Many of us are used to spending a pretty penny–or more like lots and lots of pretty pennies–on treatments and products to make our hair look its best. Sometimes those treatments work wonders, and other times it's hard to even tell a difference. It sucks when you pay a lot of money for very little results, but it happens. We are by no means telling you not to treat yourself and your hair to those things, but may we suggest adding some not-so-expensive natural homemade hair treatments to the mix? Hair treatments that you can make at your leisure with things you probably already have in your kitchen
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The benefit of making your own natural, homemade hair treatments is that you can experiment with different ingredients without spending or wasting much money. If something works wonders for your hair, great! You can keep using that treatment over and over. If something doesn't work for your hair, no big deal, because you haven't spent a fortune on anything, and now you know.
All of the DIY hair treatments we are sharing are simple and do not require a bunch of hard-to-find ingredients. They use items you can easily buy or already own. They also don't require fancy equipment or tools to apply. You don't even have to invest much time, as they don't require you to leave your home or keep them on for longer than 30 minutes. Try them out and see which ones make your hair look and feel its best. You can even use these hair treatment recipes as the basis to develop one of your own.
Straight-up coconut oil to the rescue!
Apply room-temperature coconut oil and nothing else to dry, dirty hair from roots to ends. Leave on for 15 to 20 minutes. Wash out with lukewarm water and shampoo. Do it once a week for incredibly shiny hair! Don’t you just love treatments that require only one ingredient?
Use Greek yogurt to treat an oily scalp.
An oily scalp can clog pores and even affect hair growth. No worries: You can whip up a plain yogurt hair mask to help treat oily strands. Just combine 5 tbsps. plain Greek yogurt, 1 tbsp. baking soda, and 1 tbsp. lemon juice in a small bowl. Massage onto your scalp for 2 to 3 minutes, and leave on for an additional 10. Then rinse out. If you constantly suffer from oily scalp, you might want to try this once a week.
Yogurt and tea tree oil can help you get rid of dandruff.
If you struggle with dandruff or dry scalp, combine 2 tbsps. tea tree oil with 5 tbsps. plain Greek yogurt to create a mask. Apply it to your scalp, and leave on for 10 to 15 minutes. Use at least once a week until flakes disappear.
Add egg and rinse.
Take one egg and give it a good whisk. Apply the whisked mixture onto clean, damp hair, cover with a shower cap, and leave on for 20 minutes. Rinse with cool water so as not to cook the egg, then shampoo and condition as usual. The protein, fats, and vitamins have both cleansing and moisturizing properties that are beneficial for both hair and scalp.
Use black tea to restore shine.
If your hair is looking dull, a black tea rinse can help bring back the shine. All you have to do is make a cup of black tea, let it cool, and then pour it onto your hair. Let it soak into your hair for a good 10 minutes before washing it out. Could not be easier!
Use black tea mixed with coconut oil to up the moisture factor.
If your hair is looking dull and feeling dry, you might want to try mixing black tea with coconut oil for a kind of scalp mask. Mix 2 tbsps. coconut oil with 1 tbsp. black tea. Massage the mixture into your scalp, and let it do its thing for about an hour. Then wash your hair with lukewarm water.
Make a tea-and-honey hair cocktail.
In this case, mix together 2 tbsps. black tea, 2 tbsps. green tea, and 1 tsp. honey. Turn the concoction into a kind of paste and massage it into your scalp. Leave it on for 30 minutes, then wash your hair. The green tea contains antioxidants that will help strengthen the roots of your hair, and the honey is very nourishing.
Consider using butter as a hair treatment.
In Ethiopia, butter is used to protect and style hair, and the results are stunning. Butter helps to keep hair moisturized and supple. If you have naturally curly hair, this is something you might want to try to give your curls some love. All you have to do is rub a bit of butter that is soft enough to spread throughout your hair, then cover with a shower cap. Let the butter stay in for an hour, and then wash your hair.
This treatment is bananas!
Bananas can help thicken your hair. How? Well, they have a mineral called silica in them, and that mineral helps your body synthesize collagen. Collagen can in turn strengthen and thicken your hair. One banana hair mask option is mixing a mashed ripe banana with an egg. The proteins in the egg will help your hair grow. Basically, you want to mix the banana and egg into an evenly textured mash. Then apply that all over your hair from scalp to ends, and leave it on for 15 minutes. When you wash it out, be sure to use water that is lukewarm so that you don’t accidentally cook the egg onto your hair.
You can also mix banana with honey for a good dandruff-reducing hair mask.
Mash up a banana or two, depending on your hair length, with about a tablespoon of honey. Apply the mixture throughout your hair, and let it sit for about 15 minutes. Rinse out the mixture with lukewarm water, then condition. Remember that honey is full of antioxidants that nourish hair and condition your scalp, which is why it can aid in getting rid of dandruff.
Use banana and coconut oil to make a mask for damaged hair.
If your hair has been damaged by heat or chemical processing, use the combined power of bananas and coconut oil to condition it. Take one to two bananas, depending on your hair length, and mash them up with about 1 tbsp. room-temperature coconut oil. Coat your hair and scalp with the mixture, then let it sit for about 15 minutes. Rinse it out with lukewarm water instead of washing it out.
Blend banana and avocado together to soften hair.
Yes, we know it’s hard to sacrifice an avocado, but your hair is worth it. Avocados are rich in minerals, protein, and fat that your hair will gobble up. Blend one ripe avocado with one or two bananas to make a mixture that is evenly consistent. Apply the mixture to your hair, then leave on for about 15 minutes. Do not wash it out; instead rinse it out with lukewarm water.
Use avocado, olive oil, and honey to treat dry ends.
A protein-filled hair mask works great on dry ends that are prone to splitting. Combine half an avocado with 1 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. honey. Blend well, then apply from roots to ends. Throw on a shower cap, and leave the treatment on for 15 to 20 minutes to allow the hair to absorb all the nutrients. Rinse with cool water to help lock in moisture. Shampoo and style as usual.
Don’t forget about good ol’ virgin olive oil.
Most of us have olive oil in our kitchens, which makes it a great ingredient for a DIY hair mask. Virgin olive oil has a compound in it called squalene that is a great moisturizer that is used in lots of cosmetics. Virgin olive oil also contains vitamin E, which is purported to help hair grow. To use olive oil as a hair mask, use a good extra virgin olive oil that has not been mixed with any other oils. Depending on the length of your hair, you’ll need anywhere from 2 tbsps. to ¼ cup olive oil. Oil is messy, so wear an old T-shirt or something else you don’t mind staining. You can use an applicator bottle to apply the oil, then massage it into your dry hair from roots to ends. Cover your hair with a shower cap, let the olive oil stay on for 15 to 30 minutes, then shampoo and rinse your hair.
Mix olive oil with tea tree oil to help with dandruff.
Tea tree oil is often included in commercial anti-dandruff shampoos. At home, you can mix 2 to 4 drops tea tree oil with an equal amount of olive oil. Combine the two oils, and then apply the mixture directly to your scalp. Leave it on for 15 minutes, then wash and condition as usual. Even if you don’t have dandruff, tea tree oil can help with reduce scalp irritation.
Get rid of product buildup and restore shine with an apple cider vinegar, olive oil, and avocado.
Products that we regularly use on our hair build up after a while and can leave hair looking dull. To get rid of the buildup and get your hair’s shine back, combine half an avocado, 1/3 cup olive oil, and 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar in a blender to make a sort of hair smoothie. Massage the mixture into your scalp, working it through your hair from roots to ends. Cover your hair with a shower cap and leave in for 15 minutes before rinsing out.
For extra-dry hair, make an egg, honey, and olive oil mask.
Whisk an egg in a bowl, then add 2 tbsps. honey and 2 tbsps. olive oil. Whisk until all ingredients are incorporated. Massage the mixture into your hair from roots to ends, then let sit for 15 to 30 minutes. Wash with lukewarm water so you don’t cook the egg, then condition as usual.
Add mayo to curly hair prone to frizz.
Dry, curly hair is very prone to frizz. Applying a mayonnaise mixture to strands can help keep them sleek and smooth. Combine 1/2 cup mayonnaise with an essential oil like coconut or lavender oil (this will help kill off the mayo smell), then apply from mid-length to ends. This treatment is intense and can weigh down your hair, so you want to avoid applying it to your roots. Leave on for 15 to 20 minutes, then shampoo out with lukewarm water.
Treat an itchy scalp with apple cider vinegar.
Apple cider is made from fermented apples and is full of live cultures, minerals, and acids. Lots of people use it as a hair wash to keep their scalp healthy and make their hair stronger and less prone to breakage. It contains an alpha-hydroxy acid that helps exfoliate the scalp. Treating your scalp with it is super easy. All you have to do is wash and condition your hair as usual, then pour a mixture of 2 tbsps. apple cider vinegar mixed with water over your hair. Massage it into your scalp, let it sit for about 2 minutes, then rinse it out.
Add more moisturizing power to mayonnaise.
Mayonnaise on its own is wonderfully moisturizing for hair, but if you really, really need to give your hair some added moisture, then add some avocado to the mix. Mix half an avocado with 2 tbsps. mayo until smooth. Apply the mixture to damp hair where you need the moisture, especially the ends, and let it soak in for 20 minutes. Rinse and wash hair as usual.
