My Shampoo Alternative: Baking Soda

I've been using shampoo religiously for years and years. Then, three months ago, I heard of "No 'Poo Revolution", where you stop using shampoo and look for a more organic and all-natural way to care for your locks. My first reaction was "Eww!! Gross!". I have been raised to shampoo my hair as part of my daily bath routine. On days when I don't wash my hair, I'd literally feel sick. So imagine how I felt after I was forbidden to take a full bath for 10 days after I gave birth!!

Anyhoo, as I read through the "No 'Poo" article, I was slowly converted to their side. Foregoing daily shampoo actually made a lot of sense. For one, commercial shampoo contains a lot of chemicals. And I mean a LOT!! Among these hard-to-pronounce chemicals are Sodium Laureth Sulfate (probably carcinogenic), Methylchloroisothiazolinone (a preservative, and is restricted in some countries), Ammonium Chloride (an eye irritant), Propylene Glycol (a skin irritant), and a host of articial fragrances. With daily use, these chemicals pile up on your hair and can even affect your health in minute ways.

Second, shampoos are expensive. Well, the ones that I like are, anyway. ^___^ By banishing shampoo from my grocery list, I could save by the thousands in a year.

People approach the "No 'Poo Revolution" in varying ways. Some totally stop using shampoo; others use an alternative, like baking soda and apple cider vinegar. Others only wash their hair once a week with commercial shampoo or baking soda & apple cider vinegar.

This is the approach I chose to take: I use baking soda on my hair every other day. I hold out til the last possible moment to use commercial shampoo. I went for 3 months with just the baking soda but I noticed that my hair tend to build up on oil. By the third month, my hair was healthy but heavy with oil. I know that this is supposed to happen,and the scalp will eventually adjust the production of sebum as need by the hair. This can take up to 6 months. Unfortunately for me, I am not a patient person. Thus, I give in to commercial shampoo occasionally.

Here is my baking soda shampoo recipe:

1 tbsp of baking soda
8 oz of warm water
1 bottle

Instructions:

1. Mix the baking soda with water. Stir and let cool to room temperature.
2. Pour into the bottle.

Viola! Baking soda shampoo

No brainer right? And this probably costs less than P10! Granted that this could only last you 3 or 4 days.

Caution: The solution may sting when it comes in contact with eyes.

If you find that the baking soda dries out your hair, you can forego its daily use and wash your hair with it only every other day. You can also decrease the amount of baking soda you put in.

Let me know how you did by posting your comments below.

**Update: One of my Facebook friends, Sheila, shared her 'no poo' experience:

"I loved 'no poo' especially the effects it had on my hair & budget! 

I was already on the EVERY 4 days of using baking soda & vinegar (as my conditioner). Well, I have naturally wavy fine strands that lack luster but with 'no poo' my strands felt thicker, my natural waves started to have body & shine, which my mom, sisters & hubby noticed. The start wasn't easy especially on the oily phase that lasted 3-4 weeks plus my brother made fun saying that I was into voodoo. But mamang, sisters & hubby were very supportive. Also, I was able to convince my mom & youngest sister to try & they loved the results.

Aside from the mentioned improvements the idea of not having all those chemicals (from shampoo & conditioner) in my system plus the "cheapness" of BS & vinegar were major major major bonuses! Since I was on the every 4 days of using BS & vinegar phase already I had extra minutes to snooze comfortably every morning. Yes, the idea of not having to wash my hair everyday was gross at first but then after the "oily phase" all else became hassle & tangle free.

However, I decided to stop to observe 'cause I started to experience hairfall after 3 months of 'no poo-ing.' Anyhow, the hairfall was NOT related to 'no poo' but to a medical condition. Thanks God I'm now completely healed. But then again I might give 'no poo' another shot soon. Very soon. " 

Overnight Hair Mask with Oil of Argan

Most of you probably don't know this, but I've quit using shampoo two months ago. I figured that with less chemical build-up in my hair, I'll have healthier and hopefully, thicker hair. In lieu of shampoo, I've been using this baking soda and water mixture to wash my hair. I will discuss my experience with 'No Shampoo' in a separate post. Anyway, for today, I'll tell you all about my experience with Argan oil as an effective hair conditioner and treatment.

See, when my  hair adjusted to my 'no shampoo' routine and went past the oily phase, I saw how healthy it became. I'd go 2-3 days without washing my hair. I know. I can hear y'all say "Ewwww!!". But really, daily washing strips the hair of its natural oils. The myth of daily washing is just being perpetuated by shampoo companies for obvious reasons. And it has worked! But on to my narrative.... After 5 days of not washing my hair, it became heavy with oily build-up. I decided to try out Argan oil as an overnight treatment. So, this was how my hair looked like:

Just to clarify, Argan Oil is not a hair straightener. My hair is naturally straight. Aside from the hair cellophane and coloring treatment that I had done more than a month ago, I do not do anything to it. It is therefore perfect for an experiment with Argan oil.

Argan Oil is a natural and organic skin, hair, and nail nourishing agent. It is astoundingly rich in Vitamin E and has revitalizing, sun-protecting, hydrating, age-defying, and moisturizing properties. The brand I used is Oil of Argan, a Philippine brand (learn more here). It is 100% pure Moroccan Argan oil, unadulterated with other oils and perfumes. In my previous use of this oil on my face, I haven't had any allergic nor adverse reactions to it. Therefore, I had no qualms on trying it out on my hair.

What I did was that I applied a good amount of Argan from the roots to the tips of my hair. This was on Sunday night. I did not bother to wrap it or cover it. Come Monday morning, I rinsed my hair with commercial shampoo. I let it air dry and viola! Smooth and tangle-free hair! Almost like a salon blowdry.
Here are some photos:

Argan oil is extremely effective for re-hydrating dry hair, split ends, and treated hair. Although I had neither dry hair nor split ends, I want to get rid of the build-up of oil on my hair. There are just two steps to this process:

1. Apply Argan oil to hair and allow it to be absorbed overnight.
2. Rinse with tap water. Or if you prefer, rinse it with warm then cold water. You may choose to rinse out your hair with shampoo to remove excess oil. Any shampoo you prefer will do.

Argan oil is a cheap and all-natural solution for your hair health needs. Oil of Argan (the brand) may not come cheap at P600 per bottle, but think about the hot oil treatment sessions, cellophane, and other similar treatments you can skip. You can do it on your own and it's easy-peasy!

For orders, just text 09062066904 or Like this Facebook page: www.facebook.com/OilOfArganZC.

My first chocolate chip cookie attempt

After weeks of researching the best chocolate chip cookie recipes and months of  scraping together the ingredients, I finally got the nerve to bake these goodies.

I found the perfect recipe here and took a screen shot of it. I don't like writing down recipes only to lose them one way or another. I made a lot of improvisations, though because I didn't have some ingredients and equipment. Here they are:

1. I ran out of brown sugar, so I just poured in 1 cup of white sugar instead of the 3/4 brown sugar and 1/4 white sugar recommended.
2. I used imitation vanilla instead of real vanilla extract.
3. Since I have no hand mixer or stand mixer (Oh Kitchen Aid, my dream!), I scoured the kitchen for a mixing device. I fretted that I'd have to use the egg beater to beat the cookie batter, but my salvation came in the form of an antiquated hand-cranked mixer. 
   
4. Since we had no oven, I baked my cookies in our Turbo Roaster. I figured since it's an oven roaster, it'll work the same way. 
   
5. I baked them cookies on a greased plate instead of the recommended baking tray lined with parchment paper.
6. In lieu of chocolate chips, I chopped pieces off of a block of chocolate. The chocolate block was a cheaper alternative to a small package of chocolate chips.

Despite these major overhauls, I was able to make pretty darn delicious and chewy chocolate chip cookies.

Huge and chewy 

The first batch came in too big, palm-sized actually. I wanted to make big cookies so that each person gets one huge cookie instead of numerous small ones. 

When I pried the cookies off of the plate, I was somewhat dismayed that they had the consistency of cake. Nonetheless, I laid them out on the cooling rack. When I got back to them after a few minutes, the cookies have hardened to normal cookie consistency and I was pacified.  

I made a few more batches, trying different things: rolling them up like burritos(without the stuffing), folding them in half, baking a batch of normal-sized ones, etc. 

Folded up 

At the end of the day, I had fun and everyone said that they tasted good. Cate even woke up when she smelled the cookies. Only Jac refused; he consistently said no to all my offers of cookies. It's okay. I'll find something to bake for him.

Lesson learned: What I don't know now, I can always learn.

Cheap Thrill: SanSan Nail Polishes

Brand: San San Nail Polish

from left: Sea Green, Warm Blue, Cloudy Gray, Red Gleam

I purchased these nail polishes a week ago as I was window-shopping with a friend. I was overjoyed to find just the right colors I wanted: mint green, pale blue, pewter grey, and vivid crimson. I was initially attracted to the mint green but seeing the other colors, I couldn't stop myself from buying the rest (I rarely get to go window-shopping).

I found these on an hbc branch as we were passing by the public market (of all places!). It was a small store, obscured by other stores and public utility vehicles. But boy were we in for a surprise! It was a kikay girl's dream: rows of nail polishes, makeup, mascara, lotions, and the like. I am now an hbc fan.

But I digress. Now, on to the review.

• Smell- It was really strong. I don't care much for it, but I'm sure you can't avoid that with nail polishes.

• Color- The nail polish stays true to the color on the bottle. With San San, what you see is what you get. Even when I applied only one coat, the color quality is good. With some nail polish brands I tried in the past, I had to put on around 3 layers to get the desired color. 

• Brush- The brush captures a good amount of nail polish and distributes it evenly on the nail. 

• Drying time- It dries pretty quick. Not totally dry dry, but after a minute or two, if you want to apply a second coat, the first layer becomes quite tacky and the next layer adheres better so that the finish looks glossy and awesome. 

• Duration - Lasts a day then chips. To be fair, I did not apply base and top coats. Also, the chipping was on my left index finger, which usually gets the better share of work and washes. Manicures typically last one week, and I'm positive that San San nail polishes can extend yours to more than that. I'm sure that with the base and top coats applied, your manicure will be worth it.

• Price- Affordable. At P37, the San San Nail Polish range is in the lower end of the price spectrum. If you, like me, have a tendency to collect (read: hoard) nail polishes, then San San is a brand that you must add to your collection. 

Verdict: If you want fun, eclectic colors, San San has a whole range of nail polishes for you. They are pretty good and can last quite a while. I am just put off by the odor, but aside from that, San San offers a great deal.

San San has a nice glossy finish