It’s not often I come across someone who is absolutely happy with the condition of their hair. They feel like it’s either too dull and flat, lacking lustre, limp, thinning, too dry and brittle, too oily… the list goes on. Ways to increase natural hair growth seem to be popular goals.
Commercially available shampoos, conditioners, and other hair products are often full of nasty hair-stripping chemicals that may seem to give the desired results at first, but can ultimately damage the condition of your hair.
A simple and easy way to regain hair health, improve condition, and enhance natural hair growth is to switch to natural products, and to use a hair rinse after washing.
There are loads of hair-loving natural herbs and botanicals that you could use to make a hair rinse. I’ve narrowed down a list of 5 lovely herbal rinses that are easy to make and use, I hope you find these useful.
Why use a hair rinse?
We have been taught to use conditioner to make our hair shiny, smooth, frizz-free and manageable, and you can pick up a bottle of conditioner fairly easily, however if it contains Silicone, beware.
Silicone provides a coating on hair and gives it a shiny and smooth appearance. But the gloss doesn’t last long. Silicone tends to build-up on hair and can cause it to become dry and brittle in the long run. It can also clog hair follicles and slow hair growth.
Even if you choose a silicone free conditioner, there’s still going to be preservatives, detergents and fragrance that your hair and scalp may detest.
So here’s the way to condition your hair using herbs – Herbal hair rinses. They are packed with antioxidants, vitamins and other botanicals. All this plant goodness can soften hair, increase manageability and restore shine and bounce. And if you were to compare, herbal hair rinses are like herbal teas, so pure that you can practically drink it.
Making a hair rinse requires some preparation, but not too much effort, more like brewing a cup of tea. So if you can manage to make tea, making your own hair rinse should be easy enough.
What herbal hair rinses can do for your hair
- Add moisture into the hair strands
- Bring back shine, softness and elasticity
- Help to detangle hair, so that it’s easier to comb.
- Restore body and bounce
- Tame frizz and flyways
- Reduce hair fall and stimulate growth
- Soothe scalp irritation
Okay, so now you know how amazing herbal hair rinses are to condition, beautify, and strengthen your hair, whilst promoting natural hair growth, let me show you how to make them
I have for you 5 Herbal Hair Rinses to choose from. The good thing is that there’s one for every hair: whether it’s dry or oily, frizzy or damaged, or troubled by hard water. And these rinses won’t alter your hair colour, only enhance your hair.
5 Herbal Hair Rinses for Natural Hair Growth, Shine & Conditioning
1. Chamomile Flower – to Create Bright, Beautiful Hair
The pretty white flowers of chamomile make a fantastic hair rinse. It has a great effect on blonde hair, keeping it light and bright. But you don’t have to be blonde to take benefit of chamomile. If you have dark hair, chamomile will still boost shine and hydration and leave your hair lovely and soft.
Chamomile has a reputation to soothe scalp and promote healthy hair growth.
What you will need
- 2 tablespoons dried chamomile flowers
- 2 cups of Water
- Place the herbs and water in a pot.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce the flame, cover and simmer for 5 – 10 minutes.
- Turn off the heat, allow to cool, then strain. Your herbal conditioning rinse is ready to use.
2. Apple Cider Vinegar – for Dazzling Shine
Apple cider vinegar, or fermented apple juice has so many health benefits on its own, there are many things to use this liquid gold for. The acidity means it has a low pH which is excellent for hair because our hair also has a slightly acidic pH. Apple cider vinegar works to balance the pH of our hair. This encourages the hair cuticles to lie flat and reflect more light, thus creating smooth shiny locks.
The acidity of vinegar also helps to remove hard water or product build-up as well as excess oils from hair. With all the nasties gone, your hair will be smooth and defined, and no longer look dull and heavy.
What you will need
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (raw, unfiltered)
- 2 cups water
- 2 drops lavender essential oil (optional, soothes scalp)
- Pour the apple cider vinegar and water into a mug/squeeze bottle.
- Shake well before use.
3. Rosemary – For faster natural hair growth
Rosemary is very impressive when it comes to hair health and promoting natural hair growth and stimulating blood flow to the scalp.
It’s easily one of the best home remedies for hair growth and thickness.
It works by stimulating cell division and dilating blood vessels, which stimulates hair follicles to produce new hair. There are countless other health benefits of rosemary oil, such as lower stress levels and improved memory function.
Additionally, it has been proven to kill fungus and fight off free-radicals in the scalp
What you will need
- 2 tablespoons dried rosemary leaves (double if your using fresh)
- 2 cups water
Follow the directions given in chamomile hair rinse
4. Green Tea with Peppermint oil – natural hair growth
This hair rinse with green tea will detox the scalp and nourish the hair follicles. The added peppermint essential oil helps to boost natural hair growth and make your hair thicker.
What you will need
- 2 teabags of green tea
- 2-3 drops of peppermint essential oil
- 2 cups Water
Brew 2 cups of strong green tea, leave to cool and add the peppermint essential oils.
4. Nettle Tea – natural hair growth and scalp health
Nettle has been used for hair growth, providing volume and shine for ages. One of the most versatile herbs in the garden. The easiest way to apply it to the hair is with a hair rinse. I’ve taken it a step further and made Nettle Shampoo and a Nettle hair oil for a pre-wash treatment.
What you will need.
- ½ cup of fresh nettle leaves, or 1 tbs dried leaves (loose leaf tea is perfect)
- 2 cups boiled water
Pour boiled water over the nettle leaves and leave to steep until cool. Strain and your Nettle hair rinse is ready to use.
How to use a Hair rinse
Once you have infused or brewed, cooled and strained your selected hair rinse ingredients, it’s ready to use.
- Shampoo your hair as normal, and rinse with fresh water
- Pour the prepared rinse slowly over your hair. If you simply empty it all at once, most of it will go down the drain.
- Massage into your scalp and hair and leave it on for about 5 minutes to do its work of nourishing and conditioning.
- Towel dry your hair first
- Style as normal, et voila!
How often to use hair rinses for natural hair growth?
These herbal hair rinse variations are all made with natural ingredients, so you can safely use after every wash.
Extra Tips
- Feel free to add other herbs in making the hair rinse. Some examples are lavender flowers, sage, peppermint leaves.
- Since the hair rinses are preservative-free, they will keep in the fridge for a week.
- If you think making it every week is a pain, then make a big batch and freeze it in ice cube trays and it will last for 2-3 months.
- If you are using fresh herbs, then double the quantity
In conclusion
So there you are, 5 lovely hair rinses that are easy enough to make up at home, for natural hair growth, shine, and conditioning.
For an extra boost to your hair and scalp health, use the Nettle Hair Oil as a pre-wash treatment, wash with the Nettle Shampoo Bar, and follow up with one of the hair rinses of your choice.
Nettle Hair Oil and Nettle Shampoo bars are both made with all-natural ingredients, nettle-infused olive oil, Castor oil, Peppermint, and Rosemary essential oils. There are also available together as a duo in the Hair Lover Gift Set from £15.00
I hope you’ve found these ideas for herbal hair rinses useful. If you enjoyed this post for improving your hair health, you may also like to read Why Nettle shampoo is so good for your hair and also 7 Tips for Treating Scalp Psoriasis Naturally
I always welcome feedback, so please let me know your thoughts in the comments, or share this post with someone who may find it useful.
xx Bronwyn
