The Everything Shower: What It Is and How to Do One
You didn't hear it from me, but last Sunday the building super knocked on my door holding a flashlight and a theory. The third-floor water heater had quit at 9:14 p.m., and the word in the stairwell was that I'd been in the shower since seven. Guilty as charged. I was doing the full works, and I'd only just gotten to the shave.
So let's clear up what that actually means. An everything shower is the long, once-a-week shower where you do every step in one go: wash and condition (or mask) your hair, cleanse your body, exfoliate, shave, and then moisturize, oil your hair, put on deodorant and finish with perfume once you're out. It's a reset, not a daily habit. Most take 45 to 90 minutes, and the order you do things in matters far more than how many bottles are lined up on the ledge.
- An everything shower is a once-a-week, do-it-all shower: hair, body wash, scrub, shave, then moisturizer, hair oil, deodorant and perfume after.
- Plan on 45 to 90 minutes. The order matters more than how many products you own.
- Hair goes first so conditioner can sit, scrub goes before the razor, and moisturizer goes on within a few minutes of stepping out.
- Keep the water warm, not hot, and scrub once or twice a week at most. Doing the whole thing daily is overkill.
What is an everything shower, really?
The name took off on social media, but the idea is old news. It's the Sunday-night "I'm doing all of it" shower your mom probably called a pamper night. What made it a trend is the checklist. Instead of washing your hair Tuesday, scrubbing Thursday and shaving whenever you remember, you stack every job into one session and walk out feeling brand new.
Here's how it compares to the showers you take the rest of the week:
| Shower type | What you do | Typical time | How often |
|---|---|---|---|
| Everyday rinse | Body wash, quick rinse, deodorant after | 5 to 10 min | Daily or as needed |
| Hair wash shower | Shampoo, conditioner, body wash | 10 to 20 min | On your wash days |
| Everything-but-hair | Body wash, scrub, shave, full aftercare | 30 to 45 min | Between wash days |
| The full everything | Hair, mask, body, scrub, shave, full aftercare | 45 to 90 min | About once a week |
The everything shower routine, step by step
The rumor is that you need a 14-product haul. The truth is you need about six things and the right order. Line everything up before you turn the water on, put a fresh blade in your razor and grab two towels: one for your hair, one for you.
In the shower
- Warm rinse, 2 to 3 minutes. Warm, not scalding. Hot water feels amazing and strips the oils your skin wants to keep. Let the steam soften your skin and leg hair while you get your hair fully wet.
- Shampoo your scalp. Focus on the roots and scalp, not the ends. The suds that run down are enough for your lengths.
- Condition or mask, then clip it up. Work conditioner or a mask through your mid-lengths and ends, twist your hair up with a claw clip and leave it while you do everything else. This is the secret to the whole routine: your hair treatment works while your body gets its turn.
- Body wash. Wash from the neck down so you're starting with clean skin.
- Scrub, 2 to 3 minutes. On damp skin, massage a sugar scrub in small circles over legs, arms, elbows, knees and anywhere that feels rough. Light pressure. More on technique in how to use a sugar scrub.
- Shave. Smooth on a few drops of shave oil, then shave with light strokes, rinsing the blade often. Go with the grain first, especially on underarms and the bikini line.
- Final rinse. Rinse out the conditioner, rinse your body, and finish with 15 to 30 seconds of cooler water if you can stand it. It just feels great.
After you step out
- Pat dry and moisturize within a few minutes. Leave your skin slightly damp and apply body frosting, butter or lotion to lock that water in. Freshly shaved legs especially want it. See how to moisturize after shaving for the full rundown.
- Hair oil on damp ends. Two to four drops for fine hair, more for thick or curly hair, worked through the mid-lengths and ends only.
- Deodorant on fully dry underarms. Give freshly shaved underarms a few minutes before you swipe.
- Perfume last. Scent clings better to moisturized skin, so a spritz on your wrists, neck or chest after your body frosting will hang around longer.
If you want the logic behind the layering, this guide to body care routine order walks through why thin goes before thick.
Scrub or shave first? The scandal settled
I hear this one argued at every brunch. Scrub first, then shave. Exfoliating before the razor lifts dead skin and frees hairs that are lying flat, so the blade glides closer with fewer snags. Scrubbing after a shave, on the other hand, tends to sting, because freshly shaved skin is touchier for a few hours. The full debate lives in should you scrub before or after shaving.
One honest caveat: if you get ingrown hairs that keep coming back, turn sore or look infected, see a dermatologist. A good routine helps with comfort, but it isn't a treatment.
How often should you do one?
Once a week is the sweet spot for most people. Every 7 to 10 days works too. The reason is mostly the scrub: your skin doesn't need physical exfoliation more than once or twice a week, and sensitive skin often prefers once. Shaving runs on its own schedule, so shave in between as you like.
Your hair also gets a vote. Straight or fine hair that gets oily fast might be washed every other day anyway, so your big weekly shower is just the day you add a mask. Curly and coily hair often has a set wash day, and lots of people line their full routine up with it, then do the everything-but-hair version the other weeks.
Four rumors I'm officially shutting down
- "Hotter water means a deeper clean." It means drier skin. Warm water cleans just fine.
- "More products, better results." Six well-ordered steps beat twelve random ones. If your body wash already exfoliates, you can skip the scrub that week.
- "Scrub until it tingles." Tingling is your skin asking you to stop. Gentle pressure, short time.
- "You have to do your hair too." You don't. The everything-but-hair version counts.
The 30-minute weeknight version
Not every week has 90 minutes in it. When I'm short on time, I keep the four steps that make the biggest difference and drop the rest:
- Body wash (3 minutes).
- Quick scrub on legs and arms only (2 minutes).
- Shave whatever you planned to (8 to 10 minutes).
- Out, pat dry, moisturize, deodorant, perfume (10 minutes).
Hair stays clipped up and dry. You still walk out soft, smooth and smelling like a secret.
What I keep on my shower ledge
Everything here is handmade in Nashville, TN, and you only need a few pieces to cover the whole routine. My own scent, Citrus Scandal, is sparkling blood orange, coconut sugar and sweet peonies, so the whole bathroom smells like gossip over mimosas.
- Gossip Girl Magical Sugar Scrub ($25, 4 oz). Sugar in safflower seed oil with rice bran, rosemary and sunflower extracts and vitamin E, for step 5.
- Gossip Girl Shave Oil Serum ($27, 2 oz). Coconut, sweet almond, jojoba and argan oils. Use it before the razor and a drop after, too.
- Gossip Girl Body Frosting ($25, 4 oz). A whipped moisturizer with cocoa butter, shea butter and aloe for step 8. Here's how to get the most from a body butter.
- Gossip Girl Hair Oil Elixir ($30, 2 oz). A few drops on damp ends for step 9.
My scent doesn't come in a body wash, so for step 4 I borrow The Princess Happily Ever After Body Wash ($20, 8 oz). It's sulfate-free and gently exfoliating with jojoba beads and pumice, which is exactly why I skip the scrub on weeks my skin feels touchy. Want the whole lineup in one go? The Gossip Girl Beauty Box ($150) has six pieces: hair oil, shave oil, body frosting, sugar scrub, deodorant and perfume.
FAQ
How long does an everything shower take?
Most land between 45 and 90 minutes from the first rinse to the last spritz of perfume. A hair mask, a full shave and long or thick hair push it toward the top of that range. You can get a pared-down version done in about 30 minutes.
How often should you do the full routine?
Once a week is plenty for most people, and every 7 to 10 days works too. Your skin doesn't need a full scrub more than once or twice a week, so doing the whole thing daily is more likely to irritate it than to help.
What's the right order for the steps?
Hair first, so conditioner or a mask can sit while you work on your body. Then body wash, scrub, shave and a final rinse. After you step out: moisturizer on damp skin, hair oil on damp ends, deodorant on dry underarms and perfume last.
Should I exfoliate before or after shaving?
Before. Scrubbing first lifts dead skin so the razor glides closer with fewer snags. Scrubbing right after a shave tends to sting, because freshly shaved skin is more sensitive for a few hours.
Do I have to wash my hair every time?
No. Plenty of people with curly or coily hair keep their own wash-day schedule and do an everything-but-hair version on the off weeks. Clip your hair up, skip steps 2 and 3, and do the rest.
Is it okay for sensitive skin?
Usually, with a few swaps. Keep the water warm instead of hot, scrub gently once a week at most, and skip the scrub on any week you use an exfoliating body wash. Patch test new products on your inner arm first.
The last word
The super, for the record, says the third-floor water heater is fine now. I promised him I'd move my everything shower to Saturday mornings, when nobody else needs the hot water. That part isn't a rumor. You'll find me in there around ten, clip in my hair, scrub on the ledge.
Every beauty has a story.
— Gossip Girl
