It’s no big secret that I go days without washing my hair, and I regularly proclaim my love for dry shampoo - shouting it from the rooftops at every opportunity. A few short years ago, I was an every-day hair-washer. In fact, I couldn’t even wash my hair before bed and trust it to look presentable in the morning but now I wash my hair once or twice a week and I’m pretty sure no one would know if I didn’t tell them my hair was really dirty.
(I should probably stop doing that.)
Most often, when I tell someone how long it’s been since I last washed my hair I’m met with a variation of "Ohmigosh, I could never do that!" or, "I can’t get more than a day or two out of a shampoo!" or, "I wish!" and because I remember those days, I want to help.
Ironically, the more often we wash our hair (and skin, actually), the more often we need to. Why? Shampoos and soaps strip our bodies of the natural oils that keep our skin and hair healthy. When our bodies are stripped of these oils, our oil production goes into overdrive which causes an overproduction of oils, and that equals us turning into a greasy mess. The bad news is it’s a miserable, water and time-consuming and shampoo-devouring cycle, but the good news is that, with a little patience, you can break it… or at least bend it a little.
Here’s how.
First things first, accept that your hair isn’t going to be cover-ready every day for the first little while and grab a good headband and some dry shampoo. As silly as it sounds, set a shampoo schedule. And finally, understand and accept that fewer shampoo days means more days where your hair feels gritty and unclean.
If you’re a daily shampooer, start by skipping a day for the first couple of weeks. Second-day hair is great for up-dos and braids, so take advantage of the extra grittiness and rock messy buns, boho braids and enjoy the extra sleep you’ll get when you don’t have to wash and dry your hair in the morning. After a couple of weeks, you can try to extend to a third day and you might even be able to wear your hair down on day two by now.
And maybe you’ll only ever be an every-other-day shampooer - which is totally OK! You do you, I'll do me... probably with day-four hair
On wash days, use a gentle shampoo and only condition your ends - conditioner at the roots will cause your hair to get greasy even faster. Use a clarifying shampoo only if your hair is really gunked up with product; these shampoos strip all the oils from your hair.
If you’re hitting the gym or yoga studio, blow dry your hair post-workout and spritz or sprinkle in a little dry shampoo if needed.
To extend your hair after a shampoo day, spritz your hair with dry shampoo before bed at night to give it time to sop up the oils and wake up with great volume. You can also blow dry your hair on medium heat in the mornings to help distribute oils away from your scalp. Fluff your roots a bit with a brush and add additional dry shampoo if needed. I’ve also wet my hair but not washed it, using lukewarm water to help rinse oil through the length of my hair to reduce build-up at the scalp.
Now, it's important to note that common sense must rule all here.
Want more hair tips? Here's how to fake a blowout you'll want to extend for a day or three!
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