A crunchy sort of experiment...

Having a blog is a big responsibility.  People read it.  Not that I assume that MANY people read this because there isn't much to read, because I don't really know what to write.  So, I have been pondering for a few weeks, what should I blog about next?  Nothing really came to me, until now.  I will warn you, parts of this might be a little TMI for some of you, so when you see *eyemuffs* consider yourself warned!

I have this handy little app on my phone called StumbleUpon and it's a lot of fun.  You sign in and it asks you what you are interested in, and then just randomly chooses pages from all over the world wide web.  Let me tell you, it is almost more fun than pinterest.  It makes me feel cool, because I can find my own cool stuff to pin on pinterest instead of only stealing everyone else's stuff. 

One day, (cue scary music) I came across this blog, My Merry Messy Life about breaking up with shampoo and washing your hair with baking soda, and using apple cider vinegar as a conditioner.  Sarah, the owner of said blog, also shared a link to this website, Sorta Crunchy, and I am LOVING reading through both of them.  This got me really thinking about my hair, what I don't like about it, and wondering "what would happen if..."  So this is the part where I start getting a little crunchy myself.  I'm going to give this a shot. 

So I went to the store yesterday.  I intended to buy a gallon of the ACV because its so cheap, but I noticed that the vinegar was "apple flavored".  Basically, it was white vinegar with apple flavoring and color added.  I don't know how much it matters, but I'm guessing it does or all the recipes would say to use regular vinegar, right?  SO if you decide to do this, double check the label and make sure the vinegar is apple based. 

I would also recommend looking at both sites before you get started.  For the shampoo, you can do it a couple of ways.  You can either dilute some baking soda in water and pour the mixture over your hair and scalp, or make a paste.  I'm dragging my dear husband down this rabbit trail with me, so I let him choose, and he picked the liquid, and requested a spray bottle so he doesn't have to pour it on his head at 5 am when he wakes up for a shower.  I won't argue, I will be asleep nice and cozy in bed. 

I decided this morning was the day, the day I'm going to give up shampoo, (at least for 2 weeks) and see what happens.  I mixed 4 cups of water and 8 tablespoons of baking soda.  I would say if you want to be able to spray it to only use 5 or 6 tablespoons.  The amount doesn't really matter, the problem I ran into was that more than 5 or 6 tablespoons won't dissolve in the water anymore and I have some baking soda that settled at the bottom.  Next time I think I will make a paste before my shower.  Sorta Crunchy recommends 2 tbsp each of water and baking soda.  For now, I'll just shake it up before I shower. 

Also I read how much better washing your body is with baking soda, so I DID make a paste for that and added some citrus essential oil for scent. 

*eyemuffs*

I was going to try peppermint because my husband wanted something a little more manly smelling, but I planned on using it on ALL my bits and was leery of peppermint oil "down there"  So lemon is as manly as we're going to be around here. 

I'm sure I'm headed deep into TMI territory but after my daughter was born, I feel like I smell different.  And after a good workout, it's not a good different.  So I'm thinking that maybe, just maybe, using the baking soda "soap" will help.  I have also read, I can't seem to find the link now, that drinking a little bit of ACV each day can help balance out your body's PH level. 

ok, you can take your eyemuffs off now.

so I am going to give this 2 weeks.  I plan to wash my hair every other day, but use NO shampoo, conditioner or traditional soap.  And I plan to drink a small amount of ACV every day.  I'll keep you posted!

xo, Steph