A More Natural Shampoo (and toothpaste)

[razzberryapple]

A few months ago, I bought some Kiss My Face shampoo, conditioner, and toothpaste.

I have very thick, curly, "unruly" hair that's pretty dry. The KMF shampoo and conditioner ruins it and makes it gross feeling and exceptionally frizzy. Mostly, it's just like regular shampoo and conditioner.

The only kind I've found that actually works on my hair is Sunsilk Hydra TLC (and it's only $3.00/bottle), but I know that it's tested on animals and has SLS and other potentially hazardous/unnecessary chemicals.

The KMF toothpaste didn't do a very good job at freshening my breath for very long and it made my mouth taste like dirt after only about an hour or so.

Does anyone know of any good natural toiletries?
Thank you!

[megbot]

I use Tom's of Maine toothpaste. It works well and my teeth seem to feel cleaner longer.

I use this lotion: http://www.desertessence.com/organic/lotions

and this shampoo: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18493984

I have fairly dry yet sensitive skin that doesn't like oily lotions. That lotion works the best for me, over anything I've ever gotten organic or not. I used to use St. Ives but this is definitely better.

My hair is fine and kind of wavy and doesn't do well at all with overly conditioning shampoos. I used to use a clarifying style shampoo and light conditioner. This homebrew shampoo - http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18493984 - seems to get along with me, it doesn't dry my hair out as most other natural ones I've used have, and its super cheap and helps support a person, not a corporation. I don't have to use conditioner anymore which is a plus. It doesn't smell like beer, it smells faintly sweet and is pleasant... and its super cheap. So you can try it without wasting a lot of money

[flvegnewbie]

I love this shampoo & conditioner:
http://www.vitacost.com/Desert-Essence-Organics-Shampoo

Vitacost.com has *the* best prices on alot of natural cruelty-free products!

Oh & my hair is waist length, thick & wavy. So I feel your pain on that conditioning thing.
But the Desert Essence is very thick and what I do is to squeeze all the water outta my hair, then apply it and let it sit for a few minutes while I'm doing the rest of my showering.
Then I'll rinse it, but not rinse it all out. I like a little bit to stay in my hair to help tame the frizzies.

Also I'm not sure if you are familiar with 'cone hair products? But the Sunsilk has alot of 'cones in it.
The Desert Essence does not, so at first it might take a few shampoos to get used the difference.

As for toothpaste, I've only heard good things about Tom's of Maine.
But I have a surplus of another type of toothpaste that I am using up first before I expend any more money on toothpaste.

Hth you some!

[razzberryapple]

Thank you. :)

I don't know what "'cones" are, though. :S

[RockabillyVegan]

I make my own toothpaste:

1/2 cup baking soda
1 tbs salt
Peppermint Oil

well...it's more like tooth powder, I dip a wet toothbrush in it and brush away

[hoodedclawjen]

Thank you. :)

I don't know what "'cones" are, though. :S

i think she means silicones. silicone is added to a lot of mainstream hair products to make your hair feel shiny and to lock in moisture by sealing the shaft.

its not really particularly good for it as it builds up over time and makes it yucky (hence the market for clarifying shampoos which take that gunk out) and cos it deceives you into thinking your hair is nice and soft cos its healthy, when it really isn't neccesarily (its kinda a bit too dead to be healthy or unhealthy, hair is!). it does make your hair feel all soft and shiny though.

a natural shampoo probably won't have silicones, (and also maybe the more harsh detergents) so your hair won't feel the same after you've used it.

i'd try and find products thats marketed to be really mild for washing, extra nourishing for conditioning, and use a leave in/spray on conditioner too. i've really struggled (and practically given up on) 'natural' hair stuff. its too expensive for my budget, and my hair feels limp and frizzy and greasy and/or brittle compared to normal. that said, samy has some pretty nice stuff, as does giovanni cosmetics.

as for toothpaste, toms of maine aint bad at all.

[razzberryapple]

i think she means silicones. silicone is added to a lot of mainstream hair products to make your hair feel shiny and to lock in moisture by sealing the shaft.

its not really particularly good for it as it builds up over time and makes it yucky (hence the market for clarifying shampoos which take that gunk out) and cos it deceives you into thinking your hair is nice and soft cos its healthy, when it really isn't neccesarily (its kinda a bit too dead to be healthy or unhealthy, hair is!). it does make your hair feel all soft and shiny though.

a natural shampoo probably won't have silicones, (and also maybe the more harsh detergents) so your hair won't feel the same after you've used it.

i'd try and find products thats marketed to be really mild for washing, extra nourishing for conditioning, and use a leave in/spray on conditioner too. i've really struggled (and practically given up on) 'natural' hair stuff. its too expensive for my budget, and my hair feels limp and frizzy and greasy and/or brittle compared to normal. that said, samy has some pretty nice stuff, as does giovanni cosmetics.

as for toothpaste, toms of maine aint bad at all.

I think that we have Giovanni around here. :)
Thank you so much! That helped a lot.

[hoodedclawjen]

no probs. good luck! :D

[megbot]

I love this shampoo & conditioner:
http://www.vitacost.com/Desert-Essence-Organics-Shampoo

Vitacost.com has *the* best prices on alot of natural cruelty-free products!

Oh & my hair is waist length, thick & wavy. So I feel your pain on that conditioning thing.
But the Desert Essence is very thick and what I do is to squeeze all the water outta my hair, then apply it and let it sit for a few minutes while I'm doing the rest of my showering.
Then I'll rinse it, but not rinse it all out. I like a little bit to stay in my hair to help tame the frizzies.

Also I'm not sure if you are familiar with 'cone hair products? But the Sunsilk has alot of 'cones in it.
The Desert Essence does not, so at first it might take a few shampoos to get used the difference.

As for toothpaste, I've only heard good things about Tom's of Maine.
But I have a surplus of another type of toothpaste that I am using up first before I expend any more money on toothpaste.

Hth you some!

I used to use desert essence. I use their lotion everyday and the conditioner sometimes. The shampoo didn't agree with me though.

though I agree, they have the best conditioner available without the added crap. And you simply must try the coconut lotion

[ashlend]

I like Tom's of Maine toothpaste a lot (although I don't use it anymore because my dentist has put me on a special one for dental reasons.) For shampoo I use LUSH Cynthia Sylvia Stout, which I LOVE and it's vegan.

[flvegnewbie]

Hoodedclawjen, thanks so much for answering razzberryapple's question pertaining to the silicones.

A couple other things that I'd like to add.
Silicones have a "coating" affect on your hair, so if you have any damage or not, they will make your hair "feel" healthier. Also, if you have wavy/curly hair, silicone products can make your hair straighter, because they tend to weigh the strands down.
Now, this is not necessarily a bad thing, but they can leave your hair feeling greasy/lank and stringy after long-term use.

An easy solution to this is to just use a stripping or "clarifying" shampoo, as hoodedclawjen has already mentioned.
A clarifying shampoo will dissolve or "strip" the build-up and then you can start over again.

I'm not saying one is necessarily better or worse, it all depends largely on your hair type and what you prefer.
Sometimes it's just a trial & error thing. What works well for me, wouldn't necessarily work well for someone else.

I agree with hoodedclawjen about finding a more natural product that works well *and* is in a good price range.
Giovanni is a really great one, I use their tea tree shampoo (diluted in a bottle about 1:3 ratio (1 part water to 3 parts shampoo)) and it works like a charm and it also goes much further.

As for diluting the Desert Essence, I don't know that you could.
It's a fairly thin shampoo to begin with.

I've also found for myself, that if I use a rotation of products, my hair is much happier.

Oh & one more thing that I should mention. If you need more "slip" to your hair after it's been washed & conditioned, then a 'cone-free product might not work for you.
I like to have more slip, but I also can live with combing before washing & then using a detangling comb afterwards.
This gives me essentially the same ease of detangling without all the silicones to build up on my hair.

Hope that I haven't confused you further.
But if your really interested in hair care, no matter what length your hair is, I've learned the most from:
longhaircommunity.com on all forms of natural hair care & lots of things that I didn't even know existed.

Oh & one more quick note:
You do not necessarily have to wash the entire length of your hair, most times a good scalp washing is all one needs. Because as the shampoo runs down the length, it will get all the cleaning it needs without having to apply extra shampoo all over! ;)

[Jesskaz]

The only products I use on my body are baking soda, vinegar, triple milled all-vegetable french soap and organic cold pressed coconut oil.

Here's a no-poo link:
http://www.naturemoms.com/no-shampoo-alternative.html

wash hair w/ baking soda

rinse w/ vinegar

smooth in tiny amount of coconut oil

works for me.