Progress?

Rather than address a specific topic, I'm gonna use this post as a report of sorts.

I got my pound of shea butter and bottle of orange essential oil in the mail on Monday. I have been using shea butter as a moisturizer on my hands, face, and lips. I broke out a little on the cheeks, but that may have started before I got the butter and could have to do with hormones, insufficient sleep, and experimental face washes, among other things. I've read that people whose lips never responded well to petroleum-based lip moisturizers have had success with shea butter, so I'm hoping the same will be true for me. And I just mixed up a batch in my double boiler (canning jar in a rice-cooker bowl) with some honey and orange oil, which smells less nutty than plain shea butter. It's cooling in the fridge right now, but I used some of the liquified stuff on my hands, face, and lips, and it's quite nice.

NO [SHAM]POO: Water-only washes are keeping my hair from smelling but doing little else so far. The natural oils are still around, as promised, and my hair is greasy, especially in the back. There's some dandruff emerging as well. I'm hoping that the boar bristle brush and patience will get me through this eventually. Using baking soda and vinegar worked on a greasy head of hair when I was on spring break, but I have a feeling that the water quality at school (really hard) doesn't react well with those ingredients. I'm not too concerned about grossing people out (as long as they can't smell me from a distance) and have been pinning my hair back when I need to look presentable. If it gets out of control, I will try baking soda and vinegar again and let you know what happens.

TEETH: I tried using baking soda as a toothpaste but didn't really like the results. There were a couple of spots where my gums started bleeding and I didn't really feel like my mouth was all that clean. I also read somewhere that baking soda alone is too abrasive to be used every day. I have no idea if that's true, but I've been sticking to my toothpaste. If I don't find a cheaper alternative by the time this intensely minty tube of Crest runs out, I'm planning to switch over to something more natural like Tom's.

FACE: Like I said earlier, my face is a laboratory right now. I've been experimenting with baking soda and honey, either combined in that order or using them alone. I think my face is confused about how to react to all this change. I'll figure it out soon.