, and there's a richness to the colour, a shine that brings out my coppers and an even softness throughout the length from root to tip. I really didn't think this was possible, but here I am, and I think I could very well do this for the rest of my life.

Delighted is the word of the day today.

[Kinkycurlygurl]

It looks like I'm going to need to look into this rose water stuff, hmmm.....

Kamir0, first of all, welcome to the NW/SO thread!!
It seems a lot of what you went through correlates with what I did, and at the same time too! I also had some basic chin acne that never went away no matter what I did, and going off S&C did it. And yes, move that bun around, up down, all around, change it to a braid, whatever, I think it helps a lot. Also an extra deep massage on those waxies should alleviate the problem while you're moving things around and giving it a break.



Thanks for sharing!

---------------------------------------

On my end, the smell of my hair changed suddenly, like to a pretty smell, and since I don't use any scented things I think it just might be my hair. Also I have had 6 good hair days in a row now, and I haven't experienced any sebuminess in almost two weeks now. In fact, as the days pass my hair gets better and better. I have even worn my hair down a few times too, have received compliments on my hair, and there's a richness to the colour, a shine that brings out my coppers and an even softness throughout the length from root to tip. I really didn't think this was possible, but here I am, and I think I could very well do this for the rest of my life.

Delighted is the word of the day today.

Sounds like your scalp has found its balance point. Congraulations

[Kamir0]

Thanks for the warm welcome, Bedhead!

Yesterday, I gave my scalp a deeper massage than usual and then went through a super thorough preening session, starting from the back so as not to miss any scalp hair on the crown. Then I French braided it, and put the braid up at the base of my neck with a single stick (no pins). It was better by evening, and I slept with the French braid.

Then, this morning, I bunned my hair up after lightly scritching my scalp, did my workout, and went to the shower. I sweated A LOT this time (Pure Cardio followed by Cardio Abs for those who know the program).

I waited for the sweat in my hair to dry before taking the bun down, while bent at the waist. My hair felt "heavy", but nice and moisturized, and not waxy, even at the crown.
While upside down, I scritched and massaged a bit, then finger-combed, then scritched again with my fine-tooth wooden comb (from esptone on etsy, bought off the swap board).
I then held my length with both hands (as in a ponytail, but at the top and bottom of it) before rising up to avoid tangling. Then I tilted my head back and moved my hair over my head and back in one piece, before releasing it starting with the hair at the nape. Hope that makes sense.
As I prefer SMPing while bent at the waist, this really helps preventing tangles.

After finger-combing in the upright position, I French-braided my hair again, quite loosely, and I started the braid at the crown rather than at the top of my head. Finally, I put cocoa butter on the tassel as I prefer an over-oiled tassel to a dry one, prone to breakage...

***
BedHead, great news about the scent AND the shine/colour! This is an inspiration for all of us!

I may carry on this experiment for at least as long as you have so far, just to see if my smell turns "pretty" too.

My hair doesn't smell so pretty at the moment... Not funky, but definitely not pretty.
At least, I think it looks nice up, and it feels fabulous (and DBF agrees).

[piratejenny]

I'm kind of tempted to see how far I can get with NW. I last washed my hair a week ago (with rhassoul). On Monday and today I used a dry shampoo concoction of two parts corn starch and one part cinnamon of which I applied just a little bit to the front and crown (whatever is most visible if the hair is up). I applied it with a make-up brush and I am quite blown away as to how well that worked. My hair looks perfectly normal today - I'd even wear it down if I wasn't so much in love with my new hair fork . I also didn't rinse after working out/sauna during this last week and similar to Kamir0 I think this somehow cleaned my scalp (??).

That said I still have two big nasty scalp pimples... I am doing a lot of intense scritching and massaging in those areas and I kind of want to see if that helps clearing it up or if this is actually more irritating... I haven't had an opportunity to get my hands on rose water yet, but plan on doing that in the weekend.

So, we'll see how far I can go with this. As I stated earlier it's not necessarily my ambition to be strictly NW/SO, but I can clearly state that my hair and scalp are doing quite well without the water. My water is on the hard side and on WO my hair was just a mess. I doubt I'll want to do the any time soon, though, as I love the effect of my bi-monthly (or so) henna sessions and I also like the effect a bit of coconut oil has for my wave definition.

Very inspirational thread

[earthnut]

I am not sure I will stay NW forever, but I definitely have decided to never use S/C ever again (my back acne has reduced tremendously).

My mom had acne and itchy skin after washing. It turned out she was allergic to SLS. She's not willing to give up the soap and shampoo, but she switched to baby shampoo which doesn't have SLS and doesn't have skin problems now too. You may have been allergic to something in your shampoo.

[Bedhead]

Sounds like your scalp has found its balance point. Congraulations

Thank you Kinkycurlygurl! I think so, although, there is a part of me that hopes I'm not deluding myself. lol!

BedHead, great news about the scent AND the shine/colour! This is an inspiration for all of us!

I may carry on this experiment for at least as long as you have so far, just to see if my smell turns "pretty" too.

My hair doesn't smell so pretty at the moment... Not funky, but definitely not pretty.
At least, I think it looks nice up, and it feels fabulous (and DBF agrees).

At 7 weeks I almost gave up. My hair had regressed and well, I was kind of freaking out, so I ended up doing searches on NW/SO in other languages. If you look back 6 weeks from now, you'll see I was inspired by a German girl who took a video every week, and at the end of 14 weeks, her hair was gorgeous and lifting from her scalp, the colour was beautiful, vibrant even, and her hair looked healthier than ever, so I told myself, "Okay, 14 weeks, if I'm still struggling, I'll totally quit NW/SO." I'm so glad I didn't quit back then.

I'd be curious to see if your hair turns pretty smelling too. I don't recall anyone else in the thread or the archived one mentioning this happening. And no, my hair didn't smell funky either, but there was a light sebumy smell.

I'm kind of tempted to see how far I can get with NW. I last washed my hair a week ago (with rhassoul). On Monday and today I used a dry shampoo concoction of two parts corn starch and one part cinnamon of which I applied just a little bit to the front and crown (whatever is most visible if the hair is up). I applied it with a make-up brush and I am quite blown away as to how well that worked. My hair looks perfectly normal today - I'd even wear it down if I wasn't so much in love with my new hair fork . I also didn't rinse after working out/sauna during this last week and similar to Kamir0 I think this somehow cleaned my scalp (??).

That said I still have two big nasty scalp pimples... I am doing a lot of intense scritching and massaging in those areas and I kind of want to see if that helps clearing it up or if this is actually more irritating... I haven't had an opportunity to get my hands on rose water yet, but plan on doing that in the weekend.

So, we'll see how far I can go with this. As I stated earlier it's not necessarily my ambition to be strictly NW/SO, but I can clearly state that my hair and scalp are doing quite well without the water. My water is on the hard side and on WO my hair was just a mess. I doubt I'll want to do the any time soon, though, as I love the effect of my bi-monthly (or so) henna sessions and I also like the effect a bit of coconut oil has for my wave definition.

Very inspirational thread

I'm glad to hear the cinnamon has worked for you!

Back when I was stretching out my washes I would continually decide to go that one extra day beyond the day I thought my hair needed a wash. I found out if I smp'd that night, my hair was fine for another few days. Eventually,I forgot that I had already smp'd and continued even further, finally realising I could keep going and going like that. It wasn't my intention either, but once I got to that point, the idea of NW/SO became more and more inviting. But that's me....