by
Black Girl With Long Hair
By SongstressA
Finding the perfect leave-in conditioner can be difficult for a natural curly. There are so many different products lines that claim to offer moisture and shine! Before you jump on the next product-craze bandwagon, why not try making your own leave-in conditioner? There’s no need to search any further because you’ve finally  found a lovely homemade, organic leave-in conditioner recipe. And the best part is –drum roll, please– you only need THREE ingredients! Who would have thought it could be that simple?
With a pH range of around 4.5, the acidity of aloe vera is what works to our advantage. It aids in closing the hair cuticle. This causes your hair to be smoother, minimizes frizz, and gives your strands more definition and shine. Some find that aloe vera is a humectant, or something that draws in any humidity from the air that surrounds it. However, by sealing my hair with aloe vera after I style it, I’ve noticed less frizz and swelling. Pure aloe vera is light enough to keep my hair moisturized without feeling greasy or weighed down. It also gives great control without making it stiff or crunchy.
4oz water
4oz aloe vera gel
10 drops of essential oil (pick your favorite!)
Directions:Â Add water and aloe vera gel to a small bowl and stir lightly with a spoon. Pour the contents into a spray bottle and shake. Add an essential oil of your choice and shake lightly again. Use daily or as often as needed to restore softness.
Ladies, have you tried aloe vera as a leave in? Share your experiences!
52 Responses
I used the plant and 10 vitamin E pills and castor oil 3 tablespoons and I put in my hair every night and wear it 2 braids.
I wet my hair with spray bottle then. I use oil (castor oil and olive oil mixed) I put that on scalp and hair and then I use the aloe Vera mix and braid my hair up for the next day and I repeat
My hair is naturally wavy, curly when it feels like it, lol. Just added a portion of aloe vera gel the size of a thumb nail this morning after showering – when hair is still wet it’s of course much easier to spread the gel. My hair feels soft, shiny and ‘closed’, so I think I finally found my conditioner. Bye chemicals, won’t miss you.
Try rosewater instead of normal water! It gives that nice Victorian-like smell, which is not too powerful and rosewater is very good for frizzy and dry hair! I love the recipe, so simple and yet so good, for the skin around the eyes too. Thanks 🙂
I find that using Aloe Vera gel and water leaves my thick coily hair very soft and is a great detangler. Nothing else i’ve put in my hair works as well as this.
I store mixture in a spritz bottle in my refrigerator so in addition to being a great moisturizer the cold mixture is great for sealing my cuticles after every wash.
I came upon your site by accident while trying to find help with weeping excema (or psoriasis) on my head. I am pale and have baby fine straight fly-away hair, cut short because it tangles horribly and wraps itself tightly around the brush. However, on reading your article and having a plant, I thought I would try the gel. After washing my hair I filleted a leaf and massaged the clear juice into my hair. I found that my brush slipped through the hair without pulling, and I brushed the hair into shape with the brush and let it dry naturally.
I got a shock at first when the hair was dry as it set like extra-hold wallpaper paste, but the moment I touched the hair, the stiffness disappeared, left my hair as soft as if I had used nothing, but left the shaping in place and added some shine I do not use hairsprays, but there is no need for them.
The weeping scabs disappeared within a couple of days, but do reappear as thinner scaly patches from time to time but do not weep. I tried putting some of the gel on my face after I had applied a thin film of Vaseline moisture locking lotion, and I felt this tightened the skin, which felt fresher. I also found that applying the gel on my forehead before gym stopped sweating in that area. It seems to work by reducing/preventing moisture loss through the skin.
I only wish I had known about this plant forty years ago! (I now have twenty-two of them)
hiw do u store the mixture n how long will it last
I’m sure I’ve been here before. Gonna keep checking u out! I have funny hair, and I experimented with aloe. Crazy! I think the bottle said to try as hair gel. I guess it has keratin in it, so that totally makes sense. I’m gonna mix 50/50 aloe and coconut oil. As for eo’s, I think you said something about rosemary being good for hair before, and I like it together with basil and tea tree. It smells really good! For Jovonne, I would just experiment with what you have. Couldn’t hurt 🙂
If you want to add an oil to this recipe, in what amount should you add it?
Great conditioner. will try this.
Even I made one homemade contioner. Very easy to make but turned out to be really good. Check here
http://www.makeupreviewshall.com/2012/01/home-made-leave-in-conditioner.html
The weeds in my yard are higher than my head. The dieshs in my sink are piled up high. My air conditioning quit working. They turned off my gas the other day because I’m behind on my bills. I’ve got a big mess to clean up in my whole house. My mom turns 80 tomorrow and I didn’t send her anything (but I will call her and have a nice long call). Our company hasn’t had a decent contract in two years. I’ve been living on unemployment about half of the time. I went on our annual golf trip about a month ago and didn’t even play on Saturday because I was too depressed. (You can verify that with my friend, Tom) And on top of it all, the best and brightest woman in the world, who I care a great deal about, left town about a year ago… and in some small indirect way… I feel partly responsible for what happened to her. I’m having trouble caring about anything. Just trying to perk you up.
Best leave-in conditioner treatment would be the pro naturals moroccan argan oil =)
What about just plain aloe vera I found some in my local grocery, anyone have a clue how and what I can do with it?
I have plenty of aloe Vera in ma garden. Just made this today and the results are ahhmazzing..one question though..since I had no essential oil handy I added some rose water to combat the smell
Should that b avoided??
Since Aloe Vera softens the hair, will that help or hinder the growing of Dreadlocks? And what else will aid the locks with Aloe Vera?
I keep a large aloe leaf on hand at all times. When I make my leave-in conditioner, I scrape the gel straight from the leaf. Then the firmer part of the leaf (inside), I cut into chunks and put in the blender with the gel and some water. After I blend it, I then put through a strainer so that no particles are in it. Add that into a spritzer bottle with some essential oil. I love it for my locs. I don’t plan to use anything else!
do you have to warm the water before mixing it in with the aloe vera gel? x
I made this concoction and used it for softening and detangling my hair during my micro braid take down process. I put it in a spray bottle and just sprayed the braids before I unraveled them. It worked like a charm. I also used the solution in addition my normal cream while preparing my hair for a twist out… Amazing results
Can you use other types of aloe vera gel if you can’t get the one listed e.g.sensitive skin aloe vera gel ?
Try Lily of The Desert Whole Leaf Aloe Vera Gel or Lily of The Desert Inner Fillet Aloe Vera Gel. They are food-grade and have minimal preservatives. I’ve been using them in my hair since 2010.
I made this for my hair and it has FANTASTIC results. My essential oil of choice is peppermint oil. However, I’m gonna warn you all: Do NOT use 10 drops of peppermint oil (my skin burned a bit). I suggest 2 drops.
I just made some up before reading thing 😛 Last week I was so itchy, so I soaked my hair in aloe gel. When I got up in the morning it wasn’t sticky or slimy. Since my leave in conditioner has run out I thought I’d make up my own, I like making my own products.. Activated charcoal caps make a great loose eyeliner 😉
Before I saw this, I went with my insticts and have been using aloe vera gel + a bit of coconut oil as a leave in. It is just perfect. Only problem is: I can only use for a few days before it begins to smell funky and I have to toss the mix and start afresh
Just keep the gel and oil seperate until you want to use them
nice article.. Thanks for sharing
do you have to keep this refrigerated ?
I would because Aloe Vera juice/gel can go bad with in 40-50 days. So yea stick it in the fridge. Plus the cold will also help with closing the hair’s cuticle. Hope this helps 🙂 good luck!
Whoever posted this article must have read my mind. I love aloe. It works very well with my skin. Now if only someone could come up with a homemade aloe shampoo and conditioner without jojoba oil and soy ( I’m allergic). I would be very happy.
For a shampoo you can do aloe vera juice and either grapeseed oil or avocado as a shampoo.
How about a beautiful homemade blend of coconut oil, aloe and avocado (optional)egg yolk (optional) and organic keratin? That’d give you a very nourishing conditioner and a pureed avocado would give it a little bit of consistency… You’d just have to shake it a lot since coconut oil turns liquid.
I just tried this with one of the leaves of my aloe Vera plant. I used a few drops of orange essential oil. I love it so far. Thanks for the idea!
Hi, i incoporated aloe vera juice and gel in my transition regimen, i was very curious about it and read a lot of positive feedbacks on heyfranhey, and yes the best gel is from the lily of the desert whole leaf filtred which i use also in my daily juicing.
I usually mix it in a spray bottle with water/giovanni leave-in/argan oil then i use the aloe vera gel and finally monoi oil or almond.
it really makes a difference in the morning and through the day and it’s easier to detangle.
and i did test this amazingly simple recipe after my last rinse, works great !
I am glad to see the results are well seen with aloe vera. i have seen some products at my local heath store with aloe vera and was just wondering if this was as effective as using the gel from the plant.
I just mix water and aloe vera gel in a mini spray bottle and use it in the mornings and it leaves my hair feeling super soft. I will try adding an essential oil in my next batch.
kimmaytube’s aloe leave in is still the best I’ve used!
To call this a “leave in conditioner” would be using the term verrrry loosely. No oil, no emulsifiers, no emollients, no humectants. Basically nothing.
I use this mixture too using Lily of the Desert Aloe Vera Gel. It truly keeps my hair moisturized.
Is it a must that essential oil is added? Can a carrier oil be used?
I buy my aloe vera from a local market called Jungle Jim’s. It’s one of those big leaves. Costs about $2.50. I slice it in half, scoop out the aloe and use it for lots of homemade hair stuff like curling gel, curling pudding, moisturizer and conditioner. It’s great!
[img]https://bglh-marketplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Snapshot_20130209_2.JPG[/img]
Your hair looks good!
My hair loves aloe vera anything! I will definitely add this to my long list of mixes to try! lol
You might also try aloe vera juice + H2O + essential oil. That’s what I use.
Hi i am a teenage girl expressing her love for natural hair. Check out my blog! http://theteenagenaturalista.blogspot.com/
http://instagram.com/aironlin
When I saw the whole leaf in the pic I thought the recipe was how make a moisturizer from the plant/leaf!!!
What if I actually want to make the gel myself?? How is that done?
I have been using a similar recipe for about a month now….nothing fancy, but I was using water and AV gel separately and decided to squirt some of the gel into my spray bottle along with a few drops of lavender EO. Works great for my hair as the first step of the LOC method.
Here is an article on EOs and other natural preservatives:
http://www.naturalhealthnbeauty.com/natural_preservatives.htm
With love,
Mojo
So does it matter what kind of aloe vera gel? Walmart has one I use to buy to take orally years ago. But come to think of it I think that was juice. So where to get it? Is it in the refrigerator section? Etc, etc, etc. More details please.
It does because many commercial aloe vera gels contain formadehyde-releasing preservatives and other additives.
I recommend using Lily of the Desert Aloe Vera Gel. It’s food grade, has minimal additives and safer preservatives.
I incorporated aloe vera juice to my regime this year and I’m liking it,just want to know if the gel is more beneficial than the juice?
I wish my hair liked aloe vera, but it just makes mine feel like straw every time, no matter the season.
Me too
i want to try this but i wonder if i need to preserve it.
Yes, you need to preserve water-based mixtures. Make sure to refrigerate it, and use it up within several days (maybe up to a week). You may want to use distilled water, and an essential oil that has preservative properties.
You can make small batches. I intend to convert the recipe for single-use-only by using up to 2 Tablespoons of each ingredient, and no more than 1-2 drops of essential oil.
You don’t need to preserve it. Make enough for a week and store it in the refrigerator.
Also, essential oils are NOT preservatives. Thinking they are is a myth.