How to Make Ayurvedic Hair Oil
By the middle of winter, your hair might be more than a little dried out. With heat blasting indoors and cold air and wind whipping outside, static, frizz, and general brittleness seem to be the norm.
But it doesn't have to be! Just like your skin, your hair needs moisture to achieve its optimal shiny, healthy, soft state. And fortunately, it's not all that difficult to safely moisturize your hair. Here we have an article about how to make your own hair oil from an Ayurvedic point of view.
Ayurvedic hair care takes your Ayurveda type into account when addressing your hair issues. Oils can help you get healthy hair. The good thing is that it doesn't have to cost a fortune! You can easily make your own Ayurvedic hair oil inexpensively at home. To find out your type do the quiz here: http://theconsciousclub.com/articles/how-do-i-determine-my-ayurvedic-type
Step 1:
Choose an oil for your base. If your type is Vata it's best to use almond or sesame oil. Pitta-predominant hair responds best to coconut oil, and either sesame or olive oil is most compatible with Kapha-predominant tresses.
Step 2:
Choose your herbs. Amalaki, hibiscus, jasmine, lavender and rosemary are good for all types of hair. Brahmi calms and nourishes Vata hair, while bhringarai does the same for Pitta-dominant hair. The cleansing and purifying aspects of Neem work especially well with Kapha hair.
Step 3:
Place 1 teaspoon of dried herbs in a small bowl. If you are using several herbs, you can mix them and put a teaspoon of the mixture in the bowl, or you can use 1 teaspoon of each.
Step 4:
Add 1 teaspoon of boiling water to the herbs. If you have used several herbs measured individually, use 1 teaspoon of water for each teaspoon of herbs. Stir the herbs and water thoroughly and let them sit for at least two hours.
Step 5:
Place the mixture into a small pot and add 4 teaspoons of your base oil for each teaspoon of herbs. For example, if you have 1 teaspoon each of amalaki, lavender and jasmine, you will need 12 teaspoons of oil.
Step 6:
Warm the herbs and oil over very low heat, stirring occasionally so that the mixture does not stick to the bottom of the pot. Let it warm for at least an hour. The lower the heat and the longer amount of time the oils and herbs warm together, the more potent your Ayurvedic hair oil will be.
Step 7:
Pour the herb and oil mixture out of the pot and into a clean glass bowl, straining it though a fine mesh strainer or fine cheesecloth. Throw away the solids.
Step 8:
Let the oil come to room temperature and then return it to the pot, making sure you rinse out the pot to remove any herb residue first. Heat the Ayurvedic hair oil over very low heat for at least 20 minutes to steam away any remaining water.
Step 9:
Set the oil aside until it is cool enough not to burn you, and pour it into a dark glass or plastic bottle with a stopper or top that closes tightly.
Recipe via LiveStrong
