Hi all. I am new here, so I hope you don't mind me jumping in. I started doing the baking soda ACV thing back in March and my hair is looking better than it has in years. When I hit 40, last Christmas, I noticed my hair texture was starting to change. I was starting to get brittle old lady hair and my scalp was always tender to the touch. I really think that the sodium laurel sulfates in my shampoo were doing a number on me. I take a heaping tablespoon of baking soda and place it in a small glass bowl. Then I add a teaspoon or two of distilled water and mix it with my finger until it has a pastelike consistancy. It has a silky/slimy feel. I masssage it into my scalp starting at the crown and paying careful attention to the areas over my forehead and ears. Then I rinse it out. I take a 8 ounce cup and put a tablespoon or two of ACV in it and then fill the cup with distilled water. I pour that over my hair and let it sit while I finish my shower. Right before I get out I rinse it with cold water. (cold but comfortable...nothing shiver worthy!) My hair is soft, smooth and holds a curl or style better than it ever has. Even my grey hairs seem less noticable. My scalp stopped hurting a few days after I started this routine and hasn't bothered me since. Before it had that tight sunburned feeling. I wash my hair this way twice a week. In between washings I will just wet it down when I am in the shower, and give myself a scalp massage without putting anything on my hair. If it starts feeling a little dry, I rub some coconut oil between my palms and run my hands through my hair to condition it after I shampoo with the baking soda. I even started using baking soda and vinegar on my 7 year old and now we don't struggle with tangles at all. She wasn't thrilled with the idea, but she loves that I don't spend the time I used to combing out her snarls. It is hard to get used to not having a lather. Sometimes I still get surprised when there are no suds on my head. LOL My daughter deals with patches of dry skin that will crust up and itch. We started putting shea butter on the patches and have seen great improvement.
Thank you so much for responding and jump on in anytime!!! You have calmed my nerves about doing this!! Lol and I was going to ask about using on children and now can't wait to have them try it! I am trying to go back to the simpler things in life and make it less complicated. All while sitting here and typing on my iPad, lol. Something's I just can't give up. :angel: I have been doing more from scratch meals, thanks to Pinterest lol. And the family loves it!!! So I thought why not make my own shampoo, laundry soap and so on. I have yet to do the laundry soap but will over the summer. Making little life changes for the better.
I just mix half ACV and half water in a empty bottle and keep it in the tub. According to what I read, you are supposd to cleanse and condition hair normally, and then apply this rinse, leave it be for a bit, and then rinse. But because of the smell, here is what I do: After cleansing hair, squeeze excess water out as much as possible, then apply rinse, to scalp and hair, and then I apply my conditioner over it, let it sit, and then rinse it all out... I think it gives the same results, but I am new to all this, so I'm curious to see if I can learn a better method from someone else on here
With the rinse, a little goes a long way. In the end, you will have to try it and see what works for your hair. When I use the rinse, I use 1/3 ACV to 2/3 water, sometimes less ACV and it works fine for me. Something to keep in mind about homemade products is that unlike store bought products, these are not a one-size-fits-all deal. If you didn't like a conditioner from the store, you would buy a new brand. In this case, you will adjust the ingredients until you find what suits you. But I only have great things to say about ACV. Aside from it lightening my hair a bit, after a few uses, it does tame tangles and frizz and I do not need conditioner on top of it. With that said, you might still need it if you are going to wash with a detergent shampoo since conditioner is made to conteract the effects of shampoo.:? Oh, and if you use ACV without condioner, you will not feel the soft hair that conditioner creates the second you apply it. You will see the difference after your hair dries.
I purchase soap from a local soapmaker who is very open with her ingredient list. I know exactly what is in my soap and where it comes from. She also uses only essential oils for fragrance in the soap. It's not the glycerin that I have a problem with, but in any glycerin soap I've found thus far there are Sulfates and Sulfites added into the soap. Living in the AZ Desert since we've begun using real handmade soap we have had no need for lotions, and I don't spend nearly as much on beauty products now since we don't need all the extra stuff.
This is what I like about glycerin soap for my hair. It is the glycerin that moisturizes, aside from added oils. Does the person you buy from make glycerin soap and sell it? I have wanted to try my hand at making glycerin soap. It is easy to find pure glycerin with no additives but finding lye is something else since soap making is a lost art. I can find it in bulk but I honestly do not want the amount I would have to purchase since a little goes a long way. Stores around here no longer sell Red something in the small containers since it was discontinued. It was the best lye for soap because it had no axtra additives.
As I shared in a previous post, it all depends on what works for you. What you are doing might be exactly what your hair needs. An example: Some people wash their hair with castile soap. I do not like castile soap for my hair. It didn't dry my hair like baking soda but it left my hair with a heaviness that I didn't care for. On the other hand, I LOVE castile soap for hand-milling body soap. It melts smoothly and accepts added oils nicely. I also use it to make liquid hand-soap. It has a goopy consistancy compared to store brands but it cleans without drying my hands too much.
Unfortunately no, she does not make glycerin soap. She only makes goats milk soaps, lotions, body butters, and deodorants. Her products are wonderful though! See I can't find a local source for glycerin soap, so I would have to buy it in a store which I'm not willing to do because they all have SLS in them, which is one thing I don't want in my home.
Thank you for the insight! I am going to have to give this a try. I have really long/course/wavy hair. I am having a hard time with the store bought stuff.
Goats milk soap is fantastic. I haven't been able to buy it locally. BJ's Health Food sells it for more than I want to pay per bar. My mom used it as a child and said that it was really great for acne. Her grandma made their soap. At the time they had no clue how good goats milk was for the skin. She just made it because she had dozens of goats and it made sense to use what they had.
Do any of you that wash with baking soda find your hair stays cleaner longer? I used to shampoo every day, but now I don't have to and even when I skip, my hair doesn't look greasy.
I'm another baking soda/ACV hair washer. I used to wash my hair with shampoo daily. A few weeks after I started using BS, I noticed my hair didn't start looking greasy for several days. I love the time saving aspect.
