Protein Treatments

[texangrrl]

What does everyone do for protein treatments? I'm a bit clueless when it comes to this stuff...:confused:

[texangrrl]

Also, I'm looking for natural treatments, not chemical or synthetic. Thanks!! :)

[meteor]

1) Gelatin - http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2014/04/gelatin-protein-treatment-recipe-update.html
2) Beer - http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2012/04/what-cookin-vegetarian-protein.html
3) Soy sauce

These are the only natural hydrolyzed protein treatments that I know of.
Potentially, some proteins in yogurt might be small enough to penetrate hair, too, but I'm not sure, actually.

And I highly recommend gelatin diluted in warm/hot water and mixed with conditioner as a pretty solid natural hydrolyzed protein treatment.

Proteins in things like egg whites are definitely too large to penetrate hair.

Also, there are LOTS of excellent conditioners/masques/treatments with hydrolyzed proteins, and I highly recommend looking for those. as well... even though you were looking for "natural" solutions.

[Long_hair_bear]

Not natural, but babyface pure protein works well for me. I use it once every couple months.

[serin blackwood]

Use Braggs Aminos instead of soy sauce to avoid added salt and colorings. You can also buy things like pure silk aminos, hydrolysed oats and wheat, keratin, collagen and other proteins that you can add to your natural recipes from places like these:

http://www.ingredientstodiefor.com/category/Proteins/c7/

http://www.lotioncrafter.com/lotioncrafter-premium-ingredients-proteins-derivatives/

[Ingrid]

I use gelatin, and I must say it's been wonderful for my damaged hair. I don't use it on the scalp and my un-dyed hair, but I've used it on the dyed ends/lengths with great success. It's made my damaged hair feel -almost- undamaged and very manageable. Every strand feels like it's more resilient, less prone to splits, less dry and has more weight. I love gelatin!!

[leilani]

1) Gelatin - http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2014/04/gelatin-protein-treatment-recipe-update.html
2) Beer - http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2012/04/what-cookin-vegetarian-protein.html
3) Soy sauce



I tried a tablespoon of soy sauce in an SMT last night and it improved my SMT experience.

I have tried beer rinses and beer in a spray bottle as a shine/volume/hairspray mix and it worked great but not sure if it worked as a protein treatment.
Tried gelatin with hot water and then added acv and honey and a bit of avg and saturated my hair with it and blow dried until it was slightly stiff (not totally dry/hard) and then rinsed it out, and that was great. smoothing individual strands after that felt like petting smooth glass, compared to previous slight uneven surface feeling. I think it was a good idea and I will keep doing it every two weeks. You can do that for just pennies, too, if you already have the rest of the recipe handy, and if you don't, just gelatin and hot water is probably fine, or with just a few drops of acv, or like meteor said, mix it with conditioner for easier applying and to lower the pH. I bought the gelatin for like two dollars and it will last forever. I can't bring myself to buy pricey hair products at the store which claim protein/repairing boost anymore, now that I know I can do a treatment at home for about three cents per treatment! haha

[jaquelines]

Also tried Babyface. Works very niceley. Be careful to use it with a rich moisturizing conditioner (and without protein). I personally use it with Aubrey HSR.

Not natural, but babyface pure protein works well for me. I use it once every couple months.

[Firefox7275]

Gelatin is the only really rich natural source of hydrolysed protein. Recipe on the Sciencey Hairblog.

[serin blackwood]

Gelatin is the only really rich natural source of hydrolysed protein. Recipe on the Sciencey Hairblog.

Well, Wendy herself mentions beer (the foam contains proteins resulting from the fermentation process) on her Science-y Hair blog, but in private correspondence she has told me that yogurt also contains small enough proteins to penetrate hair (again, due to fermentation which breaks down the amino acids in a similar manner to hydrolyzing), soy sauce or Braggs aminos, and also yeast ferments like nutritional yeast or Engevita. Another source she agreed had small enough proteins is hydrolyzed whey protein which can be found as unflavoured supplements in sports nutrition shops.
The hydrolyzed silk, collagen, oats etc. that I linked to in post # are from natural sources as well, but for a purist who wants to avoid anything overly "processed", these other food sources are worth trying.

[texangrrl]

I tried a tablespoon of soy sauce in an SMT last night and it improved my SMT experience.

I have tried beer rinses and beer in a spray bottle as a shine/volume/hairspray mix and it worked great but not sure if it worked as a protein treatment.
Tried gelatin with hot water and then added acv and honey and a bit of avg and saturated my hair with it and blow dried until it was slightly stiff (not totally dry/hard) and then rinsed it out, and that was great. smoothing individual strands after that felt like petting smooth glass, compared to previous slight uneven surface feeling. I think it was a good idea and I will keep doing it every two weeks. You can do that for just pennies, too, if you already have the rest of the recipe handy, and if you don't, just gelatin and hot water is probably fine, or with just a few drops of acv, or like meteor said, mix it with conditioner for easier applying and to lower the pH. I bought the gelatin for like two dollars and it will last forever. I can't bring myself to buy pricey hair products at the store which claim protein/repairing boost anymore, now that I know I can do a treatment at home for about three cents per treatment! haha

What is SMT?

[texangrrl]

1) Gelatin - http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2014/04/gelatin-protein-treatment-recipe-update.html
2) Beer - http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2012/04/what-cookin-vegetarian-protein.html
3) Soy sauce

These are the only natural hydrolyzed protein treatments that I know of.
Potentially, some proteins in yogurt might be small enough to penetrate hair, too, but I'm not sure, actually.

And I highly recommend gelatin diluted in warm/hot water and mixed with conditioner as a pretty solid natural hydrolyzed protein treatment.

Proteins in things like egg whites are definitely too large to penetrate hair.

Also, there are LOTS of excellent conditioners/masques/treatments with hydrolyzed proteins, and I highly recommend looking for those. as well... even though you were looking for "natural" solutions.

Do you know how long to leave the gelatin treatment in? The article doesn't mention that, but I think I'm going to try this method.

[texangrrl]

Nevermind on the SMT question. I just seen a thread addressing that!! I'd edit that post and leave that question out if I could, but I haven't figured out how to edit posts yet. Lol.

[meteor]

Do you know how long to leave the gelatin treatment in? The article doesn't mention that, but I think I'm going to try this method.
I left it in for about 20-30 minutes (mostly because I check my mail and do some work with the treatment on) but 5-10 minutes is good enough too!

The blogger says this about the amount of time to leave it in:
"- 3-5 minutes with heat for a moderately strong protein treatment.
- 10-30 minutes (up to 60 minutes) with or without heat for a strong protein treatment.
- Blow-dry for extra strong protein treatment. Apply the gelatin gel and blow dry your hair on medium to high heat until dry (don't bend it - it will be crunchy and solid). Then rinse and don't touch until your hair is less hard. If your hair is snapping off, this method may be perfect for you!"
Good luck! :D

[texangrrl]

I left it in for about 20-30 minutes (mostly because I check my mail and do some work with the treatment on) but 5-10 minutes is good enough too!

The blogger says this about the amount of time to leave it in:
"- 3-5 minutes with heat for a moderately strong protein treatment.
- 10-30 minutes (up to 60 minutes) with or without heat for a strong protein treatment.
- Blow-dry for extra strong protein treatment. Apply the gelatin gel and blow dry your hair on medium to high heat until dry (don't bend it - it will be crunchy and solid). Then rinse and don't touch until your hair is less hard. If your hair is snapping off, this method may be perfect for you!"
Good luck! :D

Ok, thank you!! I think I'm going to try for about 10 or 15 minutes without heat and see how my hair is after that. I've heard that too much protein can be a bad thing too!

[cdonald2]

THe best protein I have used is aphogee 2 step, but that isnt all natural.

[meteor]

Ok, thank you!! I think I'm going to try for about 10 or 15 minutes without heat and see how my hair is after that. I've heard that too much protein can be a bad thing too!

Cool! Good luck! :D
I just wanted to add that protein treatments are particularly useful for people with damaged/porous hair. People with fine and curly hair are also likely to benefit from them.
Whenever I do protein treatments (rarely, like once every 3 months or so), I focus specifically on my highlighted ends, because that's where the patch-repair is needed.
And yes, it's wise to start with a small dose of protein (well-diluted gelatin) and leave it on for shorter amount of time first, just to be safe and work from there.

[texangrrl]

Cool! Good luck! :D
I just wanted to add that protein treatments are particularly useful for people with damaged/porous hair. People with fine and curly hair are also likely to benefit from them.
Whenever I do protein treatments (rarely, like once every 3 months or so), I focus specifically on my highlighted ends, because that's where the patch-repair is needed.
And yes, it's wise to start with a small dose of protein (well-diluted gelatin) and leave it on for shorter amount of time first, just to be safe and work from there.

Thanks! I can't seem to locate any xanthan gum around here (I live in a rural area), so I'm going to have to order it online and wait for it to come in, lol.

[meteor]

By the way, xanthan gum is nice but totally unnecessary! :) The protein treatment is done by gelatin alone.
I love mixing well a sachet of Knox gelatin in half a cup of hot water, then adding highly moisturizing conditioner to the mix. You can add other goodies to this, like honey (humectants work amazingly well with protein) and oils. I have the best results when my protein treatment is part of a modified SMT:
- conditioner
- honey
- oils
- gelatin

Please modify the way that you feel may benefit your hair the most! :) For example, if you know your hair is on the dry side and is hard to moisturize, add more humectants (honey, aloe, glycerine,...). If your hair tends to get grabby, brittle, tangly, add more oils or use a silicone conditioner.
And start with small concentrations of hydrolyzed protein, because it's easy to overdo.

[texangrrl]

Hmmm, if the xanthan gum isn't necessary, then I think I'm going to try this tonight with aloe.

[meteor]

Hmmm, if the xanthan gum isn't necessary, then I think I'm going to try this tonight with aloe.

Great! :D I hope this will work well for you! And if your hair likes natural oils, you can add a few drops to a teaspoon of oils into the mixture to help with emollience. Totally up to you!
Best of luck for your treatment! :flower:

[Catatafish]

After reading this thread I was thinking that using trub (the yeast sediment at the bottom of the bucket after fermentation of beer) might be a useful protein treatment. I think I'll start a thread and investigate!

I used the gelatin treatment from the blog on Sunday and loved it.