A few days ago I had my 29th birthday and guess what? I can’t wait for next year! I don’t like to make a big deal of my birthday but I do usually treat my self to something just for fun. This year, as you can see in the photo above, I got a haircut and wild coloring I went to this really great salon nearby called Sprout. It is an organic salon, but yes they do have to use some chemicals in hair dye (I’m way passed my henna days! sorry). They are very nice and love to do hair styles that are a bit more… experimental.

My favorite thing to do is going out to eat with some family and friends. Don’t give me presents, I just want food But I do like getting older. I think it’s exciting that next year I will be thirty! And I love thinking about my 13 year old musings on the future. Why do we always think that when we get older things will all be figured out? That all the puzzle pieces will suddenly fit together? Well I am very glad that is not true! It would be an extremly boring life if that happened to me. Challenges are what make life exciting!

I was just talking to a friend about aging and we were both complaining about the complainers. Those people that lament getting older. “Ohhh my Goood, I’m sooo ooollld” Pa-lease! Be happy you are alive! For all the wonderful people I have loved that passed away well before they should have, I simply cannot do anything but appreciate every single day that I have.

I have finally found a hair rinse that works for me and doesn’t smell bad! I have been using it for a couple of months now and it is working out really well. I researched on the Internet a good bit and came up with my recipe for the rinse through some experimentation. This rosemary rinse is only for brunettes because it tints the hair brown. If you have blond hair just exchange chamomile tea for the rosemary. The natural tinting is really nice for me when in summer the sun starts to lighten my hair.

What you need:

• one pot for boiling water
• small strainer
• measuring cup
• medium size spray bottle

Ingredients:

• water
• fresh rosemary
• white vinegar

Everyone will have to experiment with the proportions but here are the measurements that I used. First I took about three sprigs worth of rosemary and stripped the needles off of the stem. Then I poured 1 1/2 cup of water in the pot and added the rosemary needles. Let this come to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Let simmer for about 45 min or until water turns a deep brown/ red color. Remove from heat and let sit for a bit to cool down. Strain rosemary out and add 1/4 cup of white vinegar and about 1/4 cup of fresh water. Then I put the rosemary rinse in a spray bottle to use in the shower. What I like to do is wet my hair in the shower and then spray the rosemary rinse on my hair and let it sit while I shower. The rinse can dye fabric so use a dark colored towel when drying hair. However once your hair is dry you shouldn’t have any problems with the color coming off on clothing.

Voila! A hair rinse that leaves your hair fresh, shiny and naturally colored!

Shopping locally is very important to me. So, while i love my Burts Bees lotions I would much rather buy locally. I am also not a big fan of supporting companies like Clorox who bought out Burt’s Bees over a year ago. There was an interesting article in the New York Times around the time of the sale. I know on their blog Burt’s Bees insists they have not changed their ways but some of my money is going to Clorox and I’m just not cool with that. Plus I love being able to actually meet the owners and talk to them about what they put into their products and how they started their business. So below are three local places where I have tried the products and met the makers.

At the Eastern Market in York, PA I found  a stand called Aroma Maker (pictured above). I can’t find any information on-line about them but they are at the market which is open every Friday. I bought the cucumber lotion bar and it smells fabulous!

Another York shop is Sunrise Soap Co., it’s a great little shop with a really helpful and friendly owner. She piled us up with lots of yummy smelling samples. Many of the lotions and soaps have patchouli, which I hate, but there was plenty that didn’t. I bought the cocoa butter lip balm in sweet orange and really love it! It is soft but stays put and smells so good. I will definitely be going back there.

A great Baltimore based company is Biggs & Featherbelle. I see them at pretty much every local fair I go to and they have a very devout following around here. I have it on good authority that the eskimo kiss lip balm is amazing.

My absolute favorite moisturizer is Sweet Almond Oil. A few winters ago my cheeks became incredibly dry and chapped (the trials of aging I suppose. My brain still hasn’t gotten the memo though). It seemed the more I applied my old faithful Oil of Olay face cream the more cracked my skin became. And it stung like crazy! So off to the internets I went trying to find an alternative way to soothe my (aging) cheeks. In most of the homemade recipes I found they included sweet almond oil. And being a bit lazy I decided not to bother with the whole recipe and go straight for the oil. Low and behold it worked like a charm! It’s very light and did not make me break out at all.

Wash your face as you usually do and then just barely dry your face. You want your face to have a bit of water on it because it makes the oil go on much easier. Put a few drops of oil on your finger tips and rub them together. Then gently pat onto your face. Use very light, short strokes to rub it in. A small amount goes a long way and you can always add more if needed. I use the NOW Foods brand of sweet almond oil that I found at my local health food store but there are many brands out there. Just make sure it is 100% pure sweet almond oil. Don’t go spreading almond extract on your face!

Common sense warning: Do not use this if you have nut allergies. Always test a small area of skin before using any new oil.     

(Image at top: How Stuff Works )

Now you know my (not at all) dirty little secret! I have not used shampoo in over a year and could not be more happy with it. It’s super cheap and my hair is chemical free!

I first thought about doing this while looking for shampoo recipes to make my self. I didn’t want all the chemicals from regular shampoo and the organic ones were just too expensive! Through my research I started seeing people comment on how to not wash your hair at all. Now this does not mean that I have dirty, greasy hair. In fact my hair is more healthy than ever and looks great. There are many ways to be shampoo free,  I especially love this page on Natural Forces. If like my self, you don’t have time to make your own shampoo and want to mostly use water for washing be prepared for an adjustment period. Our hair is used to the vicious cycle of stripping the oil with shampoo and then artificially replacing moisture with conditioner. Because of this your scalp actually over produces oil in preparation for the shampoo process. So the first few weeks your scalp will continue to produce more oil than you need. But don’t worry! Just keep up with it and your scalp will balance it’s oil production in a week or two. Think of it as an excuse to wear beautiful scarves and hats

Here is the regime that I have found works perfectly for me.  I give my scalp a really good massage and then thoroughly brush it while dry. I then rinse my hair in the cool water before it fully heats up for my shower. This way I use the water that would normally be wasted and I use cool water which is much better for the health of your scalp and hair. I massage my scalp and hair while under the running water as if I were shampooing it. If I end up skipping day of rinsing I simply sprinkle a little corn starch in my hair and brush it through.

Once a week I do a baking soda wash. Take a small amount of baking soda (about 1 tsp for short hair) mixed with a bit of water to make a paste and rub into hair toward the top of your head. I try not to rub the baking soda into my scalp because it is too drying for me, then rinse very well. Baking soda can be difficult to rinse out so start with a small amount and increase as needed for your length and type of hair.  Some people use baking soda as a dry shampoo but I have found that it makes my scalp very itchy. Occasionally I have tried an apple cider vinegar rinse because it makes my hair nice and shiny. The big draw back is that well… it smells like vinegar. I have a very sensitive nose and I can smell it all day long. I am currently experimenting with mixing in essential oils to cut the smell. I’ll post on that when I have a solution.

I hope these tips help you out! Experimantaion is the key! Not everyone’s hair is alike and remember that water type and weather will factor in as well. But there are many natural shampoo recipes out there too (if you have time!). Thrifty fun has a great list of home made shampoo recipes!

Good luck on your shampoo free adventure!

(Image above: ebay)