Heat-tress

Yesterday I went to my parlour for facial. While I was waiting for my turn, I inquired about keratin treatment. The guy started explaining it to me. And he said something and it struck me. Let me explain it to you.
Why do you think your hair feels amazing after a parlour visit? P.S. those who already have wonderful hair otherwise need not think. This question is more us, the mere mortals, (not) blessed with oh so awesome hair.
Yeah, so why is it that when you apply the same hair serum on your hair after shampooing with the same shampoo and conditioner like the one in the parlor, the hair doesn't feel the same?
Because we miss one of the most important component at home. HEAT. Let me explain. After every hair treatment be it hair colour, spa, massage, cut, be it anything, they always give you a blow dry, to set the hair. Even if you do not go for complete hair setting ( btw who doesn't love the awesome smooth hair, the feeling of your hand just gliding by your hair without getting tangles in them), you get your hair dried at a cold setting, which is still warm. So your hair is getting warm/hot and the scalp is opening up for more absorption. Remember the hot towel home treatment everyone recommends after you oil your hair at home?  The same reason goes here.  Your scalp is becoming more absorbent amd hence whatever treatment you got done, it is getting better absorbed in your hair/scalp. And hence your hair looks OMG awesome.
Now comes the question of how to attain this at home. Invest in a good quality hair dryer/ hair styler/ iron. And after you have done your hair care at home in terms of oiling/ colouring/ spa, shampoo and just blow dry your hair a bit. I am not asking to go all pro. Just a bit,  ssy about 40% dry hair. that will do the trick.  your hair will appear smoother.
Try it and leave a comment about your experience. 

Amla Curd Hair Pack

Dry,  curly, frizzy hair. Yes. The worst of all kinds. And yours truly is blessed with the very same. Whatever I do, I am never satisfied with my hair. There's always some extra smoothness, extra softness that I crave for my hair. Though I have found this awesome semi DIY shampoo, I am always on a lookout for home remedies to soften and nourish my hair.
So, I came across this hair pack for making nourishing dry and damaged hair. The results in the video looked promising. So, I though lemme give it a try.

You will need:

Curd - 350 ml for shoulder length hair
Amla powder - 2 tbsp
Hair oil, any- 1 tbsp

I used Patanjali Kesh Kanti hair oil. I had Himalaya Neem tablets which had been lying in my cupboard unused. So I added three of the capsules and added them to my hair pack.

Mix all the above ingredients and make into a smooth paste. Mine looked like this 👇

 I used my hair colour brush to apply the paste in sections in my hair. It took almost 15 minutes to do it 🕒. While I was applying, the hair started to feel tight because the amla in the hair pack has started to dry up. I tied up my hair in a bun and let the pack do its wonder.

As the time went, it started to feel too dry but only on top. Inside it was still feeling moist. After keeping it on for almost half an hour, I shampooed my hair and conditioned. It was easy to take off the hair pack. Though it felt dry, but the washing off didnt take too much time. The hair felt smooth and when they dried I could see my natural curls being formed and hair being not so frizzy, which they generally are if I do not tie them up while they are still wet. I was happy, thinking that I have found my regular nourishing hair pack. But the happiness was short lived. By evening my hair had gone back to being more dry than usual, with the flyways popping up and hair looking like a hay -stack 😭

I do not know what didnt work. I ususally apply curd to my hair. But hair dont behave like this. Could be the Amla powder or the neem powder. May be it was old. 😞
But thats ok. My hair are still here and I am sure out there is a hair pack recipe which will make my hair softer, shinier, bouncier! 🙇

You can also give it a try and leave your comments in the box below.

Happy Hair Happenings to all of you !!!

Shampoo to Super Shampooooo

I have the deadly combination of dry hair and dry skin. I am always on look out for products and remedies to tackle both these problems. I bumped in to a super easy and effective DIY moisturiser for winter, which you can find here.

I could never find the perfect shampoo for my dry and frizzy hair. But one day as I was going through my fav beauty blog, I came across this easy DIY shampoo idea. And I thought God just answered all my prayers (Yes, that's all I pray for- lustrous, shiny, beautiful hair...all the time 👏). I have made and used this so many times. Yes, it takes a month of continuous use to show the result. But for someone as lazy as me, this is godsend. I can't thank this person enough for coming up with this recipe.

So, how to turn your regular shampoo to a SUPER shampoo? Just add the following to your regular shampoo:
1. Coconut milk (I use Dabur Homemade)- 200 ml
2. Olive oil (Figaro for me)- 1 tsp
3. Castor oil (anyone local store bought)- 1 tsp
4. Coconut oil (Patanjali)- 1 tsp

Take an empty bottle, preferably a bigger bottle of the regular shampoo which you use and suits your hair. I have very dry, curly and frizzy hair and after a really long time or bad trial and error phase ( I am 30 plus. so yeah, it took a long time to find the right shampoo for my hair), I finally found the shampoo which doesn't make my hair dry- Dove Daily Shine 💘.

Empty the coconut milk tetra pack in the empty bottle. Pour about 100-150 ml of the shampoo you use. Add all the oils. Close the cap and give it a good shake so that everything gets mixed up nicely.
And you are done! Your SUPER shampoo is ready to be used.

Use it like your normal shampoo. Take the required amount in a mug, add water and apply to your wet hair. Lather well. Rinse. Do not forget to condition your hair after the shampoo.

Coconut milk is full of active ingredients required to nourish your dry skin or hair. It makes up for more than 60% of your SUPER shampoo. So, it is cutting the amount of shampoo you are using in your hair drastically and is adding the nourishment to your hair while it sits on your head. The oils which are added to the SUPER shampoo are all moisturising and help tackle the dryness and frizzy hair. They seep deep into your hair and provide nourishment from within, long after you have shampooed your hair.

I have noticed a lot of difference in terms or hair texture and overall look and feel of my hair after using this SUPER shampoo for over a month. My hair definitely became softer, shinier and easy to manage. The curls in the end,became so manageable that I just love touching them. 💖💁

DIY Moisturizer

So winters are here and I hate winters! I don't like the fact that I have stay covered up all the time- layer after layer. And this is my first 'north' winters. Never stayed up here. While people are talking here about how they are yet to take their blankets out, I have already graduated to double blankets with the room heater on 😓. Only God knows how am I gonna survive this winter here.
So, I hate winters and God decided that I should inherit dry skin from my father over oily skin from my mom. And I do not like lathering up lotion. Just now realised that I dislike/ hate way too many things!!!
Anyways. I was looking for a simple yet effective solution for my dry skin. And what were the odds!!!! I saw one promotional video of some FB beauty page about a video showing how to make a DIY moisturiser. And the process was so simple that I decided upon making it and trying it for at least 10 days.
All that you need to make this super easy, super effective moisturiser are these three ingredients:
1. Aloe Vera Gel
2. Coconut Oil
3. Glycerine
To make this cool DIY moisturiser, all you need to do is just mix up 2 tbsp each of the Aloe Vera gel and Coconut oil and one tsp of Glycerine. I used Patanjali Aloe Vera gel and Coconut oil and a local store bought Glycerine. Just take them in a bowl and whisk them lightly so that the oil loosens up and mixes well with the rest of the ingredients.
Take an empty cream tub and store this on your bedside table for easy application before you sleep and after you wake up. ( That's what I am doing nowadays.)
This is how it looks. Mine is almost half over. Love it 😻

Whenever you feel like applying it, just scoop out a little and rub it wherever you want- your hands, elbows, heels, legs or even your face, The mild fragrance of all the gel, oil and glycerine make it smell so pleasant and not at all overpowering. All three ingredients in it are good for dry skin.
I have been using it for the past 5 days and I can feel that my hands and heels have gone softer. 😇The best part is that I know I am putting something natural without any additives. I am planning to make the next batch soon.