Ayurvedic Twist on Bentonite Treatment - For Clarifying and Strengthening

So for those of you who follow my posts, you will remember my bentonite treatment (here).  Well to kick off my ayurvedic series (actually my post on the cleansing with shikakai was the first post in this series), I am going to share something new.  Instead of the traditional recipe of mixing bentonite with a mildly acidic liquid like a citrus juice, apple cider vinegar, I am sharing my bentonite mix made with an herbal tea.

A lot of people use a regular herbal tea like chamomile - and I have used jasmine - to mix the bentonite (you can get creative with it).   But, as a part of incorporating time-tested ayurvedic herbs used for generations to care for hair, I mixed my bentonite powder with brahmi tea.  Brahmi is known to strengthen and condition hair. And I know what you're asking next:  'What do you mean by strengthening? What does brahmi actually do?'

Brahmi is the name of two types of herbs - which, I know, makes it confusing.  The brahmi I refer to here is also called gotu kola.  When not taken internally for memory-enhancing effects, it is primarily used as a treatment for hair loss and is known to stimulate hair growth.   It works as a 'strengthener' by smoothing and temporarily protecting the hair cuticle.  The effect is less tangling and theoretically hair that's less prone to breakage.  Because these results are of course temporary the reviews are that if you consistently use brahmi you will notice less breakage over time.
So between the clarifying benefits of the bentonite and the strengthening benefits of the brahmi, I get a clarifying and strengthening treatment in one!
Here goes:

Bentonite Treatment with Brahmi Tea

Ingredients:

2 cups water

1/4 cup brahmi powder

1 tspn ginseng powder

1 tspn aloe powder

1/2 tspn honey

1/2 cup bentonite clay powder

3 tspns marshmallow root powder (finely ground to prevent bits getting stuck in hair)

Instructions
(The recipe is similar to making the shikakai tea).
Bring water to a boil.  Once boiling, add brahmi powder, mix in and reduce heat to simmer.  Let simmer 5-10 minutes.  Bring mixture to boil again and once boiling, add ginseng  powder, reduce heat again and let simmer 2-3 minutes.  Bring mixture to boil a third time and as soon as mixture has begun to boil, add aloe powder.  Shut off heat.  Mix well and leave mixture covered for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Warning: My experience with aloe powder is that it is bitter and somewhat camphorous when boiling. So after I add aloe, I cover the pot, make sure my stove fan is on and remove mixture from heat right away. Expect a bitter smell in your kitchen for the first few minutes after adding aloe.

After mixture has been allowed to cool at least 4 hours, strain mixture and discard solids.  This recipe may make more than you need for your treatment (I got about two treatments out of it), so place mixture in a closed container and refrigerate what you do not use.
In a separate container, mix bentonite powder with marshmallow root powder.  Slowly, while mixing, pour in brahmi tea mixture.  Pour enough to get a soft mushy consistency (bentonite mix should be thick, slippery and soft for easy application, without being runny. See pics below). 
Add 1/2 tspn of honey and mix until treatment is smooth. Apply mixture soon after mixing because it will dry out.

My experience:  The marshmallow root powder I got, was not finely ground and I did not notice until after I had used this mixture for the first time.  The result was bits of straw-looking pieces in my hair after I rinsed.  Very annoying.  So my advice is to either make sure you get one that is finely ground (inspect it) or sift it through a sieve to hopefully get all the bigger pieces out.

I co-washed first (or you can shampoo, its up to you), detangled in the shower and applied the mixture.  The most important thing is to get it on your scalp and roots of your hair - its supposed to be a scalp/skin detoxifier (how it clarifies).  I gently massaged the mix unto my scalp and put on a shower cap because I did not want the mix to dry out on my hair.  All this is done while I am still in the shower. Once I am out of the shower, I leave the mix and my shower cap on for another 5 to 10 minutes and rinse with cool or if you can stand it, cold water - to help close/smooth the hair cuticle.

Remember, clay/mud mixes will dry out.  I recommend wearing a shower cap to prevent this and allow longer conditioning time.  If you choose not to wear a shower cap, rinse as soon as you feel the mixture getting sticky.

My hair felt squeaky clean after I rinsed but to get that slip, I briefly massaged a small amount of my commercial-brand deep conditioner through my strands and rinsed again with cool water.  After applying my homemade moisturizing mix, the result was super-soft hair and a cool-feeling scalp.  Here are some helpful pics:

Brahmi tea

Strain tea and discard solid portion

Pour tea (liquid) into sealable container

Apply tea to bentonite powder mix

Add honey to mixture

Ready to use

I really liked this spin on my bentonite clarifying treatment. I also found that I didn't need  to add oil like I usually do when I use citrus juice, to counter the drying effects of citrus. 

Oh, of note, I did massage my scalp with some oil before my co-wash. I think it was amla oil but I'm sure any oil would do.

The marshmallow root powder probably also had something to do with it because it acts as a humectant to hold moisture so the treatment did not dry out as fast. I'm going to continue using brahmi tea for my bentonite treatments in the next couple months and let you know if I notice unusual growth or reduction in breakage.

Improvement on Bentonite Clay Treatment

This is a quick post just to rave about my latest homemade treatment because I think it came out well. And I define well by how my hair feels, how my scalp feels - soft, and clean.

I started with a pre-shampoo scalp treatment using a product called Phytopolleine from the Phyto hair products brand. I used this stuff back when I had relaxed hair to improve the condition of my scalp and stimulate hair growth. And it works! It is really just a mixture of essential oils known to stimulate blood circulation and clarify the scalp and I warn you, it smells strongly. But if you can tolerate the strong smell, the best way to use it is as an overnight treatment if you know you're going to shampoo the next day. The scent doesn't fade so shampoo is your only option.
 I have been lazy lately so I  ended up putting it on just about an hour or two before shampooing.  I then shampooed, with Organix Coconut Milk, and applied this homemade conditioning treatment that's just a variation of my previous bentonite clay treatment but  seemed to work so much better at clarifying my hair, removing buildup and making my scalp feel so so clean. Here it is:
A little more than 1/4 cup bentonite clay
1/4 cup fresh-squeezed, grapefruit juice (strain to remove pulp which will get stuck in your hair and make this experience frustrating)
1/2 teaspoon shea butter (melted for better blending)
1/2 teaspoon coconut oil
1 tablespoon honey
1 pinch of baking soda
Enough aloe vera juice to make the mixture not too thick. Mixture should be pour-able but thick.

I sectioned my hair and applied the treatment along the hair shaft from the root to the ends making sure to get the treatment on the scalp. I left the treatment on for less than ten minutes (just make sure not to let the treatment dry out in your hair). After washing the treatment out with warm water, I rinsed with vinegar water rinse (about a 1/4 cup vinegar to a jug of water).

My hair felt squeaky (as in squeaky clean) so to get my hair smooth again, I applied my usual Kerastase Oleo-Curl Intense deep conditioner and left for a few minutes while I trimmed my ends.
After I rinsed out the conditioner, I applied a mixture of coconut oil and shea butter to moisturize and let air-dry.

Bentonite Clay Treatment and other Ramblings

Hi Dear Readers,

I know I have been neglecting posting updates. Partly, I have felt perpetually exhausted the past week or so and on the weekends is my only time to catch up...which I never do because on the weekend I'm just trying to do the things I wasn't able to do during the week. Work is taking up all my energy - mostly my mental energy.
Anyway, yes alot has been going on with my hair. She has grown out alot. I would say she is about 3 inches now. And yes, I did say 'she.' When I first started this blog I vowed to never give my hair a name or a any other silly moniker as I had been reading on other blogs where the bloggers named their hair! I mean how silly is that.....until I started referring to my hair as 'she.'

I don't know what it is, I just feel as though it has a personality, character. I think that is true of all natural hair and maybe I just didn't realize this before because I had 'smoothed' all the character out of her with relaxers. So maybe your next question is does she actually have a name.

Kind of.

I am torn about it and mostly just too embarrassed that I actually gave my hair a name. But really I haven't because I rarely ever use it just because I haven't found a moniker that just feels right to say.
So for now she is still just 'my hair' except my hair is a she. I know your next question is why a 'she.' Well of course because I'm a she, dohhh! I mean how weird would it be for me to be a female and refer to my hair as a he? So you can tell I'm just feeling kind of silly today. And I'm still exhausted.

I have meant to post pictures of my last natural treatment. They are still in my phone and I will post them, really.

So what have my hair and I been up to lately?

Well, I got my Qhemet Biologics products last weekend and I have used a little of it. Not enough to do a review but I plan on doing twists this weekend (yes she has grown enough (barely) for twists, I can't believe it), and I will use the Amla and Olive Heavy Cream to do it so I'll tell you how it turns out.

I also did another natural treatment,  this past weekend. I think I will keep doing the weekend treatments. What I have been doing is co-washing during the week and then do a shampoo wash on the weekend and then a treatment .I like my hair and scalp to be clean and buildup-free before I apply the treatments so I'm not left with gunky hair. My bad though I forgot to take pictures during the treatment so you could see the before, during and after.
Doesn't really matter if I keep forgetting to post them right? But next time, I will. Its just being a blogger is so much work. I didn't realize but I look on other blogging sites and they have pictures of everything and it just looks like they put so much time into it....time I do not have. But I dedicated my self to this and I do like sharing my experiences even if I only have one follower **sniff sniff**
If there are more of you out there who read this, please please send comments of your experiences, ask questions if you want or just say hi, just so I  know you read it. It will motivate me to keep this up long-term.

Anyway so here is a breakdown of my home-made treatment from this past weekend. This one is with bentonite clay and it came out great. Except for the pieces of lemon pulp that got left in my hair. Tip: Juice the lemon separately and make sure you only apply the juice and no pulp (or just get lemon juice)
1/4 cup bentonite clay (you might need more of these ingredients if your hair is longer than 4 inches. Mine is still a twa).
1 teaspoon virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil
1 tablespoon shea butter
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup strong warm jasmine flower tea (two jasmine flower tea bags left to sit in warm water about 10 minutes)
Mix all in blender. If you have problem scalp (dry, itchy) also apply a drop of tea tree or rosemary oil (and I literally mean a drop, the stuff is strong and smells strongly).
Apply the smooth mixture to clean scalp and hair. Apply in sections to make sure it gets unto the scalp. Gently massage scalp as you smooth it in. (I don't recommend massaging the scalp after the initial application as the mixture dries out due to the clay which will make this difficult)
Use a shower cap for about 3-5 minutes then let sit another 3-5 minutes. Try not to let the treatment dry on your scalp.

You can tell when it comes close to drying, because it will get stickier and less liquid-y. Rinse out with lukewarm or cold water. Cold water should seal hair cuticle with all those great oils you put in your treatment.
Your hair will curl or kink, or whatever it does in happiness. Because the treatment makes the hair feel squeaky, I then apply a deep condition for literally 1 minute just to get the slippery, silky feeling back in my hair. Rinse out again and style as usual with your usual oils. After I did this treatment and the deep conditioning, I twisted my hair, single-strand, using just coconut oil and after twisting, re-worked the twists with shea butter to seal them. I left this overnight and loosened the twists after spritzing with water the following day. The twists were ok, My hair is fine (opposite of thick) so you could see the parts like crazy, I had to do some work to cover up the parts and some parts of my hair like the middle, refused to twist, I'm not sure why and I am concerned, I had to seal those twists with aluminum foil (its all I had and it worked).

I did the treatment and twists on Saturday and even though on Sunday it looked aiight, I did not co-wash on Sunday and was surprised that on Monday my hair actually looked better than it did the day before! Its now Wednesday and I have not done a co-wash yet. I don't want to wash out the twists. I just let the hair get some steam when I shower by leaving it out (no shower cap) and moisturize with sweet almond oil and olive oil when I get out of the shower.
I hope I can improve on my twists, maybe do the twists smaller using the Amla and Olive Heavy Cream instead of just coconut oil, to get more definition longer. Its Wednesday though and even with my usual fuzz, it still looks good...at least to me (and that's all that matters).
I plan to co-wash this evening to wash out any buildup as I have been applying a little gel every morning after spritzing with water.
Anyway, that's it for now. Until next time.....peace out.