July 27, 2011

Day Nine: Crunching Numbers

I don't have a lot to report on today, I'm still adjusting and haven't switched to water-only yet. But I decided to look into the aspect of how much money people save through this lifestyle. Shampoos and Conditioners now are extremely tempting, with their clever marketing, alluring packaging and promises of Hollywood-worthy hair.

But here's the raw fact: Shampoos are a rip-off. We don't need them, we never have. Unfortunately, once you start using them you basically can't stop, unless you do exactly what I'm doing now.

Aside from the damage to your hair they can do, which I might blog about in a completely separate post, the other factor involved here is the fact that you're paying way too much for something you just don't need.

So I've done some number-crunching today, and looked at the difference in savings, based on my own usage in the past:

Going by my previously favourite brand, Herbal Essences (seriously, how good does it smell!?), I'd say I would almost buy a bottle per month, but I tend to use more conditioner than shampoo. So in an estimated guess, buying 9 bottles of shampoo and 12 bottles of conditioner a year, I'm paying about $157 a year!
Now, compare this to my current regime. Since I haven't been using the products for very long, it's hard to make an accurate guess but I've done some rough calculations and come up with the following result.
I've bought 500g of Coles Smart Buy baking soda ($1.50), and a litre of Cornwells Apple Cider Vinegar ($2.60). Based on my current tablespoon method (see previous posts), I get about 65 washes from these products.
If I want to wash my hair every 3 days (every day at first, gradually reducing washes by the end of the year), that's about 120 washes.

 

So basically I'm only having to spend about $8 for enough bicarb soda and ACV to last me for a year's worth of washing my hair.
As I said before, this is a VERY rough calculation, and it's really a hypothetical forecast. I'm only in week two of this routine, but even if my numbers are slightly off, there's still no comparison. I'm still going to save a lot of money by switching to this haircare regime.

And of course, by eventually switching to a water-only approach, the calculations are simple: no more money spent on washing your hair.

1 comment:

  1. Wow, great post! :) More money to spend on hobbies!
    Ashley x

    ReplyDelete