Using chamomile for hair
The healing properties of chamomile and its beneficial effects on the body have been known since time immemorial. Among other things, it is able to have a beneficial effect on the girl's hair, so it is widely used in hair care. In this article, we will take a look at its benefits, properties, and various uses that will help you take a fresh look at this amazing flower.
Properties, benefits and harms
Even if you do not set yourself any special goal, rinsing your hair with chamomile, you make your hair healthier, it gently helps protect your hair from the negative factors that affect them daily in a modern metropolis.
Chamomile disinfects the scalp, soothes various irritations, accelerates hair growth, solves the problem of hair loss, activates the blood supply to the hair follicle.
It should be used by those who are faced with frequent shampooing, as the plant normalizes the production of sebum.
With regular use, you will forget about such an unpleasant phenomenon as dandruff, and the hair itself will become smooth and silky.
Many girls use the plant as a hair coloring agent, as it gently tints gray hairs and slightly lightens natural curls.
Being a natural remedy, chamomile does not cause any harm to the body, the only contraindication is individual intolerance, which is extremely rare.
Chamomile types
Natural chamomile is used in different ways, it all depends on what you have on hand.
Most often, various decoctions are made from dried chamomile flowers, which is not difficult to buy at a pharmacy.
Since it is sold in crushed form, it can be very difficult to strain the broth, so most people prefer to use chamomile in filter bags. It does not differ in any way from loose, but it is much more convenient to use it.
If you have fresh chamomile that you picked in the forest or in the country, it is also suitable for hair care procedures. You can use part of the herb, and dry the rest for the future.
In what form to use?
The easiest way to make a decoction of chamomile, which will give the hair a beautiful shine and will promote their recovery and growth. You need to take a couple of spoons of chamomile or several filter bags and pour them with a glass of boiling water. The resulting liquid must be filtered, and then used for its intended purpose. If you want to tint your hair, the concentration of the decoction should be greater: pour 100 grams of flowers with a glass of boiling water and leave them for about half an hour.
Tincture can be prepared in two ways:
cold
Take a glass of dried flowers and fill it with 500 ml of cold water. Leave to infuse for one day, and then use to wash your hair.
Hot
Pour 2 tablespoons of flowers with hot (but not boiling!) Water, leave for 2 hours.Use to wash your hair for a month, and you will see a positive effect - the hair will become stronger, wounds, dandruff and irritation of the scalp will disappear.
Use the tincture to wash your hair for a month, and you will see a positive effect - the hair will become stronger, wounds, dandruff and irritation of the scalp will disappear:
- Mask - chamomile essential oil is usually used for it. It is added to some thick base - kefir, sour cream, yogurt or a ready-made purchased hair mask. There is no need to take an expensive professional tool, a basic inexpensive product will do. Apply the mask to the entire length of the hair before washing, store no more than a few days in the refrigerator.
- Chamomile balm is a great alternative to a store-bought product. It is applied to the hair after washing and helps to close the scales of the hair, making it smooth and silky. Mix the gruel obtained after preparing the broth with 3 tablespoons of honey and apply the mixture on your hair for a quarter of an hour.
- rinse aid. Pour 2 tablespoons of flowers with 2 liters of hot water, leave for about an hour. Strain, add a few tablespoons of lemon juice and rinse your hair after washing. It is suitable for easy lightening of hair and giving it a natural shine.
- Chamomile-based oil extract contains all the beneficial properties of the plant in an increased concentration.
There are two ways to prepare it:
- Hot. Grind dry chamomile, pour into a container and fill with base oil (olive, almond, etc.) in a ratio of 1:2. Put the container in a water bath and simmer there for 2 hours. Remove from the heat very carefully and cool completely so you don't burn yourself with the oil! Then filter and pour into a clean container.
- Cold. A longer method that retains more useful components. Pour dried chamomile into a container and pour base oil in a ratio of 1:2.
Insist in a dark place for about two weeks, then strain.
Chamomile spray should be applied after every shampoo to damp, clean hair before you apply any other products. Take 250 ml of chamomile decoction, which must be made according to the above recipe. Add a tablespoon of linseed oil and a few drops of essential oils (rosemary, sage, ylang-ylang, aloe).
Pour into a spray bottle and spray daily on hair. They will be significantly strengthened and acquire a lively luster. Store the spray in the refrigerator, but still try to keep the shelf life as short as possible.
How to prepare a decoction?
There are several other ways to prepare chamomile tea, which is the main ingredient in many hair recipes, which we will discuss below.
It is suitable for washing your curls, rinsing, making masks, sprays, balms, coloring tonics and much more:
- For a basic decoction, which in its pure form will gently lighten hair, give it shine and a healthy look, take the amount of chamomile flowers you need and fill them with hot water at a rate of 1:5. Infuse for 5-10 minutes, then boil for half an hour and insist another half an hour. Let cool, strain and use as directed.
- Take 3 tbsp. spoons of chamomile and pour it into a gauze bag. Dip it in a pot with 1 liter of hot water and boil for at least half an hour. It remains only to cool the resulting broth.
With what to combine?
- Chamomile with lemon gently brightens the hair, gives them a natural shine and softness. Pour a handful of chamomile with a glass of boiling water and simmer in a water bath. Cool, add the juice of half a lemon and a few tablespoons of base oil. Apply to hair and allow the mask to absorb well, let it dry. If possible, sit in the sun to enhance the effect. Do this once a week for several months
- With bay leaf. If you take the leaves of this noble plant, which we usually perceive as a seasoning for soup, you can get a vitamin infusion that has a beneficial effect on the hair. Mix 3 tablespoons of chamomile and 5 bay leaves, add 1 tablespoon of rosemary to them. Finely chop the herbs with a mortar, blender or by hand. Fill the floor with a liter of boiling water, cover and leave for two hours, then strain. Gruel should not be thrown away either - it can be rubbed into the roots as a vitamin hair mask.
- With nettle. This decoction is great for rinsing hair and creating various masks based on it. Preparing it is very simple - you need to mix 2 parts of herbs, pour them with a liter of water, put on fire and boil. After that, leave the broth to languish for another 10 minutes, let cool and filter. Moisten the hair with the resulting liquid, it is convenient to do this from a spray bottle. Then wrap your hair with a towel and leave for half an hour, until completely dry.
- With glycerin. If you have brittle, dry hair, add glycerin to the chamomile mask. It is well suited for curly hair and brightens curls by 2-3 tones. However, you need to use it very carefully, because, by overdosing the mask, you can, on the contrary, dry out your hair. In addition, before the procedure, check if you are allergic to this remedy by applying it to the crook of your elbow.
- With henna. In its pure form, henna gives the hair a reddish tint, and the "solar flower" adds goldenness to them. For medium length hair, you will need 3 sachets of henna and half a pack of chamomile. The flowers need to be brewed in a saucepan, mixed with henna in a separate container, and only then put them together. You can add a couple of drops of essential oil to the resulting mixture. Thanks to chamomile, henna will not flow, so homemade paint can be safely left on the hair for 2-3 hours, after which it will need to be washed off, not forgetting to apply a balm to the hair at the end.
- With calendula. A mask of these two plants can be used to accelerate hair growth. Mix two parts of the herbs, pour a liter of boiling water and leave for 30 minutes. Use as a rinse aid.
- With honey. Honey has a beneficial effect on hair, and chamomile helps all its useful components to be better absorbed by the skin. To prepare a healing mask for intensive care from honey and chamomile, you will need 4 tablespoons of flowers and half a glass of hot water, which will need to be held in a water bath for about 20 minutes. The finished mixture will need to be filtered and cooled, then add 2 tablespoons of honey and stir well. The mask will need to be rubbed into the roots, distributing the remnants of the mixture over washed, damp hair. Leave for half an hour, rinse with warm water. To get a visible effect, you need to carry out at least seven procedures.
- With burdock. A decoction of these herbs is great for hair loss, helps get rid of dandruff and irritation of the scalp. Take chopped herbs in equal proportions, pour boiling water, boil and cook for another 15 minutes. Wrap well with a towel and leave to infuse until the broth has cooled.Moisten the hair with the filtered broth after shampooing, rubbing the liquid into the roots of the hair.
Application methods
We have already covered various types of chamomile treatments that can be easily done at home. One of the most popular is rinsing the hair with a decoction, which can be done without much effort.
Much more interesting is another popular method of application - coloring and lightening strands, which we will get to know better.
If you want to achieve a light shade, start with the same decoction. It will give light strands a golden hue, light brown will help to look brighter and get rid of the mouse shade that is often inherent in them.
Since the decoction recipe is described above, there is no need to repeat it again. One thing to note - if you want a more intense color, take more chamomile, but less water, and vice versa.
Please note that a very strong decoction will give the hair a copper tint, even if the hair is black. If you are a brown-haired woman, they will begin to beautifully cast golden highlights.
The resulting broth is moistened with hair along the entire length and left to dry completely. It does not need to be washed off, but it must be dried naturally, without using a hair dryer.
Of course, you will have to carry out more than one procedure, at least for a month, in order to achieve the desired result. But the effect should be noticeable after the first application.
The advantage of chamomile decoction is that it can be used on both uncolored and dyed hair - you will still see the result.
There are other hair bleaching recipes that have an enhanced effect:
- Infusion with peroxide. Pour a handful of chamomile with half a liter of vodka and leave for two weeks. Strain, add 50 ml of peroxide and use to lighten hair.
- Against gray hair Make a decoction in a thermos - take 3 parts of water for 1 part of chamomile and leave for 4-5 hours. Then, as with normal dyeing, divide the hair into strands and moisten them well with the resulting product. Next, wrap with a film, wrap with a towel and hold for about an hour.
- With glycerin. To get a golden yellow tint of natural hair that will stay on your hair for a long time, pour 150 g of chamomile in 500 ml of boiling water and leave for several hours. Then strain, add glycerin and wash your hair with the resulting mixture. The result will not be long in coming.
What kind of chamomile should be collected?
There are many varieties of white flowers with a yellow center, but only chamomile is used for medicinal purposes and cosmetology. To distinguish it, cut the receptacle with a knife - it should be hollow. This will be the main distinguishing feature of the plant you need.
It is better to collect it at the beginning of the flowering period (in May-June), at the end it is not at all suitable for use.
When harvesting, cut off the flowers at the very base with scissors. In no case do not pull them out by the roots or pluck all the inflorescences on one bush. Be sure to leave some of the flowers for later reproduction.
Reviews
Girls who have tried various chamomile remedies on their hair speak extremely positively about them.
For the most part, they say that this is a natural and affordable remedy that gives a visible effect. Chamomile is available to everyone, because it can be found in any pharmacy literally for a penny.
Of the shortcomings, only a brightening effect can be distinguished, which brunettes will not like. Everyone else can use it without fear.
Any hair masks based on various herbs are considered the most useful and effective in cosmetology.How to make a chamomile hair mask? The secret will be revealed in the detailed instructions below.