Why I don't use Shampoo.

I grew up as most children in the western world being doused with a slimy acidic paste out of a plastic bottle at least once a day. when I was 18 I went to university to live as an independent student, living very frugal. Buying the latest lynx shampoos was one of the products I would buy thinking I'm giving off the right scent to my peers and the opposite sex. This was also accompanied by a very overpowering deodorant. all these products were very well marketed to my age group, the gnarly black cans with the sick logo, it was just so grabbing! You could also buy the combo packs which came with deodorant and shower gel. these where very popular at Christmas time.

By the time I'm 24 I started surfing, this was a huge turning point for me. at least once a month i would pack up my van and head down to Cornwall from Preston (UK) and meet up with a few buddies and just be a dirtbag. because we were getting in the ocean at least once a day i saw that as a moment of cleansing to the mind and body. Why then would i feel the need to go jump in the shower when I felt clean and calm already. This i think was one of the triggers. the next came from the people around me.

Having mates who are just bloody amazing in their own ways is one of the biggest factors to who I am today, they inspire, enlighten and motivate me. I remember finding out that my mate Rik had stopped washing his hair and hadn't done for months, he spoke about the plastic bottles he got fed up with buying and how his hair just started to feel less greasy over time. So, I just thought id give it a go and I'm pretty sure it only lasted a few weeks before I felt greasy and horrible. When I decided to go travelling to New Zealand that was when I packed it in for good. I just wondered: why buy a bottle of something I didn't really need and carry it around the whole time. Just a bar of soap did the trick. Yes my hair got greasy and felt odd, but every wash (without shampoo) it would feel normal again. This lasted around 3 months until I started to not even think about it. I think if you've been doing something for your whole life it may take some time to stop the habit.

I haven't bought shampoo for roughly 5 years. First let's think about the money. The bottle of Lynx is roughly 8 dollars. I'd say you'd probably need a bottle once a month. In the last 5 years that means I've saved myself a total of $480, that's a secondhand surfboard for god's sake. I watched a documentary on netflix about how soaps we use wipe out the microorganism on our body so using a more natural soap on our skin is a healthier option. Since then its proven to me that we are a sold the idea through marketing that we need these products. Really, we don't! We will survive without them plus saving you thousands in a lifetime.

I feel together if we don't buy these products we are voting with our money/ slowing demand and not contributing to the creation of something useless.

This is a picture of Andy throwing a shaka before a paddle out in New Zealand