Remember my less than glowing review of skinnyskinny’s jasmine organic dry shampoo? Well, I recently discovered that the dry shampoo works. Not only that, but it actually works quite well. My problem? I used it on hair that simply had too much product buildup (ie: hair that needed to actually be washed), and when I used it on other occasions I simply wasn’t using enough of it to see results. So, here I am to admit that I am sometimes the worst and completely wrong about things. I’ve edited the review accordingly. : )

Sources: One, Two, Three, Four, Five.

See what I mean? Maybe brown isn’t so bad.

How you deal with hair-related discontent when you’re low on cash?

So I’m back on the hair-washin wagon, and I owe it all to Siobhan from the No More Dirty Looks blog.  Her positive reviews of Acure’s shampoo and conditioner were just the motivation I needed!

Ingredients (provided at acureorganics.com)-

Shampoo: Organic Euterpe oleracea (Acai) Berry, Organic Rubus fruticosus (Blackberry), Organic Rosa canina (Rosehips),Organic Punica granatum (Pomegranate),Organic Fair Trade Certified™ Rooibos,Organic Aloe Barbadensis Vera Leaf Juice, Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate (from Coconut), 100% Naturally-derived Betaine (from Sugar Beets), Vegetable Glycerin, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate (from Coconut + Amino Acids), Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate (from Coconut + Amino Acids), Cocoglucosides Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride (Sugar Conditioner), Sodium Levulinate (from Corn), Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride (Guar gum conditioner), Potassium Sorbate (food grade preservative), Organic Argania Spinosa (Argan) Oil, Organic Fair-Trade Certified™ Olea Europea (Olive) Oil, D-Alpha Tocopherol Acetate (vitamin E), hippophae rhamnoides (sea buckthorn) seed oil, Attalea speciosa(Babassu) oil, Chenopodium quinoa (Quinoa) protein extract, Ubiquinone (CoQ10),Echinacea angustifolia  (Echinacea) Stem Cells, Mentha peperita (Peppermint) and Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Essential Oils

Conditioner: Organic Euterpe oleracea (Acai) Berry, Organic Rubus fruticosus (Blackberry), Organic Rosa canina (Rosehips), Organic Punica granatum (Pomegranate), Organic Fair Trade Certified™ Rooibos, Cetearyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Chloride, Stearylkonium Chloride, Vegetable Glycerin, Glucono Delta Lactone (fermented sugar), Organic Argania Spinosa (Argan) Oil, Cetearyl Glucoside (from corn and glucose), Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride (guar gum conditioner), Glyceryl Stearate (vegetable-derived), L-Arginine (amino acid), Organic Fair Trade Certified™ Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Sorbitan Olivate (from olives + sugar), Panthenol (Pro-vitamin B5), Cellulose (plant derived), D-Alpha Tocopherol Acetate (vitamin. E), Lactic Acid (vegetable derived), Hippophae rhamnoides (Sea Buckthorn) seed oil, Attalea speciosa (Babassu) oil, Chenopodium quinoa (Quinoa) protein extract, Ubiquinone (CoQ10), Echinacea angustifolia  (Echinacea) Stem Cells, Mentha peperita (Peppermint) and Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Essential Oils

The shampoo and conditioner both receive low hazard scores of 2 in the preliminary reports I created for them  in the Cosmetics Database.  The only ingredient with a hazard score above a 2 in the shampoo is Potassium Sorbate, and the only ingredient with a hazard score above a 2 in the conditioner is Lactic Acid

Some great things about these products:

1. They’re free of gluten, sulfates, parabens, phthalates.

2. They’re cruelty-free and vegan.

3. The bottles are #2 plastic and can easily be recycled (as well as being made of 70% recycled material).

4. They both contain fair trade certified ingredients.

Product Description(provided at acureorganics.com)- “Build dynamic volume without stripping natural oils or creating build-up. For hair that feels thicker, fuller, and uplifted. Quinoa protein extract supports keratin.Babassu oil provides lightweight moisture for root and scalp maintenance. Echinacea Stem Cells promote cellular regeneration at the root level. Safe for color treated hair. Forget the neighbors…turn up the volume!”

Price-  Each 12 oz. bottle of shampoo/conditioner is a steal at $10.99 a piece.

Performance- Initially I’d hoped to get the Argan Oil+Argan Stem Cell Shampoo/Conditioner that Siobhan reviewed, but they were very temporarily sold out and I am nothing if not impatient. Instead, as you can probably gather from the title of this post, I went with the Pure Mint+Echinacea Stem Cell Shampoo and Conditioner. After popping open the bottle for a little sniff, I lost any hesitation I might’ve had regarding my decision (see below). These products clean my hair like a dream, and I only need to use them once every few days to keep my hair smelling fresh and looking clean. As Siobhan mentioned in her review, the shampoo has a pretty impressive lather and the conditioner leaves hair soft and without any trace of residue. What more could I hope for in a shampoo and conditioner?

Scent- The scent reminds me a lot of my old favorite: Aveda Rosemary Mint. I am very pleased by that fact.

Rating-  I suppose I’ll subtract .5 for each of the ingredients with hazard scores above a 2, leaving the collective score of these products at a well-earned 9.

Some days I’m too lazy to bother with wetting my hair. It’s on these days that dry shampoo comes in especially handy!

Ingredients (provided at skinnyskinny.com)- “Cornstarch*, brown rice powder*, white clay, horsetail powder*, baking soda, orris root powder*, essential oils *certified organic”

This product receives a low hazard score of 1 in the preliminary report I created for it in the Cosmetics Database.  The unspecified oils are the only ingredient with a hazard score above a 2.

Some great things about this product:

1. It’s free of parabens, petrochemicals, artificial fragrance and sulfates.

2. It’s made with organic ingredients.

3. It’s vegan cruelty-free.

Product Description(provided at skinnyskinny.com)- “These organic dry shampoos are, well, amazing. They are so easy to use and so effective that it’s not uncommon to go 3 days in between washings and all the while, your hair will look healthy and not at all oily. Besides, it’s simply not good to wash your hair every day, either. Plus, it’s time-consuming to wash, dry and style your hair day after day after day. Really, isn’t there something else you’d rather be doing? And if that’s not enough, these shampoos actually give your hair an awesome texture that doesn’t require as much styling products to have volume. In short, we LOVE these dry shampoos.

To use: Just sprinkle (or dust with a powder brush) along the roots of your hair, wait a few minutes, and then comb through. That’s it. You’re done. Now go enjoy your free time, dang it!”

Price-  $9 for a 1 oz. travel size and $32 for 4.5 oz.

Performance- I actually ordered the Lavender and Rosemary Dry Shampoo, so imagine my surprise when I opened the Amazon box to find an entirely different scent. Fortunately, jasmine would have been my second choice, and the scent is nothing short of lovely (see below). As far as the cleaning/oil absorbing ability of this product, I find that it works just fine if you use twice to three times as much as you think you should.  Since I’m a sucker for products that last forever, this isn’t ideal. I’d also suggest not using this dry shampoo on hair that has product buildup; I made this mistake the first few times I used it, and it caused my hair to look flat and feel pretty weighed down.

Scent- The scent is by far my favorite aspect of this product. It’s floral and just the dreamiest.

Rating-  I’m subtracting 1 point for the price and another since a little of this product does not go a long way. 8/10

I rarely regret my decision to avoid shampoo, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t occasionally miss the scent of freshly-washed hair. Hair that smells like nothing can get pretty boring, and without that just shampooed look/feel/scent, I often forget when I last used baking soda and apple cider vinegar. Because of this, I tend use baking soda more frequently than is necessary. This is both wasteful and not so great for my already dry hair.

Amber, my talented hairstylist, often mixes a few drops of peppermint essential oil with the water she uses to spray my hair.  I’ve taken note of how awesome it makes my hair smell when she does it, but it didn’t occur to me until very recently that this might be a solution to my problem. When I saw an unused spray bottle in my bathroom cabinet and realized that I also had peppermint oil, I decided to give it a try the next time my hair needed a little freshening up.

It worked so well that I’m kicking myself for not trying it sooner!

Do you have any other tips for making hair smell great without shampoo?

What’s a girl to do when she can’t justify splurging on henna but her hair is looking especially mousy? Well, this girl buys the cheapest box of ammonia free dye she can find and puts it to good use. I know, I know. The ingredients are pretty gross, and dying at home is risky. I don’t plan to make a habit of it, though, and I did manage to skip the included conditioner (which was full of parabens) and follow up with argan oil instead.

Also, I’m pretty happy with the results:

I know, I’m the worst…but I do have some fun posts on the way, including:

• Five Finds for Valentine’s Day
• the next installment of Not Quite Natural
• several product reviews
• a stupidly good hummus recipe, concocted by yours truly
• a super secret and awesome giveaway (look for it some time next week)!

• I’m excited to try this natural hair colour mask to hopefully make mine a little less dull.
• Need a reminder of which ingredients it’s most important to avoid? This article made me realize that I definitely need to update/add to my ingredients to avoid page.
• This story about fragrance that a reader shared with Alexandra and Siobhan is both scary and inspirational.
• I need to take a page out of Rachel’s book and simplify my home.
• Caitie’s top makeup products of 2011 post is full of cosmetics I’d like to try!
• This infused witch hazel seems extra fancy.

Amber is a hair magician. My hair never looks this shiny when I fix it!

 So I didn’t get bangs or all my hair chopped off, but I’m feeling better about my long hair than I have in months. Amber at Intricid Salon tells me that I can easily achieve the long, lovely locks that I want with the help of a daily mutivitamin and less razoring. Oh boy! Until then, maybe I’ll just pretend to have short hair occasionally with the help of this sweet tutorial.

A small part of me wants to leave the salon with a cute bob, similar to the one above.

Katie’s sweet bangs make me wish I hadn’t even decided to grow mine out.

But I’d also love to let my hair grow into something that would hopefully eventually resemble this beautiful mane.

Ho-hum. Decisions, decisions. What do you think?

Remember the promise I made to myself to avoid tweezers until my eyebrows returned to their naturally full state? Well, somehow I’ve managed to keep that promise, and I think my eyebrows are looking better than ever!

Also, while using Hipstamatic to snap the above picture, I was bombarded with so many old, cute pictures of myself sans bangs. I’m not sure why I repeatedly put myself through this cycle of wanting bangs, having bangs, hating bangs, and then spending several torturous months growing out bangs…but I’m currently in the last, awful stage of this cycle. I can’t wait to be rid of them.

See? This girl knew how to live life (I will never again photograph myself while driving, though. That was plain reckless).

Does anyone else have a love/hate relationship with bangs? I’d be willing to bet that anyone who has ever had them does.