Last night I found myself on some crazy kick looking up all sorts of homemade beauty treatments. I may just have to start a new feature and regularly post some of these, because I found so many I wanted to try. The first one I knew I wanted to do was a basic olive oil hair treatment.
My hair is pretty dry. I don't know where I got it from, because most of the women in my family insist on washing their hair every single morning so it doesn't get oily. I've always found that mine is way better if I go a few days without washing it, but that rarely happens and it sometimes can get TOO dry. On a daily basis I usually put a little bit of Moroccan Oil in it, but I tried this treatment and I'm hoping it will eliminate the need for that at least for a few days at a time!
It's really simple- no specific ingredient amounts, no official way to go about it. Here's what I did:
Put about 1/4 cup of olive oil in a small bowl, little mug, or anything that can be microwaved. Microwave for about 30 seconds to warm it up a little bit.
Make sure it's not too hot (for your fingers or your scalp) and just start scooping small amounts into the palm of your hands, rub it around to coat your hand, and then work your fingers through your hair. I also took the ends of my hair and dipped them full on in the olive oil, squeezing the extra out.
Make sure it's not too hot (for your fingers or your scalp) and just start scooping small amounts into the palm of your hands, rub it around to coat your hand, and then work your fingers through your hair. I also took the ends of my hair and dipped them full on in the olive oil, squeezing the extra out.
Your hair does not have to be dripping wet with olive oil. In fact, it's better if it's not. Just make sure you've coated it all and there aren't any dry spots. Some sites recommend trying to avoid your scalp so it doesn't get oily, but I didn't have any issues with that, particularly since it's been a little chilly and my skin has started to get a little bit more dry.
(Several recommendations stated they left the treatment on overnight, but others said they tried both versions and leaving it overnight didn't make much of a difference. You can also add a few drops of essential oil in the scent of your choice to the olive oil before heating it to give it a more specific smell, but if you don't have any don't worry... your hair is not going to smell like olives.)
Put it up in a bun to keep it out of the way and leave it in for 1-2 hours. I was just hanging around the apartment looking at some blogs/watching Tuesday night TV, but if you're doing something where you're worried the oil might get on something you can cover your hair with a plastic bag or saran wrap.
Shampoo hair thoroughly to remove all oil and condition as you usually do.
Shampoo hair thoroughly to remove all oil and condition as you usually do.
(Several recommendations stated they left the treatment on overnight, but others said they tried both versions and leaving it overnight didn't make much of a difference. You can also add a few drops of essential oil in the scent of your choice to the olive oil before heating it to give it a more specific smell, but if you don't have any don't worry... your hair is not going to smell like olives.)
I definitely started noticing my hair felt softer and shinier immediately as it began to dry, and the next day this still applies! It even looks better than when just using the Moroccan oil, with a more consistent shine throughout.
Let me know if you try this or have any other suggestions to add! I don't think I'd recommend it for anyone who has oily hair naturally, but if you have dry hair this should work wonders. I'll be sure to update with how long the extra shine lasts.
