On New Years, I started a hair care experiment using ONLY WATER to wash my hair. I’m calling this water-washing. SEE POST ONE.
No shampoo. No conditioner. No anti-frizz. No anti-humidity spray. No curling mousse. No baking soda. No apple cider vinegar.
JUST. WATER.
Well, filtered water. I wouldn’t wash treated city water, because there are harsh chemicals and sediment in the water that can damage your hair and make it brittle. For the best water filters, check out Berkey accessories and shower filters!
Observations
was the worst week of this entire experiment. It’s only gotten better from there. For the first seven days, I had to wash my hair every day. Some days, I washed it in the morning AND the evening because the oil was just too much. It was less frizzy than normal, and became soft and curly (when it wasn’t oily). I only had flaky scalp for three days, but it quickly went away. I just scrubbed more in the shower. I’ve also been blow-drying the roots because my hair is so long, and letting the rest air dry.
I was able to go two days in between washes, which was nice. My hair wasn’t too terribly oily after two days. Frank couldn’t tell just by looking at it, but it FELT oily to me, so I washed it. My hair doesn’t smell weird or anything. It just doesn’t have a scent. Actually, my mom told me my hair smells like spices, but that’s probably from all the Indian food I cook!
I made it to 3 days without any oil build up, which was awesome! Lots of people told me it can take a few months for your scalp to adjust and quit producing extra oil, but I seem to be adjusting more quickly. I think this is because I did the baking soda and ACV for 5 months before I went to water-washing.
has been the best week BY FAR! On Jan. 31 I water-washed my hair, and then set off on a four day trip to California. Just due to circumstances, didn’t wash my hair for SIX DAYS, but it was OKAY! There was no oil build up AT ALL. My hair lost its curls/waviness over the week, but there was no oil build up on my scalp. After six days, my hair still felt clean! I water-washed it on the seventh day just to make it perk up a bit and look nicer, but NO OIL. :)
One of the best things about water-washing is that it’s FRUGAL. Not only am I saving money on shampoo and conditioner, but I ended up not needing my other products, either! When I washed with shampoo and conditioner, my hair would get really frizzy and look flat….SOOOO I used anti-frizz and shine&curl volumizing mousse to get it to look the way I wanted it to.
When I switched to the no ‘poo method (baking soda and ACV), I still needed something in it afterward to tame the frizzies. I was using aloe vera. But with water-washing, I haven’t needed ANYTHING. My hair is soft and curly. The frizz is no worse than normal. It looks like I’ve used anti-frizz in it, but I haven’t. Not only am I saving money on my washing products, but I’m saving money by not needing my styling products, too!
Is it too early to celebrate this as a success?
Maybe. I don’t know. Right now, what I know is that I went a WHOLE WEEK without needing to wash, which felt amazing. I’m one of those people that absolutely can’t THINK when my hair is dirty. It makes me feel crazy until it’s clean again. When I washed with shampoo and conditioner, I washed every 3 days. With the no ‘poo method: every 3-4 days. When I can do just water and only wash it once a week if it needs it…well, that’s success to me!
I’ll probably post another update in a month. :) Let me know how your water-washing experiments are going!!
Featured on Party Wave Wednesday and Pennywise Platter.
13 Responses to “Beyond no ‘poo: Water-Washing UPDATE”
I am on day 8 and I can’t stand it! My hair feels heavy and my scalp is itchy. I am pondering attempting the BS/ACV method, but I can’t stand the ACV smell. Also, just read through several no ‘poo blogs- 3 bloggers gave up and went back to commercial products. Could you inspire me with an update please? And is cool, warm, or hot water best in your experience?
Yes, it’s pretty miserable the first couple of weeks while your scalp adjusts. I had dandruff and my hair felt sticky from the oil. There were some days where I washed twice a day. I did BC/ACV for 5 months before starting water-washing, which I think helped me adjust better/more quickly. I would say somewhere in-between warm and hot is what worked best for me. If you need more help getting through the transition period, I wrote a post on natural hair care. https://bitly.com/12D04qB
I am wanting to start this after school outs this week. I am a swimmer and will be working at a water park this summer. My hair will have daily contact with chlorinated water. I wash my hair after every practice, 6 days out of the week. I know with this you do not have to ‘wash’ your hair with the baking soda and ACV everyday. Should I still wash my hair after practice/work as often as I normally do because of the chlorinated water?
I would rinse the chlorine out after swimming, for sure. But make sure your water is filtered.
What do you mean by filtered water? We have a water softener, would that work?
Yep!
I’ve never used BS/ACV before. What is the proceedure for that. And exactly how do you “water wash” your hair? Just scrub it under running water for a few minutes?
Yes, I usually just scrub my scalp with my fingers and run my hair under water for a minute or so.
Thanks for posting. I have been doing this for about 2 months. I love it! You are the first person to write about it. I have seen a lot of the “no poo” blogs where they do the ACV rinse and baking soda. But so far, I have not felt the need to use it.
Also, like you, the first week was the worst but it was fine after. I also think it was because I was headed this way for a while. I have not used a sulfate shampoo in over a year. I have not used any kind of shampoo in about 6 months, and was conditioner only washing (co washing). So I think it helped the transition to not be so oily.
Anyways. Thanks for posting, glad to see you are also having a good go with it and talking about it : )
I think the filter is key! The chlorine in our water is trashing my skin/scalp/hair… Off to check out the berkey one!
Chlorine absolutely kills my hair—makes it all dull and brittle. We love our Berkey filter!
The only difference is I started on January 4th! I love it!!