When it comes to keeping up with the growth and health of your hair, finding the right ingredients to support your goals is key. From retaining length to preventing breakage, sometimes the cost of maintenance can be an investment within itself. But there’s nothing wrong with getting a little crafty with our hair care concoctions, especially when you have the right ingredients to whip up a miracle hair mask of your own.
Hair masks have always been a go-to solution for repairing damaged hair strands, deep conditioning our hair, or simply being a mode of relaxation within our self-care ritual. While many brands offer hefty-priced jars of creams and treatments that can restore and strengthen our hair, DIY masks can be a cost-efficient alternative that offers the same conditioning, soothing, and corrective benefits as many store-bought products.
10 DIY Hair Masks for Hair Growth and Scalp Care
If you’re ready to start whipping up your own DIY hair care cocktails, we’ve got the best mixtures and combinations to try out.
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DIY Aloe Vera Hair Mask To Promote Hair Growth
Aloe vera is known for its numerous benefits for hair, including promoting hair growth, reducing dandruff, and adding shine and moisture. It contains enzymes that can help stimulate hair follicles while adding moisture and hydration to your hair, making it soft and manageable. Aloe vera's antibacterial and antifungal properties can help alleviate dandruff and an itchy scalp and contains vitamins and amino acids that can repair damaged hair and reduce breakage.
In order to make an aloe vera hair mask at home, take aloe vera gel and combine it with two tablespoons of olive oil or castor oil and an egg. Mix it until smooth. Once smooth, apply the paste mixture to your scalp for 20-25 minutes.
Coconut Oil And Cinnamon Hair Mask
A coconut oil and cinnamon hair mask may sound like the start of your favorite baked good, but the mixture can help promote hair health by providing nourishment and stimulating the scalp. With coconut oil fatty acids that penetrate the hair shaft, paired with cinnamon’s stimulating properties that promote blood circulation to the scalp and hair growth, this all-natural conditioner will leave your hair soft and smooth.
In order to make it, combine warmed coconut oil with a tablespoon of honey and two tablespoons of cinnamon. Mix until it becomes a thick paste. Apply it to your scalp and leave the mixture there for at least 20 minutes.
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DIY Deep Conditioning Moringa and Fenugreek Hair Growth Mask
Both fenugreek seeds and moringa have been the center of many recent hair growth trends, and for good reason. Together, this mask can be a natural remedy to improve growth and scalp health by reducing issues like itchiness and dryness. Fenugreek seeds contain compounds that may stimulate hair follicles, while moringa is rich in vitamins and minerals that support hair growth. Whip them together with a yogurt-based mask, and over time, your hair will be giving inches.
Brands like kCurlsys offer a deep conditioning smoothie featuring those nourishing ingredients as a part of their product line. If you want to make your own at home, YouTuber CRYSTAL MADUKA provided an in-depth tutorial on how to make your own moringa and fenugreek hair growth mask. You can find that tutorial here.
Deep Conditioning Rice and Avocado Hair Mask For Low Porosity Hair
When it comes to this hair mask, you can shop your refrigerator for all the ingredients you’ll need. A rice and avocado hair mask is a nourishing and moisturizing treatment that can help improve hair health and manageability due to avocado’s rich, healthy fats and vitamins that moisturize and condition the hair, leaving it soft and silky. Rice comes into play since it contains amino acids that can help strengthen the hair, reducing breakage.
To learn how to make this, YouTuber Chrissy Got The Coils has the perfect rice and avocado hair mask recipe that you can DIY here.
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DIY Apple Cider Vinegar Deep Conditioning Hair Mask Recipe
We may not love the smell of apple cider vinegar, but we absolutely adore what it can do to make our hair flourish. An ACV mask can help balance the pH of your scalp and remove product buildup and excess oil, all while promoting healthier, shinier hair.
The apple cider vinegar hair mask recipe calls for 1 ½ tablespoons of ACV, 1 teaspoon of olive oil, and two tablespoons of honey. Mix the ACV with the olive oil and honey and gently apply it to your hair for 10 minutes. Rinse with warm water, and your hair will thank you.
Avocado And Banana DIY Hair Mask Recipe
If your hair is in need of some hydration and moisture, this DIY hair mask may be for you. Made up of avocado for its healthy fats and vitamins, along with bananas, which contain natural oils and vitamins, this duo will provide intense moisture to dry and damaged hair, leaving it soft and supple.
To make it, mix half of an avocado, half of a ripe banana, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and an egg to create a thick mixture. If needed, add some water to the paste. Apply the paste-like mixture to your hair and leave the mask on for at least 30 minutes, preferably with heat.
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Egg Yolk Nourishing Hair Mask Recipe
We know, we know. The thought of putting egg yolks into your hair may give you the ick, but if you knew some of the benefits, you might reconsider. An egg yolk hair mask is a natural and cost-effective way to improve the health and appearance of your hair. They are rich in proteins, particularly keratin, which is the primary structural component of hair and can help restore hair strands and reduce breakage.
According to Byrdie, a simple way to make a DIY egg yolk hair mask is by mixing two egg yolks and a tablespoon of mayonnaise together. Apply the mix to your hair and allow it to sit on your hair and scalp for 20 minutes.
DIY Castor Oil Deep Conditioning Hair Mask
For textured hair, in particular, castor oil is going to be your hair’s best friend. With castor oil’s ricinoleic acid, which has been shown to promote hair growth, added to your scalp, it’ll help stimulate dormant hair follicles, leading to thicker and longer hair over time.
Probably one of the simpler hair masks featured on this list; in order to make this one, just apply castor oil to the scalp and hair directly, from roots to ends. Leave the oil in your hair as a mask for two hours with heat before washing it out.
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DIY Olive Oil And Coconut Oil Hair Mask
For a deep conditioning and nourishing hair mask, we recommend one with olive oil and coconut oil. Coconut oil has become a bit controversial in the natural hair space, but as a mask, it still holds its weight. These oils contain essential nutrients that can strengthen hair strands, reducing breakage and split ends. Coconut oil has also been shown to reduce protein loss from hair, helping to maintain its structural integrity. So, if you want a more healthy scalp, this could be worth a try.
In order to make this DIY hair mask, combine one cup of warmed coconut oil and a 1/2 cup of olive oil. After mixing it together, apply the mixture to your hair as a mask. Leave it there for 45 minutes, or even overnight, if you want to wear it as an overnight deep conditioning hair mask.
Yogurt Hair Mask
One thing our hair loves is moisture, so trust us when we say that if your hair has been in need of it, a yogurt hair mask could be the answer you're looking for. Yogurt is rich in lactic acid, which helps moisturize and hydrate your hair, making it ideal for dry or damaged hair. It also contains protein, which helps repair and restore damaged hair. On the other side, yogurt is packed with natural probiotics that can serve as the perfect scalp treatment for reducing flakiness and dandruff.
Make your own yogurt hair mask at home by following YouTuber Yasser K's five-minute tutorial for making a yogurt hair mask here.
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Anyway, I personally think that the less shallow folks out here may contemplate calling things “quits” or they at least distance themselves a bit from their partner (and what I’m referring to is serious relationships) due to all of the stress and strain that oftentimes comes with the holidays whether it be financial, familial, due to their tight schedules or something else.
Listen, I would hate for you and your man to miss the fun and happiness of experiencing this time of year, all because you are so overwhelmed or irritated that you can’t really enjoy it. That’s why I have a few practical tips for how to avoid allowing the typical holiday season stress from INFECTING your relationship.
Manage Your Expectations
GiphyUnmanaged expectations. If there is a main reason why the holiday season tends to be so stress-filled for so many people, I’d bet good money that this is the cause. And when you’re in a long-term relationship, expectations can manifest themselves in all sorts of cryptic and/or unexpected ways. You might have relatives who assume that you are going to be with them for Thanksgiving or Christmas when you have other plans in mind. You might be thinking that you are going to spend one amount for presents while your man is thinking something totally different. When it comes to scheduling, your signals may be crossed.
And you know what? To all of these scenarios, this is where clear and consistent communication come in. Don’t assume anything. Don’t dictate anything either. From now until New Year’s, mutually decide to check in once a week, just to make sure that you are both on the same page as it relates to the holidays and what you both are thinking will come along with it. The less blindsided you both feel, the less stressed out you will be. Trust me on this.
Set (and Keep) a Budget
GiphyOkay, so I read that last year, 36 percent of Americans incurred some type of holiday-related debt. Hmph. Last year, there was still some sense of normalcy in this country, chile, so I can only imagine what finances are gonna look like over the next several weeks. That said, since I don’t know a lot of people who don’t find being broke stressful, make sure that you and your bae set a budget and then stick to it this year — no ifs, ands or buts.
Because really, y’all — it doesn’t make sense to deplete savings and/or max out credit cards for a few days of giggles only to be damn near losing your mind because you don’t know how to make ends meet come Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
And by the way, this tip doesn’t just speak to things like food and gifts; I also mean travel. If it doesn’t make a ton of sense (or cents) to be all over the place this year — DON’T BE.
Keep Matthew 5:37 at the Forefront
GiphyIf off the top of your head, you don’t know what Matthew 5:37 says, no worries, here ya go: “But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.” That verse right there? Oh, it’s a boundaries lifesaver! I say that because do you see “maybe” or “I’ll think about it” in there? Nope. LOL. It says that you should tell people “yes” or “no” and leave it at that — and that complements Anne Lamott’s quote, “’No’ is a complete sentence” impeccably well. Yeah, you’ve got to remember that anything beyond a yes or no to a request is privileged information; you don’t owe anyone details or an explanation.
Besides, if you are really honest with yourself, when someone asks you something and you give a “Umm, let me think about it” kind of reply, more times than not, you already know what your answer is going to be — so why not let you both off of the hook? Give your response. Commit to that. And let everyone (including yourself) get on with their lives and schedules.
I promise you that when it comes to those holiday parties, you are pissing more folks off by not RSVP’ing or doing so and not showing up than just saying, “Thank you but not this year” off the rip.
Remember That Your Personal Space Is Privilege Not a Right
GiphyA friend of mine recently bought a new house and invited me over to come see it. He’s a single man with no children, so as I was taking in all of the space that he had, especially as I walked through his finished basement, I joked about relatives coming to live with him. “Hell no” and “absolutely not” were pretty much his immediate responses as he went on to say that some folks even had the nerve to be offended when he told them that he had no intentions on taking DNA in.
Ain’t it wild how people think that your stuff is their right? And yes, that brings me to my next point. Your home is your sanctuary space. If you want to host folks this year — cool. If not, ALSO COOL. Please don’t let folks (family included) guilt you into how they want you to act or even into what they would do if the shoe was on the other foot. You are not them — and as one of my favorite quotes states, “If two people were exactly alike, one of them would be unnecessary.” (A man by the name Larry Dixon said that.)
Hell, my friends? They know that I am good for sending them random things that they need or even want all throughout the year. Coming over to hang out at my pace, though. Uh-uh. Chalk it up to being a card-carrying member of the ambivert club yet I like keeping my living space personal — and I sleep like a baby, each and every night, for feeling that way.
Always remember that your space, your time, your resources, your energy and shoot, yourself period (including your relationship), are all things that are your own. You get to choose how, when and why you want to share them. The holiday season is certainly no exception.
Cultivate Some “You Two Only” Traditions
GiphyIt’s not uncommon for some couples to hit me up after the holiday season to “detox.” Sometimes it’s due to the financial drama (and sometimes trauma) that they experienced. Sometimes it’s because they allowed their relatives (especially in-laws) to get more into their personal business than they should’ve. More than anything, though, it tends to be because they didn’t get enough quality time together and so ended up feeling “disconnected.”
Please don’t let that happen. Listen, I’m not even a holidays kind of woman and yet, I will absolutely sit myself down with some hot chocolate and chocolate chip cookies to enjoy a Hallmark holiday film or two. Aside from the fact that most of them are lighthearted and sweet, I also like that they usually focus on couples loving on each other amidst all of the holiday beauty and ambiance — which is something that all couples should set aside some time to do.
Maybe it’s a vacation. Maybe it’s a staycation. Or maybe it’s my personal favorite, A SEXCATION. Whether it’s for a few days, the weekend or even overnight — don’t you let the holidays go by without setting aside time for you and your man to celebrate one another. Don’t you dare (check out “Are You Ready To Have Some Very Merry 'Christmas Sex'?”).
GET. SOME. REST.
GiphyI once read that 8 out of 10 people get stressed out over the holidays and 3 out of 10 lose sleep during to it — and when you’re stress-filled and sleep-deprived, that can absolutely lead to hypersensitivity, making mountains out of molehills and even not being in the mood for sex.
Your relationship can’t afford to go through any of this, so definitely make sure to prioritize rest. I don’t care how unrealistic it might seem during this time, sleep should never be seen as a luxury; it will always and forever be a great necessity.
That said, try to get no less than six hours of shut-eye in (check out “6 Fascinating Ways Sex And Sleep Definitely Go Hand In Hand”) and even ask your bae to take a nap with you sometimes (check out “Wanna Have Some Next-Level Sex? Take A Nap, Sis.”). Not only will sleep help to restore your mind, body and spirit but, when it’s with your partner, it’s an act of intimacy that can make you both feel super connected, even in the midst of what might feel like chaos.
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Holiday season stress is real. Still, never give it the permission or power to throw your relationship off. Put you and your man first and let the holidays be what they are gonna be, chile.
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And so, since this is the time of year when catching a cold (and/or the flu) is common, let’s talk about the impact that sleep (and again, a lack thereof) has on your immune system. That way, you can remain as healthy as possible during the fall and winter seasons.
1. Less Sleep Means More Colds
GiphyLike I stated in the intro, I’m pretty sure you’ve heard somewhere that the fall and winter are the seasons when people are most susceptible to catching a cold or coming down with the flu. And that’s exactly why I thought I would start this all off by sharing the fact that some studies reveal that if you get less than six hours of sleep, on a consistent basis, you end up making yourself more vulnerable to coming down with both. In fact, some research says that only 18 percent of people who get six-plus hours of rest caught a cold while almost 40 percent who got less than that did.
The logic behind it all is sleep gives your body time to build up the proteins and cells (like cytokines and T-cells) that you need to fight off certain viruses. So, if nothing bothers you more than having a stuffy nose or stubborn cough when it’s cold outside, getting more sleep is one way to prevent that from happening to you.
2. Less Sleep Means More Allergy Symptoms
GiphyAt the end of the day, an allergy is basically what transpires whenever your immune system “overreacts” to something that other people’s systems do not. And since sleep is what helps to keep your immune system nice and strong — well, I’m sure you get how less allergy-related symptoms and more sleep go hand in hand. Also, since sleep helps to decrease bodily inflammation (more on that in a bit) and inflammation can also intensify allergy symptoms, that’s just one more reason to get as much shut-eye as possible.
3. Less Sleep Means Potential Diabetes and Heart Disease
GiphyDid you know that in 2024, Black women were diagnosed with diabetes 24 percent more than any other adult demographic. Also, it continues to be a reality that heart disease is the leading cause of death for Black women. These two sobering statistics alone should be enough of an incentive to do whatever you can to keep the risk of diabetes and heart disease way down.
One way to do that is by getting more sleep. Aside from the fact that sleep strengthens your immune system to where it is easier for you to fight off illness and diseases, sleep can keep your blood sugar levels in a healthy space; plus, when it comes to your heart, it gives it, along with your arteries and blood vessels a break.
4. Less Sleep Means Less Time for Your Body to Push “Reset”
GiphyIf you really stopped to consider all that your body goes through during the day (you can read some about that here), you definitely would respect it enough to do your best to thank it by giving it no less than six hours of sleep, each and every night. Sleep is what helps to slow your brain and body down so they are able to “refuel” for the next day. After all, how can your body prevent you from getting sick if your immune system is too worn out to fight ailments off? Exactly.
5. More Sleep Helps You to Fight Off Infections
GiphySpeaking of, in order for your body to fight off infections, there are certain cells and antibodies within you that need to be healthy and strong — one way that they get and stay that way is by you getting a good amount of sleep. For instance, remember when I touched on cytokines earlier? Well, the same way that they help to prevent colds, they also help to prevent infections too. And since sleep lowers your cortisol (stress) levels, rest gives your body the time and space to build up an army that can fight off free radicals and other health-related challenges while you are awake.
6. More Sleep Lowers Bodily Inflammation
GiphyWhenever a health-related issue is mentioned on this platform, inflammation is something that is mentioned quite a bit. Probably the easiest way to explain inflammation is it’s how your body responds/reacts whenever something is happening to your body that shouldn’t be, whether it’s an illness, an injury, a germ or something that you may be allergic to.
If you happen to have chronic inflammation, some symptoms that are associated with that include fatigue, stiff joints, skin rashes, weight gain and moodiness.
The interesting thing about all of this is if you aren’t getting enough rest, you could be triggering inflammation in your body. That’s because studies reveal that a lack of sleep can elevate molecules that are associated with inflammation. So, if you don’t want inflammation to increase within your system, you should definitely catch more zzz’s.
7. More Sleep Regulates Hormones
GiphyWhen it comes to hormones like serotonin, estrogen and cortisol, believe it or not, they play a role in how your immune system acts and overreacts. That’s because, if your hormones are out of balance, that can cause your immune system to work harder than it actually should and that can make you more vulnerable to sickness. One way to keep your hormones leveled out? SLEEP.
That’s because sleep gives your body the opportunity to rest, repair and restore your hormone levels. On the other hand, when you are sleep deprived, that can put/keep your hormones on the ultimate roller coaster ride. #notgood
8. More Sleep Strengthens Vaccines
flu shot GIF - Find & Share on GIPHYGiphyIf you’re someone who is good for getting some sort of vaccine around this time of the year, make sure that you rest up before and after getting your shots. Not only does adequate rest before a vaccination help your immune system to be better receptive to your shots but sleep also helps your body to build up enough antibodies to make your vaccinations effective after getting them. Because if you’re gonna get pricked, shouldn’t it be worth it? My thoughts exactly.
Get some freakin’ sleep! Your immune system depends on it.
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