Nigella Lawson Does It Once a Week. How Often Do You?
by Marissa Gold (Subscribe to Marissa Gold's posts), Posted Aug 5th 2009 at 1:55PM
Lawson and her healthy, shiny hair. Photo: Eamonn McCormack, WireImage.
"I just don't believe it is good (unless you are a purveyor of shampoos) to wash your hair any more than it needs. For me, that's about three times a fortnight, or was. Now it is once a week."
While those readers with oily scalps are probably scratching their heads, dry-haired folks understand.
Not all hair types need to wash everyday -- some scalps barely produce any oil, and if you have dry hair, you can actually benefit from skipping a wash or two to give your mane a chance to get the nourishment it needs.
If you, too, shun shampoo, try giving your hair a boost with one of these natural home remedies:
Home Haircare Remedies
Did you know the secret to gorgeous hair could be right in your kitchen? Read on as expert stylists reveal which ingredients to reach for and how to use them to transform your hair into healthy, vibrant locks. By Melissa Goldberg
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Coconut Oil
"Coconut oil has been a popular oil treatment for thousands of years where coconuts are plentiful, like Sri Lanka and the Philippines. It keeps hair strong and vitalized against the signs of aging. If you visit India today, it's perhaps why you see women in their 70s who still have healthy black hair," says Pristine Beauty Founder Blaire Kessler.
To Do: Apply coconut oil to hair and allow it to work overnight for best results. (Hint: Cover hair with saran wrap if you're worried about your sheets). Rinse out in your morning shower.
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Salt
The secret to that tousled Victoria's Secret "bed hair" look? "Salt dries in your hair and leaves it full-bodied and sexy. says Kayla Viorvanti, Chief Formulator and Co-Founder of Essential Wholesale.
To Do: Add a tablespoon of salt to 4 oz of water in a spray bottle. After washing and conditioning your hair, spritz the salt spray all over hair and allow to dry for a beachy look.
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Baking Soda
If your hair is feeling weighed down by gunky product build up that you can't seem to wash out, save your bucks and don't buy expensive clarifying shampoo. Baking soda, a natural deodorizer, can do the trick, insists Celebrity Stylist Dean Banowetz.
To Do: Mix baking soda into your regular shampoo in the palm of your hand, and suds up as usual for a deep, thorough (but non-stripping) cleaning.
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Chamomile
For gorgeous natural blonde highlights, always keep a bottle of chamomile tea in the fridge, says Marina Valmy, Director of Christine Valmy Skincare.
To Do: Use 6 tea bags for every 8 oz of water for best results. "After washing and conditioning, rinse with cool water, then spritz hair with the chamomile tea and let dry. Not only will you have highlights that sparkle in the sun, you'll smell great too!"
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Walnuts
Walnut tea is a natural way to add bold chestnut tones to dark hair, says Marina Valmy.
To Do: Crush 8-10 walnuts and place crushed walnuts with shells into 8 oz of boiling water. Let cool, strain to remove shells, and keep refrigerated. Spray on hair to add a wash of more intense color, and re-apply weekly to maintain.
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Hibiscus
"Hibiscus tea is great for enhancing highlights in red hair," says Donna Tripodi, Senior Stylist at New York's Eva Scrivo Salon.
To Do: Mix a strong pot of tea using 10 tea bags with 10 cups of water. Allow to cool, then pour into a spray bottle and spritz on hair that is 70 air dried. Don't rinse or shampoo for 24 hours afterwards. The highlights emerge even stronger if you're in the sun for a few hours – just don't forget the sunscreen!
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Rosemary
Rosemary oil can boost hair growth, as well as improve texture, shine and thickness," says Suki Kramer, Creator of Suki Advanced Organic Science.
To Do: "Every night, put two drops of rosemary oil on your brush and gently brush hair both over and under," says Kramer. You can also take a few drops and rub directly into your scalp for extra stimulation.
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Aloe and Eucalyptus
Aloe and eucalyptus are refreshing plants that are great for balancing oily scalps, says Roslyn Baker, Spokesperson of Soft & Beautiful. (If you've never used eucalyptus before, do a skin test on the back of your hand first to make sure you're not allergic.)
To Do: Mix aloe vera, eucalyptus oil and an astringent like Witch Hazel or Sea Breeze and apply directly to your scalp. Massage, then rinse out after 30 minutes.
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Beer
We promise we're not joking! Beer makes a great hair rinse that adds shine and leaves hair more manageable! says Kayla Viorvanti of Essential Wholesale.
To Do: "Bring a bottle of flat warm beer into the shower. Wash with shampoo as usual, then coat hair with beer. Rinse again thoroughly.
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Tags: chef, dry-hair, dry-scalp, nigella-lawson, oily-hair, oily-scalp, scalp, shampoo, washing-hair
Beautiful 8-05-2009 @ 2:52PM
Matt............ for God's sake -- do you wear a hat or a cap in the kitchen? If so, it should be collecting sweat and grease. If your hair gets greasy from the kitchen then you must not wear a hat which means you could be getting hair and dandruff in the food! ACKKKKKKKKKK!!! I used to wash my hair every day, but now that I'm older I often try to let it go a day or maybe 2.. my hair is much drier than it used to be. Just because she washes her hair once a week doesn't mean she doesn't shower every day. I think it's disgusting that you would start worrying about her hygiene and her sex partners
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Cheryl 8-05-2009 @ 3:14PM
When I lived in England, most of the English I knew only bathed once a week too.
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melanie 8-05-2009 @ 3:18PM
i have extremely dry, coarse, frizzy hair. i also only wash my hair once a week (actually every 6 days). if i wash it any more than that, my scalp gets itchy and really dry. sometimes, though, if i've been sweating a lot or getting dirtier than usual, i will rinse it and only use conditioner between washing. that keeps it from being gross!
if your scalp doesn't produce a lot of oil, there's no reason to wash it.
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lck 8-05-2009 @ 3:21PM
why does anyone care how often this cow washes her greasy looking hair?
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Irene 8-05-2009 @ 3:29PM
My hair is very curly. It is naturally quite dry and brittle. If I washed it more than once a week, it would fall out for sure. BTW, you can take a bath with out washing your hair...
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Master Shake 8-05-2009 @ 3:53PM
She is NOT a chef. She's a tv show hostess/bimbo. Learn the difference.
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Bobby 8-05-2009 @ 3:56PM
OH GOOD LORD ...
HELP US IN OUR HOUR OF NEED.
GO TO PAGE 7, READ THE FOLLOWING STORY,
AND VOTE IF YOU WANT TO!
Calif. Donut Shop Hit by Protests
Tell Us: Is Its Name Inappropriate?
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Staci 8-05-2009 @ 3:59PM
That is just disgusting. I can always tell when girls don't wash their hair. They have that nasty "dirty hair" smell. Blah! Gross! I shower at LEAST once a day and wash my hair every single time I shower.
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Robin 8-05-2009 @ 4:03PM
You have NO IDEA what you are talking about. I shower with my hair in a shower cap every morning, I bathe every night.. I wash my hair ONCE a week as well. My hair is very long and thick and I will tell you I get compliments on my hair EVERYDAY. People who wash their hair everyday either do because they have OILY/GREASY hair which I have dry hair. I am a CLEAN FREAK, when I shower afterwards I have a squeegee to wipe down the shower.............yes every time........prevents mold!! Jessica Simson who is also very pretty washes her once every three weeks !!! FOR THE SAME REASON!! Now three weeks I could not do..........but I there is a reason why we don not wash our hair every day mine would be so dry it would be terrible. My Dad is 70 years old and still has a full head of hair..........washes it once a week................I am 40 but I look 30 AND get told that quite often..............
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steeeveee 8-05-2009 @ 4:11PM
http://pepsi.yahoo.com/rockband/video/watch/?v=5HKuEZgG5
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Angie 8-05-2009 @ 4:19PM
That's a very European thing to do. When my daughter was born I did the American thing and bathed my baby everyday. She had severe excema. Her pediatrician said to do the European thing and bathe her once a week. Of course I cleaned her well when she needed it but the excema cleared up and didn't return until now that she is older and showers everyday she has excema again. We are just so scared of germs and worry so much about how we look that we might be hurting ourselves in the process. I personally think Nigella is very sexy, and the fact that she doesn't wash her hair that often makes it thick and healthy.
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Simzee 8-05-2009 @ 4:26PM
You're right. I work in a kitchen & would NEVER wash my hair only once a week. Her hair must smell worse than LOW TIDE.
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Gail 8-05-2009 @ 5:14PM
I, also, have dry hair, but I would never resort to washing only once a week. Oily or not, it still will stink after acouple days. You all can try and justify your poor hygiene any way you want, it's still poor hygiene. By the way Angie, I've been to Europe several times, and even though there are plenty who do the "European thing" as you call it, most still bathe more than once a week. The ones who do do teh "European thing" still stink. I guess if you and Robin don't care if you stink, that's up to you, but please stay indoors from about that 3rd day on, if you please.
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Renee 8-05-2009 @ 5:25PM
Well I am one of those black women and I wash my hair once or twice a week. My stylist tells me that I should not wash it that frequently. I could not make it two weeks due to itching or flaking. White women must understand that black hair does not make oil and would dry out and break off if we washed it everyday. Hair stylists who do these elaborate hair dos recommend the women to leave it for two weeks.
John 8-05-2009 @ 5:09PM
I'm not racist at all, but this is how it is. Many black woman in my office spend Friday night and most of Saturday getting these elaborate hair-do's. I live in South Florida. These woman keep the "Do" for 2 weeks! It's August, this is Florida, it's hot and humid. You don't want to get too close behind one in the elevator. They actually stink!
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denpelaez 8-05-2009 @ 5:38PM
I wash my hair once a week as well. I shower EVERY day, but I use a shower cap. I am not in the food industry, I work in an office. My hair dresser says my hair is in great condition and that people that wash their hair all the time are stripping it of it's natural oils, which can cause breakage and dryness. My hair is not oily, and it is very healthy. If you don't use a lot of product in your hair (I only occasionally use hair serum after straightening my hair), then you don't need to wash it every day.
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davenadir 8-05-2009 @ 6:25PM
Oh come on. Unless you keep your body temperature below 40 degrees Fahrenheit, or have a magic field of bacterial inhibition around you, you gotta wash every day in order to keep them down to a hygienic level. Bacterial populations grow exponentially - your head doesn't get some kind of exemption to math and physics because you don't wanta wash your hair.
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Mouse 8-05-2009 @ 7:07PM
Do you use public restrooms? If so, you probably take 3 showers a day.
time 8-05-2009 @ 6:30PM
To ROBIN,
I agree that Matt doesn't understand the idea of "washing" your hair.
Matt, going in the shower and fully cleaning your hair with hot water while you soap the rest of your body is not "washing" your hair, since you use no soap. Soap takes out natural oils that your hair needs to stay healthy.
You should wash your hair (with shampoo) only when needed; only when the oil builds up. WIth most people, that is about once a week or less. If you have dry hair, it can be even more infrequently.
The funny thing is people using conditioner and hair oils to put oil and moisture BACK into their hair, which they have just washed out unnecessarily with shampoo.
And Robin, you sound hot!
Time
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Mouse 8-05-2009 @ 7:05PM
I shampoo my hair once or twice a week. It's very short, and it takes a few days for the oils to build up. Not everyone is the same you know. =P
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