I have to admit after some of the homemade recommendations I’ve tried, I’m much more skeptical now than I was a few years ago. When Simple Mom shared how she uses baking soda instead of shampoo, I’ll admit I tried it and was not pleased at all with the results. Instead, I stick to my Trader Joe’s brand shampoo which isn’t the greatest but fits both my budget and does the job without a lot of health hazards (the Cosmetic Safety Database gives is moderate hazard rating). I have considered going to simple castile soap, but I haven’t looked enough into it yet. So I still have a commercial shampoo and really don’t want to give that up quite yet.
A Discovery
Then, somewhere along my internet travels, I came across a blog with a post on making your own hair conditioner. Homemade hair conditioner, I thought. Is it going to be as bad as the baking soda? I read the post, which basically summed up what most posts on the subject say, that apple cider vinegar is slightly acidic like human hair and that it works wonders on hair’s shine and manageability. At the time of reading this, I had waist-length hair that seriously needed some manageability and shine, so I was intrigued.
Unexpected Results
It took me months to try the concoction the writer recommended. But when I finally did, I was pleasantly surprised. My hair was softer, silkier, shinier and did not have fly-aways. My homemade hair rinse worked!
I did have to play around with it a bit, though. The strong smell of the apple cider vinegar needed to be subdued for my tastes since it was so strong in a hot shower. After a few months of altering the recipe, I can now heartily recommend my version of the apple cider vinegar hair rinse to you.
The Recipe
1 cup apple cider vinegar (I prefer organic if you can get it)
15-20 drops of your favorite essential oil (I’ve been using lavender, but you can easily substitute rosemary, orange, eucalyptus, rose, whatever floats your boat)
1/2 – 1 tsp of vanilla extract (to ease the harshness of the vinegar smell)
I pour the apple cider vinegar into an old glass maple syrup jug I’m reusing, then add the vanilla and the essential oil. Close the jar or container and shake thoroughly.
In the shower, I gather my hair into a loose bun at the nape of my neck. I shake the jug of apple cider vinegar hair rinse well then slowly pour little by little onto the top of the bun until I feel it in my hand which is holding the bottom of the bun. I close the jug (it has a plastic flip lid, one of the reasons I chose it) and let the apple cider vinegar rinse sit in my hair for 30 to 60 seconds. Then I rinse thoroughly.
Important note: your hair will smell like the apple cider vinegar somewhat until it fully dries. Once dry, it just smells clean and like the essential oil you added.
This recipe gives me about a month’s worth of rinse as each time I probably only use a few tablespoons of the concoction in my hair. I’m sure it helps that I only wash and condition my hair twice a week, but I have no problems managing my now mid-back length hair. In fact, it works better than any commercial hair conditioner I’ve ever used. As you can see in the picture, my hair is shiny and healthy-looking!
So, is a homemade hair rinse something you’d be willing to try?
Cover image courtesy of ralphunden.
I use the baking soda wash. It is a real pain in the butt to use until you’re used to it. I have noticed a total difference! Going natural is definitely worth it.
I had troubles with mine going super dry ’cause I have dry scalp. I never would have thought it was dry before. I have only a few inches left of hair that is left from before going no ‘poo.
If your hair is dry like mine I’d recommend some deep conditioning as well. The cider rinse works decent..it gets super shiny, but mine needs extra attention, at least until the rest of the super dry stuff is gone.
I was just never able to get used to it. I’m always on the lookout for natural shampoo alternatives though if you have any recommendations.
But the apple cider vinegar rinse is fantastic! I recommend it to anyone who will listen.
I have a hard time combing my hair out. I have very dry hair and have been using an organic hair conditioner that just seems to dry it out more and makes it a chore to comb out. Will this make my hair more easier to comb out as well?
Yes, it definitely helped in the detangling department. What conditioner are you using? Personally, I’ve started to use a homemade oil mix (1 part coconut, 1 part olive, 1 part grapeseed oil) as a once-a-month deep conditioner with amazing results. Seriously helps my dry/damaged hair!
That’s awesome, I’m going to try it today. I’m currently using a conditioner by Avalon Organics and I don’t like it at all. Really dries out my hair to the point where I’m just ripping out my hair to get a comb through it, very frustrating.
Well, I just used this in the shower and it made my hair so dry that I had to use conditioner after. I still had a hard time combing out my hair. I washed my hair with an organic shampoo (Avalon Organics) and then squeezed all the water out of my hair, piled my hair up and slowly poured the vinegar mixture over my hair. I added 1 tsp. of vanilla and 20 drops of lavender essential oil in with the vinegar. The vinegar still took my breath away, I started coughing…lol My hair still feels like before, dry and fly away. So, what did I do wrong or am I expecting too much?