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Three Sisters and a Friend
Adventures with All Natural
Shampoo Bars
by Lori in Michigan |
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Hi Ida,
Once upon a time
there were three sisters and a friend who all became converts to
your all natural shampoo bars. . . well you asked me to write a
story about the shampoo bar experiences I have been sharing with you
over the last few months. I got a bit carried away with my creative
writing and actually had to shorten the story, otherwise you would
have had to post a “book” on your website.
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I had
been using your fabulous soaps for a long time and my skin has never
felt better. But the idea of using soap on my long thick lovely
locks was a bit scary. I decided to take the plunge, bought shampoo
bars, and lathered up. My hair had no adjustment problems at all.
I have been using only your shampoo bars for almost a year and my
hair is shiny, feels so soft, has bounce and body, and looks
glorious. I have tried them all and love them all. If I have to
choose favorites they would be the Honey Beer and Egg, Rosemary
Mint, Nettle, and Mud & Clay.
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We have fairly hard water and my hair length is somewhat dry and my
scalp can be a bit oily. After reading some of the testimonials I
decided to try some of your soaps on my hair. Some are a bit too
heavy, but so far I love the Lemon Lavender and Marsh Mallow
Lemongrass. With all of this experimentation I feel like a junior
scientist. I do not need conditioner any more. Sometimes I use a
vinegar rinse. |
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I wanted
to share my all natural discovery so I bought some shampoo bars for
my two doubting sisters and a friend, of course I gave them all the
lecture about all the nasties in their commercial shampoos. One
sister who lives here (in Michigan) has hair like mine (so I
thought). She had no adjustment problems and her hair loved the
shampoo bars for about three weeks, but then became dull and
lifeless. I never experienced that phenomenon. She told me that
her hair never really liked any shampoo for a long time and she was
always switching. She claims she does not have the time or patience
to mess around with vinegar or lemon rinses. To make a long story
short, after some experimentation, she now uses the shampoo bars for
3-5 weeks, or until her hair tells her it has had enough.
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Then she
uses a regular shampoo for just two days and then she goes back to
the shampoo bars. She has been doing this for months now and it
works for her. Her favorites are Rosemary Mint, Rosemary Lavender,
and Mud & Clay. Funny thing though, her hair does not like the
Honey Beer and Egg at all, which is my favorite! |
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My
friend has fairly long and thin, colored hair that tends to be oily
and tangles very easily. Her hair had some adjustment problems
initially. At first she did not like the way her hair felt
right after washing. She wasn't sure how to describe it, it
was sticky, like there was some sort of residue on it.
When it dried it was so soft, not sticky, but still felt odd.
She was determined to switch to an all natural shampoo (I think I
scared her). So she kept using the bars and after about a week
the odd feeling hair issue was gone. I think it was from the
residue from her old shampoos. She told me that she never
remembers her long stringy hair having this much body. Her hair is
so thin that it does not tend to behave and the extra body actually
made it less manageable. Again after a bit of experimenting
she developed a routine that worked for her. She shampoos every day
and uses a little dab of conditioner to help with the snarls and
manageability. |
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Then
once a week or so (again her hair tells her when) she shampoos, then
uses the apple cider vinegar rinse, and then a dab of conditioner
also. The comb just glides through her hair. She also noticed
that her hair color seemed to last longer. Some of the shampoo
bars do not work for her hair. Her favorites are the Chamomile
& Citrus, Nettle, and the Summer Sunshine, they seem to be the
lightest. |
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My
sister in Texas has short hair that used to be curly (in her younger
days). She loves the Carrot Milk & Honey Shampoo, but also loves to
use her favorite soaps on her hair (especially the Scarborough Fair
and Chocolate Almond). Her hair now has so much body and believe it
or not her youthful curls have returned. Perhaps its because she
does not use those heavy conditioners anymore. |
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She had
no adjustment problems, but told me that after 6 weeks or so she
noticed that her hair felt “heavier” and lacked luster, which she
believed was from the soap build up. Since she hates the smell of
vinegar she tried a lemon juice rinse, but it did not work. So she
whipped up some sort of baking soda clarifying rinse that she got
off the internet (I can get you the recipe if you would like), and
uses that every few months, when her hair needs it. |
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Baking Soda Clarifying Rinse
1 T baking soda
1 cup warm water
Combine the ingredients in a
spray bottle or cup.
Wet hair and spray
or pour the rinse on your hair and work it through.
Rinse
thoroughly with warm water, then shampoo with your regular
shampoo |
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Everyone's Hair
IS Unique!
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When I
first emailed you about shampoo bar recommendations, I really wanted
you to tell me which shampoo bars I should use. Instead I got the
“everyone’s hair is unique” story which was not very helpful at the
time. But now I understand why that is the perfect answer.
Everyone’s hair IS unique (even two sisters living in the same city
with the same type of hair). So I guess the moral of the story is
that if you want to switch to an all natural shampoo product—just do
it! Buy samples because all of the bars are very different.
It is well worth the effort and besides experimenting can be fun!
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Ida, thank you for making such fabulous all natural body products.
I have been using the lotion bars on the ends of my hair for a while
and I love the new Whipped Shea Butter. It moisturizes
everything, including my hair! |
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