Going Gray

From Wallpaper to Salad Smelling Hair For the Win

Shelley

Well, well, well, Linda has thrown me a curveball with the prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday. I’ll make it work…somehow, someway.

The prompt…Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “wallpaper.” Use it however you’d like. Have fun!

But, dang, I wanted to talk about something else, besides wallpaper. Oh, well, first, a bit on wallpaper.

I don’t love wallpaper, I’ve experienced way too many long and laborious days removing it.

We only have one room left in our house that has a border on the walls. If I ever redecorate our laundry room, it’ll go. That’s a low-priority room for me. I’m happy the washing machine works, remember when Mr. fixed that for me?

I still kind of love the wallpaper border in that room. It reminds me of my gardening attempts/wishes for a garden in full bloom. I have much lower expectations this year! I’m just happy any flower is surviving.

The zinnias are starting to regrow from the bottoms!

I haven’t had many flowers to capture photos of this year. Here are recent photos to prove they aren’t stellar and perhaps not the best for use in backgrounds on a computer. Maybe if cropped properly? Did you see the tiny white spider on the pink one?

I witnessed another potential scoundrel this week. I saw this gal TWICE galavanting through our yard. She may be one of the flower nibblers too. Hmm…pretty artsy fartsy photo, right?

Here’s the unedited version. Perhaps I should start a go-fund-me account for photography lessons?

I have taken many photos over the years that I adore. I feel out of practice this year. Two of my favorites are on my computer every day. The beach at sunset in Jamaica and an adorable blue bird that I captured through the screen earlier this spring.

There’s always the option of trees for a background wallpaper? Which one do you like better?

As you can see, we need moisture! The grass is so dry. Yesterday, it was a forecast for rain. The rabbit came out to enjoy the sprinkles. I think it ended up with a dry mud bath.

So when it started to rain, I decided it was a perfect day to wash my hair too. And tell you about it. Why not? Right?

I confess, my hair doesn’t require daily washing – I just wash it when I feel like it needs it. I can go for 2 weeks. Gross…maybe, but I’ve been experimenting with the idea that chemicals are a bad thing for our hair and I think they contribute to oiliness or the reason we think we need to wash our hair every day. My hair just does its own thing no matter what and I’m not into using a bazillion products to get the perfect-looking curls. God blessed me with the mess I have, might as well embrace it versus change it.

It’s truly a non-scientifically proven experiment. And, yes, I work from home so the need to look perfect is minimal. Just saying…

So, on to the experiment. The photos are in reverse order…whoops.

To you, all my silver curly-haired friends, I’m living proof that I haven’t needed ANY unique hair products to keep my curls happy and all-natural.

I use baking soda and water to wash the hair, and ACV and water (sometimes a bit of coconut oil too) to condition the hair. I don’t measure either, I guess, and mix, and wash and go. I airdry the hair with volumizing clips. While drying, it’s a look, that’s for sure. To this day, Mr. has yet to ask questions, he’s a saint.

I can’t prove where I got the idea from. Probably some rabbit hole Googling happened. But the first day I washed my hair this way, my hair was so soft, so light, so refreshed. The baking soda washed away any previous shampoo residuals. I’m not going back to shampoo and conditioner. I may smell like a salad for a day, but other than that, my hair is happy, and so am I.

And somehow, someway, Yay Me! I pulled off the SoCS post yet again!

Post Inspiration – Linda G. Hill’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “wallpaper.” Use it however you’d like. Have fun!

PS – Do you change up your hair routine to experiment? Do tell! Do you think the chemicals in our shampoos and conditioners and creams are healthy for us? Did you enjoy the artsy deer photo? I didn’t have my camera ready when I saw her bolt out of the cornfield. Imagine running through a field and suddenly hopping out into a yard!?

Published by Shelley

Letting my quirk out one post at a time.

31 thoughts on “From Wallpaper to Salad Smelling Hair For the Win”

  1. Shelley I love the photo of your hair. When I first saw it I thought you had used the photo of Andy McDowell’s hair since she has gone natural, and her hair is very much like yours. I am intrigued with your hair washing routine it may give it a try. Thanks for the idea.

    1. Aw, Chris, thank you for the compliment. I’ve always been envious of Andie’s hair. I’m pretty sure hers is thicker than mine and that she uses plenty of product to make it look so nice. My hair dresser always said, “You can’t get the look of ______ (name any actress) without a LOT of product.” So, there you have it, no product and a simple washing routine to cleanse the hair. Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts!

  2. I’ve had horrendous adventures stripping wallpaper. If there is one thing that deterred me completely when house hunting, it was a lot of wallpaper. I remember a steamer I rented that ended up burning my forearms. Ugh.

    I wish I had your curls. I think my life would be easier. 🤣

    1. Hi Laurel, it’s great to hear from you!

      Yikes, it sounds like you know what I’m talking about with wallpaper removal. I’m right there with you, if we were ever in the market to move and the house had wallpaper, I’d move on or require the removal of it as part of the deal. LOL! I used a wet cotton towel and a regular iron and tools to scrape it off the wall. Sometimes the removal liquid would work. Mostly it was a lot of elbow grease. Yep – no more wallpaper for me!

      Aw, thanks. I think your hair cut looks great on you (the one in your gravatar!) Curls have their frizzie moments, especially in the humid weather. While the curls and the length have provided me with some versatility, it has that nightmarish look in certain weather. I had a short pixie for a period in my life and loved how easy it was to take care of. I always swore that I’d go back to that when I went gray, but then I grew it out and I have appreciated being able to trim it on my own and put it up in a messy bun when it’s out of control. 🤣

  3. We have hung wallpaper, but the stripable variety. We’ve had to remove that, once, and it came off very easily. When we moved in, we started stripping the wallpaper from the living room. Three walls were difficult, but OK. The forth wall had wallpaper that had been hung of wallpaper that had been painted. I ended up having to skimcoat that entire wall.

    I have so little hair that I can wash it everyday without adding too many chemicals to me or the environment.

    I hope you have a good week.

    PS, I do like the phantom deer photo.

    1. Hi Dan – thanks for sharing your wallpaper story. I’ve yet to find the stripable variety in our rentals. They were more like the fourth wall you described. And, we went the paint over it again route. 🤣

      Mr. is the same as you – little hair and he’s a daily wash and go guy. Since we changed our diet though, it’s growing back and his receding line is reversing. I have to cut it for him more often.

      Thanks for the kudos on the phantom deer photo. Thanks too for the interview you shared with Cee – for anyone who is interested in learning more how to play with your camera and get fun photos, Cee’s challenges are the place to be. I’m sharing your post so others can find out more. Also…your photos this week contain such beautiful composition! Nice work! https://nofacilities.com/2022/08/06/cee-neuner-visits-the-bar-socs/

  4. That’s a different way to wash one’s hair for sure, but it works, looks nice, Shelley. Your lawn looks just like I remember from the 1990s when I was still mowing commercially. You just have to stay off of it or you will leave footprints! Mrs. Deer is almost for sure one of your plant munchers! It’s amazing how full and large the tree is in summer, in winter, it looks so scrawny! The bluebird is adorable! I can’t use the Like button, still having a tech issue that even the WP engineers can’t figure out.

    1. Thanks, John.
      Yes, the lawn is extra crunchy. And you can see our footprints in it. And the rabbit trails. I think you’re right about the Mrs. Deer. I also saw the ground squirrels jumping into the flower beds to eat the flower buds too. It’s triple the scoundrels!
      Yes, the Catalpa tree has many looks. Thanks for liking even if you couldn’t click the like button. I hope you get that figured out. That’s weird the WP folks can’t figure it out!!

  5. Not a fan of wallpaper, putting it up or taking it down. Interesting hair routine. I stopped using conditioner recently and I can’t say I’ve noticed any difference, so I imagine I’ll continue to skip that step. Since my hair is straight and fine, I have to wash it more than you do but definitely less than I did when I was working 🙂

    1. Way to join our “We don’t love wallpaper” group!

      I think our hair routine does need to change as we age. I remember back when my hairdresser reminded me that my hair would be thinner feeling when it was no longer gray. All those built up chemicals made it thicker. It’s craziness what we’ve put our hair through over the years. I’m glad to read you’re finding what works for you and experimenting with less to make your hair happier in the process. One of my dear friends has hair like yours and she can’t wait to retire so that she doesn’t feel the pressure to wash it as often to give her hair and scalp a much-needed break from all the chemicals. I just kept adding one more day to the time in between as part of my experiment. Happy experimenting to you! Thank you for sharing your thoughts 🙂

  6. I love the little bluebird picture (even more than the beach picture) … I have always wanted to see a bluebird. Maybe I need to put it on my birdie bucket list. You at least know how to operate the camera off automatic so you are excused for the blurry predator. I will learn how to do the setting one day … I’ll wait til retired so if I mess up, I don’t have to wait another week to take pictures if I’m at a big park. I used to use mayonnaise on my hair to make it soft. I had to have my mom take it out for me at the kitchen sink as it is very greasy from all the eggs … she would wash it out, then cut the grease with straight white vinegar. So if it was humid in Summer or it rained, I too smelled like a salad. 🙂

    1. Aw, yes, the bluebird was so fun to see. We have a lot of them around our area. It’s so fun to see them and their little ones learn to fend for themselves. I was so happy he just sat there for me to capture the photo. Yes, add them to your birdie bucket list.

      You’re right – I had my settings wrong, and I swear the deer could hear me so she took off.

      Ah, yes, you know the salad smell well! I remember my mom trying the mayo technique on us. She gave up after a mess and then had me use mayo to polish the plant leaves. I think my mom may have found the ideas in some of the paper clippings that my grandmother had saved. There were plenty of home remedies that I think I may have been remembering reading in order to give this a try.

      Like you – when I retire, watch out for all the fun experiments I’ll try!! LOL!

      1. Well I will add bluebirds to my birdie bucket list Shelley and I don’t know why bluebirds and catbirds are so elusive when others say they see them.

        I will learn how to manual operate the camera when I am going out all the time – if I mess up, there are daily opportunities for more shots … but that is not always true either, as some shots are one-time only and you’ll not find them again. You don’t have time to fiddle with settings and get that great shot – have to learn settings on landscape I guess.

        The mayo did leave my hair soft but to cut the grease took a lot of rinsing. My hair was long (shoulder length) so I am not sure I could get it all out myself.

        Retirement is good for lots of things – experiments is just one of them!!

        1. I’ve missed so many moments due to my adjusting, but the practice makes me better at choosing the right setting from the get-go.
          Yay – you’ll have so many fun things to learn, your retirement is going to be a blast!
          If I did mayo treatment, I’d be in the same boat – unsure how to get it all out!

          1. You’d have a tougher time than me as your hair is curly – mine is stick straight. The vinegar helped to cut the smell and make it shiny. Yes, I have to practice … I spent an entire day reading the manual and went out and took pictures, just pics of flowering trees at Council Point Park using the settings and either over- or under-exposed them all. I watched the videos by Jared (??) you told me about … I need some practice but hate to miss shots.

          2. Glad the vinegar helped.
            I tried reading the manual and then just gave up and started experimenting. I know what works and doesn’t now, but I still need to practice. It’s just like writing – if you don’t practice it becomes more challenging. At least that’s how I feel.
            Happy practicing – be OK with not getting the shots, there are always more moments to capture.

          3. I watched the YouTube videos you told me about too Shelley. I even bought the “Dummies” book, but now, I’ll wait til my head is clear and try again.

          4. You’ve got the framing down, now you’ll just need to practice adjusting the ISO and the Fstop. Practice at home when you’re bored. I know that you’re rarely if ever bored at home. Retirement is looking like your time to play with the camera!

          5. Yes, I am not bored – I look around and see lots I should be doing. I am reserving the “learning” experience for when I have more hours to myself, that and the drawing/painting and reading especially.

  7. The blue bird is adorable. I wash hair when I feel it needs it as well. No fancy product but one that is also a skin treatment of sorts. The deer photo would be perfect Last on the Card photo 😂😂

  8. I have a couple of items to respond to in your post that might help out. First though, I have to say how beautiful your hair is! Those curls are gorgeous. On the wallpaper, I learned that good old fabric softener will take that stuff off a LOT easier than anything else. There’s also a tool that you roll around on the wallpaper that basically scores it which helps you just rub the wallpaper off after you’ve applied the fabric softener.
    Hair… I’ve thought about writing a post about this. Oil is good for hair. Each hair has it’s own oil gland and it’s there for a reason. Mayonnaise has a lot of oil in it. I hope this information helps.

    1. Hi! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I haven’t tried the fabric softener. I have used the little tool, and it did help.

      A hair post – let me know when you write it! Remember how I was my own plastic surgeon and had the barnacles removed? Well…it was blocked glands due to inflammation in the diet. Neither one of them that I removed have grown back and no new ones are forming. Yes, the oil is there for a protective reason, when it goes on overdrive other things happen. I’ve tried coconut oil before washing, that seemed to help too. I think overwashing or too frequent of washing affects the oil glands? Simply a ‘theory’ on my part. I’m looking forward to reading your thoughts!

  9. I, too, dislike wallpaper, having purchased too many houses with it on all the walls, then needing to take it down. It’s evil messy stuff.

    We have scoundrels eating our flowers here, too. You’d think with a forest behind us those scoundrels could eat back there, but NO our flowers are better.

    I have a story in the works for next week that deals with my graying curly hair! I didn’t know you could wash it with baking soda and water, but I do occasionally use apple cider as a rinse. Coconut oil clogs my pores too much to use it, but I like the idea.

    1. Hi Ally, welcome back to blogging!
      I’ve missed reading your clever posts and your comments.

      Wallpaper is evil messy stuff, yep, I agree!!

      I would think that the fields and the forest would contain more than enough food for the scoundrels. Maybe they’re looking for dessert? Sorry to hear you have scoundrels too.

      I look forward to reading about your curly graying hair. I don’t claim to be an expert or to give expert advice on BS and H2O – I do claim to experiment with it – my hair enjoys the wild side of things. Thank goodness for messy buns and French braids. My post convinced Mr. to give the ‘don’t wash it every day’ test to see what happens. Sadly, he had to tell me that he was doing it because I hadn’t noticed by day 3. 😉 🤣😉🤔

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