The wash day files : Playing with mud

19:40 Naija girl next door 14 Comments

The wash day experience has themes again for September. This week's theme is 'Uncharted territory' aka try something new. I know my ongoing comb-free trial is new but I decided to bite the bullet and do a bentonite clay mask. I've used it on my face a number of times but not my hair.

Bentonite clay is supposed to clarify (remove dirt and impurities and such) and detoxify. I figured this was the best time because as you know, I've been dealing with really heavy buildup lately.

So. Undid my twists the day before.
On wash day I detangled and put in big twists to wash.

I mixed some bentonite clay with warm water, made a smooth yoghurt-like paste and coated my hair with it. I had some left over so I did my face too. My sis got back home, saw the mess on my hair and face and asked "what is this??"
I answered by smearing her face with the mud. She didn't resist or protest so I painted her face with it and we had matching face masks :)
It's supposed to dry on your face but not your hair so I covered with a shower cap.

Rinse- This is where things went awry. Much of it rinsed out. I saw it run down. Then the water ran clear. I thought it was all out. Then I touched my hair. Lord. It felt like a thin layer of silt had clung to it. The clay and the product residue in my hair had found true love. They weren't letting go. I rinsed and rubbed and rinsed. I cowashed again and again. Nothing.

I had planned to dc after 'clarifying' but no way was I going to put more product on top. I couldn't even attempt to detangle because my hair felt gross. Funny enough my scalp was great.

I put it in a ponytail and tucked the ends away, thinking I'll survive for a week before shampooing.

Lots of curl definition but you can see the gunk

It lasted a day. My hair dried crispy. I got back from work with fire on my heels, quickly parted my hair into four and shamooed with Creme of Nature Argan oil shampoo. No twists this time- I had to make sure everything got out.

The first lather magically melted all the rubbish and coloured water ie clay+product ran down. Second lather (just to make sure) ran clean on three sections. One section required a third lather.

Whew! My hair felt goooood. I dc'd with ORS Replenishing conditioner for 45 minutes under a plastic cap and rinsed with cold water + ACV.
I tshirt dried and barely had any tangles to work through with my fingers.
I bunned and tied down with a satin scarf for the night.

I'm going to try a clay mask again and soon- after I got it all out my hair really did feel soft and healthy- but I've learnt lessons:
1. Never again with so much buildup.
2. Never again will i rinse off clay in twists.

How was your wash day? Join the wash day link-up here share and read :)
Xx,
NGND

14 comments:

Tamara Monroe3 September 2014 at 21:17
Your hair looks very moisturized and shiny. I've heard a lot about clay washes. Would you ever recommend it to relaxed ladies?
relaxedandhealthy4 September 2014 at 00:34
I wanted to try a clay wash but was unclear (scared) how to go about it. I may give it a go on my next wash day, thanks for the tips.
Don't Touch The Hair4 September 2014 at 00:43
Sorry the clay left you with residue. But at least you learned something new. I like the texture of your natural hair.

Don't Touch The Hair
Harlem4 September 2014 at 01:03
Eeek! I tried a bentonite clay from Soultanicals and it dried my hair out too. It's not something that I would try again
Yvette4 September 2014 at 07:31
I want to try one out... As soon as I find the mud. But it really defined your curls though :)
hairdiva online store4 September 2014 at 20:50
sorry your wash day went that way,but hey! that's why its a hair journey.
An Afrikan Butterfly7 September 2014 at 14:19
aww the ups and downs of a hair journey!
When I mudwash, I use Aloe Vera Juice instead of water to mix (as it's super moisturising) and I also add honey to the mix (Honey makes it easy for my henna treatments to rinse out, so I think it plays a similar function in my mud washes) And then oils for more slip, and just because.
This way it's super moisturising for me and works as a shampoo and deep conditioner, all I have to do is rinse clean (never any clinging), moisturise and seal!
:)