chia seeds versus fenugreek seeds

[ratgirldjh]

i was just wondering if anyone had tried using chia seeds instead of fenugreek seeds for hair mixtures? chia seeds are very similar in that they too make a gel and seem to be moisturizing.
anyone have any experience using them for anything hair related? i am expecting a big shipment of them soon and was thinking of trying them instead of fenugreek - for slip and ease of application and rinsing - of indian herbs.

[Xena]

I never heard about Chia seeds and when you mentioned it I googled for them.. The European Community made new laws and according to that laws importing Chia Seeds to Europe is forbidden :( I have no clue why though...

[ratgirldjh]

well i don't know why either - the ones we get here are from mexico...

i have to say that i tried using them to make a conditioning gel - and had a very hard time getting the seeds out of my hair.

today i made an indian herb mix and it was too watery so i put a teaspoon of the ground seeds into it and it gelled up a little. hopefully i won't have the same problem getting the seed pieces out of my hair...

[Xena]

I think its because of the new novel food law.. They just need a new permisson to import it.. Maybe they need more tests or whatever - the EC can be very complicated with that ;)

What I do with geling seeds like Fenugreek is..

1) ground them and add hot water to it to make a jelly paste and put that on the hair..

2) add hot water to the seeds, boil them and put it through a strainer

3) if i have a lot of time i put it in cold water and put it through a strainer the next day

My hair is pretty fizzy- i wouldnt wanna have to brush out the seeds after a treatment...

[ratgirldjh]

i think that chia seeds are way smaller than fenugreek seeds if i remember
the ones i have are ground - and i couldn't believe all the trouble i had getting them out of my hair
now i hope i haven't made a big mistake in including a teaspoon of them in my indian herbs this time - but my mix was way to runny and they did soak up some of the liquid
just hope i will be able to get them out of my hair!!! i oiled my hair overnight first - and i had shikakai/chandan in my mix - maybe that will mitigate some of the stick to my hair factor...

i really need to get real fenugreek seeds next time - or just get used to using the mix runny...

[Xena]

Oh oh... I really hope you can get it out after your treatment! Its weird that it sticks harder than other seeds like Fenugreek.. I guess I dont need to be sad that I cant get a hold of that Chia seeds ;)

What I really like as geling agent is Quince Seeds- the seeds are pretty big and you can strain it without problems- no residues of the seeds left after straining!

And algaes are also very good- like "Chondrus Chrispus" I think its also called Irish Moss..

Btw.. I always read that you should oil the hair before you take the Indian herbs.. Is it harmful for the hair if you wash em without oiling before?

[ratgirldjh]

i think that the oil helps with the conditioning and also if you leave the herbs in for a long time like i do - an hour or longer - 3 hours today... - it can dry out your hair

i have really never tried the indian herbs without first oiling overnight - but some people do use them as quick washes - i think you make them into a tea for that usage

the reason i used chia seeds is because i already have them. i love to eat them - i'm hoping that since i have a lot of other herbs in my mix that i won't have the same problem i did when trying just the ground up chia seeds ;)

[Xena]

So you can eat them as a meal? Or like cornflakes? Sounds interesting!

Well I think I am too lazy to let it sit for several hours every time.. I rather prefer the quick wash method..

The other prob is that I have chemically bleached hair.. Some of the Indian herbs are darkening like Amla and others.. And I dont wanna turn brownhaired after a treatment..

How is the smell of Chandan? Do you have good smelling hair after your treatment? I have no idea how Shikakai smells.. but i bet Chandan smells lovely on the hair!

[ratgirldjh]

oh chandan is wonderful! i don't really care much for the smell of shikakai so i have been adding an equal amount of chandan - it gets expensive though - and i've only done it a couple of times - but the smell is to die for and it does linger in your hair! i've also started using the chandan for an exfoliant after the miracle whip facial method started creating clogged pores and zits for me - all that rubbing it think... i wet my face and take a fingertips worth of the chandan and rub it on my skin. it takes whatever dirt is on my skin off and also polishes my skin... then i rinse well with cool water and use a mix of jojoba and sandalwood oil. i was using castor oil and i loved it but recently i started to see what may be milia under my eyes - so i hope that the exfoliating and the jojoba oil will help it go away.

since i only wash my hair once a week i am enjoying the indian herbs. i used to use this washing method - with only shikakai since amla makes my hair feel weird - and i swear after every wash day that my bf would tell me my hair looked longer!!!

it is sort of a pain - and i don't know how long i will be able to keep it up - but for now i am enjoying making the mixes and oiling my hair and the smell of the chandan - because one of the reasons i quit before was that i thought that the shikakai smelled too harsh - but i love how silky and shiny it makes my hair.

now if i can only get the ground chia seeds out when i rinse it this time - i still have and hour and a half to go before rinsing - wish me luck!!!

EDIT: google chia seeds! it is amazing how good they are for you! i eat a tablespoon or more in my smoothies - you can't really taste them and they are very high in omega 3 fatty acids - like flax seed - but they don't go rancid so you don't have to refrigerate them and you can just eat them whole!

[manderly]

Chia seeds?

As is cha-cha-cha chia? Chia pets? How interesting :D

[ratgirldjh]

yep chia seeds are very nutritious! amazing huh? and you can even eat the sprouts!

[Xena]

Yeah that sounds really delicious! But well- I guess I need to wait till the import of Chia starts again...

Its great that you had success washing out the Chia! I like the sandalwood smell too! I cant wait to get all that indian powders..

BTW: whats the miracle whip method? Thats some mayonaise here *lol*

I also wanna order Rosepowder and Lemon Peel and Orange Powder to mix it with Chandan for a facemask. Maybe I add milk and honey to it! I bet it will work great...

[ratgirldjh]

i have used a chandan face mask with honey - it worked great too - also i made a quick scrub with honey and liked that too. my face responds well to the chandan - which is great - because lately it hasn't liked much - LOL

yes - the chia seeds with the mix weren't a problem to wash out. how strange is that?
well i should wait and see if later on they start falling out of my hair - LOL
but i don't think they had any benefits either... so i don't think i will use them again unless i need something to soak up excess water.

i think i put a little too much chandan in my mix this time - my hair smells great but it is a little oily - i think next time more shakakai and less chandan - but i am going to see if the coconut oil will soak in because my hair has no tangles and feels nice and silky.

my favorite thing to do right now is to just wet my face and massage a tiny bit of the chandan powder on and then rinse it off and apply the jojoba/sandalwood oil (aura cacia) to my damp skin. my skin is liking this much more than the castor oil and hopefully this will make my eyelashes grow like the castor oil WAS supposed to - i never did see results on my eyelashes from the castor oil

OH - the miracle whip facial is a facial where you use Kraft Miracle Whip Salad Dressing on your face for a light peel. you just smooth it on and leave it for 10 minutes and then rub your skin and little balls of dead skin mixed with MW come off. it works great - but for me it started giving me clogged pores from all the rubbing. btw you have to use real miracle whip - mayo doesn't work for some reason

[Xena]

Heya!

I have clogged pores too :( Not that many of the black ones... its like having a lot of sebum under the skin and I try to remove that from time to time.. The result is red dots and they break out (I guess trying to remove em makes all worse ;))

So maybe I shouldnt do the MW method if it causes more clogged pores! I thought peeling helps to get rid of it! But maybe im wrong..

Soooo... did the oil absorb or did you need to wash your hair again?

[ratgirldjh]

i ended up having to wash my hair again - the chia seeds were definitely tangled in my hair.

i think that the MW facial is fine and helps remove blackheads as long as you don't rub too much - i think the reason i was getting clogged pores is that i got over zealous and started adding another layer of MW and doing it again immediately after the first treatment - and that meant that i was rubbing my skin for like an hour to get all the dead skin off.

i think once a week is good and then i use the chandan powder every day for light exfoliation
and i have noticed much less clogged pores since i started doing it this way
sometimes after i rinse off the MW i will add some chandan on my fingers and rub the rest of the dead skin off