So, here are a few of my favorites:
First Aid Beauty Instant Oatmeal Mask: Super soothing and hydrating
Kiehl's Rare Earth Mud Mask: Pulls stuff out of your pores like other masks, but is gentle on your skin
Gelatin Face Mask: Yes, you can pore strip your entire face for when you really want to clean out those pores!
I thought I'd share something that I've been trying to find the way to write up for about... 9 or 10 months now. Really.
Surely you've seen the Pinterest Coconut Oil Hair Mask pins? The ones where girls have their amazingly long and healthy hair and claim that a little coconut oil cured their damaged areas, let their hair grow a few inches overnight and smelled like an Almond Joy? Yeah, me too.
I could not stop repinning the coconut oil hair pins over and over and over last summer. Especially after I fried my hair and damaged it so badly it felt like a brillo pad. I was pretty desperate. But, my husband hates coconut, and given how often he has to put up with nail polish fumes I was not going to make him suffer through coconut oil treatments too.
Luckily, I was going out of town for work, so I decided to take advantage of some alone time in a hotel room. Yes, I packed a bag full of beauty treatments, and each night was masking away!
Taking a handful of coconut oil, you simply slather it through your hair. I started at mid-shaft and worked my way down at first, but then since I was targeting damage that started about an inch from my roots in some areas, I went back up and covered those areas as well. I stayed away from my roots since I was concerned the oil with weigh my hair down and I'd have no volume left! I used enough coconut oil to cover my hair, each treatment took about 1/4 of the very big jar. I then combed it through with a long tooth comb and twisted my hair up and secured it with the clip. I covered my hair with the shower cap and then blasted it with a warm blow dryer for a few minutes to heat everything up. To hold the heat in, I twisted a towel around my head.
Once you have the towel in place, it is really up to you how long to leave it on. I read varying times from 30 minutes to overnight. Really?? I had no desire to leave the oily mess on my head while trying to sleep, so I left it on about 2-3 hours, I did 3 treatments total (every other night, I was out of town for 5 days). I then showered and washed my hair before going to sleep. I had to wash 2-3 times each night to ensure that all of the oil was out of my hair.
Did it work? Well.... not so much. It was kind of messy and I did have less volume in my hair for a little while. It helped a bit with the fried hair, but no where near as much as these conditioners, and then later on I discovered DermOrganic's Hair Masque and the new L'Oreal hair mask, both of which made a huge difference in the damaged areas of my hair in a much shorter period of time.
Did I do something wrong? I wonder if the coconut oil was better for healthier hair, and wouldn't really work for the damaged areas that I was trying to treat. Have you tried coconut oil on your hair? Did it work?
Photo Credit: Alex via Compfight cc
Hair mask?! lol they always leave my locks limp. I have to keep it out of my roots.
ReplyDeleteI have not had much luck with coconut oil for my hair. I never received the "awesome" results that other claim. But whatever. At least it smells nice. I'm with you tho. I have found conditioning hair masks loaded with chemicals make my hair much more happy. LOL
ReplyDeleteI love conditioning masks for hair like DermOrganic's. I don't think I've tried coconut for hair.
ReplyDeleteI can't leave anything in my hair for more than a few minutes or it will just suck the life out of it. You might have had better luck doing it just once a week instead of so often.
ReplyDeleteI love my Kiehl's mask and if I'd done a face mask I was considering that one.
Hmmmm. I might have to give it a go, since I just bleached the living daylights out of my ends to hop on board the ombre trend.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that you posted about this! I have had Coconut Oil on my to-buy list for quite awhile now as it seems like a great all-purpose beauty product. I think I might avoid it as a hair mask though. I, too, love the DermOrganic mask and must try the new L'Oreal one! :)
ReplyDeleteCoconut oil is a staple for the natural hair black girls of the world. My shorter hair especially loves it!
ReplyDeleteOnly quickie hair masks for this volume challenged girl!
ReplyDeleteI bought a jar from Trader Joes to do the same thing... With the same results. Now I use it as a body moisturizer!
ReplyDeleteI do this Ojon and it works wonders. I have also put the dermorganic mask on for hours with good results. I never tried coconut oil, but had thought of doing it. I think I'll stick with Ojon based on your experience.
ReplyDeleteI would love this because I LOVE the smell of coconut! I can't get enough of it!
ReplyDeleteI've had good luck with this, however, I only applied a small amount to my hair and only on the ends. I used about 3/4 of a tablespoon on my hair, mid-shaft down. My hair sucked most of it in and then I usually wash it the next day. It's not a miracle, but it helped my ends.
ReplyDeleteCheater! LOL Glad to know I can skip this. I'm not one for making my own stuff anyways altough I did just get some coconut oil.
ReplyDeleteCoconut oil is great stuff. Good for your hair and skin. Love the smell of it.
ReplyDeleteI love coconut oil, but would only use it on my ends, and definitely not every other day. Once a week or twice a month should be fine. The oil should not have been that melted unless you were in a very warm environment.
ReplyDeleteI love using home remedies for my hair, it's super curly and frizzy. I also tend to splurge on good quality products like pro naturals moroccan argan oil hair mask, at least I know they work :)
ReplyDeleteWith coconut oil you have to be careful not to put too much on hair as it will take a number of washes to totally remove it. It tends to be greasy and it does make the hair limp.
ReplyDeleteI was about to go try it until I got to the last paragraph - LOL! Yay for DermOrganic! I'm so glad you love it too.
ReplyDeletethank you for the recommendation, it's very good, I'll try that, I also use pro naturals moroccan argan oil hair mask which is pretty good too, keeps the hair soft and shiny. :D
ReplyDeleteseems you used too much, girlfriend. just a little bit, and also on your scalp. rub it in good, to promote circulation and healthier growth. alternatively, use coconut milk, works too. key is small amounts, over a long term. you will see difference. this is an age-old proven treatment all over asia.
ReplyDeleteI love using coconut oil on my hair. I have a really dry scalp, and it helps with the dandruff and the itchiness. I also use it on my face to help with the dry areas that are acne prone.
ReplyDeleteI'm growing my hair out and use coconut oil once a week on my hair. It's grown 3/4" in 2 weeks! =] I only leave it on for an hour though... And I never heat it up or cover it!
ReplyDeleteChristine! I'm hoping you can help me. I tried those highlights that you use a flat iron to add and I totally burned up my hair! It's actually only the part right by my roots, but that's the hardest for me to deal with because my hair is fine and if I put conditioner on my scalp my hair gets super flat and oily. So, out of all of these conditioning options, what do you think would be good for me? I almost ran out to the 24 hour walgreens to get that L'oreal Total Repair Balm because it's driving me crazy to have all the frizzy strands sticking up! Thanks :) Shannon
ReplyDeleteI use organix argan oil right before I shower every once in a while along with the full repair conditioner by John Frieda and that gets my hair SO soft. And I just use it on the ends of my hair where I've got my ombré color started. I didn't see any better results putting coconut oil in my hair. But I love it on my skin! Also, lately I've been taking biotin supplements. It's helped my hair quite a bit - I've noticed I don't shed as much and my hair feels a little thicker and healthier.
ReplyDeleteI had a completely different experience. I have very fine hair that gets either staticky or brittle, and when it gets brittle I know it's time for a coconut oil mask. I would NOT say that it makes my hair grow faster like the pinterest claims, that is a long-term process and not isolated to coconut oil. However, when my hair gets dry and brittle it does make it silky and soft. I would definitely not do it three times in a week, though! I do it on my hair maybe every couple of months. I do no 'poo haircare, and with coconut oil I have to use a *special* sulfate free shea moisture shampoo that I reserve specifically for when my hair needs a boost. The coconut oil and no 'poo method may not get crazy volume in your hair or achieve the same results you receive from other products, but it has left me with healthier, less greasy hair than i've ever had in my life. I really think it depends on the kind of hair you have and what you're looking to get out of it. I LOVE coconut oil!
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