I'm so sorry about your hair, that must have been yucky.
I have a shampoo bar (of soap) and I haven't fallen in love with it yet. My hair doesn't seem right when I use it. I generally use a liquid locally made shampoo (in a plastic bottle). Maybe I should try the vinegar rinse...
I did no-poo for several months and my hair never really adjusted. I only wash every 3-4 days anyway and with the no-poo I had to wash every other day.
We can buy 5 ltr plastic dunks of white vinegar, which saves about 8-9 small bottles worth of plastic. I wouldn't know what to do if I had to live without vinegar - we use it for everything.