Anyone with dry, damaged hair knows that deep conditioning is a lifesaver. When my hair looks a bit dull, kind of fluffy, and has no shine to it whatsoever, I whip out my favorite tub of thick, nourishing goodness and let my hair soak it all in. My friend Jenny taught me how to make homemade deep conditioner for dry hair.
This comes in handy when you can’t quickly access commercial deep conditioners, or when you want to try out some homemade hair remedies.
Table of Contents
Benefits of deep conditioning your hair
Deep conditioning is something my hair looks forward to every week, and for good reason.
It’s exactly what you think it is – a conditioner that goes deeper into the hair shaft to replenish it with the moisture it needs to be healthy, shiny, and more manageable for the week ahead.
It’s personally my weapon of choice for making my hair feel smooth and look lustrous.
Deep conditioners also promote hair elasticity, making your tresses bouncy, and preventing breakage.
Some deep conditioners are specifically designed to repair damaged or porous hair.
Now I know what you’re thinking: a deep conditioner sounds kind of intimidating.
It does so much for the hair and seems like such a luxurious treatment.
But it’s really not that impossible to attain.
In fact, if you’re stocked up on organic oils and superfoods, you can make your own deep conditioner that’s just as high-quality as branded ones right in your very kitchen.
Is DIY deep conditioner better than buying one from the store?
There’s always this particular competitiveness between those who love DIY hair treatments and those who love splurging on their favorite hair brands.
Some people rack their brains figuring out which one is better, but the truth is that they’re both fantastic – they just have their fair share of pros and cons.
Let’s talk deep conditioning.
Commercial deep conditioners
First, we have everyone’s default: the store-bought deep conditioners.
They’re an obvious choice because of their convenience.
All you have to do is grab one from the shelves and go.
These can give you peace of mind about the formulations because they’re created by hair experts and can often include hard-to-find ingredients.
And because they tend to come with many preservatives, they have a longer shelf life than homemade ones.
But the thing with store-bought deep conditioners is that they can sometimes have potentially harmful ingredients, like sulfates, silicones, and parabens.
These can strip the hair of moisture or weigh down the hair.
These no-no ingredients have made me give some of the commercial deep conditioners a wide berth.
Homemade deep conditioners
Homemade deep conditioners are a lot more customizable compared to the commercial products.
You choose your own ingredients to blend together, so you have full control of what goes on your hair.
You’ll rarely have harsh ingredients too, since everything is going to be organic.
Everything is your call, from the mixture to the consistency.
Some of the most popular DIY deep conditioner recipes are made with stuff you can probably already find in your pantry.
You don’t have to spend a dime on them, making them the cheaper option.
Ingredients you’ll need to make deep conditioner
One of the best things about making your own deep conditioner is that you can let your creativity run wild.
Choose your favorite organic superfoods to comprise of a hair mask concoction you can call your own.
If you’re a breakfast kind of girl, you can combine avocado, honey, and yogurt for an ultra-nourishing mask (and sneak tiny bites while making it!).
Or if your hair is as dry as the Sahara desert, you can opt for a cocktail of organic oils and butters for a super-rich, emollient mask.
I’ll be sharing with you four of my favorite blends for homemade deep conditioners, according to what your dry hair needs.
Note that you can change up the measurements depending on how long and thick your hair is.
Look for a combination you’d like to whisk together, scribble it down on a notepad, and head to the kitchen to make some magic!
For dry hair that needs deep hydration
For this recipe, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons of shea butter
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 5 tablespoons of aloe vera gel
- 5 tablespoons of manuka honey
- 1 small avocado, mashed
Shea butter consists of many fatty acids and oils that provide deep and rich moisturization to your hair by locking in moisture.
Put it together with olive oil, and you have a showstopping, ultra-hydrating combo of emollients.
Olive oil is known to protect hair from damage and soften it too.
These two are technically already enough to nourish the hair, but I love enriching them with other nutrients.
Avocado is a natural moisturizer that nourishes deeply.
It’s an excellent source for healthy fats and vitamin E, both of which are key to achieving soft and shiny hair.
It’s one of the best superfoods you can use on dry and damaged hair.
Make sure you mash it into a smooth paste, and it’ll blend in beautifully with the rest of your mask.
Aloe vera and manuka honey are humectants that add hydration to the hair by attracting moisture.
They also contain vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that strengthen the hair.
For adding protein and strength to damaged hair
You’ll need the following ingredients for this recipe:
- 3 tablespoons of coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons of shea butter
- 3 tablespoons of Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon of vitamin E oil
In this mask, we pair shea butter’s fatty acids and oils with another powerhouse superfood – coconut oil.
This oil is popular among haircare lovers because it’s one of the few oils that can easily penetrate the hair shaft and nourish it inside and out.
It can also make the hair cuticle stronger and the hair thicker.
Greek yogurt is a great source of protein – which is the best friend of damaged and high porosity hair.
It also helps rejuvenate damaged hair and making it soft and silky again.
It’s also known to protect and repair the ends of the hair, which are the driest part of your mane.
Vitamin E is pretty much essential to any kind of hair repair.
It makes the hair more resilient and prevents breakage and split ends.
It also promotes elasticity of the hair to make it bouncy and shiny.
For growing the hair to be thicker and longer
These are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe:
- 4 tablespoons of grapeseed oil
- 1 small avocado, mashed
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon of vitamin E oil
Grapeseed oil is a gorgeous oil that treats and stimulates the scalp, which ends up promoting hair growth.
It also moisturizes and strengthens hair.
These benefits make it the perfect base for a mask to activate hair growth for thicker and longer locks.
Avocado also promotes hair growth and does an incredible job providing the hair with deep and rich nourishment to keep it shiny and manageable throughout the week.
Egg yolks are rich in protein, which can help make the hair thicker.
This is something that dry, damaged, and porous hair will soak up immediately because they repair and nourish brittle hair strands.
And lastly, vitamin E is here to ensure the hair is strong and resilient.
While avocado is already rich in vitamin E, it won’t hurt to have some of the more potent stuff in this mask to reap its benefits.
For high porosity hair that needs protein-moisture balance
You’ll need the following ingredients for this recipe:
- 3 tablespoons of coconut oil
- 1 small banana, mashed
- 1 egg yolk
- 3 tablespoons of coconut milk
The ingredients of this deep conditioner can be split into two – your moisturizing ingredients and your protein-rich ones.
Let’s start with the ones that give you nourishment.
Coconut oil nourishes and conditions your hair from deep within the shaft, all while giving a healthy, dazzling shine to the hair.
Banana, on the other hand, is a great conditioning agent that replenishes damaged hair with moisture.
It’s also rich in biotin, which gives you livelier, bouncier hair.
And now to balance it out with protein.
Egg yolk is rich in protein and helps protect the hair shaft, but it also doubles as a natural moisturizer in this mask.
On the other hand, coconut milk contains protein, iron, and vitamins B, C, and E to help maintain the hair’s overall strength and resilience.
It also has a bunch of fatty acids, one of which is lauric acid.
This fatty acid helps to restore and strengthen the protein structure of the hair shaft.
How to make homemade deep conditioner for dry hair
And now the fun part: pretending to be a chemist in the kitchen!
Putting the ingredients of your chosen mask together is pretty simple.
All you have to do is combine the ingredients in a bowl and mix, either by hand or an electric mixer or whisk.
If you’d like to do it by hand, then you can use a spoon or spatula (I find that silicone utensils work the best for combining everything!).
I prefer a small electric hand mixer to whip it all together.
It creates a firmer, more spreadable consistency for the mask, reminiscent of meringue.
If your recipe of choice includes something that may have lumps in it, like mashed avocado or banana, use a whisk to make sure the there aren’t big bits in your mixture.
What you want is an even texture throughout your deep conditioner.
When you’re happy with your mixture and the texture is smooth and consistent, you can place your concoction in a container or tub.
I love putting mine in glass tubs, for a deluxe vibe.
You can store this homemade deep conditioner in the fridge for about three days.
Yes, that’s quite a short time, but that’s what you get when you use fresh, organic, top-tier superfoods with no preservatives.
Don’t let it sit in your fridge for way longer than that, because you’ll risk growing your own little bacteria colony.
How to use your homemade deep conditioner
There are a couple of ways to use your DIY deep conditioner, the same way store-bought ones can be very versatile in their use.
My two favorite ways to use these customized treatments are as a mask – right before a shower – and as a follow-up to shampoo.
As a mask
If you want to make sure you wash off the smell and all the residue your mask will leave behind, I recommend you use it as a mask pre-shower.
This is also the better method of the two if you’re dealing with a mask heavy with emollient oils, like olive oil and coconut oil.
Method
- Section your hair into 4-8 parts, depending on how thick and dense your hair is.
- Apply the deep conditioner generously and meticulously to each section, making sure that each and every strand is coated with its nourishing goodness.
- Tie up your hair in a bun to get it out of your face. You can even cover your hair with a plastic wrap to trap the heat inside, but this is optional.
- Wait 30 minutes to let your hair soak up all that conditioner.
- Wash off the mask with a mild, sulfate-free shampoo and proceed with the rest of your shower and hair routine.
Quick conditioning in the shower
You can also use your DIY deep conditioner to replace your regular conditioner on treatment day.
It’s a follow-up to your shampoo for that once-a-week boost of shine and moisture that isn’t so high-maintenance.
The deep conditioner is great for those with dry hair that needs some moisture boost to rejuvenate the tresses.
It’s also recommended for those who already have healthy hair, to begin with, but want an extra boost of shine.
Method
- Step into the shower and wash your hair as you normally would with shampoo.
- Skip your regular conditioner, and use your DIY mixture instead. Make sure that your hair is coated with the mixture from the roots to the tips.
- Put a shower cap on and continue with the rest of your shower. The heat of the shower helps the ingredients soak in deeper into the hair.
- After 10 minutes or until you’re done with the rest of your bath, take off the cap, rinse the mask off, and admire your freshly-moisturized hair.
Conclusion
And there you have it! Everything you need to know about make and use homemade deep conditioner for dry hair from standard kitchen items (with your own two hands!).
Don’t get too carried away with all the fun of making new treatments – remember that deep conditioning is a once-a-week thing to cherish, not abuse.
For deeper moisture penetration, you may consider deep conditioning with heat using a hooded dryer, a steamer or a heat cap.
Keep having fun experimenting with ingredients your hair will love. Who knows?
You might never have to walk into a store to buy another deep conditioner again.