confession: i only wash my hair every five days.

so many of you will think this is really gross, but – like my post title says – don’t care! just kidding. i really do care. seriously.

‘why would anyone do that???’ you may ask. well, let me tell you why. and, if you’re interested in trying it out, i’ll give you some of my methods. i have to say that my sister did not believe me – AT ALL – until she just decided to try it. now she is on a ‘wash every 4/5 days’ plan like yours truly. it’s magical.

okay, so the WHY behind the madness: by not shampooing as often, your hair will actually be healthier. yep. can we also talk about the fact that it takes a substantial amount of time off of my ‘getting ready’ routine by NOT having to blow dry my hair? #lazy

here’s something to chew on…shampooing everyday strips your scalp of its natural oils. this same concept applies to your skin (i.e. your face). if you are constantly ridding your scalp and face of oils that naturally produce from within our bodies, they will overproduce to compensate for the loss. this is why so many people struggle with oily hair and oily faces. if you stop shampooing so often, you’ll notice that your hair will start to get back into its natural state. does this mean that it will never be oily again? nope. obviously you can’t run your hands through your hair and fix it and such and NEVER wash it…it just means you can go longer in between washes. in fact, my hair styles wayyyy better on day two through five of no washing, i can go a lot longer in between trims, i use less product which saves me $$, and it allows me to be more creative with my hair styles. if you color your hair, this will help keep your color intact longer, too.

tips…

when i do wash my hair, i tend to switch back and forth between a purple shampoo (to keep my blonde from being brassy) and a clarifying shampoo. you have to be careful with the clarifying shampoos because they can strip your hair. i really like paul mitchell platinum blonde shampoo to maintain my blonde-ish hair and then i have really loved herbal essences naked shampoo (volumizing). it’s a more natural shampoo so it doesn’t have nasty fillers to clog your hair up.

i ALWAYS condition to keep my hair soft and my scalp healthy. since i only wash about every five days, i don’t worry about those deep conditioning rules, i deep condition pretty much every time! i typically use either natural coconut oil or amika obliphica nourishing mask. you guys, this stuff is amazing and smells out of this world. you should try it out. i also really like the aussie three minute miracle – works great, smells great!

i tend to style my hair (i.e. blow dry and curl) after my wash. you can watch my soft waves tutorial here. usually my hair will hold the curl and volume throughout the days. sometimes i do have to re-curl, but lightly. i try not to use any styling tools on my hair after that first day. you will, many most days, find my hair in some type of braid. i love it and it’s easy!

how do i keep my hair from being disgusting in between washes? DRY SHAMPOO! it’s magical. i have tried at least 100,000 dry shampoos. i like a wide variety, but often times i find that they can leave a powdery residue. i have found an amazing one that has not disappointed yet: herbal essences naked dry shampoo. it has mint in it, smells amazing, and does not leave an ounce of white/powdery residue in my hair – at all. the best part is that it is only like $5-6! can’t beat it.

my tricks for dry shampoo: (1) [this works especially well if you have a powdery-based dry shampoo] a good way to use it is spray it in your hair (at the roots) before you go to bed. this will help work the product into your hair and you’ll wake up with mermaid hair. just kidding… but it’ll be nice and fresh looking! (2) spray at the roots before styling. leave it in for a few minutes and then take a clean towel and gently ‘dry’ at the roots. this will pull some of the oils and residue out of your hair and leave it feeling really fresh. BOOM! you’re ready to style your wig.

i highly recommend trying out the no shampoo movement. you don’t have to take 5 days right away, but you can slowly work up to it. take one extra day, then two, then so on and so forth. some people cannot go as long as 5 days, some can go more. i think you’ll see the benefits if you give it the ol’ college try!

good luck and hit me with any questions in the comments below!

xx