it’s been 5 years since i put Dove down and gave the crunchy world a try with my hair care routine.
i originally started this whole journey because i was in grad school and broke, and D.I.Y. was cheap. but the more i dug into the d.i.y. and green beauty movement, the more hooked i was. slowly but surely, it took over every aspect of my skin and hair care. this very blog went from a college lifestyle blog to a d.i.y. green beauty blog… and here i am.
and it all started over some baking soda and vinegar…
what changes have i noticed?
my hair is stronger and shinier. i seem to keep cutting it off lately so i can’t speak to length, but it did get quite long and stayed thick for the years before i chopped it off.
what have i learned?
1. patience. hardcore patience. the kind of patience where you walk around looking and smelling weird for a few weeks, unsure of if you’ll burst out the other side of the journey a beautiful butterfly.
2. try, try again. i can’t count how many failures i’ve had along the way – how many days i left the house with terrible hair trying to figure it out, or how many recipes i had to go through before something worked. perseverance has been key.
3. you don’t answer to anyone but yourself. don’t let anyone put you down, judge you, or make fun of you for wanting to improve your health in any aspect. i personally like to believe that those people will see the light and come around one day.
will i go back?
no. for me, the green beauty way of life is just my way of life. i’ve gone from baking soda and vinegar to low-‘poos, to water-only, to now co-washing, but i won’t go back to conventional hair products.
what hair products do i recommend?
- shampoo/conditioner – Calia, hands down. their hydrating conditioner is what i use for my co-wash, but all of their shampoo and conditioner types are great ingredient-wise.
- shampoo/conditioner – Josh Rosebrook – “nourish” shampoo and conditioner. it’s a little pricier than Calia, but it’s some dreamy stuff. JR is a god.
- hair oil – d.i.y. it. it’s cheaper and just as, if not more, effective. here are my favorite hair oils.
anything else you want to know? i feel like i’m missing something!
ON THAT NOTE:
this journey has lead me to something amazing… i am FINALLY starting my own business! everything is a work in progress, but if you’d like to watch my growth, you can find me on instagram at @kietabotanicals and online at http://www.kietabotanicals.com
if you’d like to get involved and help in the pre-launch stages, i have a market research survey on skincare available now RIGHT HERE. answers are anonymous and the survey takes less than 10 minutes to complete.
thank you so much for all your support, in any aspect! you all have been so great to me and each other and i’m incredibly grateful.
cheers to a new journey.
XO, ALEXRAYE
almostexactlyblog.com 