I love hair conditioners! The benefits are outstanding and you see results right away. There are conditioners for every hair need and desired outcome.  Dry, over processed, damaged hair or or hair that needs shine and luster. You can obviously find a product for each hair situation or you can do what I do and that’s get in the kitchen and mix up natural products right in the fridge or cupboard.  For years I have come across edible items and I have heard people talk about how great certain foods work in your hair. Through trial and error, I’ve discovered great recipes!

After washing or co washing I get in the kitchen and act like a chef- BAM!

One of my favorite staple items is egg yolk. I start almost each mixture with a raw egg or two.  During the week I eat eggs nearly everyday, I will hold back a yolk here and there and cover  in the fridge for my hair day. I also love adding a ripe banana, the baby bananas in particular are very nice. avocado is also a nice item to add with or without banana. Lately I have done a good amount of research on royal jelly and have found that it works wonders for shine and reduction of hair breakage. Its is also known for hair growth. Royal jelly, aka “bees milk” is produced by the worker bees and is a major source for of nutrition for the queen bee. This is a game changer for hair! You will need to heat it up but be careful because it burns immediately. I usually grab a big blob and in a separate small bowl I throw it in the microwave for literally 2 seconds. Then I add it to the mixture. I love to squeeze a hit of amino acids because it is made of protein like our hair. I use Braggs Aminos and I also use a couple tablespoons of Braggs Apple Cider in my mixture as well to help with clarifying. Aloe gel is great for strength. I never mix up a conditioner without adding some sort of oil, I go between olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, grape seed oil, wheat germ oil,  whatever oil I decide to use, it’s about a tablespoon or two. Depending on the consistency of my mixture, I might add some of my over the counter conditioner. I like doing this for added conditioning benefits as well as fragrance.  I like my hair to smell fresh and clean and some of the natural products don’t provide that benefit. Depending on the texture of the mixture I may be able to hand mix into a creamy, non lumpy consistency, if the banana or avocado I added is ripe to softness hand mixing is usually fine.  However if you find that the consistency still has lumps you can throw it into a blender or some other kind of mixer. For me, I want to not waste my DIY mixture so I hand mix and when applying to my hair I will squish it into my hair with my hands. Once all mixture is applied I will take the time to mix it well and make sure to massage it into my scalp. Sometimes I will incorporate the inversion method by simply massaging while upside down. This will help circulate the blood flow to your scalp, but be careful when coming up,  it can make you somewhat dizzy!

Be careful to not overdue the protein since too much protein can have adverse effects. I tend to alternate using the egg if I see my hair becoming too dry. Balancing with moisture is the key and ultimate goal along with keeping your hair well hydrated and porous which is allowing water to penetrate into the hair shaft.

Taking time to love your hair will payoff for days to come

I bag it with a plastic cap or an old plastic bag from the grocery store and follow that with a towel turban or something else that will retain heat and keep the mixture from leaking. I hate when I feel the sticky mixture slide down the base of my neck, it happens so I keep paper towels handy. Sitting under the dryer is an option but at this point I either clean the house, exercise, talk on the phone or do whatever tickles my fancy for as long as I wish. The mixture should stays moist, every now and then I massage through the towel just to make sure every stand is getting covered. When you decide to rinse out it’s better to start off with warmer water so that the mixture will rinse out easier. Take time to enjoy the rinsing process as this is still penetrating into the hair shaft. Slowly sneak in the cooler water to start closing the cuticle.  Once it’s all out it’s not a bad idea to use a detangling conditioner to help the comb out any tangles.  Style as desired. You will find that the drying process is quicker and your hair is more manageable.  This hair conditioning method is cumulative meaning that the more you do this as a routine, the better your hair will benefit and look.