Doxi, I hope you saw my response to you on the volrammos hair thread. As long as someone isn't stinking up the room, to each his or her own preferred hygiene. An overdose of cologne/perfume is just as bad (if not worse than) strong BO. I wouldn't look down on someone because he or she chooses personal hygiene that fits his or her lifestyle.

For example, I just love beautiful dreadlocks, but I know there's plenty of misinformation about them from people who scream "they're dirty! they have bugs in their hair!" and so on. Of course, some people don't take care of their dreads, but I've rarely seen any that can be considered "gross." (I also know that you can get a LOT of harassment and bullshit for not maintaining the acceptable status quo.)

Anyways, because I have been looking for more natural, healthy, cruelty-free, affordable cleansing and beauty products, it's something of interest to me. Recently I found out that Mary Kay started testing on animals again, so I wanted to find alternatives that are more ethical. I've looked into the Oil Cleansing method, because I've heard and read great stuff about it.

Basically, no make-up or soaps of any kind are used to wash the face. You run a washcloth under hot water (not scalding) and wipe your face with it, then rub a mixture of oil (some use a mix of castor, EVOO, and/or coconut oils) on the face, then rub it off. One of my hippie friends uses it and her skin is very nice. The advocates of this method swear by it and claim to break out very little. http://www.theoilcleansingmethod.com/

I may try it one of these days...it's kinda scary to consider, because I don't get the surface pimples that a lot of people get. I tend to get the painful, deep, cystic ones caused by the pollution in the air. But it's worth trying eventually. Right now I use Paula's Choice Clear system because it's gentle, cruelty-free, and no fragrance in her cleansing system.

Another that Doxi mentioned, is the "No Poo" movement, where people stop using shampoo. Considering some of the ingredients in shampoo (one I used for years has sodium hydroxide in it), I can see why people are forgoing shampoo in favour of baking soda, vinegar, oil and water.http://www.care2.com/greenliving/no-poo-get-beautiful-hair-with-just-baking-soda-vinegar.html

What alternative cleansing methods have any of you heard of?

Raptor...always making me smile.

My friend uses all of these and more. She is vegan. What i love about her the most, is that she lets her seven year old daughter choose. So the daughter eats meat and she doesn't.

White people with dreds seem dirtier because for straight hair to go like that it has to be neglected.

Nice dreads are done in an African-American beauty salon or by a person who knows how to dread hair. If you have stick straight hair, neglecting your hair isn't going to give you dreads that are tight; it just gives you clumpy, dirty hair.

http://www.dreadheadhq.com/preparing-your-hair-and-scalp-for-dreadlocks

Real dreds on white person's hair requires more attention than you think. They have to be continually felted at the root.

It was pretty gross and you have to have the time to do it. Going out in public is not an option unless you wear a hat I guess. I did the no shampooing period for about ten days. Rinsed it but didn't put anything on it. It really did help to balance things. My hair stays cleaner longer. I am thinking about going to this, a less expensive version of the Wen.
http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=389305&catid=183403

Nice! Sulfate-free is the way to go! I just switched over to a sulfate free shampoo/conditioner and I couldn't believe how soft my hair was after one use! I used to use the whole John Frieda line for curly hair and it made my hair dull and dry. After reading "Curly Like Me" by Terri LaFlesh, I started leaving Aussie Moist 3 minute conditioner as a "gel." Works amazingly great, smells fantastic, and is cruelty-free...yay!

Has anyone heard of Oil Pulling?http://www.oilpulling.org/oil-pulling/

If anyone didn't know, most name brand toothpastes have sugar in them.

We use Tom's toothpaste in our house.

I do oil pulling a few times a week when I think about it. It's hard because you have to do it for so long. Some people can't tolerate it. But I found my mouth feels cleaner, even in the morning w/o all that build up.

The only thing with No Poo that I found I like is the apple cider vinegar as a conditioning rinse. Other than that, I use a sulfate-free shampoo and wash my hair every couple of days, as when I washed it every day, it dried out. For me, the John Freida products built up too fast in my hair, to the point where it looked dirty even after I washed it.

I'm also one who swears by the oil cleansing method, and I've even gotten compliments on my complexion since I started using it. As for baking soda, I can't use that on my hair since I get it colored to hide the gray hairs.

We have someone who comes into our office from-time-to-time.

She is from a well-to-do family. But I think she doesn't use any soap. The smells is so horrible that it took an effort of willpower not to heave in her presence.

In the winter when I don't sweat much I only shower every two or three days. I shampoo my long hair only about once a week and just rinse it thoroughly the other times. I agree that shampoo is probably not good for using every day.

Cleaning the skin with water and oil is ancient. They used to oil up and then scrape the skin, which actually would work better for defoliation.. getting rid of dead skin cells.

In my opinion, we bathe too much. I bathe enough to avoid BO. I never soap up anything except feet, crotch and pits. Soaping up my whole skin makes me itch later and have dry skin. A rough towel after wetting down is good enough for defoliation.

Coconut oil is one of the most comedogenic oils, but it's pretty great for hair, and not bad for the rest of the body, but I would avoid it on the face.

I used the oil cleansing method on my face for a while, but it's not something I can do every day when I shower so I kind of dropped it. My days are too long and rushed in the morning, but when I retire! I'm getting back to that!

I used castor oil, grape seed oil, sweet almond, and dropped in essential oils from time to time, rose hip seed oil, etc.
Jojoba oil seemed nice at first, but started to cause some redness.


I would agree that washing twice a day is excessive except in some teenage cases, oh man, raging hormones...
For some people once a day washing is too much due to dry skin and hair, but it is very much the social norm.

The shampoo/conditioner combo + the deep conditioner have coconut oil and are wonderful for my hair. I think if I try the oil cleansing for my face, I'll do the 3 parts castor and 1 part EVOO to start with. Italian women have been using EVOO for centuries as part of a beauty regimen.

@Rationalguy- Did you ever see the movie about the biblical David? There's a scene where he watches Bathsheba oiling up. LOL, my dad had to talk to my mom about how the scene is "biblically important" so us kids could watch the whole, uncensored movie.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/11/2013 11:11PM by Itzpapalotl.

Haven't, but it sounds umm... interesting! Important in the biblical sense, I guess.

I think this is it: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089420/

At one time we had a French exchange student live with us in Utah for a while. That's when I learned that some societies bathe too little. He seemed oblivious to the fact that he stank.

Not that I'm saying this is a characteristic of all French... He was from a rural area in the south, and whether cultural or personal, just didn't bathe.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/2013 12:08AM by rationalguy.

When it comes to bathing habits, it really does depend on the person. I know some people who need to shower every day and others who can go a few days without a problem. Same with hair care.

Personally, I find the most offensive thing is people who put on too much perfume/cologne.

Itzpapalotl, thanks for your reply. To tell you the truth, I'd never heard of such a thing. Fascinating what you learn here.

My brother's a soap-and-water kind of guy, but he has very sensitive skin (as do I), so maybe he oughta try something like this! :-)

I've been doing the oil cleanse and like it. 10% castor oil and 90% grape seed. (oily skin, do 30/70). There are other oils and essential oils that I haven't tried that are supposed to be good for acne and wrinkles. For eye makeup remover, 50/50 sesame oil and coconut oil. I have not found my skin to be overly oily or break out more, even when I add sunscreen and wrinkle cream and makeup and all that jazz.

I tried the "no poo" but didn't tolerate it. I might try it again, though, because my curls curled better. Make gel using flax seeds. We'll see how it goes.

A couple of years ago, I started having problems with just about every commercial deodorant I tried - even the ones that were supposed to be for "hypersensitive skin." I would break out in an itchy rash and couldn't tolerate the product.

My husband found an online recipe for a a deodorant that involves baking soda, cornstarch, tea tree oil (I also add a few drops of lavender, just because I like it) and Lou Ana coconut oil-based shortening. You mix this stuff up and mash it into a scraped-out deodorant (stick-type) container and leave it in the refrigerator for a few days to "set" before using. And you have to store it there.

If you don't leave it in the refrigerator, it will turn disagreeably mushy and greasy, and this is the only drawback I can see. (It's kind of a nuisance to have to go to the refrigerator to put on your deodorant.) One batch lasts just about forever. I have no allergic reaction to it, have used it through scorching-hot days as well as winter, and I like it very well.

...provided you live in an area that gets hot. Is it simply deodorant or is an antiperspirant as well? When you say hypersensitive skin, does that mean you deal with eczema or just overall dermatitis? Do you have to forgo any foods like citrus?

Here's my weird little thing- I"m considering not shaving my underarms anymore. I actually sweat LESS when I don't shave, plus I don't get the itchy bumps or any irritation. I've actually considered Botox injections in my underarms because I guess I have hyperhydrosis. Otherwise, I like to shave my legs, arms, and lady parts in warm weather. The underarm hair isn't really thick and it's just hair, lol.

Even though I generally do my own thing and rarely give a rat's ass about what others' think, I'm kinda worried about this one. My fellow Americans seem to get really offended by this particular act.I wear tanks and sundresses as soon as the weather hits 69 degrees and I'm hoping I don't get any odd confrontations because I choose not to shave the 'pits.

while I did get a little dampish, it certainly didn't show through my clothing or smell sweaty. The stuff does not have any antiperspirant ingredients. I was amazed, because I was certain that this would be nasty. But I've used it for over a year now and remain very pleased with it.

It is a bit disconcerting to apply it directly from the refrigerator in the winter. But again, I have no allergic reaction to it, it costs next to nothing, lasts forever, and it gives me this little "counter-culture" rush that goes back to the 60's. (Yeah, I'm still a closet flower-child!!)

I have certain (usually unpredictable) topical allergies. Sometimes, I get an allergic rash with certain medications. I don't have eczema or any ongoing skin conditions. I find as I get older, that I develop allergies to things that have not caused problems in the past, and they are TOTALLY unpredictable.

I haven't shaved under my arms in years - it's like the hair there just dried up or something. No explanation there!

7 year old Alex across the street has beautiful dreads.

He is the cutest kid on the block.

His dark skin is perfectly smooth.

I always tell him that I wished I had his hair.

My life would be complete here on Earth.

Instead I got the baby-fine blonde white people hair.

Breedum

As a dude, I've learned you don't have to shampoo every day, every other day is fine (unless you got sweaty that day).

I've learned hair gel is a waste of money. You can put a small amount of conditioner in the palm of your hand, add a little water, then apply to your hair and it will hold & look natural.

I've learned shaving cream is a waste of money. Just use a scrub cream, or plain soap, leave it on then shave.

I've learned you don't have to change blades very often as long as you dry them immediately after using. One blade can last 2-3 months.

I have used the "Deep Cleansing Oil" by a Japanese company, DHC, for years, and I think my skin looks great; it doesn't leave an oily residue. (It is a little pricy, however.) DHC suggests using it as a makeup remover then following it with one of their soaps or other cleansers, but I simply use the oil itself as both a remover and a wash.