Battle Winter’s Dryness with Homemade Hair Care
While major shifts are happening in the organic personal care industry, it’s still a challenge to find truly clean hair care products. Brands like Aubrey and John Masters may top the list of acceptable options, but still, nothing beats pure, unadulterated real ingredients for healthy, shiny and soft hair, especially in the cruel drying winter months. Good thing you can take matters into your own hands, naturally, with these easy, DIY hair care treatments.
For that itchy and flaky scalp, a mix of lemon and olive oil (organic of course!) can both stop the flakes and moisturize the scalp leading to fewer itches. Mix together equal parts lemon and olive oil with equal parts pure spring water (about ¼ cup each) and massage into your scalp before shampooing. Let sit 30 minutes before washing. Note: Extremely sensitive scalps may feel burning or tingling from the lemon juice. Rinse immediately if too intense.
When your hair feels dry, brittle and frizzy, turn to honey and avocado. Honey locks in moisture and avocado’s rich oils and proteins help smooth and tame hair. Mash half an avocado and blend in ¼ cup of honey (raw is best). Massage into hair and scalp. For long hair, once applied (and you may need double the recipe) pile hair on top of your head and fasten with a clip or band. Let sit 15-20 minutes before rinsing.
If you’ve been over-compensating for the weather with lots of product, you can de-muck your hair with a simple baking soda wash. Just like baking soda is great for cleaning your house, it does wonders for hair, too. Mix a few teaspoons with water until you get a thick paste. Massage it into your scalp and hair, let sit 15-20 minutes before rinsing and you should feel a noticeable lightness and manageability. Over-treated hair can also become too oily or greasy as the scalp tries to compensate for the damaging/drying products. To battle the oil, sprinkle cornstarch onto the scalp (a salt shaker works great!). Let sit fifteen minutes and then brush out the starch before washing.
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Image: tommerton2010
