Natural Deep Conditioning Treatment?

[long.again]

What can I use to deep condition my hair besides shea butter and oils (and besides "real" conditioners - I'm allergic)? I was thinking a mix of honey, avocado and banana. You think that would work? I used to use Mayo but it smells so bad and is really hard to get out of your hair.

[kdaniels8811]

I heard banana is really difficult to get out of your hair. What about coconut milk? If you do a search, I know there were some threads about that. Also snowy's moisture treatment with honey and aloe works very well. And catnip tea... This will give you some things to look up. Good luck!

[long.again]

I'm allergic to aloe. :( And I'm using catnip tea but I need some sort of deep conditioner for my ends. I should really just cut them but I'm not quite ready for that. I'll do another board search and see what I can find. Thanks for the tip about banana!

[kdaniels8811]

Coconut milk has lots of moisture so that may do the trick for you. Let me know how it works, I am afraid it would make my hair greasy. Maybe try the moisture treatment with conditioner/honey/oil instead of aloe? I know it did wonders for my dry ends. Do you have the recipe?

[xeternalsilence]

I actually didn't have a problem getting banana out of my hair, but I know that a lot of people do. Just make sure you mush it up really, really, really, really well. Haha.

Banana and honey give me beautiful curls and make my hair really soft. :p

[Deborah]

I use coconut oil in many ways, but coconut MILK was the absolute PITS for my fine hair. It left the hair dry, tangly and just awful. Your mileage may vary of course. :) I just thought I'd toss in the caveat.

[LawyerGirl]

Banana baby food is easier to get out XD

[SpecialKitty]

mayonnaise works nicely, as does honey and olive oil, and I would think avocado would be good too. Last time I did a mayo treatment, I used Spectrum Organic Mayo - lovely results!!! (you get the protein from the egg, and the conditioning from the oil).

[Heidi_234]

You might want to try something with yogurt.
Or check out conditioning herbs like cassia, amla, zizyphus, fenugreek (there are probably some more...).
Or maybe you can find organic conditioner that you won't be allergic to? Nature's Gate (http://www.natures-gate.com/shop/showcatalog.asp?Next=1) claim to use only organic ingredients, or maybe this Hair Salve cream by NightBlooming (http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21331573)?
HTH :flower:

[catfish]

How about molasses, yogurt, maple syrup, avocado baby food or banana bay food ( as one poster mentioned is way easier to wash out)

[Carolyn]

I had a horrible time getting mashed banana out of my hair. And my hair stunk so bad of banana :puke: Since then I've tried plain yogurt, olive oil, honey, and aloe. I see you need to skip the aloe. You could also add other oils, or coconut milk. Since you like shea butter you could throw some of that in too.

[Lile]

If you need something for your ends(like me....I don't want to cut them till I haven't tried everything to save them...:-),use some glycerin!

I dilute it to 1 part in 10 in catnip tea,and it makes my stiff ends really soft.

There are some more posts about it here:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=17778

[Lile]

oh!And it also gives a very nice shine to the ends!It's like a catnip tea reloaded:-)

[janeytilllie]

I have tried many different natural conditioners. My personal faves are :

*Mashed avocado with melted coconut oil This is great for dry hair :D
*Honey ( Be sure to apply to damp hair because applying it dry makes it really sticky and knotty)
* Coconut milk This is also wonderful for dry hair, I use full fat
* Bannanna
* Egg Yolk my hair loved this but it may not be good for people who do not like protein on hair.
* molasses is lovely but I hate the smell.
* Vinegar is a great leave in conditoner the smell does go
HTH :)

[long.again]

I have been doing oil lately, twice a day and for sure after my shower. My hair is soft and shinny. But when I rub the hairs together (like I grab my ends and squeeze) the hair doesn't slide against each other like at the roots. I'm thinking it's less of a conditioning issue and more of a damage issue. In which case, I can only take care of the hair I already have and wait for it to grow so that I can cut off all the damage.

[ktani]

oh!And it also gives a very nice shine to the ends!It's like a catnip tea reloaded:-)

I never liked glycerin in catnip tea. I just did not get as good results, even with very little of it added. What does work for me, with catnip, is leaving it on longer, bagged. About an hour. No dry ends. No split ends. Very little breakage.

[lailmil]

Lile, do you use it before or as a rinse?

[Lile]

I use it as a leav-in. I guess it would work fine with whatever water based as well.I'm not sure about the benefits of catnip tea alone on my ends yet,but I love it on my scalp without glycerin.My ends definitely need something more conditioning than pure tea.

[lailmil]

thaks for explanation :)

[ktani]

thaks for explanation :)

After almost 4 years of using and experimenting with catnip tea (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=118), I have found that it works best for me, when it is rinsed out, and with nothing added to it.

[lailmil]

so I'll try (as ever, everything is sobjective, as honey, conditioners, oils...)

[Heidi_234]

so I'll try (as ever, everything is sobjective, as honey, conditioners, oils...)
Talking about oil, I totally forgot the hot oil treatment!
Take EVOO for example (I tried it with different oils from the kitchen and it worked as well), heat it (not in the microwave! rice pot works for me, filling a pot with water and placing the vessel with the oil above so that the hot steam heats the oil could do the trick). When it's hot, but not way too hot to burn your fingers, work it into your hair, esp the length, wrap with saran wrap and a towel/hoodie to keep it warm, and wait for an hour or more. Hop into the shower, wash as usual, and enjoy your newly conditioned hair. That's my dryness 101 treatment.
HTH :flower:

[long.again]

If you need something for your ends(like me....I don't want to cut them till I haven't tried everything to save them...:-),use some glycerin!

I dilute it to 1 part in 10 in catnip tea,and it makes my stiff ends really soft.

There are some more posts about it here:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=17778

Thank you! I use catnip tea as my rinse and often as a leave in. It's great but my dead ends need a little more. I made some of your catnip tea reloaded (using ktani's catnip tea recipe), but while the tea was cooling I added 30 mL veggie glycerin. I put it on just my ends and it's perfect! No more crunchy feeling - just what my hair needed. Thank you.

I'm also doing a patch test with aloe vera gel to see if I'm still allergic. I haven't used it in over 10 years and I'm hoping I've grown out of the reaction.

PS. My 3 year old son just saw the cheese smilie and said, "That cheese is going crazy."

[Lile]

Thank you! I use catnip tea as my rinse and often as a leave in. It's great but my dead ends need a little more. I made some of your catnip tea reloaded (using ktani's catnip tea recipe), but while the tea was cooling I added 30 mL veggie glycerin. I put it on just my ends and it's perfect! No more crunchy feeling - just what my hair needed. Thank you.

I'm also doing a patch test with aloe vera gel to see if I'm still allergic. I haven't used it in over 10 years and I'm hoping I've grown out of the reaction.

PS. My 3 year old son just saw the cheese smilie and said, "That cheese is going crazy."

I'm happy I could help!And I'm also happy to find the idea of glycerin here on LHC.This is the best for my ends so far!!!

[Heidi_234]

I wonder if honey can have the same effect as glycerin, they both moisturize the same way as much as I understand.

[Lile]

I wonder if honey can have the same effect as glycerin, they both moisturize the same way as much as I understand.

If you give it a try,let me know about the results!:cheese:Honey is just so sticky.More than glycerin...maybe I'm wrong.

[ktani]

And I'm also happy to find the idea of glycerin here on LHC.This is the best for my ends so far!!!

I am glad that the glycerin and catnip work for you. I never found glycerin heplful for my hair or skin in anything. I tried it with rosewater too but it just did not give me what I needed. I have a friend who swears by it for several things for her skin.

[long.again]

I wonder if honey can have the same effect as glycerin, they both moisturize the same way as much as I understand.

If heating the honey can really stop it's lightening effects, I'd be willing to give it a try but I really don't want my hair any lighter. If it's totally diluted, would is still be as sticky?

[Heidi_234]

If heating the honey can really stop it's lightening effects, I'd be willing to give it a try but I really don't want my hair any lighter. If it's totally diluted, would is still be as sticky?
Microwaving the honey will kill the enzymes that are responsible for the hydrogen peroxide production in the honey, you have nothing to worry about. Not to mention that the recipe (say 9 parts catnip tea to 1 part honey or even less) is too diluted and acidic for the honey to produce the peroxide. Even in the optimal condition, the correct recipe, dilutions, lightening boosters I found it not very lightening on my hair (of course YMMV, but considering you'd be doing anything not to let the peroxide form I think you're safe from lightening effects).
Also, well diluted honey should not be sticky, definitely not on wet hair, as much as I know.

[ktani]

Microwaving the honey will kill the enzymes that are responsible for the hydrogen peroxide production in the honey, you have nothing to worry about. Not to mention that the recipe (say 9 parts catnip tea to 1 part honey or even less) is too diluted and acidic for the honey to produce the peroxide. Even in the optimal condition, the correct recipe, dilutions, lightening boosters I found it not very lightening on my hair (of course YMMV, but considering you'd be doing anything not to let the peroxide form I think you're safe from lightening effects).
Also, well diluted honey should not be sticky, definitely not on wet hair, as much as I know.

Honey can still produce peroxide in more acidic conditions. Microwaving it is best, 30 seconds to under 1 minute.

[Heidi_234]

Honey can still produce peroxide in more acidic conditions. Microwaving it is best, 30 seconds to under 1 minute.
Right, thanks for clarifying. I assumed that more acidic environment is just less optimal for peroxide releasing, but of course nuking the honey would make it definite.

[ktani]

Right, thanks for clarifying. I assumed that more acidic environment is just less optimal for peroxide releasing, but of course nuking the honey would make it definite.

You are most welcome! And you are right, it is less optimal but still possible.

[Caterpillar]

my ends are splitting like crazy :(:mad: i've stoped using blow dryer, never wear a pony tail...and it still happens.blah. mabye it's all that nicotine, sugar, caffeine... As conditioner I use olive oil(+honey,or egg) or walnut oil. I was thinking to start using products from Lush. do you have any experience with that?

[Lile]

my ends are splitting like crazy :(:mad: i've stoped using blow dryer, never wear a pony tail...and it still happens.blah. mabye it's all that nicotine, sugar, caffeine... As conditioner I use olive oil(+honey,or egg) or walnut oil. I was thinking to start using products from Lush. do you have any experience with that?

I have some.Not too much though...I was using their coconut oil shampoo bar,and melon conditioner.Both were very good on my hair.The conditioner is easy to overload,because of the cocoa butter I guess.So I had to rinse it out carefully.
The shampoo was nice too.I really liked it,till I discovered that another one,just a nice health food store one was much better for my scalp.I think it might be because the lush coconut shampoo contains sulfates,and the other one I got later was very mild compared to that one.So I switched to the milder one.
But the coconut shampoo was definetely a good choice after using the normal drug store shampoos,nice shiney soft hair.....quite pricey though.
I would love it more without SLS

[long.again]

my ends are splitting like crazy :(:mad: i've stoped using blow dryer, never wear a pony tail...and it still happens.blah. mabye it's all that nicotine, sugar, caffeine... As conditioner I use olive oil(+honey,or egg) or walnut oil. I was thinking to start using products from Lush. do you have any experience with that?

Definitely check out catnip. It's great for split ends: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=118 or ask ktani about it.

Also, consider that you might be using too much protein (egg). If I use egg too frequently it makes my hair feel really brittle.

[Caterpillar]

thnx ;) I'll look for it tomorrow.