Hair Care

Conditioners:

Egg Conditioner
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp olive oil
3/4 cup lukewarm water
Beat egg yolk until it is thick and light colored. Slowly drizzle drops of oil into egg, beating well. Slowly add and beat the water into the egg mixture. Transfer mixture to a container. After shampooing, massage all conditioner into hair and leave on for a few minutes before thoroughly rinsing.

Protein Conditioner
Beat 1 egg white until foamy. Add to 5 Tbsps plain natural yogurt. Apply to hair in small sections at a time. Leave in for 15 minutes. Rinse.

Split End Treatments
1) Mix 1 tsp honey with 2 Tbsps olive oil, then beat in 1 egg yolk. Massage on hair in small sections. Wrap head with shower cap for 30 minutes. Rinse and shampoo.

2) Massage hair and scalp with warm avocado or olive oil. Wrap hair securly in a towel. Leave oil on hair about 8 hours or overnight. If left on overnight, put a shower cap over head to avoid staining pillows and bedding. Wash hair, then rinse with a vinegar /water solution.

Hot Oil Treatment
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup boiling water
Place olive oil and boiling water into large glass bottle or jar with a lid. You may need to wrap a towel around the bottle to avoid burning yourself. Shake very well until oil is emulsified. Massage into hair, taking care not to burn your head. Put a shower cap or plastic bag over your hair and wrap your head in a hot towel that has been soaked in hot water then wrung out. Leave mixture on your hair for 1/2 hour, then shampoo as usual

Mayonnaise Conditioner
To recondition the hair, shampoo hair with homemade shampoo or a shampoo from the natural foods store. Rinse and towel dry. Apply regular mayonnaise (not salad dressing) to the hair. Massage in. Let sit for 10-15 minutes, shampoo again lightly and rinse with an apple cider vinegar and water solution.

Dandruff

1) Make an infusion of 1 ounce each of fresh or dried rosemary and sage in 2 cups of water. Let steep for 24 hours, then use daily as a hair rinse.

2) Boil 5 heaping Tbsp dried thyme in 2 cups water for 10 minutes. Strain and cool. Pour 1/2 mixture over clean, damp hair. Massage into scalp, do not rinse. Use second half of solution another day.

3) Instead of shampooing, massage handfuls of baking soda into the hair and scalp to absorb oil and to loossen dead skin on scalp. Rinse thoroughly, use no other shampoos. While initially the hair may seem dry, after several weeks, dandruff will be gone and hair will be smooth and shiny.

4) Mint Rinse
Boil:
1 cup water
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 handful of fresh mint leaves
Strain and pour into a container. With fingertips, massage solution into the scalp, let dry without rinsing out.

5) Use the hot oil treatment recipe given on this page.

6) Soothing Herbal Hair Rinse
Combine equal parts of dried rosemary, comfrey, witch hazel leaves and nettles to make about 1/2 cup. Add to 2 cups of water in a covered pot. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let steep overnight. Strain. Shampoo and rinse hair then use herb tea for a final rinse to relieve itchy, flaky scalp.

Hair Coloring

Herb, Fruit & Vegetable Rinses for Color and Highlights
These rinses work over a period of time to subtlely color and add highlights to the hair. First wash and rinse hair, then pour any of these rinses over the hair 15 times catching the excess in a bowl or the bathroom basin as it runs off the hair, then pouring it over the hair again.

For Brunettes
1) Cook an unpeeled potato in boiling water. Cool slighly. Dip a pastry brush or cotton ball in the cooking water, cover and saturate hair, being careful not to get any on skin. Leave on hair for 20 minutes then rinse out.

2) Make an strong infusion of any of the following herbs and teas then use as a rinse:
Rosemary
Sage
Raspberry leaves
Parsley
Ivy Berries
Catnip
Black coffee
Black Tea (for chestnut highlights).


For Blondes
1) Marigold gives golden highlights to light hair and brings out red and gold highlights in light brown and red hair. Saffron, tumeric, calendula, mullein, privet and yellow broom in addition to any yellow blossomed herb or flower also add color and highlights for blondes.

2) Rinse hair with a solution of 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to one gallon of water after shampooing.

3) To restore hair that was once blonde, mix 10 grams of licorice root with 10 grams of oat straw, add a pinch of saffron. Cover with water and boil to make an infusion. Strain and use a s a rinse after shampooing. It should be allowed to soak into the hair and NOT rinsed out.

4) To bring out highlights and lighten blonde hair, steep 1/2 cup of camomile tea in one quart of boiling water . Strain and cool slighyly. Shampoo hair until oil free, then rinse with the tea infusion.

5) Add 4 tablespoons of chopped rhubarb to 3 cups of hot water, simmer for 15 minutes. Strain, cool, then use as a rinse after shampooing.


For Redheads
1) Use strong black coffee as a final rinse

2) Use a strong rosehips tea

3) Make a decotion of red hibiscus tea, use as a rinse

4) Make a rinse from calendula

5) Use an infusion of saffron for a rinse.


For Grey Hair
1) Potatoes: Boil potato peels in water, strain, and cool. Use the strained water as an after-shampoo rinse to darken grey hair

2) Sage covers the grey when used consistently over a period of time. Simmer 1/2 cup dried sage in 2 cups of water for 30 minutes. Steep for 2-3 hours. Strain, use as rinse on clean hair. Leave on until hair has dried, then rinse out.

3) Mix 1 oz. sage, 1oz. rosemary and 1 pint of water. Simmer for 30 minutes and strain. Massage into the scalp and grey hair.

4) Mix 1 tablespoon of apple-cidar vinegar with one gallon of warm water, use as final rinse.

5) Use an infusion of hollyhock (blue-purple flowers) to remove the yellow cast from grey hair.

6) Use betony as a rinse to cover yellow in grey hair.

For All Hair Colors
Make an infusion of any of the following for color, conditioning, highlights and shine:
Catnip: Make a rinse of catnip and water to promote hair growth and shine.
Nettle
Parsley
Rosemary: good as a hair tonic for thinning hair and dandruff and to stimulate hair growth.
Thyme: makes a great stimulating shampoo.
Yarrow: Use a yarrow rinse for mild cases of dandruff.

Hair Spray

Chop 2 lemons, add 2 cups water, simmer in a pan over low heat until lemons are quite soft. Cool, then strain through cheesecloth. Pour into a spray bottle, add 1 Tbsp vodka, shake. Dilute with water if too sticky.

Shampoos:

Nana's Egg Shampoo
1 large egg separated
3 Tbsp castile soap
In a bowl, beat egg white until foamy. Blend in yolk followed by the castile soap. Wet hair with warm water. Massage half the egg shampoo into scalp. Rinse well then massage remaining shampoo into scalp. Leave on hair about 1 min. Rinse thoroughly with warm water.

Egg Shampoo #2
1 egg
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp castile soap
1/2 cup water or herbal tea
Drop of fragrant essential oil of your choice (optional)
Combine all in blender and whip until smooth. Shampoo with mixture using warm, not hot water for the shampoo and rinse. Store any remaining shampoo in the refrigerator for use the next day.

Herbal Shampoo
1/4 cup of your favorite herbal tea, strongly brewed
8 oz liquid castile soap
Add soap to tea. Stir over low heat until well blended. Store in a capped bottle.

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