Extending time between washes?

[Wravyn]

Hi, everyone!

It's been a while since I've even lurked in the LHC and that's partly because I've felt a little discouraged in my attempt to grow out my hair.
However, my best friend recently decided to grow out her very short pixie — and if you knew how obsessed she is with short hair, you would see it's really a big deal. Anyway, it kind of gave me the encouragement I needed to continue my long hair journey.

One problem that I can't seem to escape is the need to wash my hair every day or every other day if I'm lucky. I use natural shampoo bars and tried the whole "wait as long as possible before washing" during the transition period, but that didn't help. And I'm not a fan of putting powders or dry shampoo in my hair (it makes my scalp itchy). I also have a boar bristle brush, which seems to do nothing but make it staticky.

Does anyone have any tips to help extend the time between washes and tame my oily hair?

[Reyesuela]

It took several months to go from daily washes to every other day. Then another to get to twice a week. I did it partly to save time and money.

Honestly, your hair will grow just fine washing daily. Use a bit of coconut oil to protect it from protein loss.

[hayheadsbird]

My big move from washing every other day or so came from trying no poo for a few months. The first couple of weeks were a challenge, but it wasn't really working for me long term so I ended up going back to more traditional methods. I'm now using shampoo once a week or so, sometimes twice. Just haveing a water wash in between really helps manage things though (so I don't feel I'm actually a weekly washer, just a weekly shampooer!), and conditioner on the ends when ever I wet my hair. You could try just rinsing and gently massaging your scalp between washes to help stretch wash days out.

[Fia]

FWIW, shampoo bars when I tried them (while still trying to find a working routine) always left my hair slightly greasy even right after a wash; greasiness that only escalated as I tried to go longer in between. It might be that you need another cleanser to be able to stretch out between washes.

[Tosca]

Aside from my big transition from biweekly to weekly washing after I finished high school (less stress = less oil?), you could try washing with less strong cleansers to get your hair used to that, and then if you wash with a stronger one you might last longer before needing to wash.

I went from SLS shampoo to silicone free condish for CO (Tresseme Perfectly Undone) to a 'cleansing' condish with a bit of silicone (Nature's Organics Fruits, the pink one), and each time there was a bit of a transition period of hair getting oily/dirty a little sooner than before, lasting 5 days instead of 7 for example. I think if I washed with SLS shampoo now it would take at least two weeks before I needed to wash it again.

[Kaya]

I'm going to put this out there: there isn't necessarily anything wrong with washing every day. There are daily washers on here that have no problems growing out to long and beautiful lengths.

Stretching washes works for some people and not for others. It can be overwhelming trying to process all the different hair care options covered here on the forum. I know when I joined, I wanted to try anything and everything! It's all right to experiment, carefully, for a bit to find out what works best for you, but if something is working for you, stick with it, even if it might not be what you expected/wanted.

I found that it's what your hair wants, not what you want for your hair. You may want to stretch your washes, but if your hair doesn't want it, well...you have to make the choice.

Have you entertained the idea of CO-washing, or maybe just a regular sulphate-free shampoo? There are options for daily washing that don't necessarily involve complete shampooing and conditioning.

Mind, if you're bent on stretching washes, there are plenty of people on here that can offer good advice!

[Wravyn]

Have you entertained the idea of CO-washing, or maybe just a regular sulphate-free shampoo?

I actually did try that a few years ago before switching to natural shampoo bars, as well as WO-washing. For the WO, I just couldn't get used to the smell of sebum and missed "smelling pretty". And CO-washing actually made is worse, even if only applied to the ends of my hair.

[apspinsyarns]

I had the same problem when I started growing out my hair, one day without washing and my hair would look like I'd just come back from a week spent somewhere without water or soap! Very embarrassing.

The first thing that really helped was discovering how to make my own dry shampoo. I didn't like all the chemicals, cost, and weird residue left behind by store bought brands. If you google "DIY Cornstarch dry shampoo" you'll find a lot of recipes but my basic one is this:

Mix equal parts cornstarch and cocoa powder, and add a few drops of your favorite essential oil for scent. I'm a brunette, but if you have light colored hair you can skip the cocoa powder. Arrowroot powder is also a great substitute for cornstarch if you want to go that route.

Working in sections of your hair, dust or paint on lightly with a makeup brush. I use a cheap blush brush from the drugstore. Try not to apply directly to your scalp, a few centimeters or so away will do the trick! Let it sit on your head for a minute so they starch can absorb some of the oils then brush through. I've noticed this also helps add volume and hold to my hair!

Another thing that helps is CO washes in between my actual shampoo days, followed by a scalp refreshing rosemary oil and witch hazel spray (so obsessed with this stuff, I could do an entire post on it alone) then style with above dry shampoo after. This all sounds like a lot of effort but it's totally worth it and I've noticed a big improvement in overall hair health/growth!

Hope this helps

[Chromis]

What is the problem you are having exactly? Is your scalp itchy or flaking or otherwise uncomfy? Or it is that you feel your hair "looks" greasy?

These have very different suggestions!

As a shampoo bar user myself, my first bit of advise if your hair is looking lank, would be to play with the ratios on your acidic rinse.

[Aredhel]

I definitely wouldn't recommend using powders or dry shampoo to transition. It'll give you a lot of unnecessary buildup on your scalp which could cause irritation and scalp issues.

I used to wash every single day for 15 years, but realized that in the long run it had caused my hair to become brittle, dry, and extremely prone to breakage. Now I only wash once a week. I'm still in the process of transitioning, so my scalp still gets insanely oily after day 2, but I have found that the easiest way to put up with it is to pull all of my hair back into a bun (which only works when I have oily hair, conveniently), and forget about it.