Humph, I am not a happy bunny.

Hair is dry at the ends, so I did some research and horror upon horror, lots of advice NOT to use bicarbonate soda as it dries hair. Yikes!

Also, I have noticed some broken strands on top. Am I noticing these as I am inspecting my hair each day?, or is the no poo breaking my hair . . . oh crikey.

Okay, I decided not to panic just yet . . .My next plan is to avoid getting the BS mix on ends of hair to see if that makes a difference (this, from googling advice! – oh dear!)

The advice continues to say that I should use less BS and not as often. At the moment I use it every other day. I will try to extend this, but so far it’s doubtful I’ll manage it. So maybe a compromise is needed. I will us BS once every three days.  And if I need to wash between these times, I will just rinse through with vinegar (more advice via google).

My face is better but still a bit dry. I almost succumbed and used moisturiser the other day. I am considering using some oil . . .maybe. . . but I think (believe? hope?), my skin is starting to work for itself gradually. So I have decided I will try it for a bit longer.

Lips slightly better, still a little dry, but I think (hope? pray?) they are still improving.

We shall see.

Lips and face feeling much better – less dry and tight – skin smooth. Lips have a little way to go still, but definitely better.

Hair still feeling great. Washing every other day (I was washing once a day prior to the switch).

Gave face a little exfoliating with a teaspoon of BiCarb Soda and water today – very nice.

Scalp feeling super clean.

So far so good!

Living on board is somewhat about getting away from the trappings of society. Still, most women (and men, I am sure) feel the need to take care of themselves. Sailing the oceans can mean finding and buying products becomes a challenge both in availability and in price. Our book Cruisers’ AA contains a whole chapter on Beauty on a Budget and to supplement that, here’s my recent experiment on swapping chemical based products for natural products. I am the guinea-pig!

Your Challenge – should you choose to accept it – No poo, no soap & no moisturiser.

I have been toying with the idea of using natural products to wash with for a while. I am 43 and becoming more aware of middle age than I’d really like to.

I could easily purchase the paraphernalia of natural items that are readily available and get on with it. The trouble is I hate spending money, I really struggle to treat myself and if I have to buy something (food for example) I spend as little as possible. So buying a whole new range of natural products is not something I can do – I physically can’t do it.

So, I have been trawling through numerous websites to cobble together some-sort of health-dollar-compromise. With the information amassed I decided to stop using shampoo and supermarket purchased soap immediately; AND to stop using moisturiser, which I used (note the past tense) daily. However, I will continue to use sunscreen when necessary.

To lessen the dramatic change I used homemade soap (made with natural products) on my hair and body for two weeks before I went ‘naked’ so to speak. The soap is made by a friend. My hair maybe a tad dryer than normal, but other than that, I have seen no real effects. My skin is dryer, having not used moisturiser for two weeks either.

My Ethos I have dry skin, so lack of daily moisturiser is hard – initially. But from what I have read (and what rings true with me) is that moisturisers are stopping my skin producing the oils it needs. I also suffer with dry lips and have done for a long time, nothing seems to help them. I drink lots of water, keeping hydrated as much as possible.

The Great Plan The plan is to continue using the natural soap on my body, but NOT on my face. I will be washing my face with warm water only. I will continue to avoid moisturising and instead of the soap (which replaced the shampoo initially) I will now use just Bi-Carbonate Soda (BS) and White Vinegar (WV) on my hair.

No poo recipe 1 x tablespoon of BS in warm water, stirred until dissolved. 1 x tablespoon of white vinegar in warm water, stirred

Day One It was odd (and hard) not putting soap on my face, but fine. The hair washing was awkward as I am not organised and I used a china cup – very clumsy- washing hair while trying to pour (and control) the cup over your head, or very bright really.

Once my hair had dried, it felt odd – sort of thicker. It is quite long and I am not sure I used enough BS/WV. It feels clean but a bit drier than normal. Tangles were not a problem as the BS/WV in water just sort of flowed over my hair and I gently massaged it into my scalp.

My face feels clean and fine, still a bit dry but not too bad.

Day Two Last night, a lot of the dry skin on my lips fell off. They are still a bit dry but not much. It is the best they have been for ages, years in fact! I am not sure if it is because of not using soap on my face (and therefore my lips) for one day or that, after two weeks without moisturiser they are starting to ‘make’ their own moisturiser – or, of course, a combination of both. Either way it feels good – certainly better.

My hair feels a little oily on top and dry at the ends. Nothing too bad, but I am interested to see how the next wash goes.

I think my skin feels ever-so slightly less dry today. I hope it improves, everyone keeps telling me how tired I look. I know my skin is pulling a little tight and wrinkling. Not horrendously, but making me look tired.

After my shower, everything felt drier, my face and my lips, especially around my eyes. It isn’t particularly comfortable or attractive. I put extra BS and WV in the no poo mix. Once my hair had dried it felt better, but “thick” and not as clean as I’d like – but good enough.

Day Three No moisturiser- still, washing face with water and I didn’t wash my hair. Everything same as yesterday but hair felt quite oily.

Day Four Washed hair with extra BS and WV (1 extra tablespoon each) AND more rinsing. I’ve been rinsing hair with BS (dissolved), then following straight away with the WV (mind eyes), then only rinsing a little after that with water. This time I gave my hair and scalp a really good rinse.

Today my hair feels fantastic. Clean, bouncy, shiny and just fab. Lips feel the same, they improved a few days ago, but since then no further improvement (but no decline either) .

Day Five Hair feels fabulous, does not need washing at all; bouncy, healthy and just great. Lips feel ever-so slightly better today. Face/skin feels much better, not quite so dry and tight.

Summary so far Hair feels glorious. I had a couple of days where it was/felt a bit odd. Not enough for others to notice, but I could feel it. Scalp feels super clean. Skin/face, feeling & looking much much better. Lips feeling much better too – still a little dry, hope this improves over time.

I am determined to continue and will post updates every few days/once a week with results. But I’d love to hear other people’s experiences/suggestions . . .

What’s Your Name?

The onerous task (for the second time) of renaming our boat rapidly resembled a ‘Carry On’ movie of the Parry kind. Our ingenious juices seem to simply dry up with this creative requirement, particularly when we are now comfortable with the current name. When voyaging internationally, recreational (and commercial) vessels must hold Australian Registration. You cannot have two boats with the same name registered in Australia.

With time on our minds more than credentials we raced through the required paperwork and selected a first, second and third choice name. If your first selection is already occupied by a vessel, they try the next and so on. This happened with our previous boat, Mariah. We ingeniously named her Mariah II. Later we thought Mariah Too would have been trendy. As you can see our creativity holds no bounds.

Registering Pyewacket III, we chose simply Pyewacket as our favourite. Then, because of the delays with cancelling the American Registration, rushing and leaving our brains in bed that morning, our second choice was Pyewacket Two. Of course the registration office confirmed that our preferred name was already taken but Pyewacket Two was okay.

This created an odd boat shuffle on board that consisted of a minefield of meaningful glances and side stepping culpability. Hastily we amended the paperwork to Pyewacket II, which again, is completely ridiculous, as the bronze plaque on board the boat, stating her launch date and location, reads Pyewacket III (her American Registration which we cancelled). For us this became the most complex part of the registration process. Apart from identification detours and naming nuances, registering your vessel is really quite simple, provided you have a tape measure and a pen. The boat’s history is required and/or the boat builder’s information.

We have grown to like the name Pyewacket, which has several connotations; the preferred is “a supernatural entity that aids magic”. If I ever had to rename a boat, I would call it Rouge Corsair. In another life I had an extraordinary horse called Rouge Corsair, who gifted me endless unique memories and I think Red Pirate is a neat name for a boat.

Noel commented that we should have come up with a whole new name. But what? Rouge Corsair does not suit; maybe some red would have helped. Coward as I am, the fact that there is a name changing ceremony that absolutely must be adhered to, put me off. The champagne part would be fine, but the possibility of upsetting Neptune (it’d only be cheap champers) and thereby facing his wrath, makes me shudder. There are enough “unknowns” on the deep blue, why create more? Besides Pyewacket is Pyewacket, if you see what I mean. We enjoy the quirkiness of being called “The Wackets”, and that in itself is a funny thing. Being those who lack a memory (great for reading the same books and watching the same movies), we remember people we have met on the water by their boat names. “The Frodos” were on a boat called Frodo. Now they are on land with twin girls and have sold Frodo. We still call them “The Frodo’s” and “mini Frodos” too.  It might sound odd to some when we say something like, “where’s My Chance now?” but we understand that we are discussing our great friends Alim and Kian.

This led me to wonder how people name their boats. Most people I know have a boat already with name. I also started to ponder if there were differences in names each side of the Pacific Ocean. Sitting in the anchorage at San Diego Harbour, I can see two boats named Mariah also a Spellbinder and Sirocco, nothing unusual there. But swinging the other way, I now see Cream Puff, Sea Coffin and WindStorm. Why you would desire Coffin or Storm in a name baffles me, each to their own I guess. A friend in NSW has just launched his boat after many years of fitting out. He chose Rock ‘n’ Roll and was surprised to find no one else had already claimed that name on the Australian Registry. Maybe they have, they are just state registered and not Australian Registered.

Australian Registration is only required for vessels going overseas and commercial vessels (see full requirements and costing details on AMSA’s website http://www.amsa.gov.au). The cost for registering Pyewacket II  was $799, plus courier costs for the to-ing and fro-ing of paperwork. AMSA (Australian Maritime Safety Authority) have all the information required on their website. The administrators that process the paperwork are extremely helpful and accommodating.

Thankfully we avoided the performance of a boat baptism, but just what does it involve? Here’s a tongue in cheek peek.

What do you do if you find your boat moniker embarrassing, but cower at the possibility of fuelling Neptune’s wrath? Well, you simply gather together the gods, seize upon superstition and have a celebration.

There are several different ceremonies to manage a new moniker. Simplicity is the key. First off, remove any and all trace of the name you are disregarding. If you are unfortunate enough to have the name beautifully carved into a beam either find high grade sandpaper, elbow grease and epoxy, or settle for the name.

In water soluble ink, pen the old name on a piece of metal. Call up Neptune and all and any gods pertaining to safe sailing. Honour, revere and then beseech, implore and quite simply beg them to erase the former name from their hearts and any filing system they may keep.

Environmentally clean the name off the metal in the sea and tender champagne to the deities and crew (and you).

Commence celebrations with the new name. Pour the champers over the bow, take a huge swig and say a prayer. Plead for protection, pour more champers east to west, north to south, and fling bubbly over your shoulder, in the direction the boat is facing and take another good mouthful. In summary, grovel, drink and pour.

Once you have abandoned all your decency, made a mess and are totally intoxicated you can then load on all the items bearing the new name (remember safety first). If engraving the new name, maybe have several cups of strong coffee first or find a good friend with a steady hand to help.

Cautionary note. This is a slightly quirky perspective to the serious, official ceremony that must take place to appease the gods. As there are so many options, take time to research a ritual that best suits you and your boat. In those dark nights, plunging into the abyss, you may rest a little more assured and help maintain the harmony between mortals and immortals.