Can I Give Up Shampoo For Good? Final Verdict on the No-Poo Method

Exactly one month ago, I set myself a challenge to give up shampoo for Plastic Free July. You can read part one here to find out more about why I decided to do this. You can also read part two here to find out more about the method and how I was feeling halfway through the challenge. Now August has arrived it is time for my final verdict on the no-poo method – will I give up shampoo for good?

So…How Did It Go?

I’m not going to lie. This challenge was a lot more difficult than I imagined it would be. I knew that it would involve getting through the gross, greasy stage while my hair adjusted to the new regime. I just didn’t think that it would affect me quite so much. At the worst point, around two weeks in, I felt so disgusting. I always put my hair up in a bun to hide it when we went out, and I felt less confident than usual. However, it wasn’t all bad. Now I am mainly through the super greasy stage I have noticed some improvements in my hair. It’s definitely less frizzy than usual, and the ends feel really nice and soft.

This photo is three weeks in – roots still a tiny bit greasy but the rest of my hair is soft, bouncy and shiny:

Will I Give Up Shampoo For Good?

Honestly? I don’t know. Sorry, that’s not the definitive answer you were hoping for! There have definitely been some benefits to giving up shampoo. I still really like the idea of cutting out some chemicals and saving some plastic in the process. But I haven’t found it particularly easy. Turns out that getting your hair clean by only using water is pretty difficult! I do think that it will get easier as my scalp continues to adjust. But some mornings I just want to reach for the shampoo to get that clean feeling instantly!

I think I will carry on with the no-poo method to a certain extent. Even if I don’t give up shampoo entirely, this month has taught me that it isn’t the end of the world if I go out with greasy hair every now and then. I’ll be able to go a lot longer between shampoos now, since my natural oil production has gone way down.

Booking.com

Funnily enough, it also inspired me to try giving up my facewash too. I found a lot of posts advocating this while researching the no-poo method. For the whole of July I haven’t used any facewash, and I’ve been really impressed with the results. I imagined that I would break out straight away and be reaching for the cleanser within the first week. But my skin feels and looks fine. My new routine is washing with warm water and a facecloth in the morning, and a quick splash with water before bed. I don’t often wear make-up though – I guess this wouldn’t work so well for people who do. I do use a good face moisturiser with SPF every day.

My Recommendations

I would recommend that anyone who is curious about the no-poo method give it a try! You might find that you love it, you might not. I do think that when you try to give up shampoo, you can learn something. I learned that having clean hair isn’t the be all and end all! When I’ve had days where I really feel the method is working, I love the way my hair looks. It’s really soft and my curls aren’t frizzy at all.

Plastic Free July May Be Over…

But that doesn’t mean we should go back to old habits. If you have taken part in Plastic Free July, well done! We all need to do our bit to cut down on single use plastics. We’ve all seen the videos of rubbish filled seas and trapped sea-life. David and I saw firsthand the impact of rubbish in India. There are also loads of tips on the Plastic Free July website if you want to find out more.

Check Out This Awesome Plastic-Saving Filter Bottle:

We love our Water-to-Go bottles. We can fill them with water from any tap, or even a stream, and they make it drinkable. We’ve even filled them from waterfalls while trekking in Nepal, or from taps in Delhi. And as well as saving the environment, they also help us save money – it’s a win-win! In fact, we calculated that our Water-to-Go bottles will save us a whopping £546 EACH over a whole year on the road… that’s a whole lot more cash in the travel fund! If you’d like to get your hands on one of these amazingly handy bottles, developed with technology from NASA, head over to https://www.watertogo.eu where you can enter the code NOFIXEDHOME at the checkout for a 15% discount.

This post contains affiliate links. You can read our disclaimer here.