Shealoe... haven't made it yet but did find that it is an equal amount of shea butter and aloe vera gel.

o and i found this recipe too...this one uses an emulsifier bringing the oils and liquids together.

Sheaaloe. I have tried to make sheaaloe with FOTE and it has separated. Here is something that worked for me. 1/2  cup shea butter 1/2  cup 100% aloe jelly/juice (I used Lily of the Desert) 1Tbs emulsifying wax 1Tbs honey 10-40 drops e.o.'s to your hearts content (i like ylang ylang and lavender. Melt shea butter, honey, and wax in double boiler for 20 min. Add aloe and e.o.'s and simmer for 3 min. Let it cool naturally mixing with habd mixer every half hour or so. Should take a couple of hours to harden.

I think i will try making this sometime over the weekend.

Ok i got this from nappturality...I am going to try this this weekend also.

i'm recently in love with this from head to toe for winter 'ash season'
thick & rich body oil / hair milk
1 Tb Shea butter, melted
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup sweet almond oil
1/4 cup olive oil

mix together. add fragrance. put into 8oz bottle with a disk top, b/c as it cools the mixture will thicken too much for one of those flip-spout top bottles.  if you don't have this exact ratio of oils, the main idea is mixing a Tablespoon or two of melted shea butter into about 1 cup of liquid oil.

Lip balm...from nappturality

Coconut oil Beewax (this gives it a solid form, so the more you use the more solid it would be) Olive oil Honey FO (I used blueberry fragrance oil, found it at a local soap store in Norway) Melt oils, waxes and honey. Whisk well or the honey would settle at the bottom of the jar. Experience. Or you can wait for it to cool and mix with a spoon or a fork. It's best to pour the oils in your container and let it cool there. Less mess

Today I was messing around with some hair stuff trying to make my own custom moisturizer.Well really something to put in my hair for blowdrying So I got out my spray bottle of Infusium 23 and poured a good amount of it out. I then added John Frieda Frizease Relax Texture Correcting serum, Elasta QP Oil Recovery Moisturizer, Ginseng Miracle Wonder 8 Oil, Lustrasilk Moisture Maxx and some water. Shook it up and went to blow-dry my hair, but decided against it, because I’ve resisted about a month and a half and didn’t want to go back, so I let it air dry, and my hair has never felt softer. And to have mixed such different products the smell was great. This all was of course after a conditioner wash. I’m about 9 weeks post perm and am trying to minimize the shedding.So I've been cond washing and airdrying in a puff, and keeping my hair super mosturized. But the perm has got to be done this weekend. So I plan on going shopping for hair stuff. Saturday hopefully I can keep some money in my pocket.

Avocado Hair Mask

1 ripe avocado

1 tbsp honey

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp castor oil

Mash the avocado in a bowl and add the honey and the oils (You can substitute with any oil you wish. ) If you have a blender you can puree this or just mix until creamy. Apply to your hair wet or dry under a plastic cap, then let sit for about 20 minutes. Rinse and wash hair as normal.

jasmine2g3 wrote: where can i purchase 100% shea butter  You can purchase shea butter at african markets and there are sites, just look online to compare prices. Sometimes health food stores have it, i'm not sure if its refined or unfined tho.

and is it okay to use on my ends without melting or will it be too hard?

Yes u can use it on your ends, I would rub it in my hands first tho (it melts from our body heat), or u will have white chunks on your hair.  A little goes a long way, so it won't take much for your ends.

@Honeydo, your recipes sounds good honeydoo, i really want to try it.

update...i tried making my shealoe, just a small amount. I melted a 1tbsp shea and added a 1tbsp of aloe vera gel (perchased from health store/GNC. I mixed it and then let it sit, cool off and i put it on 2 sections of hair that I braided up. My braid out is very defined, and feels moisturized.  I added it only to 2 sections because I wanted to feel the difference from the rest of my hair. Although all of my hair is soft, this feels softer and like i said is more defined. I would suggest anyone to try it, relaxed and natural.  I believe i will use it only for harsh cold winter tho, I really don't like alot of stuff in my hair.

Just wanted to add, if u are going to make a large batch of shealoe, and want it to last long u might want to use an emulsifier(a product that keeps oils and waters from seperating) (beeswax, borax and others that I am doing research on), after a while, if left alone it will seperate.

http://www.soapnuts.com/snspecialoils.html - http://www.soapnuts.com/snspecialoils.html

Update-

Ok i talked to someone who said instead of putting in 50/50 of the ingredient put in 60 percent of shea and 40 percent of aloe and stir with a fork, than place in fridge that way it wont seperate. I had mine for 2 days now and its just fine. 

Is there a reputable site/place to buy these butters from? 

Thanks!

There are sites they can also be found if you google it and put shea butter or essential oils in the search engine.

just to name a few

http://www.nasabb.com - www.nasabb.com

http://www.fromnaturewithlove.com - www.fromnaturewithlove.com

Here's a really good leave-in I made:

1 cup water (distilled or purified)

1/3 cup rosewater/glycerine

4 tablespoons light conditioner (like VO5 Nourishing Oasis Honey & Almond)

1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil

I put all these ingrediets in aspray bottle and shake very well.  This is great and is a really good detangler.

Here's another one for a pre-poo:

1 cup Conditioner (I use the VO5 Free Me Fressia CON)

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup EVOO

5 capsules of Biotin Vitamin (Mine are 5,000 mcgs each-this prevents shedding)

*Optional: I add Queen Helene Cholesterol to my ends*

I cover with a plastic bag.  I leave all this on for as long as I can.  Mainly anywhere from 4 hours to overnight.  And be ready to rinse this out and feel a slip that you will not believe.  I do this once a week.

oh if anyone is interested, someone at another website showed my an interesting link and i just purchased a gallon of shampoo concentrate, a gallon of castor oil and a gallon of conditioner concentrate. You just add water. but you can also add oil and fragance if you so desire. the website is http://www.thechemistrystore.com - www.thechemistrystore.com    and it's worth a look.

Is it in a jar that is closed...make sure it is tightly closed. Shake it at least once a day for 2 weeks. The color is similiar to the flowers that you placed in there. After doing that strain the roses out of the water and there u have rose water.

Update: I used half of the 4oz. jar of "It's A Black Thang", 3 sticks of "Helene Cocoa Butter" and I melted it in a glass bowl throughly. I then added  2 - 10 oz jars of "Smooth & Shine Curl Activator Gel" and stirred the butters until smooth and it looked like vanilla pudding.

Ladies this really works and my natural curls have more definition.  I apply this to my wet natural hair every morning.

Process:

Gently heat the oil and the conditioner, stirring as you go along. Remember that oil heats very quickly and can burn quite easily: NEVER leave unattended. You are only heating it to the point of warming the oil and blending it with the conditioner. Once it is warm, remove from heat. Be sure you test the heat of the oil before putting it on your hair.

If it seems too warm, wait several minutes before applying. It is not recommended to use a microwave to heat the oil since temperatures are hard to control and you might wind up with part of it being much hotter than the other. Apply the warm oil to dry hair.

If your hair is long, thick or very damaged (as can happen to bleached, permed or dyed hair), it is best to use a comb to work it in and make sure that you have covered every strand, paying particular attention to the ends of the hair. Then you can wrap your hair in plastic wrap to help keep the heat in and leave it on for about 30 minutes. If your hair is shorter or not as damaged, you can just work it in and leave it for 5 minutes. When the time is up, you will need to shampoo the oil out. You will probably need to shampoo twice. The first time you use it, you might skip using additional conditioner. You don't want to weigh down the hair too much, but if you notice that it seems dry after shampooing it out, then you can use conditioner after shampooing.

For very damaged hair, use the treatment once a week at least, twice if it is very long or damaged. Otherwise, every two weeks is all that is required. If you have problems with your scalp, try adding some tea-tree oil to your hair treatments. Tea tree oil isn't cheap, but you will only use a small amount. It is a natural anti-fungal and can help greatly with dandruff-like problems and seborrhea. You can buy tea tree oil at health food stores.

You can also just do the ends of your hair (use less oil). You can make up a batch of it to keep on hand, just mix well if you notice the conditioner settling. Use a small squeeze bottle (you can reuse the bottles that have hair dye or perm solution, rinse out well) this will make it easy to apply.

As the condition of your hair improves, a once-a-month maintenance treatment is all that is needed

Karonica-  have you tried going to a health food store to get tea tree oil.  They usually, have all kinds of oils at helthfood stores. You are welcome for the tip by the way.

Aseya- you are so welcome. I have done this before without evening know other people do it and I loved it as well. I'm glad it worked for you...keep me updated with your progress.

Thanks Aseya for your assistance. Girl, I see you are really loving that treatment.

Canopy you can use any oil that works for you...when I first  started I use canola oil, yes the kind you cook with and it worked just find.  Just try to warm it a bit,45 seconds in the microwave is about right, don't try to make it so hot that you can't even touch it that would not be good at all.    I hope that helps.

Aseya~ your glowing review convinced me to try this out! I'm now excited for Sunday (deep treatment day). Thanks for the microwave tip.

Cmesweet- you always give good advice so I am confident this will have great results. Thanks so much, I'll let you know how it turns out.

Hey guys -- I used the homemade hot oil treatment. What an experience! I had some slight problems with prep, not because of the directions, but because I'm a total klutz. After I got the mixture, I put it on my hair, popped on my shower cap and stepped in for a nice shower. When it came time to rinse my hair, my hair was SO SOFT...it was softer after the hot oil treatment than any conditioning wash has ever gotten it. I love this.

The next time I use this, instead of doing the hot oil treatment, perhaps I'll shampoo/condition at the beginning of the shower rituatal, then put on the hot oil and then shower. I'll rinse it out at the end so I can have that softness all day long. It's a really good mixture, A+.

Also, I had some issues putting it on my head. For those of you who have used it, how do you actually apply it? I had it in a small cup and I didn't think ahead about how to transfer it to my hair so I just dumped it over my head. I ended up with product running down my face and some got in my eyes.  Also, when you used it, did the conditioner bead up? Mine did and it was kinda cool.

cmesweet, thanks for the good tip!! My hair loves it!

Canopy- Glad to hear that you are liking the results! If you are having problems with the oil treatment, try using a spray bottle.  But I usually, use the method that Aseya uses because it seems quicker and I feel that I get each strand quicker.

Aseya- See, you are an inspiration to those around you! I need to see that style you were rocking girl. Send your friend over here and so we can hook her up.

 I love this group so much!!!  The hot oil treatment is wonderful! I mixed shea butter, OV, carrot oil, and conditioner. It felt soooo good, and washed out fine. Thanks to all you ladies, my locs are going to be long, soft, and strong in no time!

The is my "pre-poo" concoction that I try to use everytime I shampoo (or whenever my hair needs some extra softness)

1 can of coconut milk, a good helping of my favorite oils (I use evoo, jojoba, wgo and some hot six oil), suave tropical cocnout conditioner, about 3 tablespoons of honey, and maybe a half a cup of a thick conditioner.  I heat this up on the stove until it boils, and then I let it cool.  I put it on my hair for about 1 hr (under a dryer) and then shampoo out.  My hair comes out so soft and moisturized!  I need to do this more often.

im gonna try the hot oil treatment.  It sounds great.

an oil blend, great for massaging.

Main purpose of this blend is to incorporate an essential oil, Ginger Oil, which is used for massages and to treat joint pain. It must be diluted with a carriar oil.

2 teaspoons of Vegetable oil ( which is a variation of soybean oil)

1/2 teaspons of coconut oil

2-3 drops of ginger oil

stir together, and use as a massgae oil on scalp on any part of body.

I have also used this on my scalp, followed by spritzing with water. My scalp appeared and felt very clean and moisturized.

Welcome Creation to this site!  I know of motowngirls site...my interview is on there this month. Take a look at it if you like :)

Ok I have another Ginger recipe, from Shulta of NP   she is the owner of http://www.anitagrant.com - www.anitagrant.com . 

I spoke with her about making ginger tea. It tastes wonderful, you have to try it! Her directions were as follows:

1. Cut a half inch thick slice of Ginger Root and place it in a nice big ol' mug
2. Boil some water (enough to fill that big ol' mug )
3. Whe the water has boiled add the boiled water to the mug that contains the sliced Ginger root.
4. Cover the mug with a small plate or tea dish or cling film while it brews.
5. Let it brew/steep for a min. of 5 mins or max of 15 mins.
6. Sip to taste
7. Strain out the Ginger (if you wish)
8. Add Honey and/or a Cinnamon stick or some fresh Lemongrass or a fresh pod of Vanilla (my fav. with a bit of honey - YUM-O-TEA!!!)

I used a slice of lemon and sweetened with honey. It was great...

I try to use only natural and organic ingredients in my hair, since I'm not a fan of chemicals right now.  But this is my recipe for scalp oil.  I have dry skin and this helps.  I don't have messurements to give you since I just mix how I see fit.

Mostly Olive Oil

Vitamin E Oil

Carot Oil

Castor Oil

Coconut Oil or (Medium Chain Triglycerides that come in oil form, because coconut oil has to be melted down)

BEER SHAMPOO

Select herbal shampoo (i.e. chamomile, lavender or rosemary)

Heat 1 1/2 cups of regular beer to boil

Boil until beer reduces to a 1/4 cup

Mix beer into 3/4 full shampoo bottle (no water necessary)

Massage well into wet scalp

Wait for 2 minutes and then rinse with lukewarm water

BEER CONDITIONING RINSE

Grab old can/bottle of flat, stale beer

Pour beer over hair

Do not rinse

Add honey

Allow contents to soak into hair

Lightly towel-dry hair

Wait for beer to set

Beer Hair Rinse

1 oz distilled or clean catch rain water

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

7 drops lemon essential oil

1 ounce beer (stale works fine)

5 drops rosemary essential oil

5 drops calendula essential oil (optional, but recommended for blondes)

Mix all ingredients together. Use as a final rinse, rinse well. Beer adds protein to make hair shiny and make it feel thicker.

I need to go purchase an avocado for the avocado mask. Has anyone tried it yet? It sound wonderful and also I want to do an herbal shampoo...what herbs should i shampoo with?

I tried a new mixture..... 

Hi Simplired! I am new here.  I love the coconut milk recipe that Sashi recommended. *Hi Sashi*!.  Where did you get the coconut cream from?  Can you buy it from the supermarket or health food store?

I'm a newbie and i've been looking for homemade shampoo and conditioner recipes. I'm a teen, so my hair is very very very important to me. I've been getting relaxers and I want to keep getting them, but i also want my hair to grow longer and stronger, maybe a bit below my shoulders. Do you have any suggestions on the fastest way to grow my hair. I want to use stuff that doesn't cost much(because my parents have to buy it) and stuff that is easy to find. Please help me!

I need to find something to hold my hair in place with out the flaking of gel. I like Let's Jam, but it doesn't hold my hair after a matter of hours. I'd prefer to avoid products with chemicals, and stay closer to the natural route. Also, does that Miss Jessie's Pudding flake? I might could use that if it'll work for my twist.