Indian hair care methods

[Sookie]

Hello all! I wanna start the indian hair care method! But i need some help! Too much information and i don't know how to start! I read the article.
1) So first i shall begin the washing method! Aritha or Shikai? Mixed with a conditioning blend so it won't dry my hair, right?
2) Should the washing blend be in a mud form or in a tea form? What is the difference between them?
5)After the washing i will use a conditioning herb or blend. Should this be like a rinse? Is it ok if i mix it with a western herb like catnip?
4) How much should i oil my hair before the wash? I read in the article 1/2 teaspoon is ok.
5)How should i oil my hair? Every day or every other day so it won't get build up? And how much should i use?

I am waiting forward your replies!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday my hairdresser choped my hair about 1 inch and a half...about 3 fingers. :(
I told her i only wanted 1 cm...because i was planning to do microtrims every month. I was so dissapointed and sad after the haircut :( I was BSL for the first time of my life and now i am 3 fingers back (APL) :(
So i decided i should take care the better i can my hair. So it won't get any splits ends again. No hairdresser again!!!

So please help me with this:D

[virgo75]

Hi Sookie;

There are 2 basics with Indian hair care methods: oiling & washing with herbs.
If I were you I would just start with these 2 then add or change anything if need be.

1)Oiling: separate hair into sections to make sure you get each section. Start with a dime size amount(or less if your hair gets oily easy) and distribute throughout hair starting with your ends and working your way up. Repeat in each section until you've oiled all your hair.

2)Herb washing: start small with a teaspoon of shikakai or aritha(I prefer shikakai) and mix with about 8 oz of hot water. Allow it steep and thicken for 30 minutes to 1 hour or more. Apply to roots first and smoosh through hair. Allow to sit on hair for a few minutes. Rinse thoroughly.

After you've tried that then you can start tweaking it to see what you need: more/less oil, conditioning herbs, tea vs mud, etc.

I've only used the mud so can't speak on using it as a tea and preferred shikakai over aritha because it helped to detangle and left my hair less frizzy. I've tried some conditioning herbs(brahmi, amla) and they made my hair frizz so I just used oil + shikakai alone. I only stopped because I could no longer find shikakai locally and when I ordered it online it was inferior to what I was used to. :(

Best of luck and my best advice is to start simple. :)

[Sookie]

Oh thank you so much Virgo! I will take your advice and i will try it! But how can i wash all this mud from my hair? Isn't supposed that it will stick? I don't wanna use conditioners(products in botles). I want to use only herbs.

[cmg]

If you swoosch your hair in the water instead of showering it with the nozzle, it will rinse out easier. You could use the tub for instance. I've never really had any trouble with these powders though. They are very fine and rinse out quite easy most of the time. Really cold water might be helpful.

[virgo75]

Oh thank you so much Virgo! I will take your advice and i will try it! But how can i wash all this mud from my hair? Isn't supposed that it will stick? I don't wanna use conditioners(products in botles). I want to use only herbs.


You're very welcome. :)

I always rinsed the herbs out bent over the bathtub using the bathtub faucet. I would rinse, then comb with a wide tooth shower comb, then rinse again. I would do that until I didn't see any more grains though there would still be a couple here or there that would come out once I combed my hair during my first combing after washing but nothing to the point of looking dirty or embarassing. If you have a detachable shower head, that might work as well. But I think using heavy, pouring water like from the faucet or maybe even using a big cup or bowl to pour the water over your hair would work better than the shower head.

I used them exclusively on my dry, curly hair for about 6 months straight. It only started to get a little dry in the winter time but I probably could have solved that by washing less or oiling more. I didn't really need conditioner or styling products(!) because the cleansing herb I used was so light it didn't strip my hair and it kept frizz down less than I've ever had it. And I didn't use any leave-ins either - just a little oil in between washings. It's why I keep wanting to go back to it: My hair and scalp were perfectly balanced and happy with only those 2 things(shikakai and coconut oil). But then Hesh had a product recall and I haven't found a good quality shikakai yet to replace it. :(

Best of luck with your hair. I hope it works for you as well if not better than it worked for me. :flower:

[Sookie]

Hahahaha i wish it will work for me also! I have a huge problem with split ends! I don't do anything to my hair and it gets split ends by itself.