Hair can get dry and brittle, especially in the summer months during time spent outside, at the beach, or swimming in a chlorine laden pool. Use of harsh chemical products can also damage hair, but this conditioning treatment helps nourish hair and strengthen it.

Try this easy and inexpensive home treatment that will naturally improve your hair. I even use this on my four year old to make her hair more manageable and easier to brush (she is very tender-headed). This recipe is so simple, it is hard to call it a recipe, but it works really well so I thought I’d share it anyway. Please note that it will leave hair oily and need to be washed/rinsed well as to not leave residue.

If you’re looking for other natural hair care recipes, check out my homemade coconut shampoo, DIY Beach Waves Hairspray and Dry Shampoo for Dark or Light Hair.

Too busy to DIY? Try my Wellnesse brand shampoo and conditioner for all hair types — or try this formula if you have curly hair.

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Nourishing Hair Oil Recipe

This easy and inexpensive home treatment will naturally improve dry, brittle, damaged hair.

Prep Time9

Yield:

Author: Katie Wells

Materials

2 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP coconut oil
1 TBSP honey
1 tsp Epsom salt (or magnesium flakes)

Instructions

Combine all the ingredients and whisk or blend well (I used an immersion blender). You may have to heat the coconut oil slightly to soften it. The Epsom salt will still be somewhat gritty but will dissolve and work in to the hair once applied.
Over a sink or shower, massage the oil through the hair and scalp. Put a shower cap on (or old towel) and leave on for up to 30 minutes.
In the shower, rinse well, then shampoo.

Notes

If hair is still oily after washing, massage a small amount of baking soda through the hair to remove or use dry shampoo after the shower.

Have you ever used oil on your hair? How did it work?
This hair oil uses olive oil and coconut oil with honey to add moisture and epsom salts for a magnesium boost. This creates a moisturizing conditioner for the hair.

Sources

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About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

61 responses to “Nourishing Hair Oil Recipe”

Karen

May 31, 2019

Need to be at one with nature hence very interested in natural products.

Love your recipes.

Reply
Lorna

November 20, 2018

I have not been able to find Magnesium flakes but I have magnesium oil. Can I substitute & if yes, how much?

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Tana

June 13, 2018

Following up… Scary feeling in the shower but hair is is totally fine. In fact it’s very soft and shiny when I eventually took the towel off my head and combed through it. This is the second time I used this recipe. The first time this did not happen but I did not have epsom salt the first time.

Reply
Tana

June 13, 2018

Help! I didn’t read the part about no longer than 30 minutes and left this in for several hours. I just rinsed it, lightly shampooed and then realized I have this big patch of coarse sticky straw-like hair that I could not get unsticky in the shower even when adding more shampoo and conditioner. I also did a apple cider vinegar and water rinse which I had planned to do to clean my scalp. I noticed this sticky patch before the vinegar so I know that has nothing to do with it. How the heck do I get this out of my hair?

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Elizabeth

May 19, 2018

Any suggestions for FINE, thin, curly hair? 2 of my three girls have hair like this. I also do and mine is really dry. It is also thin as you described, in large part to pregnancy and nursing as well. (#6 will be born about the time our oldest will be 9.5!!)

Reply
Karen

September 15, 2017

I believe i read somewhere else on this site that you could make a dyi hair treatment with essential oils so I have been mixing castor oil coconut oil argan and olive oil with a few drops of aloe vera from a live plant. I had just experienced some major hair loss and breakage after my hair for some unsure reason became very dry and brittle. It’s a total mystery why this happened. I had been using rogaine beauce I have had nutritional hair loss and a lot of dead follicles I believe for a very long time. Never been evaluated by a doctor but have been anorexic or very very calorie conscious and protein deficient for like 30 years. Well, my hubby added more chlorine than usual to our pool and the next day after swimming in it I became sick..totally not related but I didnt wash my hair for a few days after swimming in it from being sick. So it was left in my hair so my thoughts are maybe the chlorine reacted with the rogain or something, I also got a spray tan but wore a cap, so unless it somehow seeped through, I dont know still baffled but for whatever reason my hair became so dry and brittle kind of like out of nowhere and about 50 % broke off so I am treating with this dyi oil treatment. I was reading to increase hair growth apply to scalp, what about applying to the hair and scalp, to treat the hair as well?

Reply
Cassie Hughes

August 24, 2016

Do you use the whole recipe all at once or can I store it for later use. I have short hair and I don’t think I will need it all.

Reply
1. Jaime
  
  February 2, 2018
  
  Yes, I am wondering this, too!
  
  Reply
Mary

March 18, 2016

This worked amazing on my hair! I warmed it all, blended it & applied the sticky mess to my hair, focusing on the bottom half of my hair. I have loads of fine, straight hair down to the middle of my back and a scalp that tends toward oily. Will double it next time. Two washes with regular shampoo (which is free of all the stuff…) & my hair came out beautiful! Thanks again, Katie!!

Reply
Brenda

September 22, 2015

Hi Kate, I’m wondering if you can double/triple… this batch to have it on hand for the next few applications. Does it stay nicely blended for a while or does it separate and go bad?

Thanks!
Brenda

Reply
1. Shelley
  
  October 28, 2015
  
  I’ve noticed a lot of comments on here about not being able to wash the oils out of the hair. I recently read that washing your hair with eggs, then a very small amount of castile soap helps a lot. I recently did a coconut oil mask on my hair and washed it out with egg, and a little bit of castile soap. It came out great! Only downside to washing with eggs is….no warm or hot showers. You have to wash your hair in cool water or you will end up with scrambled eggs in your hair. And make sure you rinse your hair really well.
  
  Reply
Shweta

September 19, 2015

I used this recipe and added little bit of castor oil. What I used was store brought organic blue agave honey. During and post shower I lost lot of hair…LOT of hair. I wonder if it was because of the type of honey I used. I’m really worried about my hair loss and not sure if it’s going to get any thicker. Please help!!!

Reply
Rifat Tabassam

August 9, 2015

Both olive oil and coconut oil nourishes hair and contribute in reducing hair fall. Thank you for this useful hair oil recipe. I will try it this weekend.

Reply
Jaz

June 16, 2015

I used to have really pretty hair that looked like it had just been brushed all day. Then I started getting into dying it and that pretty much ruined it. So now i’m back at my original color and I just had to chop half of my hair off because it was SO damaged. I have pretty thin hair and I live in a place were it’s sunny all year round and i go to the beach a lot, which i hear isn’t good for hair. I’m pretty desperate for something to work, because right now it just coarse rope if I didn’t just brush it. I just read ALL of your hair recipes like the shampoo and the hair growing stuff and it all sounds really great, i’m just wondering which ones I should do. should I try them all at once? Or just try each one and see the best results?

Reply
1. Wellness Mama
  
  June 16, 2015
  
  I would try each of them and see how they work. It will depend on your personal hair properties, so you may like some, and not others.
  
  Reply
ZONIA ZUNIGA

April 2, 2015

AFTER YOU DRY BRUSH AN APPLY THE OIL , DO YOU WASH IT OFF OR LEAVE IT ON???

Reply
George

March 7, 2015

Linda, sounds like you could add some red wine vinegar & pepper & have salad dressing. I hope you guys are doing well. George

Reply
Raven T

March 2, 2015

Coconut oil is not good for everyone’s hair. I have dry, thick, curly hair, and have been battling dry, itchy scalp for forever. coconut oil does not absorb well into my scalp, and makes the itchiness worse. I also had split ends, and coconut oil was useless in getting rid of them.
I think it’s good in a shampoo or conditioner, but for those of us who have to oil our scalps and ends on a daily or every other day basis, I recommend jojoba oil or avocado oil. They absorb much easier, and properly absorb into the scalp and hair shafts. I use jojoba oil on my scalp every other day, and the itchiness, dryness, and split ends are gone.

Reply
laiba

October 9, 2014

I haven’t had great luck with coconut oil. It gives me dandruff 🙁 Could I replace it with some other oil like almond oil or sesame oil?

Reply
Caryn

October 3, 2014

Are honey and the magnesium flakes safe to use on babies? I would like to try this on my 3 month old for a dry scalp. Just want to be sure all the ingredients are ok for babies too.. Thank you!

Reply
1. Wellness Mama
  
  October 6, 2014
  
  Babies are just not supposed to eat the honey, so as long as it does not get in his mouth it should be fine. The magnesium should be fine. You may just want to go easy on them in the recipe if you are concerned they might tingle too much for him, and test it first.
  
  Reply
Amy

October 2, 2014

Hi,

Is the honey necessary? I have used unpasturized and now raw honey and I am unable to get it to emulsify with the oils. It stays as a clump. Is this the epsom salts that are doing it? Should I omit the epsom salt altogether??

Amy

Reply
1. Wellness Mama
  
  October 2, 2014
  
  You honey might be too cool. It can clump up if it is cold. It usually helps give the oil a little body so that it stays in the hair better. It’s also really good for your hair as a natural anti-humectant and moisturizer.
  
  Reply

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