Homemade Hair Care – Cheaper and Better

Whether you want to stay away from dubious-sounding chemicals or just want to save a few dollars, applying these homemade hair care tips can do both or either. It’s been noted in more than a few publications that some of the ingredients such as propylene glycol, cetearyl alcohol, methyl- or propylparaben, distearate, and isopropyl alcohol (to name a few), can not only be hard on the hair, but actually toxic to the entire body.

It’s also pretty widely known that what is actually costing hair-care product manufacturers pennies to make is inflated sometimes hundreds of times by the time the product makes it to the marketplace. In other words, what you’re paying for is not the shampoo, conditioner, coloring, etc.

You are actually paying for the overhead to produce whatever product it is you’re purchasing – the laboratory where it is formulated (plus the salaries of the chemists, fragrance “experts,” and others), the plant where it is manufactured, the employees of those plants, the advertising (which is out of this world!), the bottles, the labels, the shipping of the product(s), and on and on and on… So why not make at least some of these products yourself?

Good-For-You Shampoo

Here’s a homemade hair care recipe for shampoo that’s easy to make: Gather together powdered MSM (MSM is methylsulfonylmethane, which is a compound of organic sulphur, that can be found at vitamin or health-food shops and some drug stores or pharmacies), sage, lavender, nettles, rosemary, and castile soap.

For eight ounces of shampoo, you need 2000 mg. of the MSM, 4 ounces of the soap, and ½ ounce of the herbs.

Using a heatproof bowl, such as one made of metal or Pyrex glass, crush and mix the herbs into it and add 2 cups boiling water. You can use distilled water, if you don’t want chemicals from ordinary tap water in the mixture. Allow the herbs to steep for half an hour.

Add the MSM, stir to melt and to mix, and allow to sit for another half hour. In a double boiler or in the microwave, melt the castile soap and after it has cooled, use a funnel, if necessary, to pour into a clean plastic bottle.

Strain the herb/MSM mixture and add to the soap. You now have a terrific-smelling shampoo that’s not only good for your hair, but for your entire body – for a fraction of the cost of a commercial preparation, especially if you grow your own herbs, which is incredibly easy to do.

Conditioner for Pennies

For homemade hair care conditioner, try this: Mash or mix in the blender one avocado, a tablespoon of aloe, a tablespoon of lemon juice, and a teaspoon of salt (regular or sea salt). Massage into hair all the way to the ends.

Wrap your hair in plastic wrap then heat a towel in the microwave and wrap that around your hair, as well. Leave on for one-half hour. Rinse, shampoo, and rinse once more for lustrous, chemical-free hair that’s easy to comb out and beautifully soft and shiny.

So save yourself some money and some toxic exposure by trying these homemade hair care creations. With a little imagination and Internet research, you can easily come up with more on your own. And every time you think of buying some pricey bottle of shampoo or conditioner at the store, keep in mind the ad exec’s salary you’re really paying for!