My Minimalist Hair Care Routine

This shop has been compensated by Nature Box™. #ShopNatureBox #sponsored

What is “minimalist hair” anyways? For some, it may mean shaving it all off, keeping your hair super short, or just letting it do its thing. To me, it means creating a routine that makes taking care of your hair in an easy, quick, and healthy way while still looking neat and put together. In short, hair care for a minimalist is about keeping it simple. Many of us have a fair amount of beauty products stuffed in our bathroom cabinets. It’s no surprise the bathroom is also the second largest area of waste in our homes (followed by the kitchen). I’ve been working on getting my beauty routine down to a minimum. It’s one of my favorite areas I’ve simplified because that’s often where I start my day. It’s amazing to look back now and see how many products I’ve kept thinking I needed them when I didn’t.

How did I simplify my hair products?

In a nutshell? It was experimenting with elimination. I packed up about 75% of my beauty products for a few weeks. This allowed me to live with fewer products without having to make the decision to get rid of products right away (in case I needed to use something). So, I packed up products & put them out of sight. Over the following weeks, I found I didn’t need many of the products I had. In fact, I couldn’t even remember many of them after a while. After getting comfortable with my minimalist hair routine, I began replacing products (as needed) with environmentally friendly alternatives. It’s a work in progress, of course, but I feel like I’m in a good place right now!

I used to fuss endlessly over my hair. Before kids, I would wash my hair every day with all the shampoos you find at the store– you know, the ones with the trending consumer ingredient topics of interest such as sulfates, silicones, parabens, and artificial colorants. I would blow dry it on high heat every day, add mousse and sprays, and go about my day. I had a full head of highlights for several years too, which took a lot of time (and money) to maintain. Then, I’d have regular haircuts, continue washing it with shampoos that stripped my hair of its natural oils and blow dry it. My hair was always so stringy, oily and limp/lifeless by the end of the day, I would have to do the routine the next morning for my hair to look decent.

About 5 years ago, I decided to make a change. I stopped getting highlights and let my hair color make its way back to its natural color. I also trained my hair so I now only wash it 2-3 days a week. I also stopped blow-drying it except for the days when I wash it, and swapped out/simplified the products I used in my hair. Simplifying my hair routine has not only saved me a lot of time and money, but more importantly, it saved my hair from a lifetime of distress. When I stopped overprocessing my hair, some magical things happened:

It now takes several days for my hair to get noticeably greasy.
I don’t have to buy shampoo as often – $$$ saved!
My hair is softer, shinier, and less frizzy
I don’t worry about my hair as much – I’ve grown to appreciate it in its natural state
It takes me less time to get ready in the mornings

For the past few months, I had been using the Nature Box™ Coconut Oil Shampoo & Conditioner (see my post on my go-to personal care products) and recently switched to their Avocado Collection as I let my hair grow out between haircuts. This line is specifically for hair repair! It deeply repairs & restores my hair for a healthier look and it also provides protection from split-ends. The smell is amazing and makes my hair feel clean and fresh!

I love Nature Box products because they use cold pressed technology. They have five product lines that feature oils extracted from the heart of fruits and nuts by a process called cold pressing. Cold pressing oils involves exerting pressure, without using excessive heat, so that the natural oils are released from the ingredients. Cold pressing involves no chemicals and no hot processes either. The cold pressed oils in Nature Box products are made with 100% cold pressed oil from coconuts, avocados, apricots, almonds, and macadamia nuts and sustainably-sourced ingredients. Plus, they are free from the trending consumer ingredient topics of interest such as sulfates, silicones, parabens, and artificial colorants.

I now own only a few things for my hair:

A small collection of wraps to pull my hair back when I’m washing my face and for workouts
Nature Box™ 100% Cold Pressed Avocado Oil Shampoo and Conditioner: can be found at CVS and other major retailers
Styler/volumizer brush: on the days I do wash my hair, I dry and style it with this single tool. It takes half the time than a blow dryer and brush, and works SO well.
Hair spray: I have a bunch of postpartum baby hairs the crown of my head that must be tamed!
Volume and shape mist: a clean option that I use on my hair to help detangle it whenever I get out of the shower
Dry shampoo: when I’m on the 3rd day before washing my hair and need to look presentable, I use a bit of this at my roots to control the oil
Plastic wide-tooth comb: any drugstore brand will do
Hair ties

I now trim my hair a few times a year to clean up the split ends, and wash it about twice a week. I style it the days I wash it and let it air dry on the other days. I do workout everyday and on those days, I just get my hair wet without shampoo/conditioner.

When I do wash it, I double shampoo it (shampoo it once to remove reside/oil, rinse, then shampoo it again to get a deeper clean). Then I work in conditioner and let it sit while I wash my body, follow with a light rinse, being careful not to let it all come out after reading about proper washing techniques from Kate at The Small Things blog). I am also trying to grow my hair out a bit, but I don’t layer it so that braiding my hair will be easy and lengths don’t stick out everywhere.

As a result, my hair has never looked or felt healthier than it does today. It feels light because it is not coated in residues from a hair product. It has become one less thing for me to worry about. Fancy that!