DIY Beach Waves Hair Spray

Second to Dry Shampoo, sea salt spray is probably my most used hair product, and it is also super easy to make yourself!

Sea Salt spray or Beach Waves Spray has gained popularity lately, and it is the product most often used for those beachy waves that are so popular. Many of the sea salt sprays are also drying to the hair, as salt pulls moisture and natural oils out.

The gold standard of beach sprays for hair (in my opinion) is Bumble to Bumble Surf Spray, which does work great, but costs $25 a bottle which is about $24.50 out of my price range for hair products. This particular brand uses Magnesium Sulfate (aka Epsom Salt) instead of Sea Salt, which makes it less drying to hair. It also has some natural oils (aka Conditioner) to replenish hair.

This is one of the simplest natural hair care recipes to make at home, and it literally costs about 1/50th of the store bought versions. It adds great texture and volume to hair without the chemicals. If you make it yourself, you can also customize to your hair type to get the texture you want.

I use this all the time and it works great, even on my hair that can be hard to tame and really hard to get to hold a curl. In fact, I used this in the cover for my recent cookbook, and I got a lot of questions about how I got my hair to stay like that and if I used natural products (I did).

My whole protocol for the cookbook cover hair was texturizing spray and dry shampoo for volume, this ceramic curling wand for curl/waves, and sugar and salt spray to set.

Hair Spray Supplies

• hot water
• epsom salts
• Himalayan or Sea Salt (optional but adds stiffness
• aloe vera gel
• natural conditioner (I’ve used this Organix coconut one and Dr. Bronners Lavender Coconut ) or a few drops of almond oil or jajoba oil (optional- you may not need it if you have fine/oily hair)
• Optional: a few drops of essential oils or a spritz of your favorite perfume for scent- Lavender and citrus are great options
• Optional: 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 1 teaspoon vodka or alcohol- if you want to lighten hair (the lemon juice lightens and the alcohol preserves)

Ingredients for Hair Spray

• 1 cup of hot water (not boiling)- Can also use strong Chamomile Tea as the base if you want to lighten hair or black tea as the base if you want to darken hair, but you will need to keep in the fridge.
• 2 tablespoons epsom salts (or more for extra texture)
• 1/2 tsp Himalayan or Sea Salt (optional but adds stiffness)
• 1 teaspoon aloe vera gel
• 1/2 tsp conditioner (optional- don’t use if you have fine/oily hair)
• Optional: a few drops of essential oils or a spritz of your favorite perfume for scent- Lavender and citrus are great options
• Optional: 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 1 teaspoon vodka or alcohol- if you want to lighten hair (the lemon juice lightens and the alcohol preserves)

Hair Spray Instructions

1. Get a spray bottle that holds at least 10 ounces. I used a glass bottle made from an old apple cider vinegar bottle and a regular spray top. I also tripled the recipe to accommodate the size of my bottle.
2. Put the hot water (or tea) in the spray bottle and add the epsom salts, sea salt (optional), aloe vera, conditioner, scent (optional) and lemon juice/vodka (if using).
3. Put the cap on the bottle and shake for 1-2 minutes or until epsom salts and sea salt are dissolved. Store in the fridge if using lemon juice or tea base, or at room temperature if you aren’t. Will last 3-4 months or longer.

How to Use

Spray on damp hair and scrunch with a towel to dry for loose beach waves. (See picture of me- please excuse how large my nose looks in this picture and the fact that I am not wearing any make-up! Also, please excuse my lack of hair photography skills!)

Spray on dry hair and on roots for volume and texture without the waves. (See picture of the volume it gave my three year old. Excuse the apple eating and unorganized bookshelf!)

If your hair is straight and thin and you want all-day waves: Wash hair the night before and spray hair with Beach Spray while still damp. Then, either french braid into pigtails or wrap in a tight scrunched bun on top of your head. and leave overnight. By morning, your hair should be dry. Spritz with a little more spray and take out the braid/bun. Voila- all day beach waves. Spray with additional spray and scrunch if you want more stiffness.

Ever used Sea Salt Spray? Ever made your own hair products? Tell me below!