In  Zero Waste Bathroom, I explained my plans for reducing plastic waste in the bathroom. Since then, I’ve been doing a lot of research and experimenting with alternative haircare. I discovered a fab Facebook group dedicated to ‘no ‘poo’ and ‘low ‘poo’ hair alternatives. I felt that the bicarb of soda was making my hair dry at the ends and a little brittle. In their comprehensive files and through talking to members, I found out that I shouldn’t be using bicarb of soda on my slightly curly hair. It was time to try some new things.

1. Aloe vera gel and honey wash. A member recommended I try mixing a few teaspoons of honey with a bit of aloe vera gel and a squeeze of lemon and applying it all over my hair, leaving for 10-20 minutes and then washing off with warm water. There is no need for a rinse, because of the acidity provided by the honey and lemon.
2. Cocoa dry shampoo. Yes, that’s right. I’m using cocoa as a dry shampoo! On days between washing, I just rub a little cocoa into my roots and in my fringe and I’m good to go for another day. I’m a brunette, so this is fine. If you are blonde, you might like to try cornflour or a combination of the two.
3. Avocado stone rinse. I found this recipe on The Rogue Ginger and she sourced it from Bread With Honey. In their recipe they add a little shampoo, but I’ve left it out seeing as I’m trying not to use shampoo these days. It doesn’t really ‘wash’ my hair, but I feel like it freshens it up a little.

I had my hair cut last week to get rid of the damaged ends from using bicarb and my hairdresser was so interested in all I was doing and didn’t make me feel like a weirdo for requesting no shampoo, conditioner or products. So, my new routine is:

Day 1 – Wash with aloe vera gel, honey and lemon wash.

Day 2 – Hair up, maybe a little cocoa dry shampoo.

Day 3 – Avocado stone rinse.

Day 4 – Wash with aloe vera gel, honey and lemon wash.

I’m trying to increase time between washes to five days, but I’m happy enough right now. The stubborn patch of eczema on the back of my neck is the closest to going that it’s ever been and I think that’s thanks to the aloe vera gel. I’ve put an aloe vera plant on my Christmas list, because I can’t find aloe vera gel that isn’t in plastic packaging and I’d like to eliminate that if possible.

Being totally honest, if I could find somewhere local where I could fill my own containers with shampoo, I would probably buy some to use maybe once in a while, especially after swimming, but I don’t think I’ll ever go back to shampoo and conditioner every other day like I used to.