"I don't shampoo my hair" - No Poo Testimonial

UPDATE MAY 2017 (WHY I SWITCHED TO WATER ONLY) 
http://kaseyajohnson.blogspot.com/2017/06/why-i-switched-to-water-only-no-poo.html

UPDATE JANUARY 2016 (2+ YEARS AFTER STARTING): http://kaseyajohnson.blogspot.com/2016/01/no-poo-update.html

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Conversations lately have gone like this:

Friend - "Your hair looks so good!! What are you doing?"
Me - "I don't wash it"  [insert big grin]
Friend - "You don't what your hair??"

I haven't washed my hair with traditional shampoo for about 4 months. I have also received more compliments on it than ever.

I have fine, wavy hair. As many people with wavy hair can attest, it is not easy to take care of...



To tame the frizz, I have used every gel, cream, mouse, etc. Different shampoos and conditioners. While this does help with frizz and curl definition, it doesn't help with volume. My hair usually looked limp, pasted to my head, or crunchy.

Exhibit A:
(Before Photos)

This is me trying really hard on a hot date... mouse and hair dryer diffusing!! I've got pretty good volume, but see all the crunch?!




I ran across a no poo blog... did some more research, and figured it was worth a shot! Here is my hair now...



Bam!!





The above after photos are without any product (no shampoo, conditioner, mouse, gel, etc.), and it is diffused with a hair dryer. That's it! I also haven't "cleansed" it for about 2 weeks.) It's not a big grease ball!


These photos are also with no product, and with hair dryer diffusing.

So... what is no poo?
The idea is that your scalp produces oils. It should produce a normal amount, but because we use shampoo with harsh chemicals, your hair is stripped of all it's natural oils. Because of that, your scalp goes on oil-producing overload. This is why most people can't go more than one day in between washing their hair.

The result is that you need all kinds of product to put the moisture and texture back in to your hair. But, like I described above, it usually has an effect that is less desirable that just leaving your hair natural!

Here was my process: 
I started by going cold turkey -- No washing my hair until I absolutely couldn't go any longer. The first time I think I lasted 6 days. My hair was greasy. For about 2 weeks, I did a lot of braids, and buns. It wasn't pretty.

Everyone looking fabulous... me with slicked back hair... haha.

After the initial 2 weeks, my scalp readjusted, and my hair started to change for the better.

For the first month or so, I washed about once a week. The second two months have been more every 1 1/2-2 weeks.

When I'm ready to wash, I cleanse my hair with diluted baking soda and Apple Cider Vinegar. I dilute about 2TBSP of Baking Soda in about a cup of water. I use a squeeze bottle. The BS only goes on your roots. You squeeze it on and massage it in to your roots until your hair starts to feel slippery. This means the BS is breaking down the grease. Then you rinse it all out - really well!




I put the ACV in a spray bottle. About 2TBSP for 1 1/2 cups of water. This gets sprayed on your ends. It acts as a conditioner. Then you rinse that out well.

These amounts work for me, but it took me a little bit of time and trial and error to get it right. Many people start no poo and can't get through the transition phase. But keep going! It really is worth it. Invest in a couple cute hats :)

A big key to this process is a 100% natural boar bristle brush. This helps distribute the oils to the ends of your strands -- so it's not all sitting on your roots. I think my transition would have been shorter if I had gotten one of these sooner.

My process now is like this:
Before I get in the shower, I brush my dry hair with the natural bristle brush. I still shower and get my hair wet every day. If it's not a "cleansing" day, I massage my roots with my fingertips in the water for a bit. Then, while still in the shower, I use a wide-tooth comb to get all the tangles out. This cuts down on snarly frizz, and all my strands are "pieced" together, so I get nice waves, and not frizz.

Once I get out of the shower, I don't touch my hair. No towel, no brushing, no scrunching, that's it. When I air dry my hair, this is what it looks like.




As you can see, there is less volume than when I diffuse with a hair dryer, but still a drastic improvement over the before photos.

On days I want more volume, I still don't brush, use product, use a towel --- nothing! I just diffuse with a hair dryer.

Lastly, at one point, my hair was feeling a little dry. I diluted raw honey in a spray bottle. About 1/2TSP in 1/4 cup of water. And I would spray that on my ends every day. I didn't wash it out. Sort of like a leave in conditioner. I also put a couple drops of essential oils. Your hair doesn't smell like ACV, and it doesn't stink... it just kind of smells like hair. So a little Essential oil is nice.

The only issue I found with the raw honey is it molds kind of quickly in the bottle. I'm currently looking for a new solution.

An unexpected pro - When we go out of town, I only need to bring my brush, comb, and hair dryer. I used to have an entire bag dedicated to hair product!

And that's it! I'll never go back.

Feel free to leave questions :)

Bridal Shower

My baby sister is getting married! We have been in full blown wedding mode the last few months. This Saturday was her Bridal Shower. She has always wanted to have a cozy winter wedding. Check out these cute photos!

Sparkly, spray-painted pine cones. 

The gift table!

Cute pom-pom garland. This ended up being a great backdrop for photos!

The highlight of the day: The Hot Chocolate Bar. 

All the yum. 

Sweet Chelsea. Bridesmaid! And modeling her delicious hot cocoa. 

So. Much. Food.

One of our good family friends, Cindy, brings this to Bridal Showers she attends. Its her "Good Luck Bride". It was a decoration at her own shower over 30 years ago! So sweet :) 

Here we are with our friend, Cindy!

All the maids and the bride in the middle!

A few weeks ago we had a decoration party with all the bridesmaids, Jessy's future mother-in-law, and Cindy, our family friend. They helped make all the decorations, and they also were amazing helping the day of!

I'm over the moon excited for Jessy, and her fiance, Nick. The only downside to this engagement is she's moving to Maryland!! We are all proud of Nick -- he is a police officer in Baltimore! Jessy will be joining him after they are married. I made these state mugs for us. I think I saw teary eyes when she opened them <3 p="">

A close up of the mugs 

The tutorial I used. 

Us with our beautiful, generous mom! She and I had so much fun planning the shower. 

Jessy and her future mother-in-law!

We played this "Nearly-Wed" game. Before the shower, I videotaped Nick answering questions... such as "Where was your first date?" "First kiss?" "Jessy's Favorite Color?" etc.

Jessy answered the questions live, and then we heard Nick's answer. They did great and were totally cute.

  

No party is complete without tissue paper poms.

Jessy is an excellent baker & decorator. People know it too, because she received a lot of cake & cupcake themed gifts!

People are More Important

I've had this phrase floating around in my head a lot lately. I probably didn't make it up... but, I wanted to put it on paper... and hang it in my house.

I find myself often trying to adjust priorities. As an introverted girl, spending time with people wipes me out. It is natural for me to want to curl up on the couch and read, or watch a movie. But, life isn't about my books or TV shows. Life is about people. People are more important.

I have projects I want to get done. I want to exercise more than I do. I want to work more than I do. I want to spend more time in front of a screen. But friends, people are more important than all of those things. There is a time and a place for everything, but I want my life to have an impact on living souls... not inanimate objects.

So... here is a free printable. And my first hand-lettered project. Enjoy!

Insta - Friday

My husband watching his team, New England Patriots, win at the last moment a couple weeks ago.
He was similarly happy to see the Red Sox win the World Series the other night.




My birthday gift from Eric. A place to hang my cast iron.



Another birthday gift from my friend / coworker at Grace Road Church. We both enjoy this devotional site - #shereadstruth   This bright, sunny mug is my new fav!



A funny sight on the way to church. Someone placed a traffic cone on top of the head of these statues in front of the Memorial Art Gallery. Funny and harmless "vandalism".



Sometimes Pinterest is wonderful, and sometimes it fails. I tried to make Sweet Potato Gnocchi. They looked beautiful, but they tasted awful. Not sure if it was me or the recipe... but we had spaghetti that night instead.


I've been training for a 10k. I ran my second 5k race on Saturday. Pumpkins in the Park through Cobbs Hill. This guy stood out in the cold waiting for me to cross the finish line. We went out to breakfast at Spot Coffee  to warm up. Yum!

Free Printable - Mine Would Be You

I've been loving this song by Blake Shelton lately. Enjoy this free printable!
Click the image for a high resolution pdf.

Insta - Monday?

I was out of town last weekend, and wasn't organized enough to schedule an Insta-Friday blog post! So here we are... Insta-Monday instead :) 

Last Sunday, we went to lunch and a corn maze with some friends. It was a great day! However, our "fall activity" happened to land on an 80 degree humid, sunny day. Go figure! We had a blast anyway. 

Another Roxy picture... we had a pretty rainy week, and this little buddy was hanging out with me in my office. 

And here's a couple shots my sister took from the weekend. Her fiance recently moved to Baltimore because he was accepted in to the Police Academy. His graduation was this weekend. It happened to land on my birthday, so while I was traveling, Jessy and Nick treated me to a really nice seafood dinner!

The newly engaged couple!