At one point or another in my life (particularly during the large hair epidemic of the 80s), I have used gel, mousse, curl tamer, curl enhancer, curl fixer, straightener, spray, volumizer, texturizer, and sealer. This is in addition to the colors, weaves, rinses, tints, and highlights that I have applied regularly to my hair for decades without thinking twice about the ill affects on me or the environment. Each day I would wash out these various and sundry chemicals (many of them considerably toxic, see Skin Deep blog) with a shampoo and cream rinse that contained just as many chemicals, including a special chemical whose sole job was to help my body absorb all the other chemicals easily and efficiently. After dousing my hair and scalp with these chemical cocktails, I would then subject it to curling irons, blowers, diffusers, and heat dryers. It is no small wonder that I still have hair. I was trashing my hair, my body, and the environment at a great cost, literally and figuratively.
The day I decided to stop all this madness, I went through my bathroom cabinets and removed plastic container after plastic container of oozing, gooey toxins. I placed them in a paper bag and chucked them---not in the trash, mind you, but where they belong: the hazardous waste disposal center. Sometime after this incident I became pregnant, so then I stopped the hair color maddness, too. I became so busy with the little ones that I no longer troubled myself with hair dryers and their ilk, so these last energy and time wasters were also permanently removed from my bathroom shelves.
My hair was recovering from years of expensive, wasteful, environmentally irresponsible abuse, yet I was still unknowingly exposing myself to chemicals each time I washed my hair. After learning about the chemicals typically found in shampoo (even the natural and organic ones I relied on for years), I set out to make my own products using only the purest, environmentally sound ingredients available. My hair finally and fully recovered from years of abuse and is now naturally shiny, curly, healthy and low maintenance. All this and I get to use the highest grade ingredients available while spending next to nothing per batch.
My favorite shampoo is made from equal parts cosmetic-grade clay (Moroccan clay is my favorite) and distilled water. A few drops of essential oil can be added for a variety of therapeutic benefits. Rosemary essential oil, in particular, is a wonderful addition to any hair care product as it is growth-stimulating, nourishing, and great for dandruff prevention and treatment.
Clay shampoo acts as both a shampoo and a conditioner, thereby eliminating the need for further products for most hair types. The first several times you use it, you may need to wash and rinse a few times in a row to remove the thick build-up of hair products and excess natural oils. Eventually you can train your hair to require less washing, especially as you continue to use gentle, non oil-stripping shampoos regularly, while simultaneously avoiding chemical-laden products, dryers, and irons. As your scalp oils are restored to their natural balance, the “greasies” will no longer occur and you can easily go one or more weeks between washings. I didn't believe this until I tried it, now I'm a convert. Theoretically one could eliminate shampoo all together provided one's hair is cleaned regularly with water and kept chemical-free. I have tried this approach with both my chemically sensitive children and the proof is truly in the pudding: each has perfectly shiny, happy, healthy-looking hair, just as nature intended.
Coming up-- Homemade Personal Care Products Part V: Conditioners.
Peace,
Annie