I used to watch a YouTuber named Naptural85 years ago when I first went natural. It has been 15+ years since I stopped putting any chemicals in my hair to straighten it. I did that for overall health reasons. One of Naptural85’s videos that was helpful to me was when she shared her version of making flaxseed gel. I liked that it uses few ingredients that are not harmful in any way and you save so much money making your own gel. Here is how it’s done:

Homemade flaxseed gel

You use 2 cups of water and 1/4 cup of Whole Flaxseeds. Put that in a 2 qt. sauce pan, stir, and bring ingredients to a rolling boil. Let this boil until a gel forms. It can take anywhere from 10-15 minutes for the gel to form. You have to stand there and stir this during that time because you don’t want the seeds sticking to the bottom of your pot. Immediately strain (Can use a cheap knee high stocking fitted over a container to strain this). I used plastic tongs to squeeze out as much gel as possible.

This is how it looks when finished (sorry my camera isn’t showing the frothy/gel look I see on my end). I add a tsp. of vegetable glycerin, and a few drops of essential oil for a nice scent and to preserve it. I keep in the refrigerator until ready to use. It lasts a couple of weeks when kept cold.

I was also glad to find a leave-in conditioner hack online that would help me stretch my pricey bottle of conditioner further. It came from another natural hair YouTuber (named Kimmaytube) whom I used to watch years ago. She no longer makes videos as far as I can tell so I don’t know what she’s doing these days. Here is what I use to make up the concoction with oil substitution:

I have here Kinky Curly Knot Today, Aloe Vera Juice, and Africa’s Best Herbal Oil (used in place of the other oils called for in original recipe). On the back of my KCKT bottle I mark each time I use the conditioner to see how many uses I’ll get out of it once I’ve used it up. As you can see I used this one 2 times already. If I bought 2 of these bottles, I find it lasts me a vey long time. Each week I make up the recipe on my hair wash (spa) day if I don’t already have enough leftovers to use. My results are a creamy conditioner that’s not too watery or too thick. The pH balance in this is great for my hair leaving me with curly coily ends. I love the smell too! If you’re interested in the original recipe here it is:

Kimmaytube’s Leave in Conditioner

1 oz. Kinky Curly Knot Today Leave-In (or 2 tablespoons of YOUR preferred silicone free leave-in)
2 tablespoons of Aloe Vera Juice (Whole leaf version) with a pH 4.0 or 4.5
2 teaspoons of Castor Oil (optional…can do without it)
2 teaspoons of Jojoba Oil

Mix ingredients in a small bowl. This mixture should be applied to wet, freshly washed hair. You can substitute the oils if you’d like. It should be enough to use on your entire head of hair. If there are leftovers just put it in the fridge for later use. Use the leftovers within 3 days.

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