My hair routine

Hello again everyone!

I thought I would start off my blog by discussing my hair routine, and how I've changed it in the past few months.

Sometime back in the fall my hair started falling out in rather alarming amounts, nothing noticeable to other people, but it was quite alarming for me. At that time I was just using the shampoo I had in stock, which happened to be an Herbal Essence shampoo. Don't be fooled by the name, I've since learned that Herbal Essence is just about the worst shampoo you can use for your hair. I changed as soon as I ran out, but I still wasn't happy. My hair was recovering, but the shampoo I was using was still just a chemical laden detergent, not something I wanted to be using forever. I had been planning to go to the baking soda and vinegar system that had worked so fabulously for some many of my friends and acquaintances, but several things deterred me from starting that. First off, I was not looking forward to the detox phase. I struggle with smelly hair as it is, and I didn't want to make it worse, even if it was temporary. Secondly, I like to wash my hair every other day, and with that system, you aren't supposed to wash it so often. Thirdly, and DETEST the smell of Apple Cider Vinegar, and I just couldn't stomach the thought of using it in my hair. Yes, it's true that I have a large bottle in the cabinet that I voluntarily bought, but it's for using in different things- I won't be using it alone, and hopefully some essential oils will help mask the smell. So, I put it off, and kept putting it off, still thinking I would try it soon.
I picked up "Better Basic For the Home" by Annie Berthold-Bond a few weeks ago, and I soon discovered that there were alternatives to both detergent shampoos and the baking soda routine I was dreading. There were quite a few recipes to make your own shampoo, as well as recommendations on some good store-bought herbal hair washes. I opted for the latter. While I'd love to try some of the recipes she has, I was very intrigued by her review of a lovely line of herbal products, namely Aubrey Organics. She says in Better Basics, that they are as pure as anything she could make at home, and she's been using them for years. Well, that sure got my attention. So, the next time I visited our local health food store, I looked for a bottle of this shampoo, and sure enough, I found it, looked at the ingredients, and you know what? I could pronounce every single one, and new what they all were. Fancy that. Oh, and it was on sale too. I couldn't pass it up, so I plopped it in my nifty little market bag, and went on my way.

So, I've been using that for about two weeks now, and I'm quite pleased. I'll be perfectly frank, I'm not crazy about it, especially the smell. Rosemary is one of the most beneficial herbs for your hair, and it's always going to be in your herbal hair products so, I'm not complaining, and I don't necessarily dislike the smell of rosemary per say, but I'd rather the smell be accompanied by a steaming roast chicken, and a pile of mashed potatoes on my plate....
But other than that, I am actually liking it. It does take some getting used too not having the excessively foamy, lathery shampoo coating my hair though. I'm using the one for all hair types currently, because that's all they had at the store, but I would like to try some of their other ones soon.

So that was a rather long and wordy way of saying that I'm using Aubrey Organic's GPB (Glycogen Protein Balancing) Shampoo for all Hair types.

I'm not using conditioner right at the moment - again I was using a detergent based conditioner, that I was excited about at first, because it had the nice, fooling brand name and all the nice deceiving claims of being natural and healthy. You know so and so organic, no paraben, eco-friendly bottle, etc. etc. But their only claim to organic-ness is one ingredient, the rest are the run-of-the mill chemicals found in other conditioners. Though I daresay a bit lower on the toxicity level than some, I'm not going to be using it anymore. There is a recipe in the Better Basics for the Home book I mentioned above, that I'm going to make as soon as I get some lemons, because it calls for fresh lemon juice.
So, as soon as I get a lemon I'll be using Glycerin Condition from Better Basics for the Home-
From now on I'll be referring to this book as Better Basics.


I used up all of the spray gel that I was using after the shower - once again a chemical laden product - so I decided to try a Fly Away Hairspray recipe in better basic, which is simply a strong rosemary infusion, that you use in a spray bottle. I've been using it for a week or so now, it's working okay. It's not amazing, but I have horribly frizzy hair, probably not aided by the fact I'm not using conditioner at the moment, so I'm not surprised. Spray hair gels work on my hair more than anything so I'm going to have to experiment to find something that really works. Suggestions anyone?

Hair products - Rosemary Hairspray for Flyaway hair from Better Basics


If anyone would like to try here's the recipe. You know, just because it isn't amazing on my hair, doesn't mean it won't be for yours, so go ahead and give it a try!!

1 cup of strong Rosemary infusion. To make the infusion just place 2 teaspoons rosemary in a coffee mug and cover with boiling water. Cover the mug and let it set for a few hours. I let mine sit for about 4 hours, and it was nice and strong. Strain and pour into a spray bottle.
The recipe I got it from says that it only lasts 1 week refrigerated - well I failed to notice that and I haven't refrigerated mine, and it's been over a week, and it's still fine. So, just make sure to check it every day to make sure there is no mold growth!

I hope you enjoyed by late night - or rather very early morning ramblings about my hair. I'll probably have to come back here later on in the morning and fix a few things!

~Elissa

The book Better Basics for the Home by Annie Berthold-Bond is indispensable for anyone interested in natural health, cosmetics, or natural home care products. Some of her commentary is a bit out there, but it's certainly low on the Wacko-scale as far as these sorts of books go.