This article contains sponsored links from my favorite brand Mountain Rose Herbs. I love their high quality organic/fair trade products, and am blown away by their commitment to zero waste.
One of my New Year’s Resolutions this year was to make 80% of my beauty products. As I run out of beauty products, I have been creating my own versus buying new items. It has saved me so much money, and has been a lot of fun because I love a challenge. One of my best recipes so far has been my leave-in conditioner.
I suggest using a small 2oz. spray bottle that you can buy at a drug store instead of a larger one. This way your conditioner stays fresh and you are able to change the recipe if you decide without wasting products.
What you will need:
4oz. Spray Bottle
Vegetable Glycerin (optional)
Purified Water
Fill up 50% of the bottle with aloe vera gel leaving space to add the essential oils, jojoba, glycerin, and water. Next add 10 drops of rosemary and lemongrass essential oil and three to five drops of jojoba oil. Add a very tiny amount of vegetable glycerin if you air dry your hair. I noticed that the vegetable glycerin wasn’t helpful when used with a flat iron. Either use only a teeny bit or omit completely. Lastly fill the rest of the bottle with purified water and shake up.
Aloe Vera moisturizes the hair and keeps it soft. It is packed with vitamin B12, vitamin C, amino acids, minerals, and salicylic acid. It has been used for general hair health, hair growth, and also as a hair shampoo and conditioner.
Rosemary Essential Oil stimulates hair follicles, therefore increasing hair strength, hair growth, and for dry and flaky scalps. It has also been used as a remedy for mental fatigue.
Lemongrass Essential Oil stimulates hair follicles and also adds a refreshing citrus fragrance to the leave-in conditioner. It has anti-bacterial properties and is calming and soothing to the body.
Jojoba Oil is the closest oil to skin’s sebum. Therefore, is extremely healing and moisturizing for the hair. It is a non-greasy oil absorbing immediately into the hair. This will help with hair frizz and dryness.
Vegetable Glycerin is known for being a humectant. It is an amazing ingredient to add when air drying hair. It is amazing for curly hair and really dry hair. It should be used very sparingly so that it doesn’t create a sticky film.
I have used some of these same ingredients in other DIY beauty products that I have made. By creating my own beauty products I am not concerned about what is in my cosmetics. I find it best to use only 100% essential oils and organic ingredients if you can. This leave-in conditioner is great as a hair refresher and has a wonderful refreshing fragrance. I love it most when I have my hair in two strand twists as it is perfect as a daily moisturizer and scalp refresher.
If you enjoyed this simple recipe, you may also love the DIY Curl Conditioning Serum! Let me know if you try it.
(Image in 2012 by Dawn Michelle)
Stefanos Fashion and Beauty Tips says
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Dawn Michelle says
Hi Tammi,
Thank you so much for your offer! I do truly appreciate it, although there are a few ingredients in the products that I are on my list of chemicals to avoid. Please do consider Minimalist Beauty for any other products that do fit our specifics and again thank you for thinking of us.
Best Wishes,
Dawn Michelle
Skin Blossom says
If you are short of time Organic Jojoba Oil on its own makes a lovely conditioning treatment for hair. Just a couple of teaspoons and leave over night.
Dawn Michelle says
Jojoba oil really is wonderful for hair and skin!
Edna says
Hi Dawn Michelle, I am a new fan of your blog!! Can you please tell me if you keep your leave-in conditioner refridgerated or not? Also, approximately how long does this 4oz. batch last for your hair length? Thanks and have a wonderful day : )
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Edna,
I can use from 2-4oz in one use with my hair length now. Because of that I do not worry about refrigerating this leave-in spritz. I also do not use it everyday. If you are concerned with not using it as often or as much, definitely refrigerate this conditioner spray. You can also add a few drops of rosemary extract or grapefruit seed extract to preserve this. You can find both at Mountain Rose Herbs.
Sometimes I will only use water to refresh my curls. This is the leave-in conditioner that I used daily when I was wearing two strand twists constantly. I will write a current hair regimen article soon.
Peace,
Dawn Michelle
Sawah says
Can you use any type of Aloe Vera gel? I have seen people using the Fuit of the Earth brand, but can I use any type of Aloe Vera gel? Thanks.. I love your blog BTW – discoveringnatural.blogspot.com
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Sawah, I use and prefer aloe vera juice with this recipe, although you could use aloe vera gel. So glad you love the blog! That means a lot! Peace
REGINA says
DAWN I JUST WENT NATURAL ABOUT 4 MONTHS AGO. I DO SEE YOUR UPDATED REGIMEN BUT I’M A LIST TYPE OF PERSON. LOL I HAVE TO SEE THINGS WRITTEN. YOUR HAIR LOOKS BEAUTIFUL AND I NOTICED YOU SAID YOU DON’T USE THE LEAVE IN CONDITIONER EVERYDAY. SO WHAT WHAT BE YOUR ROUTINE IF YOUR WERE TO USE THE LEAVE IN AND WHAT WOULD BE YOUR ROUTINE FOR THAT DAY IF YOU DIDN’T USE THE LEAVE IN CONDITIONER? THANK U.
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Regina,
I co-wash my hair 2-3 times a week. On those day I leave conditioner in my hair topped off with flax seed gel. Once my hair dries I may add some shea butter with or without an oil. If my hair gets frizzy and I’m not planning on washing it, I just add more flax seed gel to dry hair. Hope that helps.
Best,
Dawn Michelle
Karina says
Hey Dawn,
Great site! Was curious if this leave-in is weightless in terms of thin curly hair? I’d like some volume and having a hard time finding natural ways that won’t weight down my hair yet keep it together and healthy!
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Karina,
This DIY conditioner is weightless. Experiment with it by putting very little vegetable glycerin or none. Glycerin can weigh down hair if you use too much. Another recipe you may want to try is the DIY Curl Conditioning Serum. That is another favorite. Let me know how it all works out for you.
Best,
Dawn Michelle
PS Glad you like the site! Thank you.
Lauren says
This sounds amazing! Thanks for sharing. Can’t wait to try it.
Dawn Michelle says
Let me know how it works out for you Lauren!
Regine says
Hi DM. I recently started using your leave in conditioner as a curl refresher between Cowash days (sat and wed) on my medium short 4a
hair. I LOVE it. I use the entire 4 oz recipe while in the shower then shake
hair to loosen the curls. I do twice the recipe for 2 days worth of curl refresher so I do not need to refrigerate. Thanks so much. Also I have been adding a bit of glycerin to the 4oz formula – maybe 1/4 tsp but I will experiment with 1 tsp next time.
Regine says
A question for u regarding your use of pure Shea butter as a curl definer. I confess I am very skeptical but would love to try it on my 4a medium short curly Afro hair. Could you please tell me how to go about it. Right now I use Shea moisture coconut and hibiscus style milk and 2 tsp of their curling souflee. On cowash day i am thinking of trying your leavein conditioner and then finger rake the pure Shea butter to see if I get curl definition. Your feedback would be appreciated. Thanks!
Jaimie-Lyne says
Hey Doll,
I’m currently rocking yarn braids, do you think I can use this recipe as my light moisturizer?
Thank you, I LOVE YOUR BLOG, I learned so many things here!
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Jaime-Lyne, This mix would be perfect for your braids. This is also great for twists. If you use the essential oils in it is well it will keep your hair feeling fresh and smelling so good too! Let me know how it works out. Best wishes!
Leta says
I found your web site by searching for DIY leave in conditioners as I want to make my own spritzer to use before going swimming in pools. Currently I just wet my hair in the shower before swimming and use a cap, but the cap is porous so I am sure my hair is still exposed to the chlorine. Aveda sells a pre-swim conditioner to spray on your wet hair before swimming, but the ingredient list is evil. Have you any thoughts on adapting this as a pre-swim spritzer? I was thinking of just trying the aloe vera gel, jojoba oil, and water.
I have been using only Aubrey shampoo since 1989 and have had a hard time finding other equally natural shampoos. I saw your list of the good guys and will look for them at Whole Foods today.
I love your web site!
Dawn Michelle says
Thanks so much Leta! Saturating your hair with water then an oil prior to swimming under your swim cap should be extremely helpful for blocking out the chlorine. It could also act as a deep conditioning oil treatment. Just make sure that you rinse and cleanse your hair flowing your swim. I love the summer!
rachael says
Do you need to refrigerate this?
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Rachael, Yes this would need to be refrigerated. Any DIY product that contains water, aloe, or other similar liquids would need to be refrigerated without a preservative. <3
Tracey says
Hi Dawn Michelle,
I have been reading your blog for a couple of months, and really enjoy it. But I have been a bit intimidated by the idea of making my own products, until now. So I wanted to start with this DIY Leave-in conditioner, but my question is can I substitute argan oil for the jojoba? I too have been a long time customer of Mountain Rose products but I just bought an argan oil, and cannot afford a bottle of jojoba right now.
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Tracey, Yes you can use argan oil instead. This is a simple hair spritz that will help to keep your hair moisturized, and the essential oil blend will create a beautiful fragrance. Let me know how it works out!
Tracey says
I forgot to mention I also have rosehip seed oil too. Can that also be an option?
Dawn Michelle says
Yes you can try it with rosehip seed oil too!
Christina says
You’ve probably explained this already and I just can’t find it:
Do I need to have my hair damp or soaked before applying, or can I spray this on dry hair? I’m hunting for various solutions to battle my constant frizz (even when my hair is soft and generally healthy, short frizzy hairs everywhere!!).
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Christina,
I’ve used this DIY leave-in on damp and soaked hair before as well as twists and loose hair. It is mainly about finding what works best for your hair, and what style you are trying to achieve to determine how you decide to use it. Is it possible that the frizz you are experiencing could be from what you are washing your hair with. High alkaline hair cleansers open up the hair cuticle causing dryness, frizz, and brittle hair especially if not followed up with an acidic rinse. Also most shampoos strip the hair of its natural oils which also can cause frizz. If this is a possibility here are some simple hair cleansers to at least read about. Best wishes!
ayanna says
Hello i am addicted to (minimalistbeauty.com) i discovered it last week and became obsessed with your natural hair remedies. i did the henna treatment with coconut milk last week and wanted to know if i can use coconut oil oppose to the hemp seed oil? also can i use flax-seed gel in place of the aloe gel when making the leave in treatment? thanks in advance
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Ayanna,
I’m so glad you are enjoying the site! Feel free to modify any of these recipes to your liking. I’m also happy the henna/coconut milk combo worked well for you. Best wishes with everything!
Carolyn says
Hi Dawn Michelle,
Do you need to refrigerate the aloe vera leave in conditioner? My hair is really zero porosity right now. Nothing I’ve been trying works and I walk around looking horrible every day.
It won’t absorb any water, and I can’t apply any products. Every shampoo I ever tried, and I’ve experimented a lot, only sits on top of it and cakes on. I’ve tried every shampoo, from chemical to organic, recently experimented with bentonite clay, trying a lot at first, and then a little, then watering the clay into a super light rinse, and nothing worked. The final result is always a residue that mats my hair down and causes it to look even thinner and get more flyaway.
My hair has gotten dramatically thinned out and strawlike in the last five years as I am going through a horrible time with menopause. Probably mostly hormonal but I am sick of constantly rinsing – many times a day at times- to get rid of the constant buildup. It looks frizzed out, flyway, super thin and like spiderwebs. I call it witch hair! It will definitely look even worse using any type of conditioner yet it is extremely dry and it desperately requires moisture.
I like to use grapeseed oil with several drops of rosemary, lavendar and clary sage and apply a small amount directly to my scalp which my hair seems too like, but I wanted something lighter I can use every day.
I hope an aloe spray will be enough moisture for super dry, low porosity/no porosity hair! Do you know if the MountainRose herbs aloe has any other ingredients in it? As you already noted in another blog somewhere, when you are dealing with low po hair, less is more! thanks!
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Carolyn,
I’m sorry you are having such a difficult time with your hair. This is definitely a good time to keep things simple with your hair regimen. Yes you would need to refrigerate this simple leave-in recipe unless you omit using any water. The aloe vera from Mountain Rose Herbs contains aloe vera fillet, potassium sorbate, ascorbic acid, citric acid, xanthan gum. Lastly have you tried using an oil which is known the penetrate the hair shaft? I actually have been enjoying organic unrefined olive oil since coconut oil does not work for my hair at all. Ceramide oils are also really good for the hair such as hemp, safflower, and wheat germ. If you think that you do have hair build up, clarifying your hair with bentonite clay/apple cider vinegar possibly 1-3 more times may help. I hope some of the suggestions work for you.
Carolyn says
Thanks Dawn Michelle. I ordered the aloe vera and I am hopeful it will help. I’ve used every oil out there these last couple years. Before my hair thinning/loss issue started in 2014, I used to always use sunflower oil. My hair absolutely loved it. It was always glossy and shiny and no matter how much I used, it would never look greasy. It has been a while since I used that since I worried there might be some connection between using it and my hair loss, but I doubt that’s likely since I’ve still got those issues and it has been probably years since I used it.
The oil I use most often is organic argan oil which used to be great at making my hair soft and supple. Now it goes from dry and brittle to greasy with just a single drop. Olive oil and fractionated coconut oil are much too heavy. Regular coconut oil was the worst of all. It sat on top of my hair and skin. I’ve also tried avocado, apricot, shea butter and shea nut oil (too heavy), jojoba (which when I had my normal ultra thick hair, it was the only thing I used on it for keeping it soft and healthy and today I can’t even look at it without it weighing my hair down).
I tossed the bag of bentonite clay I had and experimented with a mixture of baking soda and apple cider vinegar, in a professional plastic hair dye application bottle, either as a rinse on its own or prior to shampooing with a watered down organic shampoo I fall back on a lot. I was fine for a week using it, finally I looked like my chair was clean, and now I am getting that awful flyaway and build up again. It’s clear that its hard to penetrate my hair shaft and everything easily builds up that simply refuses to come out. In the most frustrating episodes, all my thin strands shrivel up and form spiral, tightly bound clumps around my head randomly, and make it look like I’ve got less hair than I do .
I think clarifying with the apple cider/baking soda mix has worked best so far, but I wonder if it is too harsh on hair to use three times a week? The rest of the time I either rinse with water alone or use my shampoo watered down. Do you think it damages the hair cuticle to use apple cider or baking soda this frequently?
I like safflower oil and might give that a try again, or try the sunflower again, once I experiment first using aloe. Buildup usually happens even only one shampoo with my usual watered down shampoo (I’ve tried and thrown out over a dozen shampoos over the past few years because, regardless of whether they are natural/organic or commerical ones packed with chemicals, build up can be so severe it looks like my hair is matted flat to my head, particularly on one side where the thinning is very pronounced.
I’ve read some other good things about aloe for hair. I will use a little to start on when my hair is dry before I start blow drying it and increase as needed. I get so upset thinking about how for fifty years I had extremely thick healthy hair that I could put anything on, never imagined that I could ever develop thinning, caked on residue and matted, flattened hair. And obviously I had a normal porosity whereas now that’s altered too. I suppose all of it is from hormones/menopause. I didn’t realize what a horrible time of life this is for many women. I think someone needs to find a cure for that and fast.
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Carolyn,
I hope that the aloe works well for you. I’ve never used baking soda for my hair as I always felt it woukd be too drying. As for frequency of washing, I would use a gentle hair cleanser no more than 2x a week. Overwashing already dry hair can be troublesome. I shared some DIY herbal hair cleansers here. I do hope some of this helps.
Carolyn says
hi Dawn Michelle
I am liking the aloe so far. It gives a smoother shiny appearance to my hair without putting a dulling coat on it. It looks a bit more like human hair than a rat’s nest now 🙂 I hope that will continue. Thanks for suggesting that. As far as other conditioners, did you ever use straight vegetable glycerin on your hair? Would this work for dry low po hair as a detanger and/or conditioner?
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Carolyn,
I’m glad that aloe is working well for you. Vegetable glycerin can be really wonderful for hair. It is best applied in small amounts to wet hair or diluted in water in a spritz bottle. Glycerin works best if you live in a place with high humidity. Because it is a humectant it can draw moisture to your hair if there is humidity, or take moisture out of your hair if you live in a dry climate. You also have to be careful with how much you use or it can make your hair feel sticky if you overdo it. I hope this helps.