Catnip for split ends?

[ktani]

I have been meaning to post this for days.

I was literally up to my elbows in hand washing this past weekend, and before I went to bed Sunday, the skin on my forearms looked flakey.

I took some catnip treatment leftovers I reserve for my skin and rubbed it over my forearms gently (by rubbing I simply mean applying, not rubbing in or rubbing vigorously).

I then rinsed it off, no timing.

I looked at my arms when they were dry. No visible flakes, none since then there, and my skin on both forearms is soft and smooth.

[Finchen]

I have been meaning to post this for days.

I was literally up to my elbows in hand washing this past weekend, and before I went to bed Sunday, the skin on my forearms looked flakey.

I took some catnip treatment leftovers I reserve for my skin and rubbed it over my forearms gently (by rubbing I simply mean applying, not rubbing in or rubbing vigorously).

I then rinsed it off, no timing.

I looked at my arms when they were dry. No visible flakes, none since then there, and my skin on both forearms is soft and smooth.

Very interesting, thanks for posting.

I am really looking forward to test Catnip, I should receive my order by next week.

[ktani]

Very interesting, thanks for posting.

I am really looking forward to test Catnip, I should receive my order by next week.

I look forward to hearing how it works out.

[Anje]

Catnip on hands... I'll have to try that, since my hands are looking flakey and might soon be at the bloody stage if I don't do something. Besides, my cats will be thrilled. (At least one of them LOVES the whole catnip tea thing, and has broken a mug or two by trying to roll in it already.)

[ktani]

Catnip on hands... I'll have to try that, since my hands are looking flakey and might soon be at the bloody stage if I don't do something. Besides, my cats will be thrilled. (At least one of them LOVES the whole catnip tea thing, and has broken a mug or two by trying to roll in it already.)

I do not wear gloves for my houswork and have gotten "detergent burn", the redness that remains after washing too much even using milder detergents.

Catnip on skin heals it very fast in my experience, with very little sting, which can happen on very irritated skin, but very rarely with catnip, and it does not last long (seconds).

The key is the dilution. Mine is for sensitive skin and dry hair. I never changed that from the start except minimally when I first found it, after much experimentation.

1 level tsp. cut and sifted dried catnip leaves and buds to just under 300 ml of boiled water, which is roughly about 10 fluid oz.

See the first page of this thread for more details.

I have changed the steeping time which also affects the solution to a degree, for hair mostly. I now steep the catnip for about 4.75 hours.

[allurose]

Hi all!
I'm trying one new thing per month, and this month it has been catnip. My goal is to only change one thing at a time so I can see what is really working and where the change comes from. I wanted to try catnip because of the split end protection, since I have a lot of trouble with that. It's only been two weeks, so the jury is still out, but here is what I've experienced so far...

I use Trader Joe's Moisturizing Shampoo on my scalp only, and then catnip for a 1 hour soak after that. I pour it through my hair and catch it in a bowl. I put the length in the bowl to soak and a shower cap over my scalp hair while I relax in the bath. I've been doing this every time I wash my hair, every 2-4 days depending on how I feel.

I was seriously shocked how "conditioned" my hair felt, even though I had not used any conditioner. I find detangling slightly more difficult than when I had used cone or noncone conditioner, but once the detangling is done my hair feels very silky and nice. I've asked several friends to play with it and they agree that it feels just as nice as before when I used regular conditioner.

However, since I've never gone without conditioner before, I can't say for sure that the moisturizing shampoo isn't causing this effect, or that my hair isn't just naturally this nice (lol, that would be awesome). So it could be 3 things: catnip, shampoo, or my hair that are contributing to the "conditioned" effect without traditional conditioner. Today I'm going to try a "control," by washing my hair with my shampoo only. I might do this a few times to give the catnip a chance to wash out so it is no longer a variable.

I did try putting some catnip on my face, mostly because my hands were wet with it and I thought, why not? It tingled just slightly as it dried. My skin felt nice, but the results were not dramatic.

My brewing time for catnip has varied. I tried 1 hour at first because I was scared about coloring. When that went well I tried a longer brewing time. It was supposed to be 5 hours, but I got distracted so it was a little longer. The results as far as conditioning seemed about the same, but the catnip tea smelled worse to me. I still didn't notice any coloring on my dark blonde/light brown natural hair or my bleached ends from long ago.

I can't tell if my split ends are stopping or not. I've been finding the same amount as before catnip, but they could easily be leftovers. I will need a much longer trial period to know how catnip is affecting my splits.

Pros of Catnip:
-CHEAP! This is not insignificant, and may weigh out all the cons just on it's own.
-appears to be resulting in silkyness and softness on par with traditional conditioner
-possibly could help with splits (to be determined)
-environmentally friendly compared to bought conditioner, possibly healthier as well since it doesn't have all those chemicals like some shampoo.

Cons:
-inconvenient to brew and apply. The waiting period with the brewing is making this routine very difficult for me. The time for soaking on my hair is not a problem because I usually relax in the bath for that long anyways, but it is annoying having my hair in a bowl the whole time. (I'm going to try misting continuously under a shower cap next).
-the smell when brewed for longer periods of time was pretty unpleasant, although none lingered on my hair afterwards.
-harder to detangle
-I can't stop playing with the silkyness!
-it's really annoying that catnip seems to be mutually exclusive. I want to try other things too, and that's hard if I want to follow ktani's advice and not use anything else with mucilage or that might coat the hair. I will experiment with this, since some people seem satisfied with mixing catnip with other things/methods.

Questions for other catnip experimenters:
-Has anyone other than ktani experienced a reduction in splits after long-term use?
-I want to try herb washes in place of shampoo to save on cost & environmental impact. Which herbs can I try that won't "coat" or interfere with the catnip?
-Similarly, I was also interested in coconut oil washes, but it seems like that would be anti-catnip. Has anyone tried this?
-How does catnip play with Cassia?
-ktani, Did you change anything else in your routine around the same time you started using catnip that might account for the lack of splits in your hair? Like stopped dying your grays? Obviously you did one other thing, which was stop using whatever conditioner you used before. That is at least two variables. I can see you are a very scientifically minded person (so awesome!), so I hope you'll understand I'm just trying to find what is working, not picking at your routine!

Long post is long!

[ktani]

Hi all!
I'm trying one new thing per month, and this month it has been catnip. My goal is to only change one thing at a time so I can see what is really working and where the change comes from. I wanted to try catnip because of the split end protection, since I have a lot of trouble with that. It's only been two weeks, so the jury is still out, but here is what I've experienced so far...

I use Trader Joe's Moisturizing Shampoo on my scalp only, and then catnip for a 1 hour soak after that. I pour it through my hair and catch it in a bowl. I put the length in the bowl to soak and a shower cap over my scalp hair while I relax in the bath. I've been doing this every time I wash my hair, every 2-4 days depending on how I feel.

I was seriously shocked how "conditioned" my hair felt, even though I had not used any conditioner. I find detangling slightly more difficult than when I had used cone or noncone conditioner, but once the detangling is done my hair feels very silky and nice. I've asked several friends to play with it and they agree that it feels just as nice as before when I used regular conditioner.

However, since I've never gone without conditioner before, I can't say for sure that the moisturizing shampoo isn't causing this effect, or that my hair isn't just naturally this nice (lol, that would be awesome). So it could be 3 things: catnip, shampoo, or my hair that are contributing to the "conditioned" effect without traditional conditioner. Today I'm going to try a "control," by washing my hair with my shampoo only. I might do this a few times to give the catnip a chance to wash out so it is no longer a variable.

I did try putting some catnip on my face, mostly because my hands were wet with it and I thought, why not? It tingled just slightly as it dried. My skin felt nice, but the results were not dramatic.

My brewing time for catnip has varied. I tried 1 hour at first because I was scared about coloring. When that went well I tried a longer brewing time. It was supposed to be 5 hours, but I got distracted so it was a little longer. The results as far as conditioning seemed about the same, but the catnip tea smelled worse to me. I still didn't notice any coloring on my dark blonde/light brown natural hair or my bleached ends from long ago.

I can't tell if my split ends are stopping or not. I've been finding the same amount as before catnip, but they could easily be leftovers. I will need a much longer trial period to know how catnip is affecting my splits.

Pros of Catnip:
-CHEAP! This is not insignificant, and may weigh out all the cons just on it's own.
-appears to be resulting in silkyness and softness on par with traditional conditioner
-possibly could help with splits (to be determined)
-environmentally friendly compared to bought conditioner, possibly healthier as well since it doesn't have all those chemicals like some shampoo.

Cons:
-inconvenient to brew and apply. The waiting period with the brewing is making this routine very difficult for me. The time for soaking on my hair is not a problem because I usually relax in the bath for that long anyways, but it is annoying having my hair in a bowl the whole time. (I'm going to try misting continuously under a shower cap next).
-the smell when brewed for longer periods of time was pretty unpleasant, although none lingered on my hair afterwards.
-harder to detangle
-I can't stop playing with the silkyness!
-it's really annoying that catnip seems to be mutually exclusive. I want to try other things too, and that's hard if I want to follow ktani's advice and not use anything else with mucilage or that might coat the hair. I will experiment with this, since some people seem satisfied with mixing catnip with other things/methods.

Questions:
-ktani, Did you change anything else in your routine around the same time you started using catnip that might account for the lack of splits in your hair? Like stopped dying your grays? Obviously you did one other thing, which was stop using whatever conditioner you used before. That is at least two variables. I can see you are a very scientifically minded person (so awesome!), so I hope you'll understand I'm just trying to find what is working, not picking at your routine!
-Has anyone other than ktani experienced a reduction in splits after long-term use?
-I want to try herb washes in place of shampoo to save on cost & environmental impact. Which herbs can I try that won't "coat" or interfere with the catnip?
-Similarly, I was also interested in coconut oil washes, but it seems like that would be anti-catnip. Has anyone tried this?
-How does catnip play with Cassia?

Long post is long!

I was not using conditioner at all before catnip. I was using herbal rinses only. I was not dying my hair, just trying to stain it with the rinses which did just not as well.

Yes, I started using shampoos that do not build-up. That allowed the catnip to get to my hair more easily.

I briefly experimented with conditioners again after starting catnip but only for very short times and I let them wash out gradually after I stopped using them.

I did not start this thread. I was invited into it and people kept asking me questions. (I also, at one point a good while back now, after pming the OP and offering to step out of the thread was given her blessing to continue). So, while others have posted about reduced split ends, I did not organize posts, nor can I point them out for you. I post my results here only and answer questions.

[allurose]

I was not using conditioner at all before catnip. I was using herbal rinses only. I was not dying my hair, just trying to stain it with the rinses which did just not as well.

Yes, I started using shampoos that do not build-up. That allowed the catnip to get to my hair more easily.

I briefly experimented with conditioners again after starting catnip but only for very short times and I let them wash out gradually after I stopped using them.

I did not start this thread. I was invited into it and people kept asking me questions. So, while others have posted about reduced split ends, I did not organize posts, nor can I point them out for you. I post my results here only and answer questions.

Thanks for your response. I'm sorry I gave the impression that I was trying to get you to find answers for me! I was trying to ask you specifically about your hair routine, but the other questions were for everybody. I can see how that wasn't clear, though, since the first question was specifically for you. I've changed my wording a little bit so that is more obvious. I don't expect you to hunt and find things! It sounds like I offended you with my previous post. Please know that this was a mistake and not my intention in any way. On the contrary, I very much admire your process and critical thinking that I have seen all over the forum. Thanks so much for all your input.

I didn't know you used to use herbal washes (I read the first 10 pages of the thread and all posts from the last year). That is very interesting, since it's my next step in the next few months, I think. Thanks for clearing up a couple things with me.

My hair is drying from the shampoo only wash and so far seems very nice and similar to the catnip conditioner feeling. This could be either catnip that is still on my hair or my hair itself (man that would be cool, lol). I'm going to have to repeat this a few more times until I can see if it's the catnip or not.

[ktani]

Thanks for your response. I'm sorry I gave the impression that I was trying to get you to find answers for me! I was trying to ask you specifically about your hair routine, but the other questions were for everybody. I can see how that wasn't clear, though, since the first question was specifically for you. I've changed my wording a little bit so that is more obvious. I don't expect you to hunt and find things! It sounds like I offended you with my previous post. Please know that this was a mistake and not my intention in any way. On the contrary, I very much admire your process and critical thinking that I have seen all over the forum. Thanks so much for all your input.

I didn't know you used to use herbal washes (I read the first 10 pages of the thread and all posts from the last year). That is very interesting, since it's my next step in the next few months, I think. Thanks for clearing up a couple things with me.

My hair is drying from the shampoo only wash and so far seems very nice and similar to the catnip conditioner feeling. This could be either catnip that is still on my hair or my hair itself (man that would be cool, lol). I'm going to have to repeat this a few more times until I can see if it's the catnip or not.

I did not in any way find anything you said offensive or demanding.

If I had organized this thread as I do with others I have started, I could easily find what you need in seconds.

That last part of my post, which I have since clarified while you were posting, was not entirely for you either.

There is history here that is best left where it is but that I never elaborated on for certain individuals who shall remain nameless.

This may help you, the catnip Article, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...&articleid=118.

[Finchen]

I just have Catnip tea in my hair.
Will wash it out in 30-45 min with the Ayurvedic Herb poo bar from CV.

I hope the Catnip will condition my hair.
I have used 1 tbsp in 250ml of destilled water.
It feels a bit warm on my scalp. Hope this is not a bad sign.