Water only washing, WO, 2018

[Hairkay]

Since the old thread got muddled up I thought I'd start a new one. Water only washing is the simplest no 'poo method. Many start with clarifying their hair with a shampoo or vinegar rinse then change to using just water only. The aim is to keep sebum to condition and protect the hair. Some incorporate herbal remedies in their water washing journeys others do not. Either way experiment to see what will work for you. It does require patience and some will go through a transition period where the hair gets oily. There will be those that find out that water only washing doesn't work for them but for others it works well. Some may use a little bit of oil on dry hair to help with the transition period. You can start of with daily water washing and start to stretch washes after full sebum coverage if this suits you.

Pros
Minimalistic
Cheap
None or very little build up to deal with
ability to get to know your own hair in its pure state
No products to lug around when travelling
hair feels soft
It is accommodating for those with allergies

Cons
Results are not instant so patience is required
Can't get away with using styling products on hair
Hard water may require extra care to deal with
Hair requires scritching massaging and preening to maintain

Sites to visit
http://wateronlyhairwash.com/

http://justprimalthings.com/2014/10/20/the-ultimate-water-only-hair-washing-routine-no-shampoo/

[MoonRabbit]

I've always wanted to try water only but have been a little nervous about scalp issues forming and odor. My hair picks up any odor when I go outside which is why I use a strong scented conditioner. Maybe once I have all virgin hair and cut away the last of my damage I will give it a try.

[melikai]

Thanks for starting this thread up again, Hairkay! I still do a very very occasional cleansing conditioner wash, so I didn't feel entirely right about starting it myself.

I'm going to be getting a shower water filter for my birthday in March, and I'm hoping this will allow me to completely transition to only WO.
I've at least been able to recently stop using bottled conditioner on my ends - I mixed up my own concoction of an egg yolk, filtered water, coconut, jojoba, and olive oils and it worked amazingly! For some reason, just oil on my ends wasn't working, but store-bought conditioner leaves it really limp and lifeless.

I'm also contemplating getting distilled water to use for my wash/rinse until I get the filter, but lugging big plastic jugs (and disposing of them after) is not too appealing. I'd also have to change how I wash my hair, and do more of a mermaid soak.

[Hairkay]

I've always wanted to try water only but have been a little nervous about scalp issues forming and odor. My hair picks up any odor when I go outside which is why I use a strong scented conditioner. Maybe once I have all virgin hair and cut away the last of my damage I will give it a try.
If you do decide to have a try you will notice that your hair has it's own neutral smell that isn't bad. It does require more frequent washing to get rid of odours you pick up. I use DIY fruit hair masks to condition my hair and I find that's been fun. I may have a mild fruit smell left for one day after that. I wouldn't do anything as risky as trying something strong like an onion rinse. Some people I've heard of tried it out and even after they washed their hair with shampoo they still had the lingering onion smell for days after.


Thanks for starting this thread up again, Hairkay! I still do a very very occasional cleansing conditioner wash, so I didn't feel entirely right about starting it myself.

I'm going to be getting a shower water filter for my birthday in March, and I'm hoping this will allow me to completely transition to only WO.
I've at least been able to recently stop using bottled conditioner on my ends - I mixed up my own concoction of an egg yolk, filtered water, coconut, jojoba, and olive oils and it worked amazingly! For some reason, just oil on my ends wasn't working, but store-bought conditioner leaves it really limp and lifeless.

I'm also contemplating getting distilled water to use for my wash/rinse until I get the filter, but lugging big plastic jugs (and disposing of them after) is not too appealing. I'd also have to change how I wash my hair, and do more of a mermaid soak.

Oh I do the mermaid soak about twice a week when I put coconut oil, olive oil and almond oil in the bath. I've got hard water which I've learned to put up with since I've dealt with hard water most of my life. I'd only have the option of fitting a shower head filter and it's too much inconvenience getting a new one ever month or so plus the cost will add up. It's only available online and I've seen that many do not have the option of click and collect. I do not have a guarantee that parcels will get to me and I'm not home all day to wait for them. I just do mild vinegar rinses every so often.

[proo]

Could you share your current general routine, Hairkay?
Much obliged

[genuinewicked]

Hello everyone! Excited to see a fresh WO thread. I've been water-only since July 2017 and am loving it. I definitely went through rough transitions, and it's still not where I'd like it to be, but my hair feels SO MUCH BETTER than it used to when I was using shampoo and conditioner. It is incredibly soft and growing sooo fast. I use a wooden bristle brush every night, and it really helps to absorb excess oil and clean my hair a bit. (Highly recommend this!) I also use a water filter on my shower head, and that seems to help a lot. Excited to join in on the conversations that will take place here! <3

[melikai]

Hello everyone! Excited to see a fresh WO thread. I've been water-only since July 2017 and am loving it. I definitely went through rough transitions, and it's still not where I'd like it to be, but my hair feels SO MUCH BETTER than it used to when I was using shampoo and conditioner. It is incredibly soft and growing sooo fast. I use a wooden bristle brush every night, and it really helps to absorb excess oil and clean my hair a bit. (Highly recommend this!) I also use a water filter on my shower head, and that seems to help a lot. Excited to join in on the conversations that will take place here! <3

Good to hear you're having success with it! I also have a wooden pin brush, but find I've been using my Mason Pearson sensitive brush more lately. It has longer bristles than most BBB's I've seen, and it seems to distribute the oils better. Of course, nothing works as well for me as my own fingers! But brushing feels gooood. :cloud9: I've also been thinking of getting a flea comb, for the ultimate in preening technology :silly: - but I have so many brushes and combs I think I need to tone it down.

I'm hoping getting a filter will allow my husband to retry WO. He has very oily hair, and even after 6 months of it, it was still really bad, no matter what we tried. It's difficult too, because he isn't the sort that will spend hours preening and taking care of it, so it has to be fairly effortless.

[Sinthia]

Gonna give this a shot! Did my first water wash today. Hair is very staticky.. Greasy looking and icky. Gonna try it for two weeks. I have very thin hair that gets greasy a day after washing

[melikai]

Good luck with it, Sinthia! Just be prepared for a big adjustment phase and remember that even if you notice how your hair looks, most other people won't and don't. Are you going from frequent shampooing to WO?

[Hairkay]

Could you share your current general routine, Hairkay?
Much obliged

I water wash daily adding a DIY hair mask once a week on the weekend. Hair gets styled in plaits/braids weekly which makes it easy to wash my thick hair without worrying over tangles. After I do the DIY hair mask, I'll undo each plait, preen and restyle hair. Hair gets dried with a t-shirt then a tiny bit of oil put on the hair ends. I'll alternate hair masks so the focus is on moisture one week and protein/strengthening the next week. Every 3 to 6 months the strengthening will be a henna, coconut milk gloss. I use mild vinegar rinses whenever I feel the need. I reserve olive oil to treat any flaky scalp patch then follow up with oat water. I use S & D to deal with single strand knots and split ends.

[Sinthia]

Has anyone had success with WO who has thin hair? I worry that its just not going to be good for me. Yes I was daily or every other day with a sulfate free shampoo/cone free conditioner

[proo]

Thanks for the feedback,Hairkay-
About your daily rinse:
Is it in the shower, warm or cool, any smp?

[Hairkay]

Thanks for the feedback,Hairkay-
About your daily rinse:
Is it in the shower, warm or cool, any smp?

It's mostly in the shower with a scritching and massage. Other times it's in the bath, mermaid soak style. I save the preening for when I'm styling/finger detangling or combing my hair once a week.

[melikai]

Responding to Melika from the archived thread:


Came to check on the WO thread and couldn't find it at first. Then I saw it was merged with NW and was :confused: until I read back a few pages and saw what happened LOL!

Do we have a new WO thread yet? I was looking but could not find... or I am blind. Either is possible.



As a side note about water quality and WO: NW didn't work for me because I worked outside and sometimes in attics and needed to be able to rinse grunge and fibreglass from my hair. I was NW for 4-6 months until I had a series of HVAC jobs. I switched to WO in combination with Terressentials when needed. After several years I just forgot to order more Terressentials and have been strictly WO for over a year now. I, too, have difficult water but the Miracle Water recipe that I dug up here in archives saved me and now my hair is just past knee length... but I would not have been able to do WO without the Miracle Water mix.

Miracle Water
1 gallon hard tap water
1/4 teaspoon citric acid
1/32 teaspoon (yes, that is 32) ascorbic acid

I start my water warm/hot and fill a gallon jug to which I have added the powdered acids. Then I let it sit until the end of my shower and I use it as a final rinse before stepping out. My sister has short hair and uses only a half gallon with adjusted acid amounts. I used to live in an area with extremely hard water so I used two gallons back then. You will find that you may need to adjust the amounts of acid needed slightly too depending on your water and results. Too much acid=greasy hair or stiff ends (in my experience).

The one constant no matter what hair routine you choose? You will have to adapt it to your hair and figure out what works for you!

I also use Miracle Water as a final rinse, but not every time - maybe very second or third. And that explains why it often gives me slightly greasy-looking hair, as it seems I've been putting in too much of both acids. I use a much smaller jug of water, maybe about a quarter of a gallon, so it would truly be a tiny amount. I've been doing about a pinch.

[cjk]

I've not shampooed my hair in over a year. December 2016.

I water rinse every few days. The condition of my hair has never been better, and I get regular compliments on its appearance. No smells or scalp issues, whatsoever.

[elfynity]

To Sinthia first, my hair was very thin and since I have been water washing it is growing like crazy so it is thickening up alot at the roots. But because my hair is not being stripped of moisture anymore, all my hair just has so much more volume and feels so much thicker. I brush all oiliness with the BBB and it works well. Hope that is helpful.

I'm so happy about this thread startin up! I am a believer of WO! And very excited to see it through! I am so very lucky that my water seems to be soft in my area, which saves a lot of hasslte.

To start the WO journey, I did a thorough Bicarb of Soda wash and ACV rinse and then my hair became really oily a few days later. (my hair takes about 4 days to look oily). I at first used organic shampoo and then diluted that shampoo and then before you know it, i was washing without shampoo altogether. I think I just did it by accident and when my hair dried I was amazed at how good it looked! I never thought I'd go for water washing, and here I am!

So when I bath, I just submerge my head in the medium hot water and massage my hair and my scalp and run my fingers through it a bit while I am in there. I only do this once a week now. I have noticed that my hair now dries SUPER fast!! So convenient! And it smells really good. Someone, somewhere around here said that with water washing you smell like a 'well groomed cat' - my cat is like my most precious little creature and I loved that analogy- but, I put a few drops of ylang ylang in the water to add some fresh smell to it. It is lovely.

[AutobotsAttack]

Its been two washes so almost 5 days since I’ve started WO washing.

I tried preening, but I can’t seem to get my sebum past my ears. So I’ve been using sweet almond oils to supplement my own from the ears down. It’s feeling a bit less dry. My scalp was yelling at me, and I felt the need to wash with a cleanser of some type, but I diluted some peppermint extract in water and it calmed down anything that was irritating my scalp along with the sweat from training. I tried twisting my hair during washing but everything was sticking together so I just washed loose and made two pig buns.

My hair air dried almost instantly and it was still soft.

I have very very fine hair that’s thick, so I want to see how WO with fine hair holds up. I also want to do WO for a while because I want to save my products, and not buy so many. I’m trying to curve my product junkyness lol.

I dampened my hair all over from root to tip with my spray bottle and sealed with jojoba, so the next wash should get more oils flowing down and coating my hair more.

[EdG]

I am coming up on two years water-only washing.

I have stayed with water-only because it removes tangles far better than any other methods that I have tried. Accumulated lint comes right out during combing.

The downside has been that I am experiencing serious breakage at the ends. I attribute this to the tangles, but I also suspect the absence of silicones may be a factor.
Ed

[Hairkay]

Its been two washes so almost 5 days since I’ve started WO washing.

I tried preening, but I can’t seem to get my sebum past my ears. So I’ve been using sweet almond oils to supplement my own from the ears down. It’s feeling a bit less dry. My scalp was yelling at me, and I felt the need to wash with a cleanser of some type, but I diluted some peppermint extract in water and it calmed down anything that was irritating my scalp along with the sweat from training. I tried twisting my hair during washing but everything was sticking together so I just washed loose and made two pig buns.

My hair air dried almost instantly and it was still soft.

I have very very fine hair that’s thick, so I want to see how WO with fine hair holds up. I also want to do WO for a while because I want to save my products, and not buy so many. I’m trying to curve my product junkyness lol.

I dampened my hair all over from root to tip with my spray bottle and sealed with jojoba, so the next wash should get more oils flowing down and coating my hair more.

Welcome to the WO experience, have fun. I also put a tiny bit of oil on my hair ends which is the last 2-3 inches.

[Eastbound&Down]

This method is interesting to me. What would be step 1 to starting, clarifying then letting it go?

[elfynity]

Hi EdG, that is sad about the breakage. Does it perhaps have something to do with the quality of the water you are using?

[Hairkay]

This method is interesting to me. What would be step 1 to starting, clarifying then letting it go?

Yes, it's simple.

[Shigure]

Hi EdG, that is sad about the breakage. Does it perhaps have something to do with the quality of the water you are using?


I have problem with breakage. While combing bits of wax and lint they stack to my ends and rip them :(

[Eastbound&Down]

I'm sorry of these are basic questions, but I'm having a hard time tracking down these answers elsewhere.

-I have Caucasian hair, about 2b. What combs/brushes should I go for? I doubt the employees of Sally's will have much insight into WO care...

-Do any of you use tea rinses? This would be maybe weekly, if not bi-weekly.

-how was your transition phase? I read weeks, then I've read months.

[EdG]

Hi EdG, that is sad about the breakage. Does it perhaps have something to do with the quality of the water you are using?

My water is very hard in the winter. Mineral deposits may also be contributing to the breakage.


I have problem with breakage. While combing bits of wax and lint they stack to my ends and rip them :(

Yes, combing removes the accumulated waxy sebum and lint. If lint meets hair, the hair inevitably breaks.


I'm sorry of these are basic questions, but I'm having a hard time tracking down these answers elsewhere.

-I have Caucasian hair, about 2b. What combs/brushes should I go for? I doubt the employees of Sally's will have much insight into WO care...

-Do any of you use tea rinses? This would be maybe weekly, if not bi-weekly.

-how was your transition phase? I read weeks, then I've read months.

Wooden combs work well. They will need frequent cleaning. I use a damp wash cloth. The wood doesn't seem to mind.

The transition period is the time required to remove clumps of accumulated waxy sebum and lint. My hair took a few months for the comb to come out mostly clean. Even two years later, on occasion, I still comb out pockets of waxy sebum and lint.

In my experience, shampoo does not remove the waxy part of sebum. That can only be removed mechanically (by combing). Your transition will depend on how much of this is present.
Ed

[cjk]

I tried curly girl for about two weeks. Put conditioner and gel on my hair. The curls are nice but the condition of my hair deteriorated.

I did a cowash to clarify, earlier in the week, and now I'm back to water only. And a few drops of olive oil to protect when I'm outside mowing the lawn on the weekends.

We will see if the curls stick around. I definitely learned some things about having curly hair, but I'm happy for my healthier curls to be somewhat less defined.

[melikai]

I'm sorry of these are basic questions, but I'm having a hard time tracking down these answers elsewhere.

-I have Caucasian hair, about 2b. What combs/brushes should I go for? I doubt the employees of Sally's will have much insight into WO care...

-Do any of you use tea rinses? This would be maybe weekly, if not bi-weekly.

-how was your transition phase? I read weeks, then I've read months.

People prefer different brushes and combs, but I mostly find myself using my MP Sensitive boar bristle brush, my somewhat-fine toothed horn comb, and my fingers. I use my fingers the most! They work best for preening and gentle detangling, for me.

Your transition can depend on how often you currently wash, what you wash with (harsher sulphates or something more gentle etc.), how much oil your scalp produces, and other things. I didn't really experience a transition, because my scalp doesn't produce much oil. My issues have mostly been to do with my dry ends - which I think I've now solved.

[melikai]

So, I've further refined my routine, and have possibly solved my dry and brittle ends problems. My hard water has always been a problem, and I was using a small amount of miracle water as my final rinse, but I've gone even further with this now. I heat up a gallon of water and mix my acids into that. Then in the shower, I first wet my hair thoroughly with the miracle water, so that that water is what first saturates my hair.
Then I wash my hair with hot tap water, as usual. I tried doing the entire wash with just miracle water in a basin, but it wasn't cleaning my hair enough that way. Once I'm done with my shower, I thoroughly rinse my hair with miracle water, then apply conditioner to my ends, then rinse that out again with the m. water. I also pour it all over my skin, because the hard water dries it out horribly and gives me eczema spots.
Before, I wasn't using the m. water as my first saturating soak, I wasn't using as much as my final rinse, and I wasn't using it *before* using my conditioner - I think that's maybe the most important change.

Thus far, my length is tons more moisturised, and seems to hold onto moisture better. Before, nothing I was doing would last - as soon as my hair was dry, my hair was dry. I'm still experimenting with amounts of the acids in the water somewhat. Our water is the hardest I've ever experienced (and I'm from Precambrian shield land!), and I think I have a lot of mineral buildup in my hair, so I may use more citric acid than the standard recipe for a while.

I'm hoping this will eventually mean I don't need to use conditioner at all anymore, and that I don't have to do my once-monthly diluted shampoo rinse. It's all about the water, it seems!

[elfynity]

I have had a bit of a rough time trying to WO only. I had two major set backs that required me to wash my hiar with diluted organic shampoo over the last 2 weeks. But before that, I was water washing for 3 weeks and I found that it was quite oily in the beginning, but with frequent medium hot water washed and lots of BB Brushing I was able to not just control the oiliness, but my hair was looking incredible, feeling fantastic and has never been so manageable. My profile photo was taken the day before the shampooing setback.

[EdG]

elfynity - don't feel bad about the occasional diluted shampoo. There was still sebum remaining afterwards.

I think that going completely water-only does not work for most people. It would not have worked for me when I was younger (too much oil).
Ed

[embee]

I think that going completely water-only does not work for most people. It would not have worked for me when I was younger (too much oil).
Ed

I agree with this. And now I'm able to go NW/SO but I'm much older!

[elfynity]

elfynity - don't feel bad about the occasional diluted shampoo. There was still sebum remaining afterwards.

I think that going completely water-only does not work for most people. It would not have worked for me when I was younger (too much oil).
Ed

Hi EdG, Thank you for saying that - one of the setbacks was actually a at a spa where a lady massaged my back, but somehow landed putting a whole bunch of the oil in my hair. All i can say is i am so grateful the oils were 100% organic! I actually did find that after washing with the diluted shampoo that my hair did retain a fair amount of original sebum, so it wasn't a complete start.

I have actually now not washed my hair since Thursday and it is still not oily! So it is safe to say that my hair oil production has probably normalized, in fact I have struggled this week to get it to go a bit oily! I am so happy now - it feels amazing! This is why we do WO! It really works!

[cjk]

I actually had to add a drop of oil, I used olive, to my tips this morning to maintain moisture. Ah, the challenge of reestablishing a balance, again.

[Eastbound&Down]

Experiment: Day 4 after WO wash on Friday evening. Hair is greasy, but I have been going scalp massages and using my BBB. My hair feels pretty soft and has no smell. Tonight I am going to try a tea rinse before my final water rinse.

[EdG]

elfynity and Eastbound&Down - that's cool. :cool:

I usually go a maximum of three days between water-only washes. Nothing bad happens by day three, but since water-only washing is so easy, I just do it. :)
Ed

[Eastbound&Down]

Experiment: Day 4 after WO wash on Friday evening. Hair is greasy, but I have been going scalp massages and using my BBB. My hair feels pretty soft and has no smell. Tonight I am going to try a tea rinse before my final water rinse.

Update: I got busy cleaning the house and then it was late, so I didn't do the tea rinse, but I did do a water rinse. My scalp looks and feels nice, but the length of my hair is pretty stringy. Any thoughts on how to combat this? I have to wear my hair in a bun for work, so it's fine when it is up and out of the way. It was also still very wet this morning after leaving it to dry overnight. I may have to wrap it up in a shirt or something for a while to let it dry more.

[elfynity]

the length of my hair is pretty stringy. Any thoughts on how to combat this? .
Hi East..
Are your ends stringy from oily sebum? some are sticking together kind of wet look? Are you using a BBB? I see you have a curlier hair type, so I know that may be a challenge with the brush, perhaps a wooden bristle brush to get the oils off your hair and onto the brush? If none of that works, and it is oiliness, I would just powder with some cornstarch on the most affected areas and brush it out.

[cjk]

I keep seeing BBB. What is that? From context I'd say a brush, but I'm guessing.

[Eastbound&Down]

Hi East..
Are your ends stringy from oily sebum? some are sticking together kind of wet look? Are you using a BBB? I see you have a curlier hair type, so I know that may be a challenge with the brush, perhaps a wooden bristle brush to get the oils off your hair and onto the brush? If none of that works, and it is oiliness, I would just powder with some cornstarch on the most affected areas and brush it out.

It is kinda weird, the ends and my scalp are fine, it's the middle 4 inches or so that have that wet look. I do have a BBB, and I have used it, but not everyday like I should... life, ya know? If it starts looking really bad, I'll use some cornstarch but for now I can disguise it in my bun.

[Eastbound&Down]

I keep seeing BBB. What is that? From context I'd say a brush, but I'm guessing.

It stands for Boar Bristle Brush.

[elfynity]

I keep seeing BBB. What is that? From context I'd say a brush, but I'm guessing.

Hi CJK, a boar bristle brush is made with boar hairs. This was how they used to make brushes back in the old days. The boar bristles are natural so when you brush your hair your own sebum sticks to the bristles and gets moved down your hair strands. This helps to move oiliness from your roots to your dry tips.

I also find using the BBB has other added benefits - it makes my hair very very shiny, it stops my hair from being flyaway, it helps incredibly in holding styles, it massages my scalp which helps in blood flow, and hence hair growth.

The BBB was the kind of brush used with the old tradition: 'brushing your hair 100 times before bed'.
Hope this helps.

[Eastbound&Down]

Finally did my tea rinse! I used chamomile because that's what I happened to have in the house haha! My hair feels pretty nice, of course it's still wet, and it smells lovely. I was also able to finger detangle much easier.

[Shigure]

Half year mark went and passed.
I may be still in transition or WO just won't work with my water.
I am persistent so I will wait more.
Maybe results will came.

[SparrowWings]

What, if any, attempts do you each make at spreading sebum while your hair is wet? Do you do it while showering, or as a separate step after? Do you do it by hand (how?), with a comb or brush, just let the water do what it will and call it enough, or something else altogether? How do you deal with hair being stretchier (and thereby more tangle-prone from its springiness, at least in my experience) when it's wet? How does the texture/consistency of your sebum change when its wet vs when it's dry?

[Shigure]

What, if any, attempts do you each make at spreading sebum while your hair is wet? Do you do it while showering, or as a separate step after? Do you do it by hand (how?), with a comb or brush, just let the water do what it will and call it enough, or something else altogether? How do you deal with hair being stretchier (and thereby more tangle-prone from its springiness, at least in my experience) when it's wet? How does the texture/consistency of your sebum change when its wet vs when it's dry?

I don't know if question was for me but I will answer anyway.
I rarely spread sebum on wet hair but I use toweling method. Between washes I SMP and comb with horn combs. My sebum is gummy/stick while wet and more spreadable while dry. I hate to wash my hair because they dry extremely long.

[EdG]

What, if any, attempts do you each make at spreading sebum while your hair is wet? Do you do it while showering, or as a separate step after? Do you do it by hand (how?), with a comb or brush, just let the water do what it will and call it enough, or something else altogether? How do you deal with hair being stretchier (and thereby more tangle-prone from its springiness, at least in my experience) when it's wet? How does the texture/consistency of your sebum change when its wet vs when it's dry?The best time to detangle is when the hair is still slightly damp. The dampness causes slip, and the sebum spreads out easily. I use my fingers and a wooden comb.

After the hair has dried, the sebum becomes harder and does not distribute as easily. This is when the hair is most susceptible to breakage. I comb dry hair very carefully.
Ed

[Reyn127]

What, if any, attempts do you each make at spreading sebum while your hair is wet? Do you do it while showering, or as a separate step after? Do you do it by hand (how?), with a comb or brush, just let the water do what it will and call it enough, or something else altogether? How do you deal with hair being stretchier (and thereby more tangle-prone from its springiness, at least in my experience) when it's wet? How does the texture/consistency of your sebum change when its wet vs when it's dry?

Hey SparrowWings, while I was experimenting solely with WO, I was working my sebum down through wet hair as I "washed". Essentially, I would just massage and preen in the water stream, kind of like the motion you would do whilst sudsing up shampoo, but much more thorough. Make sure you get down to the root of the hair, all the way to the scalp, and do a bunch of massage/preening. Basically leaving out the scratching from SMP. And making sure to get all around the scalp, it can take a while sometimes. Once my fingers got all greasy and "loaded" (which happens more than a few times, usually), I would just rub the oils directly onto my ends, focusing a lot on the very tips. And then continue on with the rest of the scalp, rubbing the oil into the ends as necessary once my fingers themselves got all greasy.

For me personally, I found that warm, not hot water worked best for WO. Something about hot water seemed to do a bit too much stripping, of a sort, to my hair. And you may also be fine with scratching your scalp, but for me I realized it was just causing me to produce more oil than I needed (and dandruff), after stimulating/irritating it like that.

I hope some of this helps you. It's so cool seeing so many other testing out various alternative methods of hair care here :)

[Hairkay]

What, if any, attempts do you each make at spreading sebum while your hair is wet? Do you do it while showering, or as a separate step after? Do you do it by hand (how?), with a comb or brush, just let the water do what it will and call it enough, or something else altogether? How do you deal with hair being stretchier (and thereby more tangle-prone from its springiness, at least in my experience) when it's wet? How does the texture/consistency of your sebum change when its wet vs when it's dry?

I preen mostly on wet/damp hair as I plait/braid using my hands after a shower/bath. I need to smooth down each plait tendril to keep it from tangling so as I do so it also move the sebum down my hair. This happens with undoing plaits/braids too. My hair is more slippery wet than dry so there's less tangles. Sebum on hair feels slightly sticky which dries to a tiny bit of oiliness/slickness.

[SparrowWings]

I don't know if question was for me but I will answer anyway.
It was a general question, directed at anyone who feels like answering. So thank you! And EdG, Reyn, and Hairkay as well. :)
What is the toweling method?

Based on the four of your responses, sebum handling definitely covers the whole gamut, from drenched to dry. Not surprising, I suppose, but interesting! For a bit of background, I'm coming from the NW/SO thread, but have tons of trouble getting the sebum to move. I exhaustedly splashed my hair more than usual yesterday, and the sebum did exactly as you described, Shigure, and got really gummy and nasty. But it also seems to have moved better than I've ever managed while fully dry, so I started wondering what you have all seen and if maybe some misting-only version of WO might work better for me -- contrary to my expectations, given how poorly my hair has historically responded to damp manipulation, and given how useless fully-saturated WO rinses have been in years past when I didn't have time for a full wash and tried that to stretch another day or two.

[Shigure]

It was a general question, directed at anyone who feels like answering. So thank you! And EdG, Reyn, and Hairkay as well. :)
What is the toweling method?

Based on the four of your responses, sebum handling definitely covers the whole gamut, from drenched to dry. Not surprising, I suppose, but interesting! For a bit of background, I'm coming from the NW/SO thread, but have tons of trouble getting the sebum to move. I exhaustedly splashed my hair more than usual yesterday, and the sebum did exactly as you described, Shigure, and got really gummy and nasty. But it also seems to have moved better than I've ever managed while fully dry, so I started wondering what you have all seen and if maybe some misting-only version of WO might work better for me -- contrary to my expectations, given how poorly my hair has historically responded to damp manipulation, and given how useless fully-saturated WO rinses have been in years past when I didn't have time for a full wash and tried that to stretch another day or two.

Toweling method is way of dealing with oily hair and hard water on water only.
fully explained here: https://www.facebook.com/CoachSusanMurray/videos/1503391079725499/?fref=gs&dti=728368377207620&hc_location=group

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Toweling method is way of dealing with oily hair and hard water on water only.
fully explained here: https://www.facebook.com/CoachSusanMurray/videos/1503391079725499/?fref=gs&dti=728368377207620&hc_location=group

I did enjoy that video, very much. But is it practical for knee length hair? Plus I would never want to wash and dry with my hair flipped over my face like that. Is there another way it could be dried?

[Glitch]

An interesting thread - I've been reading a lot about hard and soft water, and how different the hair can take to it. Personally, I've never noticed any difference in my hair with either of those, it's always the same. Is that common as well, to not experience a change? Or perhaps it's because I always shampoo. Hmm.

[EdG]

I am finding it funny how my hair goes from nice-looking on day one after WO washing to stringy/clumpy by day three. This is the same behavior as with shampoo washing. It is as though shampoo makes no difference. ;)
Ed

[elfynity]

I have been WO my hair now for over 2 months. I had a major glitch where a massage therapist rubbed oil all over my hair and I had to shampoo it in late April. I have continued with water washing about once a week. I submerge my head in medium hot water in the bath and massage my scalp for a few minutes. I brush once a day with my BBB. I cannot tell if my hair has grown in length, but it has thickened near the scalp as alot of new growth seems to keep coming out. I'm hardly losing any hair.

The effects of water wash only on my hair has been profound for me. I have excellent water in my area and it is working wonders for my hair - more so than shampoo or conditioner ever did for me. My hair is more manageble, shinier, thicker, curlier, has more body than it has ever had. It also feels so alive and amazing at the roots. WO is totally awesome!

[EdG]

My hair is more manageble, shinier, thicker, curlier, has more body than it has ever had. It also feels so alive and amazing at the roots.This perfectly matches my experience.

At over two months of water-only washing, you are one of the success stories. :hifive:
Ed

[embee]

I found quite a similar experience with WO but my chilly drafty house in the cold winter weather convinced me to try NW/SO which has been very nice also. :)

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Is WO washing more difficult with hard water? And would you still oil your ends (sebum not reaching them, so requiring oil - or something)

Is it necessary to do a mermaid soak or is just washing it in the shower ok?

[EdG]

embee - I stretch WO washes in the winter, partly due to the cold and partly due to not needing washes as often.

Sarahlabyrinth - I find that hard water has about the same effect on water-only washing as it does on shampoo washing.

I don't feel any need to apply oil to my hair.

Washing in the shower works fine. It requires a little more time and water for me to massage the scalp. :)
Ed

[Reyn127]

Is WO washing more difficult with hard water? And would you still oil your ends (sebum not reaching them, so requiring oil - or something)

Is it necessary to do a mermaid soak or is just washing it in the shower ok?

When I was doing just WO, I still oiled my ends quite a bit (but my hair loves oil). And I never did a mermaid soak, just made sure to preen thoroughly in the shower.

[elfynity]

Hi Ed, thank you, I'm glad you had the same experience.

Hi Embee, I couldn't get past more than 10 days without a water wash, I did try SO, but where I live is always a bit humid. I think that you are lucky you can push it for longer due to your climate. Are you using a brush to move the oil to your ends?

Hi Sarahlabyrinth, my water seems soft, I've heard bad things about hard water and hair but don't know from personal experience. I do not need to oil my ends. Everyday I BBB the oil from my roots to my ends and now all my hair is shiny and moisturized. Also, any oil on my hair makes it look instantly wet and greasy.
I find it better to soak my scalp and hair in medium hot water. This seems to really energize the roots and does a good job of allowing any dirt to dislodge while it's floating in water.

Hi Reyn127, I feel it is such a bonus to be able to oil your hair, I feel that you are lucky with that one. Why did you stop washing your hair WO? What is working for you now?

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Hi Ed, thank you, I'm glad you had the same experience.

Hi Embee, I couldn't get past more than 10 days without a water wash, I did try SO, but where I live is always a bit humid. I think that you are lucky you can push it for longer due to your climate. Are you using a brush to move the oil to your ends?

Hi Sarahlabyrinth, my water seems soft, I've heard bad things about hard water and hair but don't know from personal experience. I do not need to oil my ends. Everyday I BBB the oil from my roots to my ends and now all my hair is shiny and moisturized. Also, any oil on my hair makes it look instantly wet and greasy.
I find it better to soak my scalp and hair in medium hot water. This seems to really energize the roots and does a good job of allowing any dirt to dislodge while it's floating in water.

Hi Reyn127, I feel it is such a bonus to be able to oil your hair, I feel that you are lucky with that one. Why did you stop washing your hair WO? What is working for you now?

We do have hard water here but next month we are moving to a place with soft water so I am wondering whether I should try WO or not....

[elfynity]

Hi Sarahlabrynith, that sounds so exciting that you have the opportunity to try it out! From my experience the amazing benefits are worth it. Your hair will probably get oilier at first before it balances itself out. For me the process was very quick, a matter of a few weeks. Oh and PS, hair dries super quick for WO washers.

[EdG]

We do have hard water here but next month we are moving to a place with soft water so I am wondering whether I should try WO or not....


Hi Sarahlabrynith, that sounds so exciting that you have the opportunity to try it out! From my experience the amazing benefits are worth it. Your hair will probably get oilier at first before it balances itself out. For me the process was very quick, a matter of a few weeks. Oh and PS, hair dries super quick for WO washers.I think that the adjustment time is entirely dependent on the amount of build-up.

I needed a few months to get rid of most of the accumulated lint and waxy sebum. Other people may have less. This is truly a case of "your mileage may vary". ;)
Ed

[redhed515]

I've tried this after only one day of not washing and my hair comes out stringy.

[EdG]

I've tried this after only one day of not washing and my hair comes out stringy.How long have you been water-only washing? This method really does require an adjustment period, and even then it does not work for most people.
Ed

[Reyn127]

elfynity, I stopped doing just WO because it got to the point where the water was rinsing out the oily sebum but leaving behind the waxy sebum, so my hair was becoming a sticky, tangled mess. I think the problems were using too hot of water (separating the two types of sebum and only moving the oils), and avoiding the hairdryer. My hair takes soooo long to dry (even with WO/rye, and having it be a little extra oily on top of that just made it dry and weird and sticky and gross.

I still do WO in between my rye washes, using slightly cooler water, and it does a great job. The “clean” look doesn’t last as long as with the rye flour washes, but that of course makes sense when you think about it.....

[EdG]

Reyn127 - I also find that hot water removes the oily sebum but not the waxy sebum. Even shampoo does not remove waxy sebum. Waxy sebum needs to be removed mechanically by combing (it turns into a fine powder) or scrubbing (in the shower).

If your hair is becoming tangled, it almost certainly has lint holding together the tangles.
Ed

[H.e.L]

TLDR;
Is preening really necessary if you're sufficiently thorough with your BBB?

I apologise for the noob question, but I've been a little confused on a pretty fundamental concept of WO washing.
If preening is supposed to move sebum down the hair, and one of the functions of a BBB is to do the same thing, can't you just use a BBB quite thoroughly to achieve the same thing in fewer steps?
I have two young children and rarely have the time or energy to do both, but a 5-10 minute scritch/massage/wooden bristle brush/BBB session morning and night doesn't take nearly as long.
Would that be sufficient to clean hair and move the sebum down?

[EdG]

I think that preening, combing, and brushing all accomplish the same thing (untangling the hair and removing sheds, excess sebum, and lint).

I find that I need water to move the oily parts of sebum. Otherwise, the sebum is so dry that it turns into a powder. I am getting very little sebum on my comb now. I know this is a change from when I was younger.
Ed

[H.e.L]

Edited to add:
Does anyone feel like preening serves a unique, necessary function above and beyond what is accomplished by thorough BBBing?

Thank you for the reply!
I've been really confused on this point because the grave importance of preening is always touted in WO and NW/SO threads.
It just seems a bit redundant.

[EdG]

"Preening" is what birds do with their beaks. It accomplishes the same thing as combing and brushing in humans.
Ed

[guska]

Coming back to WO after 9 months of CO. Washed yesterday after going 9 days without washing. The shedding is 10x less than when I CO. Scalp feels okay today, though my hair feels and looks much coarser.

[guska]

Wash day today! Seems like I don't have to deal with the infamous transition period, but it could be due to my naturally dry scalp. I'm worried about having a bad smell in my hair, though, even after washing. I asked my dad after I washed last week, he said it didn't smell good...

[mrsmushroom]

I've been seriously considering going WO for years now. I'm down to washing once a week or sometimes even less often with a natural co-wash. My hair has definitely started getting less oily between washes, the only thing that concerns me is the skin condition I have. I'm wondering if WO might help or hurt it, I guess all I can do is give it a go. So, I have a BBB, all wooden paddle brush, and a wet brush. Should I try to use the wooden brush more when I go WO?

[mrsmushroom]

Coming back to WO after 9 months of CO. Washed yesterday after going 9 days without washing. The shedding is 10x less than when I CO. Scalp feels okay today, though my hair feels and looks much coarser.

So do you think CO works better for you then due to the lesser shedding?

[guska]

So do you think CO works better for you then due to the lesser shedding?

Sorry, I was unclear, I meant that I get 10x less shedding *in the shower* when I WO than when I CO. I think it's a good thing because less shedding = thicker hair.


I've been seriously considering going WO for years now. I'm down to washing once a week or sometimes even less often with a natural co-wash. My hair has definitely started getting less oily between washes, the only thing that concerns me is the skin condition I have. I'm wondering if WO might help or hurt it, I guess all I can do is give it a go. So, I have a BBB, all wooden paddle brush, and a wet brush. Should I try to use the wooden brush more when I go WO?

I don't have any skin conditions but I do have sensitive skin/scalp. WO works good for me :) I only use my fingers and a wooden comb to detangle. It works well for my texture and thickness.

[elfynity]

REYN127, Rye flour? Is that like using Corn starch to wash your hair? I have learned something new that hot water separates the oil from waxy. My hair is quite water proof now because of the oils etc not being stripped off, so I am surprised that your hair takes so long to dry.

[elfynity]

Should I try to use the wooden brush more when I go WO?
The bottom line of WO is to use medium hot water to wash and rub the scalp to remove excess dirt / oils, etc .... and to brush the oils from the scalp to the ends of your hair with the BBB. So if that takes 100 brushes or whatever, it needs to be done. I find that the BBB also removes dirt and smells from my hair. The important thing I find is to clean my BBB at least once a week so that I am not brushing oild dirt back into my hair. If you wash with shampoo, then you are removing the oils that way, if you WO then you are not removing the oils and need to help redistribute the oils using the BBB. Your hair will become seriously glossy like those old 50s movies, it's very rewarding.

[elfynity]

Hi everyone, I have been WO for over 3 months now once a week on Sundays. I began stretching that to 2 week stretches but my scalp starts to get itchy near the end of week 2. I think that maybe I wasn't using the BBB enough, because I was lazy over that time. I am going to try again but use the BBB alot everyday and give you guys some feedback there.

I am very happy with how my hair looks and behaves now. I have alot of very very fine hair, so WO has allowed my natural sebum to add heaviness to my strands. This is awesome for fine hair, let me tell you!

What has happened, and it could be because I haven't been BBB'ing enough, is that my hair ends are very dry. And with that comes split ends. I have been Search and Destroying, but now I have started spraying a small amount of oil onto the ends of my hair. It has helped alot.

WO washing is so amazing because my hair has a life / mood of it's own and I just have to go along for the ride. But it never lets me down. Some days my roots just feel like being oily, then I just BBB alot and if that doesn't work I throw a bit of corn starch on the roots and brush it in. Other days my hair is really dry all over and that is when I skip water washing for as long as I can and spritz the ends with my water oil mixture. PS this home made mixture is: water, castor oil, sweet almond oil and peppermint essential oil.

Is anyone else having a dry hair ends issue?
What can I moisturize my hair with that I can just wash out with water? Like egg, avocado? Any ideas that have worked for you?

[cjk]

What is your hair type? Curlies, for instance, tend to be dry because our hair prevents sebum from easily reaching the ends.

[guska]

REYN127, Rye flour? Is that like using Corn starch to wash your hair? I have learned something new that hot water separates the oil from waxy. My hair is quite water proof now because of the oils etc not being stripped off, so I am surprised that your hair takes so long to dry.

I used a rye flour + cocoa powder mix to wash my hair for two months during summer time last year. Worked very well, but the rye meal was hard to wash out.

[elfynity]

Hair type, you mean 2A / F / ii? I'm a wavy hair type with very thin hair and yeah, the ends get very dry if I am not using my BBB alot. I've bought some Avocado and going to do an avo mask tomorrow and see what results I get form that. Do you have a suggestion?

[Reyn127]

REYN127, Rye flour? Is that like using Corn starch to wash your hair? I have learned something new that hot water separates the oil from waxy. My hair is quite water proof now because of the oils etc not being stripped off, so I am surprised that your hair takes so long to dry.

I've never tried corn starch personally, but I'm pretty sure it would work just the same. I'm fairly certain that any starchy, low-gluten grain would work, as I've heard of people using rice, oats, chickpeas, rye....

[elfynity]

I need some help here. Since WO washing my hair ends have become really dry. I have been told that oils don't moisturize your hair on the inside, so I am looking for something I can do that with. the challenge is that I am only washing my hair every 2 weeks, so I need something that I can leave in. I don't want to use any product you buy at the shop but want to use something natural or from the garden. Can Aloe Vera be left in, does it moisturize your hair? Please let me know if you have some ideas here.

I have tried catnip tea, but i think it works best if you rinse it out because it becomes a little 'sticky' if you don't.

[EdG]

elfynity - my ends become dry half a day after water-only washing. I wash every 1-2 days in the summer.

Maybe try washing more often? I think there isn't much downside to more frequent WO washing because the sebum is not being removed.
Ed

[Hairkay]

elfynity - my ends become dry half a day after water-only washing. I wash every 1-2 days in the summer.

Maybe try washing more often? I think there isn't much downside to more frequent WO washing because the sebum is not being removed.
Ed

I put a tiny bit of oil on damp hair ends just because I know that it's a chore for sebum to get down all my tight curls and kinks. I too wash frequently (daily). The only draw back I've found is that my plaits/twists can unravel a bit or become more frizzy (I do WO on twisted/plaited/braided hair). Since I restyle weekly that doesn't get too bad. Being able to step out from a shower/bath, dress and just go for 6 days of the week is worth it.

[elfynity]

I think there isn't much downside to more frequent WO washing because the sebum is not being removed.
Ed
Ed, if the sebum isn't being removed then that could work to wash out the catnip tea, I guess. That could work if I found it in my heart to wash my hair more often - which I want to leave as more of a last option.

I put Bulbinella (African aloe vera equivalent) in my hair yesterday and today and left it as a leave in. My hair ends are looking very moisturized. My hair so far is still feeling soft and I will have to see as time progresses if it keeps it moisturized enough. Hopefully this works because I have loads of the stuff in my garden.

I did S&D too, and have been keeping my hair up in a bun most of the time now.

[Belle03]

I water wash daily adding a DIY hair mask once a week on the weekend. Hair gets styled in plaits/braids weekly which makes it easy to wash my thick hair without worrying over tangles. After I do the DIY hair mask, I'll undo each plait, preen and restyle hair. Hair gets dried with a t-shirt then a tiny bit of oil put on the hair ends. I'll alternate hair masks so the focus is on moisture one week and protein/strengthening the next week. Every 3 to 6 months the strengthening will be a henna, coconut milk gloss. I use mild vinegar rinses whenever I feel the need. I reserve olive oil to treat any flaky scalp patch then follow up with oat water. I use S & D to deal with single strand knots and split ends.

I will try the water only washjng this month & see how things go. Hopefully, I won't have too many tangles.

[elfynity]

The ends of my hair have been so dry and breaking and splitting and I haven't seen any growth, in fact when I compare pics from a few months back to now, my hair is actually more fairytaled and damaged at the ends now. So, I have started to CO my ends as of yesterday. Immediately my hair ends are moisturized. I am going to keep on s&d and hopefully this conditioning the ends will stop my hair from being further damaged.

[Reyn127]

elfynity, I know it might be a bit late by now, but what I usually do for my ends is dampen with water and then lightly oil. I also regularly use honey as a humectant. I just mix a small spoonful into some warm water, and dip my ends in, and almost never rinse. But I always follow up with oil so the moisture is held in.

[elfynity]

Hi Reyn127, it is not too late, I am trying to stick to WO still as much as I can. I will give your above suggestion a go. Does leaving the diluted honey in not make your hair sticky? I think i may rinse the honey out. I am nervous to use oil on my hair as it can turn to a mess so quickly. What oil are you using and how?

Update: Silicone, and all other'cones are scary things and I am going to keep them far away from my hair.
I can't get my organic conditioner right away, they are having an issue with their factory. Hmmm.
I soaked my ends in honey dissolved in warm water today (waited for the water to cool to room temperature) and left it in for an hour. Once it dried, it made my ends brittle and stick together. Washed it out and now they are soft and smell like honey! Sprayed on some light oils to finish the job. Ends seem moisturized to an extent.

[TwilightMermaid]

I recently cut m own hair to layer my curls and it went a little bad...shudder: I want to do water only because (cost of course,:cool:) I want to limit the amount of waste I create, to let my hair do what its meant to do, and to see it in its natural state. Do you think water only will positively affect hair growth?

[TwilightMermaid]

Hi I've done water only for about a month before and am coming back to it to reduce my waste in my beauty routine and recover from a bad haircut I did (why:rolleyes:). I just wanted to know if any of you have noticed positive effects on hair growth with water only?

[TwilightMermaid]

Sorry, I didn't see that I had posted the previous post because I thought I wasn't logged in

[LittleMac]

Hello everyone! This is my first post here and I'm so excited to have found this community. I unknowingly kind of started WO about 2 weeks ago. Finding this thread was amazing. I didn't know so many other people did WO and I'm grateful for all the knowledge and advice. I would never have known all the proper techniques to be able to keep this up.
I'm excited to start preening properly and will be investing in a BBB soon! If anyone has any cool tips for a newbie they would be greatly appreciated <3

[EdG]

Hi I've done water only for about a month before and am coming back to it to reduce my waste in my beauty routine and recover from a bad haircut I did (why:rolleyes:). I just wanted to know if any of you have noticed positive effects on hair growth with water only?No, washing does not affect hair growth.


Hello everyone! This is my first post here and I'm so excited to have found this community. I unknowingly kind of started WO about 2 weeks ago. Finding this thread was amazing. I didn't know so many other people did WO and I'm grateful for all the knowledge and advice. I would never have known all the proper techniques to be able to keep this up.
I'm excited to start preening properly and will be investing in a BBB soon! If anyone has any cool tips for a newbie they would be greatly appreciated <3Welcome! :waving:

I would say to give water-only time to adjust, and then, water-only may or may not give as good results as shampoo. Results vary.
Ed

[elfynity]

Hi Twilightmermaid, I have noticed very positve results in the quality of my hair, especially by the roots, but my ends have been quite dry. I think that the temperature of the water you are using to wash your hair with has a huge impact on the health of your hair. Anything over 40 degrees celsius apparantly is bad. You don't want the valuable sebum oils to be washed away by warm water while the grease stays behind. I had to learn this the hard way and have had to start conditioning my ends.

So my advice for hair growth with WO hair is BBB to distribute all the sebum down, and cool water washing, as cool as you can stand. I see you have 3a hair, so I think you need some feedback from the curlier girls too with regard the BBB.

Hair Update: So, I am going to try to push through with WO again as I haven't been able to get my conditioner yet, and also because I think that if I remove washing my hair with medium hot water from the mix, I am going to be able to preserve the oils and can brush them down with the BBB. I will still get the conditioner though, just in case I need a fall back from dry ends.

I used honey in my hair (dissolved in warm water) recommended by Reyn, and it worked quite well. My ends are very shimmery and are not well moisturized, but are better than they were.

[TwilightMermaid]

When I did WO a year ago when I still lived in Colorado, my hair flourished in the cool mountain water. Now, after moving to the desert, all my water is hot no matter what color I put it on. It's going to take my cold-loving self a while to get used to, lol. For my hair, I will run it under the hot water for about five seconds, massage and preen, then use my other cold herbal tea rinses and whatnot afterward.

[guska]

Hi Twilightmermaid, I have noticed very positve results in the quality of my hair, especially by the roots, but my ends have been quite dry. I think that the temperature of the water you are using to wash your hair with has a huge impact on the health of your hair. Anything over 40 degrees celsius apparantly is bad. You don't want the valuable sebum oils to be washed away by warm water while the grease stays behind. I had to learn this the hard way and have had to start conditioning my ends.

So my advice for hair growth with WO hair is BBB to distribute all the sebum down, and cool water washing, as cool as you can stand. I see you have 3a hair, so I think you need some feedback from the curlier girls too with regard the BBB.

Hair Update: So, I am going to try to push through with WO again as I haven't been able to get my conditioner yet, and also because I think that if I remove washing my hair with medium hot water from the mix, I am going to be able to preserve the oils and can brush them down with the BBB. I will still get the conditioner though, just in case I need a fall back from dry ends.

I used honey in my hair (dissolved in warm water) recommended by Reyn, and it worked quite well. My ends are very shimmery and are not well moisturized, but are better than they were.

Wooah, I don't wash my hair with warm water but it does get up to around 100 celsius when I sauna.

[LittleMac]

Thanks for the advice! I was feeling pretty oily yesterday but a good scratching, preening, and BBB session had me feeling nice and pretty again <3 I have pretty thick hair that doesn't get oily quickly, and I had already been washing only about once a week so I think WO can give me some good results

[LittleMac]

Another question, does anyone have specific advice for WO in hot, humid climates? I'm from Florida and the frizz has been unreal.

[guska]

Another question, does anyone have specific advice for WO in hot, humid climates? I'm from Florida and the frizz has been unreal.

What's your hair type? And skin type?

My hair, scalp and skin thrives in hot and humid climates, the humidity prevents flakiness, which my dry scalp is prone to. Sorry, I didn't really answer your question.

[LittleMac]

What's your hair type? And skin type?

My hair, scalp and skin thrives in hot and humid climates, the humidity prevents flakiness, which my dry scalp is prone to. Sorry, I didn't really answer your question.

So from looking through the thread I think I'm 2c/M/ii/iii
My hair is pretty wavy and fairly thick so I think that's why is gets so frizzy. It also takes a while for my scalp/hair to get oily if that adds any important info.
For another example, my husband has fine, thin hair, probably like a 1b/1c and his is always so silky smooth.
Maybe I could be lacking moisture or protein? But this is all brand new for me so I don't really know how to identify if I do.
And for my skin, it's combo I'd say, only really kinda oily on my nose with larger pores on my forehead, nose, and cheeks close to nose. Prone to acne unfortunately =/

[LittleMac]

Oh and my husband has a very dry scalp even here, prone to flakiness and oil.

[elfynity]

I finally found and bought a totally organic conditioner. It's made by Simply Bee in Cape Town. I used it to condition my very dry ends. I sat with it on for an hour today and then rinsed off with filtered water. I am already feeling a big difference in moisture content in the ends. I was really hoping that just brushing the sebum down my hair with the BBB would get it all to the ends and moisturize there too, but I'm not there yet, and I just couldn't go another day with my dried out ends. I will only do this when necessary until the sebum hopefully one day catches up.

In the meantime, I haven't washed my hair for 8 days. My roots are looking amazing and my hair is so glossy (not oily) - just the last inch of hair is not happy. Also stopped using hot water to wash my hair and only use cool water. Hope these small changes will help my ends to stop breaking so I can see some growth now. Summer is on it's way, so I have high hopes!

[Reyn127]

Hello to those of you who are new to this thread!

elfynity, I think I forgot to mention it before, but aloe vera has worked great as a moisturizer in the past. My hair soaked it up like nothing else before!

And, LittleMac, do you wash your hair in hot, warm, or cool water? I've found that washing in very hot water with WO kind of messed things up. Doing a cool water rinse at the end of your shower might help a little bit. I've also heard that a diluted vinegar rinse can help with frizz, but some people really don't like the effect they get.

[elfynity]

Hello to those of you who are new to this thread!

elfynity, I think I forgot to mention it before, but aloe vera has worked great as a moisturizer in the past. My hair soaked it up like nothing else before!

And, LittleMac, do you wash your hair in hot, warm, or cool water? I've found that washing in very hot water with WO kind of messed things up. Doing a cool water rinse at the end of your shower might help a little bit. I've also heard that a diluted vinegar rinse can help with frizz, but some people really don't like the effect they get.

Hi Reyn, thank you for mentioning the aloe vera, I have been using bulbinella which is literally the same thing, and the results are great. I worry whether I can leave it in though. Do you leave the aloe vera in your hair?

Changing from medium hot water washing to cool washing has been a real eye opener. I was washing my ends dry.

[saff.cel]

I just did a WO wash today, I hadn't washed my hair for 11 days. I spent a lot of time making sure I had preened it before hand, then I submerged it in warm-almost hot water before doing it again in very cold water. I can still definitely feel the heaviness of the sebum on it all, but the ends aren't dry and it looks really nice and clean now that it's dried and combed out. I want to be able to stretch washes to one month and do water only, but we'll see what happens. :)

[TwilightMermaid]

As much as I love the minimal idea of water only, I'm thinking about calling it quits tonight and washing my hair. I don't know how to deal with my itchy scalp, dry ends, and clogged follicles. To me, water only was a way to let my hair do its thing. But with my crappy and only hot water ( for reals here in the desert where I live THERE IS NO COLD WATER!) I really don't think any form of no poo is going to work for me. TBH lugging a gallon of cold water is kinda unrealistic to do for my hair. But if anyone has tips on how to fix these issues, I'd be more than happy to hear them.:o

[elfynity]

elfynity, I stopped doing just WO because it got to the point where the water was rinsing out the oily sebum but leaving behind the waxy sebum, so my hair was becoming a sticky, tangled mess. I think the problems were using too hot of water (separating the two types of sebum and only moving the oils), and avoiding the hairdryer. My hair takes soooo long to dry (even with WO/rye, and having it be a little extra oily on top of that just made it dry and weird and sticky and gross.

I still do WO in between my rye washes, using slightly cooler water, and it does a great job. The “clean” look doesn’t last as long as with the rye flour washes, but that of course makes sense when you think about it.....

Hi Reyn, I am going to give rye washes a try. I have started with cornstarch and water tonight in the shower and only used it on my roots. My hair really needed it so I had to. I am now only washing in water that is slighly warm. I want to try out doing rye flour shampoo. I think this will allow me to carry on my WO journey.

[kimchi989]

Hi, I've a question for the people out there who WO... I've been trying it in June I did a month where I only did WO, then went back to my no-poo routine. Now in August I decided I wanted to go back to WO... But I was wondering if any of you had any tips on how to use less water. Because in order to have "clean" hair, I've to use hot water for 2 minutes, then cold water, then repeat once (well, only for hot water since my last cold rinse is my ACV rinse)... So it seems to me I'm using a lot of water. Do you have tips and tricks to be more water efficient?

[TwilightMermaid]

Right now I think I'm going to have to go back to shampoo+conditioner because of how horrible the water is here, but first I will try a shampoo bar and an acv rinse. I love water only, but I kinda don't love looking like Gollum everyday I wake up lol

[kimchi989]

Right now I think I'm going to have to go back to shampoo+conditioner because of how horrible the water is here, but first I will try a shampoo bar and an acv rinse. I love water only, but I kinda don't love looking like Gollum everyday I wake up lol

If you have hard water where you live, I recommend doing an AVC rinse to counteract the hardness of the water. Worked for me (I live in a place with hard water)

[elfynity]

Hi, I've a question for the people out there who WO... I've been trying it in June I did a month where I only did WO, then went back to my no-poo routine. Now in August I decided I wanted to go back to WO... But I was wondering if any of you had any tips on how to use less water. Because in order to have "clean" hair, I've to use hot water for 2 minutes, then cold water, then repeat once (well, only for hot water since my last cold rinse is my ACV rinse)... So it seems to me I'm using a lot of water. Do you have tips and tricks to be more water efficient?

One thing I learnt recently is that using hot or even relatively warm water to wash your WO hair will remove all the oil from the sebum, but not the wax, and you will land up with a waxy mess on your head that you can't get out. I would only wash with cool water once. Also, hot water caused split ends and breakage for me with my fine hair.

If you think your water is hard, definitly look into getting a shower filter. That will mean less washes too and WO success probably.

I would recommend perhaps researching 'rye shampoo'. I am going to be using this method now in conjunction with WO. Here is one rye shampoo thread: No-poo with rye flour (https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=131287)

[kimchi989]

One thing I learnt recently is that using hot or even relatively warm water to wash your WO hair will remove all the oil from the sebum, but not the wax, and you will land up with a waxy mess on your head that you can't get out. I would only wash with cool water once. Also, hot water caused split ends and breakage for me with my fine hair.

If you think your water is hard, definitly look into getting a shower filter. That will mean less washes too and WO success probably.

I would recommend perhaps researching 'rye shampoo'. I am going to be using this method now in conjunction with WO. Here is one rye shampoo thread: No-poo with rye flour (https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=131287)

I looked for water filters everywhere... Welcome to Belgium, a country where when you search for something it's nearly impossible to find...
I've washed my hair with warm water without problem, it's just not very water efficient.

I've heard of rye shampoo.... But I already use gram flour as shampoo + I wanted to go WO (I've already been a no-poo gram flour/rhassoul shampoo for some time now)

[elfynity]

I've already been a no-poo gram flour/rhassoul shampoo for some time now

What made you decide to use gram flour?

UPDATE: Just researched that gram flour and cornstarch are basically the same thing.

[TwilightMermaid]

What hair treatments can you still do/make? I want to make a pumpkin hair mask but I'm not sure what would or wouldn't be too heavy. Also, how do you dilute EOs so you can use them on the scalp? I used to us Jamaican black castor oil and peppermint eo to use on my scalp.

[kimchi989]

What made you decide to use gram flour?

UPDATE: Just researched that gram flour and cornstarch are basically the same thing.

I saw a video on youtube talking about it, then I researched it and decided to try haha...


What hair treatments can you still do/make? I want to make a pumpkin hair mask but I'm not sure what would or wouldn't be too heavy. Also, how do you dilute EOs so you can use them on the scalp? I used to us Jamaican black castor oil and peppermint eo to use on my scalp.

Using WO... None. Like You I'm scared for some recipes to make my hair heavy. Castor oil is very thick (+it's an oil) so I don't think it'd go well with WO (I could be wrong). The only treatment I sometimes allow myself to do is use pure organic aloe vera on my scalp. It's a little bit cleansing + hydrating

[elfynity]

Kimchi, I second the aloe vera - I use it as a inbetween moisturizer. Find that it's moisture properties only really last a day .

[Reyn127]

What hair treatments can you still do/make? I want to make a pumpkin hair mask but I'm not sure what would or wouldn't be too heavy. Also, how do you dilute EOs so you can use them on the scalp? I used to us Jamaican black castor oil and peppermint eo to use on my scalp.

In my experience, anything oily, chunky/fibery, or that cooks solid at a low twmperature is a no go with WO. I’m guessing that pumpkin would be ok as long as it’s puréed.

As far as essential oils, to be honest I usually apply right to my scalp without diluting, to avoid adding extra oil to my scalp area. But argan or jojoba oil, I’ll sometimes use to mix EOs. Argan oil is very light, and jojoba is very similar to skin’s natural oil.

[Reyn127]

And elfynity (and everyone else interested), I was thinking about starting another active rye flour washing thread soon, probably in the next week. I don’t know if we’d have enough really for it’s own thread, but I feel weird clogging up this nice, new WO thread with my rye flour, haha.

[elfynity]

And elfynity (and everyone else interested), I was thinking about starting another active rye flour washing thread soon, probably in the next week. I don’t know if we’d have enough really for it’s own thread, but I feel weird clogging up this nice, new WO thread with my rye flour, haha.

Reyn, it sounds like a very good idea! I also feel a bit bad going on about flour all the time, especially on the WO thread since we aren't true hydro.

[kimchi989]

Kimchi, I second the aloe vera - I use it as a inbetween moisturizer. Find that it's moisture properties only really last a day .

I had that problem too. I had to switch brand many times to find one that I was satisfied with.Some brand contained alcohol ,which made my hair hydrated for like 4 hours, then super dry ... But I respect the fact you don't like aloe don't worry^^

[LittleMac]

Finally caught up on all the comments here. I'm definitely going to try using cold water only from now on and see how that works for me. I feel like that might help a lot especially with the frizz and "floofyness" lol.

[LittleMac]

By the way, has anyone else noticed that they get a lot more sebum on one side of their head than the other? From this experiment I've learned the right side of my head gets way more oily!

[guska]

By the way, has anyone else noticed that they get a lot more sebum on one side of their head than the other? From this experiment I've learned the right side of my head gets way more oily!

Which side do you part your hair?

[elfynity]

I had that problem too. I had to switch brand many times to find one that I was satisfied with.Some brand contained alcohol ,which made my hair hydrated for like 4 hours, then super dry ... But I respect the fact you don't like aloe don't worry^^

Hi Kimchi, I have aloe in my garden, but we have Bulbinella which is much easier to use and grows here like crazy - so I just pick a few sprigs, crush it in my hand and apply to my hair right there in the garden!

[elfynity]

By the way, has anyone else noticed that they get a lot more sebum on one side of their head than the other? From this experiment I've learned the right side of my head gets way more oily!

Hi Littlemac, I have a middle parting in my hair and my right side gets more sebum than my left too!

[kimchi989]

Hi Kimchi, I have aloe in my garden, but we have Bulbinella which is much easier to use and grows here like crazy - so I just pick a few sprigs, crush it in my hand and apply to my hair right there in the garden!

I'll be honest I didn't know what Bulbinella was haha I had to google it^^

[LittleMac]

Which side do you part your hair?

Slightly to the right side. Could that have something to do with it?

[LittleMac]

Hi Littlemac, I have a middle parting in my hair and my right side gets more sebum than my left too!

So weird, right? I wonder if more sebum on the right side is common.

[LittleMac]

Do you ladies have any tips for hair care after going in the pool? I was planning on swimming with my little sisters today, will it ruin all my progress?

[TwilightMermaid]

Do you ladies have any tips for hair care after going in the pool? I was planning on swimming with my little sisters today, will it ruin all my progress?
You can try wetting your hair before you go to the pool so that it will have already absorbed kinder water and will lessen the effect of the pool water on your hair.

[elfynity]

So weird, right? I wonder if more sebum on the right side is common.

I actually get more sebum in the front in general as well. It would be interesting to see if there is a pattern here with others.

[LittleMac]

You can try wetting your hair before you go to the pool so that it will have already absorbed kinder water and will lessen the effect of the pool water on your hair.

That's what I ended up doing and I think it helped a LOT. My hair didn't even really smell like chlorine when I got out.

[LittleMac]

I actually get more sebum in the front in general as well. It would be interesting to see if there is a pattern here with others.

Yeah that would be interesting to know. Hopefully more people chime in on this.

[elfynity]

Talking about water, summer is coming up here, any advice about getting hair wet in the sea? Not sure if the salt is ok for it and just needs rinsing out or not.

[kimchi989]

Talking about water, summer is coming up here, any advice about getting hair wet in the sea? Not sure if the salt is ok for it and just needs rinsing out or not.

Whenever I go to the beach, I always rinse my hair after getting into the water. Salt can be quite drying

[elfynity]

I am actually taking a supplement that is basically all the minerals from salt water in a dried up powder. So, I wonder if those same minerals are actually good for your hair. Kimchi, I think rinsing afterward is a good idea. I'm not sure that sea is so bad for hair, except to at least rinse it out.

[guska]

I swam in the sea yesterday and didn’t wash out. My hair feels fine and smooth.

ETA: It was a lake, not a sea :lol:

[kimchi989]

I am actually taking a supplement that is basically all the minerals from salt water in a dried up powder. So, I wonder if those same minerals are actually good for your hair. Kimchi, I think rinsing afterward is a good idea. I'm not sure that sea is so bad for hair, except to at least rinse it out.

Some people have no problems with sea water. I always prefer to rinse because I'm too scared my hair will be so dried out haha

[LittleMac]

Some people have no problems with sea water. I always prefer to rinse because I'm too scared my hair will be so dried out haha

I LOVE the texture of may hair after going to the beach. I do find it a bit drying though, but not in any long term way.

[LittleMac]

Some people have no problems with sea water. I always prefer to rinse because I'm too scared my hair will be so dried out haha

I LOVE the texture of may hair after going to the beach. I do find it a bit drying though, but not in any long term way.

[elfynity]

I think that is the tricky part LittleMac, is the drying out bit. I think that if your hair didn't dry with all the salt etc in it, then it would perhaps be nourishing, as soon as it dries, in or out of the sun, then it starts to dehydrate. My plan so far is to rinse under the shower directly after coming out of the water. I think that I will need to deep condition with something once I get back home. Maybe some kind of hair moisturizer can come with to the beach??

[kimchi989]

I think that is the tricky part LittleMac, is the drying out bit. I think that if your hair didn't dry with all the salt etc in it, then it would perhaps be nourishing, as soon as it dries, in or out of the sun, then it starts to dehydrate. My plan so far is to rinse under the shower directly after coming out of the water. I think that I will need to deep condition with something once I get back home. Maybe some kind of hair moisturizer can come with to the beach??

I never tried it, but maybe you could use some kind of dry oil like jojoba. Putting a small amount, just enough to coat your hair and "protect" it, not enough to make it look greasy. That's prevent the dryness I think

[elfynity]

If oil comes near my hair I am a grease bomb and need to wash it with some kind of poo - but, the salt might dry it out to a point that it evens out the oil. It is certainly worth a try to find out!

[kimchi989]

If oil comes near my hair I am a grease bomb and need to wash it with some kind of poo - but, the salt might dry it out to a point that it evens out the oil. It is certainly worth a try to find out!

I understand you, I'm the same. But I discover if I just use a little I don't have that greasy feeling (maybe the first 24hrs, then It's ok again). But yes, the "dryness" created by the salty water will be counteracted

[elfynity]

I just want to ask a question here about brushing. I use a bbb as with WO I want to distribute the oils to the ends, but I am also a bit worried about hair breakage. Do you think 100 brushes a day is safe / necessary, especially with WO routine? What is your routine for WO? PS - I don't hear hair breaking when I am brushing, I am very careful, but I have heard that excessive brushing can cause damage, so just wanted to get your guys opinion on it.

[Reyn127]

I used to use a BBB also for the same reason. While it DID help very well with distributing oil to the ends of my hair, it also was a bit rough on my hair. I ended up stopping use of the BBB once I realized that I could just preen and transfer the oils to my ends with my fingers, and not have to worry about damage/breakage, or the brush getting all funky with sebum over time. But that’s just me.
Also, I never had much direct breakage from using the BBB, but I did feel like it was stretching my hair strands a bit, maybe.

[elfynity]

My hair breaks if I try to use my fingers through it. I have a bbb with soft bristles and I think I'm going to hang in there with my 100 brushes per day and check out the results at the end of the year. then I can make a decision about it. I am now going to be alot more gentle than I was being before.

[guska]

I swam in a pool today, rinsed my hair and sat in the sauna for about 7 minutes after that. Rinsed my hair with tea after I came home. It hasn't dried yet but I think I'm good :)

[Reyn127]

Elfynity, that was the one thing about mine, is I could never find a BBB with soft bristles. That alone is one of the big reasons I gave it up. But I do think as long as you're generally gentle, you should be fine.

Also, do you all think that the rye flour washing thread would be ok to start on the Mane Forum rather than the Herbal Haircare one? I've just noticed that threads over there go dead a lot faster, but I'm not sure if the moderators would automatically move it other there either....

[elfynity]

Reyn127, though rye flour is herbal haircare it is also a routine like WO or CO etc, so I believe it should be in mainstream.

[elfynity]

I have been researching the uses of peppermint EO and am so impressed with it that I feel I have to bring it into this thread to tell everyone here.

Apparantly it is very well known that peppermint oil reduces sebum secretion and removes oiliness quite well, which really helps those who are trying to start out with WO and need to combat some oiliness. It also helps out those of us who are trying to stretch our washes and need to reduce some sebum at our roots. I sprayed it onto my roots yesterday and they are visibly less oily.

It seems like a very cool solution. And, you don't have to put it into oil to use it, you can dilute it into filtered water and spray it onto your roots. And just in case you didn't know, EO aren't really oils - they are just called that. Here is a dilution chart I found:

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/9b/96/9a/9b969af3c6361e7218fe858289d42cf5.jpg

Apparantly, according to a Korean lab test, it made hair regrowth on rats quicker than using Minoxidil. I'm not a rat, but I think I'll be a human guinea pig for this experiment.

[Reyn127]

Here we go you guys! Here's the start of rye flour thread for anyone interested: https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=147423

And wow Elfynity, peppermint oil is supposed to make your hair grow? Hmmm, I may have to try that, because I use EO's on my hair/scalp a few times a week...

[TwilightMermaid]

I have been researching the uses of peppermint EO and am so impressed with it that I feel I have to bring it into this thread to tell everyone here.

Apparantly it is very well known that peppermint oil reduces sebum secretion and removes oiliness quite well, which really helps those who are trying to start out with WO and need to combat some oiliness. It also helps out those of us who are trying to stretch our washes and need to reduce some sebum at our roots. I sprayed it onto my roots yesterday and they are visibly less oily.

It seems like a very cool solution. And, you don't have to put it into oil to use it, you can dilute it into filtered water and spray it onto your roots. And just in case you didn't know, EO aren't really oils - they are just called that. Here is a dilution chart I found:

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/9b/96/9a/9b969af3c6361e7218fe858289d42cf5.jpg

Apparantly, according to a Korean lab test, it made hair regrowth on rats quicker than using Minoxidil. I'm not a rat, but I think I'll be a human guinea pig for this experiment.

That's a great idea! That's exactly what I used when I was no poo. Also, you could use fermented rice water or some other rinse to dilute. That's what I would use as a pre poo.

[Hairkay]

It's good that you found peppermint oil useful. It won't be for me since my skin is super sensitive which is why I am wary of EOs.

[nycelle]

I have been researching the uses of peppermint EO and am so impressed with it that I feel I have to bring it into this thread to tell everyone here.

Apparantly it is very well known that peppermint oil reduces sebum secretion and removes oiliness quite well, which really helps those who are trying to start out with WO and need to combat some oiliness. It also helps out those of us who are trying to stretch our washes and need to reduce some sebum at our roots. I sprayed it onto my roots yesterday and they are visibly less oily.

It seems like a very cool solution. And, you don't have to put it into oil to use it, you can dilute it into filtered water and spray it onto your roots. And just in case you didn't know, EO aren't really oils - they are just called that. Here is a dilution chart I found:

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/9b/96/9a/9b969af3c6361e7218fe858289d42cf5.jpg

Apparantly, according to a Korean lab test, it made hair regrowth on rats quicker than using Minoxidil. I'm not a rat, but I think I'll be a human guinea pig for this experiment.

I'm not WO, but this is a very useful chart. Could of used it when I was using lavender in my argan (I just guessed..lol)
Thanks for posting it - saved.

[elfynity]

I'm not WO, but this is a very useful chart.

I was so happy when I found that chart - such a great little reference. Glad some of you are finding it useful.

Reyn, it tingles too! And of course my hair smells lovely afterwards.

[kimchi989]

elfynity, just thought of you: I went to the pool (ok I know it's not the sea, but I was afraid of it to dry my hair too, just like it used to when I was using drugstore or hairdresser shampoos and conditionner), I did put a little (very very very little) bit of jojoba oil in my hair, plus I got it wet before going to the pool all day, just rinsed after and my hair is shinny and soft and not greasy ;)

[elfynity]

elfynity, just thought of you: I went to the pool (ok I know it's not the sea, but I was afraid of it to dry my hair too, just like it used to when I was using drugstore or hairdresser shampoos and conditionner), I did put a little (very very very little) bit of jojoba oil in my hair, plus I got it wet before going to the pool all day, just rinsed after and my hair is shinny and soft and not greasy ;)

Kimchi, thank you for 'testing the waters'! Did you wet your hair first and then put the jojoba oil in? It seems like the pool water cancelled out the jojoba oils greasiness on fine hair?!

[kimchi989]

Kimchi, thank you for 'testing the waters'! Did you wet your hair first and then put the jojoba oil in? It seems like the pool water cancelled out the jojoba oils greasiness on fine hair?!

Ok, I'm going to try to explain how I did, as clearly as I can since English isn't my main language^^
I don't wet my hair before putting the jojoba, I put a tiny amount on dry hair (you should kind of feel you've oil, but visually you should not see it. What I do is I open the bottle, put my hand on the opening, flip everything over, the once back in the initial position I close the bottle, and you're left with a little bit of oil on your hand, the size of the bottle opening. Rub your hands together then use them to comb the oil through, first the ends, then when you've done all you ends (I think for you should repeat what I just said 3-4 times), you can run your finger near your scalp to have very little oil left on your hand, but enough to coat a little your hair), then wet my hair in the shower before getting in the pool (I read somewhere here that avoids chlorine water getting into the hair since the hair has already absorbed "normal" water).

[elfynity]

Ok, I'm going to try to explain how I did, as clearly as I can since English isn't my main language^^
I don't wet my hair before putting the jojoba, I put a tiny amount on dry hair (you should kind of feel you've oil, but visually you should not see it. What I do is I open the bottle, put my hand on the opening, flip everything over, the once back in the initial position I close the bottle, and you're left with a little bit of oil on your hand, the size of the bottle opening. Rub your hands together then use them to comb the oil through, first the ends, then when you've done all you ends (I think for you should repeat what I just said 3-4 times), you can run your finger near your scalp to have very little oil left on your hand, but enough to coat a little your hair), then wet my hair in the shower before getting in the pool (I read somewhere here that avoids chlorine water getting into the hair since the hair has already absorbed "normal" water).

Your english seems quite good, I completely understand what you are saying. I do that with my castor oil bottle, flip it over onto my hand and then back. Works well. Thanks for explaining more.

[Hairkay]

I just do a mermaid dunk in a bath with a little coconut oil the day before I swim. On the day I will drench my hair in the shower then put on my swimcap. After swimming I rinse my hair off then proceed to condition it with a DIY hair mask, usually banana or mango. For convenience I got one of the baby food pouches. After 10 minutes I wait in the sauna if my skin isn't causing a problem or I put on a plastic cap and wait. Then I rinse out my hair and start my weekly detangle and restyling regimen whilst leaving my hair to drip dry.

[H.e.L]

I'm trying to figure out how to remove a ton of waxy buildup from my fine hair.

I have to be at least no poo because nearly everything but 3-ingredient DIYs or my own sebum makes my scalp itch, get sore spots, and shed hair like crazy. (I've tried all different kinds of S&C; cones, no cones, sulfates, no sulfates. Different brands, different qualities, desert essence, Chagrin Valley. Doesn't matter. Scalp HATES it. The rest of my skin is pretty sensitive too. Contact dermatitis? IDK.)

ANYWAYS I'm going to try a diluted honey wash to get rid of the waxy buildup. But just in case that doesn't work, do y'all think flaxseed mucilage would remove the wax, but not remove too much sebum?

I have to fix this buildup; it's so epic I can practically give myself a mohawk just by brushing upside down. Lol

[guska]

I'm trying to figure out how to remove a ton of waxy buildup from my fine hair.

I have to be at least no poo because nearly everything but 3-ingredient DIYs or my own sebum makes my scalp itch, get sore spots, and shed hair like crazy. (I've tried all different kinds of S&C; cones, no cones, sulfates, no sulfates. Different brands, different qualities, desert essence, Chagrin Valley. Doesn't matter. Scalp HATES it. The rest of my skin is pretty sensitive too. Contact dermatitis? IDK.)

ANYWAYS I'm going to try a diluted honey wash to get rid of the waxy buildup. But just in case that doesn't work, do y'all think flaxseed mucilage would remove the wax, but not remove too much sebum?

I have to fix this buildup; it's so epic I can practically give myself a mohawk just by brushing upside down. Lol

I use a baking soda paste and follow it with a ACV rinse and lastly a tea rinse. Try with caution, though, the combination made my coarse hair really shiny but also extremely frizzy.

[Hairkay]

I use a baking soda paste and follow it with a ACV rinse and lastly a tea rinse. Try with caution, though, the combination made my coarse hair really shiny but also extremely frizzy.

baking soda is too harsh for sensitive skin and fine hair. She could use olive oil, massage it into the scalp with finger tips, cover hair with a plastic cap and towel/beanie hat, leave for 30 minutes or whatever time she feels is best then use oat water to wash it all out. Olive oil is great to gently exfoliate scalp/skin plus oil thins and softens sebum. Oat water helps remove oiliness and soothes itchy skin.

I know this from experience. All I use is simple DIY stuff. I've got eczema.

[guska]

baking soda is too harsh for sensitive skin and fine hair. She could use olive oil, massage it into the scalp with finger tips, cover hair with a plastic cap and towel/beanie hat, leave for 30 minutes or whatever time she feels is best then use oat water to wash it all out. Olive oil is great to gentle exfoliate scalp/skin plus oil thins and softens sebum. Oat water helps remove oiliness and soothes itchy skin.

I know this from experience. All I use is simple DIY stuff. I've got eczema.

That's true. I've also got sensitive skin and scalp and am constantly trying to find ways to soothe itchiness and flaky scalp. I also don't like baking soda but when I have to clarify it's my only choice.

[elfynity]

I'm trying to figure out how to remove a ton of waxy buildup from my fine hair.

I have to be at least no poo because nearly everything but 3-ingredient DIYs or my own sebum makes my scalp itch, get sore spots, and shed hair like crazy. (I've tried all different kinds of S&C; cones, no cones, sulfates, no sulfates. Different brands, different qualities, desert essence, Chagrin Valley. Doesn't matter. Scalp HATES it. The rest of my skin is pretty sensitive too. Contact dermatitis? IDK.)

ANYWAYS I'm going to try a diluted honey wash to get rid of the waxy buildup. But just in case that doesn't work, do y'all think flaxseed mucilage would remove the wax, but not remove too much sebum?

I have to fix this buildup; it's so epic I can practically give myself a mohawk just by brushing upside down. Lol

Sounds crazy but it works, you could try flour shampoo - fine four of your choice (rye / cornstarch / gram + water to make a paste. Works so well, surprisingly.

[H.e.L]

Hairkay, guska,
Thank you all very much for your suggestions! I appreciate your help. :)
BS dries the hooey out of my hair. Makes it dry and break SO absurdly easy.
I'd love to try the olive oil thing, but I'm one of those lucky ladies whose follicles scream "EJECT!!" if I oil my scalp lol.

elfynity,
I may give the flour a try, the honey wash helped a bit, but didn't fix it entirely.

Anyone here use the flaxseed mucilage as a regular or semi-regular part of their no poo/WO routine?
I thought I read that some people used that stuff occasionally on the old WO thread. I may have misunderstood though, I only ever saw the enormous merged NW/SO/WO thread which I found pretty hard to follow.

[Arachnid]

I’m thinking about moving towards WO although I’m apprehensive because the water where I am is so hard. If I was going to transition to WO I’d like to start by clarifying my hair but I don’t want to use a SLS shampoo and baking soda leaves a residue even after ACV rise. Any ideas you have would be very welcome. :)

[TwilightMermaid]

Hairkay, guska,
Thank you all very much for your suggestions! I appreciate your help. :)
BS dries the hooey out of my hair. Makes it dry and break SO absurdly easy.
I'd love to try the olive oil thing, but I'm one of those lucky ladies whose follicles scream "EJECT!!" if I oil my scalp lol.

elfynity,
I may give the flour a try, the honey wash helped a bit, but didn't fix it entirely.

Anyone here use the flaxseed mucilage as a regular or semi-regular part of their no poo/WO routine?
I thought I read that some people used that stuff occasionally on the old WO thread. I may have misunderstood though, I only ever saw the enormous merged NW/SO/WO thread which I found pretty hard to follow.
I used it when I was wo to style it's great at creating crunchless definition

[kimchi989]

I don't know if that's of any interest, but I tested something to fight the hardness of my water:
i dilute 2 TBSP of ACV in a liter of water. I first "wash" my hair normally, I brush my hair with an old BBB under the stream of water(not compulsory, but worked wonders for me to combat build up but I know some people's hair don't react well to BBB and/or brushing wet), then I pour 500 ml of the ACV water and massage for 1-2 minutes. Then, I rinse. After that I pour the 500 ml left on my hair, while having my head upside down, I massage for 1-2 minutes, brush a little again, then rinse. And for the last rinse I diluted 250 ml of a strong camomille (I've dark blond hair) infusion with 750 ml of water (so 1 liter of liquid total) that I pour on my hair as a last rinse. My hair has less build up than usual... Just have to wait and see on the long term

[Shigure]

I forgot to do an update. I gave up on water only after about nine months. I was just tired of never looking good/clean and never been able to wear my hair down.
I was patient and put a lot of work into it but it was impossible from the start to work with my water.

[Aerya]

I'm thinking of experimenting with WO as my hair absolutely loves no-poo and I'm fairly certain my water quality is about as good as it gets. I do have some concerns though as my hair has been bleached and dyed with the lengths being very damaged. I might go back to conditioner or just the occasional treatment, but I'm curious to see if my natural oils would perhaps be enough. I had my first water only wash today but I purchased a BBB yesterday and spent some time getting to know it as my hair had gotten a bit greasy since my last co-wash, and it seems promising. I didn't get it all throughout my ends, I definitely need to work on my technique, but my hair eventually started to resemble the slippy, shiny hair I used to have before the chemical damage turned it into a frizzy, broken mess. Yay!

I'm not sure whether I should use a clarifying treatment or something before starting or not. I haven't thought much of the ingredients in my conditioners so I'm sure there's a lot of silicones and other gross stuff. I do have a clarifying shampoo that claims to be very natural but it makes my hair sooo dry and gross, and I quite like the way my hair feels now. I don't want to ruin it if it isn't necessary, or if it can be done it a more gentle way. Any thoughts?

[EdG]

I forgot to do an update. I gave up on water only after about nine months. I was just tired of never looking good/clean and never been able to wear my hair down.
I was patient and put a lot of work into it but it was impossible from the start to work with my water.That is fine. A lot of people don't like the results of water-only washing.


I'm thinking of experimenting with WO as my hair absolutely loves no-poo and I'm fairly certain my water quality is about as good as it gets. I do have some concerns though as my hair has been bleached and dyed with the lengths being very damaged. I might go back to conditioner or just the occasional treatment, but I'm curious to see if my natural oils would perhaps be enough. I had my first water only wash today but I purchased a BBB yesterday and spent some time getting to know it as my hair had gotten a bit greasy since my last co-wash, and it seems promising. I didn't get it all throughout my ends, I definitely need to work on my technique, but my hair eventually started to resemble the slippy, shiny hair I used to have before the chemical damage turned it into a frizzy, broken mess. Yay!

I'm not sure whether I should use a clarifying treatment or something before starting or not. I haven't thought much of the ingredients in my conditioners so I'm sure there's a lot of silicones and other gross stuff. I do have a clarifying shampoo that claims to be very natural but it makes my hair sooo dry and gross, and I quite like the way my hair feels now. I don't want to ruin it if it isn't necessary, or if it can be done it a more gentle way. Any thoughts?Give water-only washing time to reach steady-state. Any accumulated sebum and lint will come out and get replaced by soft new sebum.
Ed

[Reyn127]

Hey, I also agree that a flour wash may be the way to go. I had a waxy sebum incident last year where it got to the point that I could barely run my fingers through detangled hair, and I got it out with rye flour. I made a detailed blog post about it on my page.

[redhed515]

I can't imagine water only cleaning. My hair and skin is so oily. I even use sulphate shampoo because my hair gets so dirty.

[EdG]

I can't imagine water only cleaning. My hair and skin is so oily. I even use sulphate shampoo because my hair gets so dirty.Everyone is different. This is truly a case of "your mileage may vary". :)
Ed

[shaluwm_agape]

I have really been contemplating doing this

[guska]

I haven't washed for eleven days. Hair is not greasy at all but I need to clarify like right now :rolleyes:

[kimchi989]

I can't imagine water only cleaning. My hair and skin is so oily. I even use sulphate shampoo because my hair gets so dirty.

My hair used to be greasy, I'd wash my hair every 3 days (just because I didn't want to wash every second day). Now with water only I wash it every 4 days (3 if I have an event or I know the day after I won't have time to wash it).
Or a more "greasy" story: my husband used to use sulfate shampoo from pharmacies to treat his overly greasy hair EVERY SINGLE DAY. I first introduced him to using a sulfate free gentle shampoo (still for greasy hair), and after some time he got from every day to every 3 days. Now he only uses shampoo every week, the rest if he feels greasy he washes it with water

[shaluwm_agape]

Ok so I don't know if anyone has asked this. I can't seem to find it but when oiling hair or doing a diy deep condition what is the best way to remove product? Is it just staying in water longer or a little extra smp? Sorry if it's a stupid question but I really want to begin this journey

[elfynity]

Ok so I don't know if anyone has asked this. I can't seem to find it but when oiling hair or doing a diy deep condition what is the best way to remove product? Is it just staying in water longer or a little extra smp? Sorry if it's a stupid question but I really want to begin this journey

I just couldn't WO and oil - just no way. I now use a teeeny amount of oil and my go to if I have to is a homemade flour+ water shampoo wash. If I put too much oil in and I have to remove it, it will take a good amount of the oil out in a very gentle way.

[Hairkay]

Ok so I don't know if anyone has asked this. I can't seem to find it but when oiling hair or doing a diy deep condition what is the best way to remove product? Is it just staying in water longer or a little extra smp? Sorry if it's a stupid question but I really want to begin this journey

The trick is to use only a tiny bit of oil in the first place so there is very little to remove. Even so I use oat water to remove excess oil if for some reason I used more oil.

[shaluwm_agape]

The trick is to use only a tiny bit of oil in the first place so there is very little to remove. Even so I use oat water to remove excess oil if for some reason I used more oil.


I just couldn't WO and oil - just no way. I now use a teeeny amount of oil and my go to if I have to is a homemade flour+ water shampoo wash. If I put too much oil in and I have to remove it, it will take a good amount of the oil out in a very gentle way.

Thank you both I am going to start my journey soon aND honestly can't wait! I went no poo for 3 yrs but never thought to go WO.
Don't use much oil anyway but was just curious because every once in a blue I do need a deep condition

[Hairkay]

Thank you both I am going to start my journey soon aND honestly can't wait! I went no poo for 3 yrs but never thought to go WO.
Don't use much oil anyway but was just curious because every once in a blue I do need a deep condition

If you are willing to try out some DIY hair masks that'll take care of deep conditioning. I go for the banana hair mask, note this can sometimes be tricky. I have also used, coconut cream, mango puree, avocado, honey with olive oil and fenugreek and even Greek yogurt with or without honey.

[shaluwm_agape]

So I clarified today. Time to test this out! I hope that it works. My husband made me think about it and want to give it a try

Hairkay I love diy I went no poo for 3 yrs but BS did a # on my scalp so I stopped

[Shepard]

What I do is I open the bottle, put my hand on the opening, flip everything over, the once back in the initial position I close the bottle, and you're left with a little bit of oil on your hand, the size of the bottle opening.

[shaluwm_agape]

What I do is I open the bottle, put my hand on the opening, flip everything over, the once back in the initial position I close the bottle, and you're left with a little bit of oil on your hand, the size of the bottle opening.

Thanks for the tip!

[elfynity]

So I clarified today. Time to test this out! I hope that it works. My husband made me think about it and want to give it a try


Hi Shaluwm, I also clarified before I started WO, which means your hair is now super clean. When my sebum production began it overcompensated at first and at the beginning I was washing with hot water, which was separating the oil from the wax in my sebum and leaving me with a mess. It really didn't take too long for things to calm down after I switched to using cool or warm water only. I do have soft water here where I live.

At first I used my BBB relentlessly, but I honestly feel that that didn't help me - I'm not sure if my bristles just aren't soft enough. And then I switched to preening like they do on NW / SO and that worked well. It is very effective in getting the sebum distributed. I found that even if my hair roots don't look that greasy, I preen anyway because suddenly I will wake up the next day and it has accumulated. My advice is start early and so it wont build up and be out of control.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

[shaluwm_agape]

Hi Shaluwm, I also clarified before I started WO, which means your hair is now super clean. When my sebum production began it overcompensated at first and at the beginning I was washing with hot water, which was separating the oil from the wax in my sebum and leaving me with a mess. It really didn't take too long for things to calm down after I switched to using cool or warm water only. I do have soft water here where I live.

At first I used my BBB relentlessly, but I honestly feel that that didn't help me - I'm not sure if my bristles just aren't soft enough. And then I switched to preening like they do on NW / SO and that worked well. It is very effective in getting the sebum distributed. I found that even if my hair roots don't look that greasy, I preen anyway because suddenly I will wake up the next day and it has accumulated. My advice is start early and so it wont build up and be out of control.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

Thanks so much for the tips! I was honestly thinking preening too! BBBs don't do much for me and they are a pain to clean. So I stick to my Wood WTC.

I only washed my hair once a week or every 10 days. Would that kinda help the transition process?

[EdG]

I only washed my hair once a week or every 10 days. Would that kinda help the transition process?My experience was that the accumulated waxy sebum and lint came out most easily right after washing. You want to wash at normal intervals.
Ed

[shaluwm_agape]

Thanks ed I appreciate the advice

[elfynity]

I only washed my hair once a week or every 10 days. Would that kinda help the transition process?
It definitly will speed up the process for sure! But, to be more realistic, you may need to WO more than once a week to start if the oils get out of hand. And then just keep stretching the washes until you are at your desired interval, or you feel your hair is in a rythym. I would also look out for your ends and make sure that they stay moisturized. That has been my big issue with WO is getting the sebum to the ends - you are also 2b, so I'd keep something to moisturize on hand. I am totally organic and used a couple of things very succesfully: organic conditioner diluted in water in a spray bottle sprayed on my ends, my hair ends dunked in honey dissolved in water, aloe vera, adding lavender EO to any of the above.

[shaluwm_agape]

Oh yay! This is giving me excitement & hope! I just washed my hair today with water & used my shampoo brush to exfoliate my scalp. It honestly feels very clean! I am trying to go all organic myself so my oil of choice atm is avocado

[elfynity]

Oh yay! This is giving me excitement & hope! I just washed my hair today with water & used my shampoo brush to exfoliate my scalp. It honestly feels very clean! I am trying to go all organic myself so my oil of choice atm is avocado

Avocado, what a good choice! I just bought myself a bottle of that a few days ago and it has been amazing so far! It doesn't leave any oiliness on my hair and left my curls very happy. Let me know how that goes. I use the teeniest amount, of course.

[shaluwm_agape]

Yes! It's a miracle oil in my opinion. Of course! My hair is naturally oily so I don't need a lot

[shaluwm_agape]

Yes! It's a miracle oil in my opinion. Of course! My hair is naturally oily so I don't need a lot

[calmyogi]

I have tried this method in the past. Always falling away from it because it was time consuming having to make up the water with citric acid (hard water area) and the bristle brush brushing. This time I bought a shower head filter off amazon. I’m hoping that just being able to shower and brush my hair when it is dry will help me stay on track this time. I have had success with it in the past, I would just get bored or lazy, as stated above, when it came to all the brushing and preening.

[elfynity]

I have tried this method in the past. Always falling away from it because it was time consuming having to make up the water with citric acid (hard water area) and the bristle brush brushing. This time I bought a shower head filter off amazon. I’m hoping that just being able to shower and brush my hair when it is dry will help me stay on track this time. I have had success with it in the past, I would just get bored or lazy, as stated above, when it came to all the brushing and preening.

Hi Calmyogi, I didn't have a good expereine with the BBB, I actually noted that it caused damage to my fine hair and didn't spread the oils, no matter how much I brushed. I still use it for a good scalp massage, but not anymore for oil spreading. I found preening works much better. I don't know about others, but I am reserved about the bbb now. Maybe my cristles are just too hard?

I try to WO only, but I haven't been. I have to do a cornstarch shampoo wash instead because sometimes my hair just gets too moisturised thanks to the conditioner I use all the time on my ends to keep them moisturized. I'm not sure that I belong here anymore!

[calmyogi]

Hi Calmyogi, I didn't have a good expereine with the BBB, I actually noted that it caused damage to my fine hair and didn't spread the oils, no matter how much I brushed. I still use it for a good scalp massage, but not anymore for oil spreading. I found preening works much better. I don't know about others, but I am reserved about the bbb now. Maybe my cristles are just too hard?

I try to WO only, but I haven't been. I have to do a cornstarch shampoo wash instead because sometimes my hair just gets too moisturised thanks to the conditioner I use all the time on my ends to keep them moisturized. I'm not sure that I belong here anymore!



I literally replied to all of this and then my phone messed up and deleted it all LOL.

So here goes again... ha

When I invested in a Mason Pearson hair brush it made a world of difference. The way it is I made, the quality and spacing of the bristles, REALLY does set them apart from all others. I tried knock offs and cheap ones before, but they never glided through my hair as well. I don't use it for detangling by any means, but it doesn't seem to get stuck on any tangles like others would. For me preening works for oil spreading, but I am prone to dandruff and skin cell build up on my scalp so it just doesn't cut it for exfoliating and removing that stuff for me.

I used the water filter last night for the first time and it seemed to make a difference. My scalp and hair seem to both be happy with the WO method, I just need to stop being so lazy about it. BBB is a must for me I think.

A note about the Mason Pearson... I am not sure where you are located, but in the US they are extra pricey if you try to get them from one of the MP "authorized" US dealers.. I found a place online that is located overseas but, sold them for the english price, and had free shipping. I will have to see if I can remember the website/store or not, sorry I can't off the top of my head >_<.

Maybe you just need extra time to get adjust to the WO method? I am not sure how long you have been doing it. I have done it off and on for years now. I noticed the last couple of times I started it again I didn't really have any transition period. I haven't shampooed in awhile now and with a couple of rinses my hair is light and fluffy. That is with brushing too of course.

[calmyogi]

The filter also made a huge difference on my face and body as well. Especially on my face. I don't use soap or face wash, and even without that I felt tremendously cleaner all the way around.

[elfynity]

Oh I can't wait to get a shower water filter! My water here is quite good, very soft in fact, but does still have chlorine - I want to give my hair and body the best.

I have been WO from about April, and I can say I am fully adjusted. The problem was that my hair ends were sooooo dry, I had to moisturize them. I really gave that bbb of mine a good try. They sell Mason Pearson's in our chemist here, so I can probably just pick up one. They aren't too expensive either, but are more expensive than all the other brushes. I should probably invest in that.

The issue I have been having is just the dry ends. So now I preen a lot and put conditioner on my ends to stop them from drying out. The problem is that I over oiled with Avocado oil this week and had to wash my roots with cornstarch shampoo. I didn't put the oil onto my roots, they just landed up there from using my brush. It spread it all over.

My hair is just passable, and that works for me for now. I am still trying to balance my conditioner / avo oil mission so that I never mess that up, because I really don't want to use any kind of shampooo at all - just water. Hope that all makes sense?

[calmyogi]

Oh I can't wait to get a shower water filter! My water here is quite good, very soft in fact, but does still have chlorine - I want to give my hair and body the best.

I have been WO from about April, and I can say I am fully adjusted. The problem was that my hair ends were sooooo dry, I had to moisturize them. I really gave that bbb of mine a good try. They sell Mason Pearson's in our chemist here, so I can probably just pick up one. They aren't too expensive either, but are more expensive than all the other brushes. I should probably invest in that.

The issue I have been having is just the dry ends. So now I preen a lot and put conditioner on my ends to stop them from drying out. The problem is that I over oiled with Avocado oil this week and had to wash my roots with cornstarch shampoo. I didn't put the oil onto my roots, they just landed up there from using my brush. It spread it all over.

My hair is just passable, and that works for me for now. I am still trying to balance my conditioner / avo oil mission so that I never mess that up, because I really don't want to use any kind of shampooo at all - just water. Hope that all makes sense?

It all makes sense. I suppose WO washing is how we can really get to know our hair and it's wants/needs. You just need to find the balance for your ends. And it is possible that maybe getting a filter for the chlorine will help you. Chlorine can still wreck havoc on hair and skin. I have been having issues with my facial skin since I moved across the country 4 years ago. The environment here in TN is not what my skin was use to and it was NOT happy with the move. Last night when I used the filter my face didn't feel stripped or dry after rinsing it in the shower. I really don't know why I didn't buy one sooner lol.

I don't want to actually say you won't regret buying one, but there is a good possibility you won't.... They really are nice brushes. I avoided getting one for a long time, but once I broke down and spent the money I was pleasantly surprised. I would get on their website and do some research into what type of one you might need. Sensitive, mixed, classic.. and etc.

[shaluwm_agape]

So today was my second wash & I am pleased with the look it's way more wurly than usual

[RavenMane]

Hi lovely people! I'm joining this conversation. I've already learned so much from reading this thread. Thank you all for sharing your knowledge and experiences.

[elfynity]

Chlorine can still wreck havoc on hair and skin.
Calm yogi, you will be happy to know that I did extensive research and discovered Sodium Ascorbate. It neutralises chlorine and chloramine. So I only bath in dechlorinated water now. I am also waiting for our water works to get more info on our water.


I did a good run of WO, 6 months, and I will go back to it eventually, but at present I have decided that i need to start oiling, which I want to do at least once to twice a week, and in order to get the oil out, I have elected to use organic shampoo and then follow up with conditioner. This is not something I am changing to lightly, but I know that I need to do 6 months, at least of weekly oiling - which I am actually quite excited about.

My own sebum was great, but once I get to a point of growth where I am ready to maintain my hair for a while and trim and thicken the hemline, I will come back to WO, but will also do flour shampoo washing too.

I have learnt so much on the WO journey and really feel that it is what our hair was designed for ultimately - just a pity that we can't all live right next to a fresh body of water where we can wash our hair to incredible health.

The only issue that I had with WO was keeping my ends from becoming dry. But I am convinced that it is because my existing ends are damaged which made it difficult for the BBB to do it's job properly and instead, the BBB was actually probably damaging my ends more. So, once I can maintain at one length with healthy ends then I can come back to this.

Now it is just going to take loads of time and patience!

[melikai]

I've started doing water-only again, as of a couple of weeks ago. I had previously done it for about a year and a half, with some similar results to elfynity. I then did conditioner-only, which is fine but I still prefer to not use any products, where possible.

I've been doing baths with mermaid soaks instead of showers this time. I put citric acid in the bath water (ours is crazy hard water), and sometimes a bit of aloe juice, hibiscus tea or other things. I first soak my hair in distilled water, mermaid soak and bathe, then rinse again in cool distilled water. I haven't perfected it yet, but I have much less waxyness than before.

I did an apple sauce mask today for fun, and to get rid of any buildup. Seemed to work really well, and wasn't stripping. Like Hairkay, I may also try banana masks if my hair gets too dry.

I'm keeping my hair between waist and hip length for the foreseeable future, so when I trimmed from nearly tailbone to just above hip, that got rid of my old damaged ends which were made worse by hard water buildup. Since I'm staying around this length and not growing, damaged ends shouldn't be a problem anymore with WO.

Only strange thing I have noticed is that my hair hasn't been as wavy since using softer water? Bit odd.

[melikai]

I wanted to add that I also wanted to go back to WO because everything else, no matter how gentle (or cleansing, for that matter), seems to give me itchy raised bumps on my scalp. The only time they went away was when I did water-only.

[shaluwm_agape]

I stopped for a month but since my heart was set on it and I dint like the products I'm back.
Can I ask how long did the transition take my hair isn't waxy just real greasy

[EdG]

I stopped for a month but since my heart was set on it and I dint like the products I'm back.
Can I ask how long did the transition take my hair isn't waxy just real greasyYour transition will likely be quick.

I took several months to get rid of most of the accumulated waxy sebum and lint.
Ed

[melikai]

I stopped for a month but since my heart was set on it and I dint like the products I'm back.
Can I ask how long did the transition take my hair isn't waxy just real greasy

My hair has never been very oily - I have opposite problem usually. What sort of products were you using? If you were using regular shampoo and washing frequently, you might have a couple of weeks of over-production of oil to get through. If you were WO for a while before that month you took off, it probably won't take too long.

The way I'm approaching it is to expect a long transition time of a few months, and then if it's less I'll be pleasantly surprised. :)

[shaluwm_agape]

Melikai I never went WO but for a few weeks before I stopped
I went to sulphate free shampoo but it still had cones. I was washing once a week. Im expecting a long transition too
I remember a few yrs back when I went no poo it took about 4 months and I was doing BS & ACV.

[RavenMane]

I just recently switched to water-only. October 24th I clarified and that was the last shampoo I've done. Today I washed with water and it was the first water washing that felt like I'm doing something right!
I did a bunch of preening in the shower, and i think im starting to get the hang of it.
Do any of you twist while you preen? Twisting the roots while running my fingers down, smoothing, and gently twisting, worked really well for me today. I feel like I was able to get the oily sebum all the way down to my ends.
This week I'm just starting to lose the waxy feeling. I haven't been oily at all. But preening while showering I think got my oils going.

[RavenMane]

Oh and I was thinking about somewhere it said preening is an imperfect process, as no one has time to preen every small section of hair, but HairKay for sure does! Since she is braiding and preening basically together. Man, it's just another reason braiding is so smart and good for hair, it moves that sebum down.

[TheMandaRose]

My last shampoo was October 28th with a sulphate, silicone, phthalate etc free shampoo mixed with some baking soda then followed by conditioner. I waited to start this whole process til I had read this thread with all the good tips, tricks and information to even think about trying WO. I scritch, preen, bbb pretty much everyday and the transition has gone pretty quick for me. I, by accident, discovered what works for me to keep my hair clean... I made a rosemary and peppermint tea and added in pure aloe vera gel (I bought fruit of the earth before I read the long post on how bad it is...), a couple tablespoons of organic honey and about 2 tablespoons of raw apple cider vinegar then shook it all up.. I rinsed my hair with regular water, poured the tea into my hair and scrubbed my scalp then let it soak while I finished my shower. I rinsed it out before I hopped out of the shower and my hair has felt clean and soft for 2 days.

[Hairkay]

Oh and I was thinking about somewhere it said preening is an imperfect process, as no one has time to preen every small section of hair, but HairKay for sure does! Since she is braiding and preening basically together. Man, it's just another reason braiding is so smart and good for hair, it moves that sebum down.

Thanks, I use plaits/braids because it helps organise my hair. It took a while to realise that this also helps me preen effectively.

[RavenMane]

How do you all clean your BBBs and combs?

For my BBB I've been using olive oil, a comb and then dish soap. It works a little bit, but leaves a lot of build up in the middle of the bristle clumps.

I just did an experiment to clean my brush with earwax remover drops. The active ingredient is carbamide peroxide.
I'll also wash it with dish soap. First impressions are good! There is still some lint in the bristles, but I think a lot of the waxy stuff is gone.

[kimchi989]

How do you all clean your BBBs and combs?

For my BBB I've been using olive oil, a comb and then dish soap. It works a little bit, but leaves a lot of build up in the middle of the bristle clumps.

I just did an experiment to clean my brush with earwax remover drops. The active ingredient is carbamide peroxide.
I'll also wash it with dish soap. First impressions are good! There is still some lint in the bristles, but I think a lot of the waxy stuff is gone.

After I combed through and removed the leftover hair and most of the dirt, I simply dip de brush (if it's a wooden brush, I only dip the bristles and the mat) in soapy water + vinegar, let it soak for 10-30 min. Then, since I've a wooden brush + a BBB, i rub them together to clean them then rinse it with warm water and let them dry face down on a towel. works every time for my BBB

[saltwaterhappy]

I have tried water only method for some time in winter so I could hide my scalp with hats/beanies in the transition phase. It wasn't terrible but I had a problem with removing the leave-in oils I put on my hair. My hair felt heavier than usual. Now I have switched to an organic shampoo and wash every 10 days. What I would recommend for switching to WO is to first extending times between shampooing. Then switching to an organic shampoo with further extended periods of washing. And then going WO. A slow transition works better imo.

[RavenMane]

After I combed through and removed the leftover hair and most of the dirt, I simply dip de brush (if it's a wooden brush, I only dip the bristles and the mat) in soapy water + vinegar, let it soak for 10-30 min. Then, since I've a wooden brush + a BBB, i rub them together to clean them then rinse it with warm water and let them dry face down on a towel. works every time for my BBB
Thanks kimchi989! I haven't tried vinegar yet. I'll give it a go.

[shaluwm_agape]

So I am 10 days in and I'm really liking it. My hair is greasy still but not too bad I can stretch my "wash" 2 days now instead of every other.

My scalp doesn't itch and despite greasy hair it does feel clean

[Tinyponies]

I’m in, I’ve been shedding scary amounts (a handful morning and night) for around three months and the last time I oiled/washed was the worst ever. That was about a week ago.

Since then I’ve been doing a mermaid soak in an Epsom salts bath each evening (haven’t used soap on skin for years) and things seem to be calming down at last.

I had a period of long dreads in my twenties and never used any products at all then either. My hair was happy and so thick + dreads. This feeling is reminiscent of those days - perhaps when I have missed my dreads this is a big part of what I associate with ❤️

I have super sensitive skin/tummy/everything and the times I’ve been healthiest is when I stay away from complexity.

Perhaps this is the answer for me. I’m certainly a load happier this week and my hair has stopped being all flat to my head.

[elfynity]

I couldn't agree more Tinyponies - complexity for me comes in the amount of ingredients in any normal shampoo you can buy off the shelf. I don't know what you were using before this, but sulfates caused my hair to shed for years and whatever else they put in there that killed my hair and follicles. My hair really thinned out alot. The best my hair ever grew and got thicker was when I wrapped it up into braids for 6 months and only washed it with water. It went from Apl to Waist in that time. Almost a consideration now if it wasn't for the fact that undoing the dreadlocks afterwards causes alot of hair breakage. So not worth it.

[Tinyponies]

Elfinity what a fun memory of your long braids, they sound great and what incredible growth. My dreads grew crazy fast too, the only time I’ve reached tbl.
I’ve been using producty shampoo for a while now but not that often - the “gentlest” and “most natural” bottled kind, Avalon organics and Andalou. They must be too harsh for me too. My hair loss came with an itchy uncomfortable scalp and forehead - maybe I finally had a reaction enough to get me listening again. I’ve lost about 1/3 to 1/2 of my mane’s thickness recently but I’m fairly positive I can grow it back.

[elfynity]

Elfinity what a fun memory of your long braids, they sound great and what incredible growth. My dreads grew crazy fast too, the only time I’ve reached tbl.
I’ve been using producty shampoo for a while now but not that often - the “gentlest” and “most natural” bottled kind, Avalon organics and Andalou. They must be too harsh for me too. My hair loss came with an itchy uncomfortable scalp and forehead - maybe I finally had a reaction enough to get me listening again. I’ve lost about 1/3 to 1/2 of my mane’s thickness recently but I’m fairly positive I can grow it back.

I'm sure you can grow it back. My hair sprouted all over. My thickness is coming back too, but now the sprouts are only about 4 or 5 inches each. Check for sprouts!

PS, the braids were so much fun! When I took the braids out, my hair was longer than the braids had been.

[Tinyponies]

Hey! Quick update- I have sprouts! Looks like a lot of them. Water only is going great - almost a month in now. I had around 10 days when I didn’t wash my hair at all and there was excess sebum on my brush but I keep washing my bristle brush every other day and seem to be getting on top of it again. Now doing my mermaid soaks every third day or so.

[Tinyponies]

Anyone else here WO with no access to pressurised water/shower? Would love to hear any tips you’ve picked up.

[shaluwm_agape]

Water only washing seems to be going great. My hair is petty oily but it is getting better. Though I did exfoliate my scalp today with baking soda so I may have to incorporate this into my routine until the greasiness goes down. I am loving my hair in its natural state and DH hasn't said anything about smell or it being greasy so that's a plus

[elfynity]

tiny ponies i did WO for 6 months. i found bathing and rubbing my hair got a lot of dirt and oil etc out and cleaned it up well.
Shaluwm baking soda is strong stuff -is this a once of clarify for you? and then you are embarking on WO? the more you use baking soda the harder it will be to finally transition. You could try a home made flour shampoo on your roots, which would be gentler.

[Tinyponies]

Thanks elfynity, I’ll keep on keeping on then, brushing wads of grey out at the moment each night (switching to washing brushes every time). My diet has included more greasy food this month than usual so that might be contributing.

[shaluwm_agape]

I'm not going to keep using it, but for almost a month i been doing WO & MY SCALP was very dry. So i was thinking of doing it once every 2 month unless I have a alternative

[Tinyponies]

Hey guys update:

Loads of brushing, next to no tangles. Dramatically reduced amount of shed/hair loss. I am a water baby.
Have had some dandruff this week but I have been doing more exercise (more sweat, more moving my lymph, more detox) and it’s sertling back down.
Got the hang of cleaning my ancient boar bristle brush really well so it’s super squeaky clean every day.
The water here is hard, so much limescale that tap water will coat the kettle in 2 boils. Today I rinsed my hair through with bottled spring water (19 pence for 2 litres) as an experiment. It’s not completely dry yet now (bedtime) and not been messed with or brushed since I had it wrapped in a t-shirt. It’s super silky not at all frizzy and I feel like a princess. Here’s a picture- I have years of repair/growing ahead of me (long story) but maybe you can get an inkling of what I am so happy about. Just call me silky locks.

https://i.postimg.cc/m2k8zXTm/84153-F4-A-66-BF-4344-B3-E2-0-BD5-E7-C04114.jpg (https://postimages.org/)

[Cate36]

Hey guys update:

Loads of brushing, next to no tangles. Dramatically reduced amount of shed/hair loss. I am a water baby.
Have had some dandruff this week but I have been doing more exercise (more sweat, more moving my lymph, more detox) and it’s sertling back down.
Got the hang of cleaning my ancient boar bristle brush really well so it’s super squeaky clean every day.
The water here is hard, so much limescale that tap water will coat the kettle in 2 boils. Today I rinsed my hair through with bottled spring water (19 pence for 2 litres) as an experiment. It’s not completely dry yet now (bedtime) and not been messed with or brushed since I had it wrapped in a t-shirt. It’s super silky not at all frizzy and I feel like a princess. Here’s a picture- I have years of repair/growing ahead of me (long story) but maybe you can get an inkling of what I am so happy about. Just call me silky locks.

https://i.postimg.cc/m2k8zXTm/84153-F4-A-66-BF-4344-B3-E2-0-BD5-E7-C04114.jpg (https://postimages.org/)

Looks in great condition! I So want to try this,... but need to do repair treatments still I feel.. olaplex etc.. then I'll go for it

[elfynity]

Tinyponies, well done for pushing through and making such good progress. I used peppermint and or lavender EO mixed with water and sprayed it on my hair to mask any cat hair smells. Your hair is looking healthy just by the photo. Your ends look good and I love your curls at the ends! That hard water is going to be a challenge, no way of getting a shower filter? I think using the bottled water is going to be a saviour for you.

I've actually moved on to CO now. My hair ends were getting very dry while my scalp was well oiled. I did manage to get a lot of it down using my BBB, and if I had carried on, eventually it would have been oiled all the way - but I was worried about continuing and risking more breakage on the ends. At least I know I can go WO at any time without a problem.

[Ophidian]

Hey guys update:

Loads of brushing, next to no tangles. Dramatically reduced amount of shed/hair loss. I am a water baby.
Have had some dandruff this week but I have been doing more exercise (more sweat, more moving my lymph, more detox) and it’s sertling back down.
Got the hang of cleaning my ancient boar bristle brush really well so it’s super squeaky clean every day.
The water here is hard, so much limescale that tap water will coat the kettle in 2 boils. Today I rinsed my hair through with bottled spring water (19 pence for 2 litres) as an experiment. It’s not completely dry yet now (bedtime) and not been messed with or brushed since I had it wrapped in a t-shirt. It’s super silky not at all frizzy and I feel like a princess. Here’s a picture- I have years of repair/growing ahead of me (long story) but maybe you can get an inkling of what I am so happy about. Just call me silky locks.

https://i.postimg.cc/m2k8zXTm/84153-F4-A-66-BF-4344-B3-E2-0-BD5-E7-C04114.jpg (https://postimages.org/)

Your hair looks beautiful!! :crush:

[Tinyponies]

Cate36 thanks. It’s sort of good condition and sort of terrible! Never been heat treated or dyed but before I arrived at lhc it was very dry and exposed to the elements a lot so I was brushing out mega knots every day, and snapping a lot. Also just coming out of a scary large shed/hair loss and have a sea of wispy sprouts but I’m grateful for every one of them :)

Elfynity thanks I love my little curls too. Haven’t felt the desire or need to wash this week as it’s been really cold but maybe the bottled water helped with that too. I might experiment with a tap water wash then a final bottled rinse, but part of me really adores cold water so I’m tempted to stick with that - just cold water in a bowl. We don’t have a shower but I could perhaps use one of those rubber mixer shower things that push on the 2 bath taps. Don’t think I could get a filter to work with one of them? Also would need to be a filter that gets out limescale.

Another future experiment will be to collect rain water and use that!

I saw your recent pic on the micro trimming thread, Elfynity, and your hair looks fabulously healthy and beautiful. We all need to listen to our bodies and we may need different things at different times, glad you’re moving on to what works better for you when you see the need! xx

Ophidian thank you for the kind compliment you’ve made my day :)

[elfynity]

I saw your recent pic on the micro trimming thread, Elfynity, and your hair looks fabulously healthy and beautiful.

Thank you so much Tinyponies for saying that, it is so nice that you noticed.

[Dee94]

Has anyone been doing fine with hard water? Or can you not work around it, no matter what?

[Hairkay]

Has anyone been doing fine with hard water? Or can you not work around it, no matter what?

Since I have lived with various degrees of hard water almost all of my life I am used to dealing with it.

[Dee94]

Since I have lived with various degrees of hard water almost all of my life I am used to dealing with it.


Good stuff, thank you!!

[shaluwm_agape]

It is definitely possible with hard water to go WO. My water is pretty, hard and I have a dry scalp and oily hair and so far it works for me though I have noticed every few days I do have to do a vinegar rinse or rice water rinse but that may be because I am still in the transition phase

[Dee94]

It is definitely possible with hard water to go WO. My water is pretty, hard and I have a dry scalp and oily hair and so far it works for me though I have noticed every few days I do have to do a vinegar rinse or rice water rinse but that may be because I am still in the transition phase

ok, do you have any other tips and/or tricks when it comes to the hard water? I've actually just started recently as well, just trying to get everything down if, something comes my way while I go down this WO journey.

[Tinyponies]

Re hard water, my hair seems ok with it but I recently used bottled (cold) water as an experiment and could feel the difference.
In future I plan to try rain water, and also miracle water (see https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128756 ) as well as stretching time between washes as much as I’m comfortable.

[shaluwm_agape]

Dee I would honestly say invest in a BBB or wood comb (this is my preference ) and use it often also get a shampoo scalp massager brush I think this has really saved my scalp during washes it removes all the dead skin and gunk. Preen and lastly let your hair do its thing if you can. I braid or bun often as to not wash it

[Dee94]

Dee I would honestly say invest in a BBB or wood comb (this is my preference ) and use it often also get a shampoo scalp massager brush I think this has really saved my scalp during washes it removes all the dead skin and gunk. Preen and lastly let your hair do its thing if you can. I braid or bun often as to not wash it

Ok, great. I already have a BBB, so, I'll get myself a scalp massager brush.
Thank-you!

[shaluwm_agape]

Just search shampoo brush on amazon they have some for a great price

[Dee94]

Just search shampoo brush on amazon they have some for a great price

Ok, I found one, what do you think about this one?
https://www.amazon.ca/Vanity-Planet-Rejuvenating-Massager-Pucker-up/dp/B01N2UD457/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1544484724&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=vanity%2Bplanet%2Bgroove%2Bscalp%2Bmassag er&th=1

[shaluwm_agape]

Yeah I think that one is great. If I'm not mistaken that has 2 speeds you can set it to... or you can get one as low as $8 without the motorized massager