DIY Deep Conditioners....

 

Hi friends! I recently tried my hand (and hair) at a do-it-yourself deep conditioner. I figured it would be an experiment that may result in me saving some extra money on product. The first recipe I used was a homemade deep conditioner/ protein treatment. Keeping in mind I had no idea if my hair was protein sensitive or not (it pays to know your own head), I whipped this recipe up and placed it in my hair.

First Recipe:

•                   1 cup regular Mayonnaise

•                   1/3 cup plain yogurt

•                   1/3 cup olive oil (or coconut oil)

•                   2 tablespoons honey

•                   plastic conditioning cap

In a glass or ceramic bowl, whip all ingredients together and stir until evenly smooth. Apply to wet or damp hair, cover with plastic conditioning cap and leave on for one hour before rinsing.

*You can substitute the yogurt for two eggs.

Background:

Remember that I’m in the middle of transitioning? 5 months into transition, so there is a TWA meets relaxed ends situation. Well my natural hair seems to be coming in as a 4a-4b texture, but I still have quite a bit of relaxed ends. I followed the directions and substituted the yogurt for two eggs.

My results:

Disastrous. The natural hair felt over moisturized to the point of mushy while the relaxed ends felt like straw or hay. I had no idea my hair could feel like that… and not in a good way. I ended up rinsing all of that out and going back to my old faithful conditioner for the week because I couldn’t walk around like that. Would I recommend trying it? Only if you know your protein tolerance. If you’re not sure, test a small section first. But it is definitely protein rich.

So then I decided to research some more into other DIY deep conditioner options. I found another recipe; this one was for heads that were protein sensitive. One of the symptoms of being protein sensitive is that after trying a conditioner that is protein rich (like the one above- remember the eggs), your hair fails to be moisturized and feels like straw.  I still wanted to save more so I figured “why not?”

Recipe:

·         1 banana

·         1 cup of aloe vera

Mix these in a blender on your smoothest setting. Strain the mixture through a strainer with TINY, TINY holes.

·         ½ can of coconut milk

·         ¼ cup of olive oil

·         Optional: oils of your choice

Whisk all of this together until smooth. Paint the mixture into your hair from scalp to end. Saturate under a plastic cap for 30 minutes-1 hour. Rinse out and style as usual.

Background:

It’s wash day and my hair is already clean from a co-wash. I don’t have a strainer with TINY, TINY holes, but I have a colander with small holes.

Results:

OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!!!! I have banana bits stuck in my hair!!!!! Not fun at all!!!! But my hair was moisturized. It took me three washes to get MOST (not all) of the banana out of my hair, but once that was out of the way, it felt soft and clean. However, next time I’m not trying the banana in the mixture, even if I had a strainer. Would I recommend it? Yeah, I think so. Just make sure your strainer has very, very fine strains to catch blended banana pulp. Banana in your curls is definitely not worth the hassle otherwise.

Conclusion:

Before trying any new products or concoctions, know your own hair. Follow directions and when in doubt, have plenty of your tried and true products on hand. You never know when you may need them. Test a few of your strands first before painting all of them into a product. Trial and error is simply that trial and error. Sometimes things work and sometimes they don’t. But it’s fun to learn during the process and laugh later.

To Happy Curls!