Use Up Your Stash challenge!!!

[Cleopatra18]

For all the hair junkies out there! whether are oils,conditioners,treatments,or even hair toys! we know we have to stop buyin stuff for our hair
Personally,im going to officially start this challenge in 2 weeks when we're finally done with some stuff in the house.
Till then ill have one chance to restock on staples/favorates or just something i have been craving to buy lol.
after that,this challenge should go on till the end of the year with buying absolutely nothing for my hair,with the exception of only one time to restock a really needed product during this period.
you can post a list of all the items you have here and edit it through out the challenge.
if something is really not working for you,we can use our stash to swap products with each other,and so preventing waste and further spending.
you can also post your adjusted regimens to try to finish up your products more (e.g more deepconditioning/oil soaks/cowashing etc)
you can also use this challenge to include beauty items in general (make up,face creams,body lotions.perfumes watever addiction you have lol)
So Who is with me??

[eternallyverdan]

I'll join in! I don't have too many products, but I'd like to guarantee myself that I won't buy anything more before the end of the year.

Here's my list:

Shampoos:
1 Garnier Avocado Oil and Shea Butter Shampoo (I didn't buy this one-- it was left at my house, and it smell kind of gross, but I feel bad wasting it)
1 Suave Clarifying Shampoo
2 Avalon Organics Lemon Clarifying Shampoos (These were a gift, but I like using them so it's fine)
1 WhisperingWindzFarm Whipped Shampoo

Conditioners:
1 Herbal Essences Long Term Relationship
1 Semi-Expensive Shea Butter thing from France (don't remember the brand)
1 bottle of Olive Oil and Aloe Conditioner (Also a gift; Olive oil and aloe extracts are the last two ingredients on the list)

Leave-ins:
Garnier Fructis Smoothing Serum
John Frieda Shine Shock

Miscellaneous:
750 g henna
1 small bottle jojoba oil
1 small bottle almond oil
2 tubes aloe vera gel


Huh. I guess I have more stuff than I thought. I'll get started tonight!

[Sissy]

oh wow... what a perfect thread for me. I just placed a HUGE order of conditioners and oils off vitacost.com and once they all finish arriving I'd better cut it out for the rest of the year! LOL, the only thing I can see myself needing after this is if i run out of shea butter and also I know I'll need to purchase more of my beloved VO5 Vanilla Mint Tea Clarifying Conditioner (for CO Washing) and GVP Conditioning Balm from Sally's (I always use this in my SMT's) at some point when it's on sale and when I've run out. I know it sounds bad to order so much but really it's an overdue Christmas pressie... I received money for Christmas to buy some hair items of my choice but I never go around to doing it... I kept adding things to my shopping cart and vitacost and then taking diff. things out. I have just now finally gotten around to placing the order. It's a lot of stuff but I'm hoping it will all get good use and that I will be totally set for a while!

I will have to come back to this and try to list my stash after I've taken an inventory but it will be ridiculously long... it might be easier just to list things as I used them up (I do have several bottles of almost used up product floating around). It's embarrassing how much I already have and now I'll have so many more because Vitacost was offering free shipping and has such excellent deals on their products. They are very good prices on the large bottles of Nature's Gate so I had to try pretty much every single scent/flavor they had on offer... yeeps Hopefully, I'll like them all! I also ordered several Jason conditioners that I haven't yet tried (I'm thinking I'll like them as I've loved the other Jason conditioners I've tried). I got Millcreek Henna conditioner and aloe vera mill creek conditioner (those are two Mill Creek varieties I've not yet tried). I am also trying out Kiss My Face conditioners, Desert Essence conditioners, and some Beauty Without Cruelty conditioners finally (been wanting to do this for a while). Yes, yes, yes... me thinks I'll have to store some conditioner in my cellar as it's not all going to fit in my closet prolly. Well, some people have wine cellars... I'll have a conditioner cellar I suppose

I also bought some oils. I got some Castor Oil (hexane free variety which I've not yet tried) and Jojoba Oil (I was running low on both those). I am also trying out some new oils that I've never tried before: Grapeseed oil, Avocado Oil, and Alba Organics Hawaiian Kukui Nut Organic Body Oil (supposedly great for the skin and nice smelling but also ok to use in hair).

I also ordered some pure Cocoa butter (to make some homemade deep treatment conditioning mixes with). I also got sweet orange EO and some Jasmine Absolute (in jojoba for the carrier) to scent my homemade concoctions with. I hope to make some lovely Fox's Shea Cream and whipped scented shea and cocobutter recipes. I even ordered some Raw Honey for eating and mixing into my homemade hair concoctions and some Vitamin B5 Pantothenic Acid to add to my hair treats and to take orally from time to time for hair health.

As you can see, I went way overboard... the first shipment already arrived and I have already tried the two Aubrey Organics conditioners (J.A.Y. Conditioner and Swimmer's Conditioner) I ordered and have already reviewed them here on LHC and like them both so so far so good. The only other AO product I ordered was two bottles of the Honeysuckle Rose Conditioner but I've used that before and love it and I had totally run out so it was time to stock up... it makes for a great deep treatment!

[GRU]

I don't have the time or energy to dig everything out and list it, but I'd like to sign on to this challenge!

I've been wanting to get some butters (shea, cocoa, avocado, olive, jojoba, kokum) to try, because I haven't gone that route yet at all. So that can be my "one last purchase" before the challenge starts. But it wouldn't kill me to stop buying conditioners "to try".

I'm not sure if I have enough of my Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut Conditioner to get me through until the end of the year, and that is my one true "must have" product -- I use it for CO-washing and conditioning and as my leave-in. But I also only buy it when I'm on my last bottle, or if it's on a good sale (one Saturday my store had a one-day-only sale with Suave stuff for 66-cents/bottle... no way I can turn down that price!).

So, as long as I'm allowed one more purchase for my butters, plus restocking of my one true must-have product, I'm up for the challenge!!!

[Cleopatra18]

great!! i cant wait to start,i will probably go tomorow to satisfy my last pj needs i will post a list later.

[Cailie]

Of course I'm IN !!!

Not buying hair things until new year, minimum ! (I have SO MUCH)

[Roseate]

Oh, I am so in!

Or, I guess maybe my challenge is a little modified- I'm going to allow myself to repurchase when I run out of any one "category" of things. My categories are: sulfate-free shampoo, CO-conditioner, richer conditioner, leave-in, oil, stylers.

The "stylers" category is my big challenge! I use my same old flaxseed gel 99% of the time when I 'do' my hair, and I don't even do it every time I wash. And I only wash once a week. So it takes me FOREVER to use up a thing of gel or curl creme or whatever, but does that stop me from buying more? No it does not. I see something cone-free that I haven't tried, and somehow it hops into my basket.

So no more! I must use my stash, or if I try something a couple times and don't love it I will toss it out or offer it to y'all. This is also a good excuse to systematically try all my stuff, and not just use the same old all the time. I paid money for this goop, I may as well put it on my head or get it out of my cabinet already!

[rapunzhell13]

I vow not to buy anymore products until I've used up both of my shampoo bars. I'm hoping they'll last me until the end of the year, but if not I will purchase something and use it up before moving on to something else. Also, I vow not to buy anymore "future" hair toys, i.e. ones that I can't use immediately. I will stay OFF the swap board. And Etsy...

[julliams]

I'm in. I just bought ANOTHER silicone free, natural blah blah blah shampoo and conditioner set because it was buy one get one free. GOT ... TO ... STOP ...!!!!

Now I really need to keep using all this stuff until it's all gone. I guess the yucky conditioners could be used for COwashing (which I don't really do) now and again.

[HintOfMint]

I tell myself to take on this challenge after every new product I buy.

In all seriousness though, this is definitely something I should truly attempt.
I want to try some butters before I commit to laying off the consumerism, however, isn't that what I am trying to avoid doing? Sure some shea butter could be the end of it, but what about mango, cocoa, and avocado? And I also want to try catnip rinses.
This is why I'm going to have to modify the challenge a bit for me. I really want to get out of the mindset that buying things is the answer. It is less wasteful and in the end, I'll be more wise with my money. Or so I hope.
The challenge is as follows: I will instate a moratorium on buying products within each of the haircare categories: cleansing, conditioning, leave-in conditioner, styling the bulk of my hair, and styling my bangs. I will buy a new product (be it shampoo, conditioner, styling product or leave-in) only when the category to which it belongs has been completely exhausted. There is no time limit to this challenge. This isn't a diet, it's a lifestyle change

Here are a few things that I would like to try, however, I will not try them until I am done with these items.
In the conditioner category, I will not try catnip until I am done with the Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition stuff.
The leave-in conditioner category is tricky. I use olive oil regularly to cook, so I always have that on hand and so I'll never really "run out." I also use jojoba oil to take off my makeup, so that is a long term member of my arsenal. Heck, if olive oil is safe to remove eye makeup with, I won't need to restock the jojoba either. I guess I'll try a butter after the aloe vera gel is used up, and only one butter at a time.
The styling bangs, styling hair, and shampoo categories have enough products to last a year, so I'm not even going to try entertaining thoughts of what can follow them. Seriously, I have Tigi Bedhead Manipulator, Giovanni texturizing mousse, a frizz ease straightening cream, frizz ease serum, a Nexxus heat protection spray, 3/4 of a bottle of Mane 'n Tail shampoo, and 7/8 of a bottle of Herbal Essences Drama Clean shampoo (both shampoos used only on the scalp). When all that is done, then we'll talk.

Whew. Although, my routine doesn't sound Spartan enough? Hmm... anything else I can do to make this more of a challenge?