Lather, Rinse, Wait a Day or Two...

Internet, sometimes my hair and I don’t always get along. I’ve done a lot of bad things to it (dyed it blonde, dyed it red that was actually purple, bleached a stripe in the back, cut straight across bangs, HORROR) and it’s done a lot of bad things to me (years of tears at bedtime, when my straight-haired mother couldn’t understand how my curly hair got so tangled every day; not having the texture to pull off straight across bangs. Damn you, Hathaway!) I used to be a daily-hair-washer, not only that, I used to think that I needed to shampoo, condition, and product-up my hair every time I needed to fix it (in the morning before class, before I went out at night, it was sometimes a 3 shower a day ordeal). I would do this to subdue my naturally curly hair, pumping it with product, blow drying and/or straightening it nearly every time, which caused something akin to a helmet of frizz (it was a vicious cycle).  Finally, after fervent encouragement from a roommate, I decided to try washing my hair every other day and it was AWFUL.  My hair felt greasy and flat, I, in turn, felt greasy and flat.  Then a light from the heavens, or from the baby care aisle at Wegman’s, I found baby powder to get me through the bad times and all was right with the world (Run of the mill Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder received a 3 on Skin Deep ). The first two weeks were particularly tough, but once I got used to it, I noticed my hair feeling softer, it was less grease-prone, it looked…good.   In the spirit of less is more hair care, I’ve recently switched shampoo and conditioner.  I’ve been using the Giovanni Hair Care Tea Tree Triple Treat shampoo and conditioner.  Giovanni products are made with organic ingredients, are not tested on animals or made with animal by-products, and are biodegradable.  So far, I’m pretty pleased.  The conditioner receives a 2 out of 10 (low hazard)   and the shampoo a 4 (moderate)  .  If you don’t like the way tea tree smells (minty), this is not the combo for you (however, once it’s dry the smell nearly vanishes).  I can’t get enough of it. I’m a big fan of the tingle sensation the shampoo gives my scalp, and while it foams slightly less than conventional shampoos; it leaves my head and hair feeling very clean.  The conditioner has that same smell and doesn’t leave my hair feeling heavy.  I still blow dry my hair pretty often, but I’ve been leaving it curly more often and it’s markedly less frizzy (probably a result of the dramatic decrease in my blow dryer/straightener use).   It’s not easy to make the switch at first (no one wants to look bedraggled), but the less products I use, the better I feel about my hair and the better my hair feels.  What I’m trying to say here is, maybe my hair is like that creepy doll in Agatha Christie's short story, "The Dressmaker's Doll", maybe it just wants to be loved.