Using Indian Herbs and Oils to grow, Grow, GROW!

**mellie** · March 25th, 2009, 07:53 AM

I know that when i exclusively herb washed and scalp oiled my hair sped from above waist to below hip in about 6 months which for me is much faster than normal. I also found my thickness increased by 150% and my shedding went from handfulls of hair each wash to just a few strands

I agree, ChloeDharma! I have also noticed great growth and way less shedding too! And you're right, my thickness is increasing, too, I think!

**ChloeDharma** · March 25th, 2009, 10:06 AM

Originally Posted by mellie

I agree, ChloeDharma! I have also noticed great growth and way less shedding too! And you're right, my thickness is increasing, too, I think!

Oh that's fantastic Mellie

**ratgirldjh** · March 25th, 2009, 10:25 AM

[quote=ChloeDharma;517973]I just checked my box (Hesh brand) and the type they use is listed as "thyme leaves pdr / herpestis monniera" so i'm guessing proceed with caution.

yes - i better be careful! my dbf decided to prune our thyme plant yesterday and came in and held his fingers that smelled like thyme to my nose and within 5 minutes my eyes were itching and my throat hurt! but maybe the dried wouldn't be as potent - i don't know - i'm kind of afraid of it for now. my bf was so shocked - he hadn't believed that i was allergic to it before - and he hadn't even told me it was the thyme he was pruning... so now at least he is convinced...

which sucks because it is supposed to be so rejuvenating to hair and scalp - i could use that

EDIT: why does shikakai make your hair straighter? i notice when i use it that i have almost no waves! i mean even my bun waves don't stay in like usual. my hair feels like silk though... but it is sooo flat and straight... doesn't matter if i pre-oil first or not.

**eaglefeather71** · March 26th, 2009, 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by hennaphile

I have trouble getting the oil out. I usually shampoo twice then condition, but I almost always have a little leftover. I've tried acv rinses, but i've discovered that my hair is not a fan of acv.

Any suggestions?

thanks!!

I had trouble getting the oils out until I started using shikakai overnight or for hours on the weekends. I'm still tweaking the thickness and recipe, but I definetly have been able to get the oils out now.

Originally Posted by princess

Try using more of shikakai, and a few more hibiscus leaves. If the oil is coconut oil then adding a tablespoon or two of chick pea flour(available in Indian stores) to the shikakai mixture. That helps take out the cocounut oil.

I think I have something to add to the experiments. I was considering chickpea, but now I will definetly try it. Does it work pretty fast or does it need to stay on the hair for a long time as well.

[quote=ratgirldjh;518202]

Originally Posted by ChloeDharma

I just checked my box (Hesh brand) and the type they use is listed as "thyme leaves pdr / herpestis monniera" so i'm guessing proceed with caution.

yes - i better be careful! my dbf decided to prune our thyme plant yesterday and came in and held his fingers that smelled like thyme to my nose and within 5 minutes my eyes were itching and my throat hurt! but maybe the dried wouldn't be as potent - i don't know - i'm kind of afraid of it for now. my bf was so shocked - he hadn't believed that i was allergic to it before - and he hadn't even told me it was the thyme he was pruning... so now at least he is convinced...

which sucks because it is supposed to be so rejuvenating to hair and scalp - i could use that

EDIT: why does shikakai make your hair straighter? i notice when i use it that i have almost no waves! i mean even my bun waves don't stay in like usual. my hair feels like silk though... but it is sooo flat and straight... doesn't matter if i pre-oil first or not.

I have noticed less wave, but I have always thought it was from the Henna layers on my hair. The shikakai does straighten it quite a bit while still damp, but I have not noticed it sticking around.

**ratgirldjh** · March 26th, 2009, 05:49 PM

well mine is definitely straighter this last week. last week i did an amla pack and then later in the week i had oiled my hair overnight and then did an hour shikakai pack.
it got all the oil out - but the next day my hair felt very teflony - and even my bun waves just fell out. it sort of felt like it did when i used to use henna.
i've washed it twice since then - once with soapnut liquid which usually makes my hair wavier - and the next time with my poo bar - which also usually leaves my hair wavy - and it is still a little teflony and not as wavy as usual!!!
and it felt totally different when i was washing with my poo bar - sort of like there was a shield on my hairs or something... my hair was very silky though - just different.

waiting to see how long it will take my waves to come back!

**hennaphile** · March 27th, 2009, 12:23 AM

I just tried coconut milk today... works wonders! It left a slight amount of oil on my hair, which for me is fine because mine tends to be a tad dry, but wow! i'm going to try your shampoo recipe tomarrow after another coconut milk application

**HotRag** · March 27th, 2009, 01:56 PM

I tried low fat yogurt today, instead of 4% fat.
After more than 2 hours in hair with the blend, my hair does not smell yogurt at all.

I went to the Indian store today, and they had still not gotten shikakai. After next wash, I will run out of it, and to buy via ebay is tooo expensive.
I will have to try more besan och maybe more aritha.

**HotRag** · March 27th, 2009, 02:03 PM

Todays wash:

1 TB shikakai
1 TB aritha
1 TB besan
1 TB moong dal
1 TB neem
1 TB tulsi

1 TB molasses
1 teaspoon methi (just a little)

Soaked tha in 250 ml catnip tea, then put about 100 ml yogurt in.

Put it on dry hair, bagged and went to sleep for 1h 45 min. But clock did not alarm, so I had it in for +2h.

Easy to rinse, very little shed.
I took the rest of the catnip, 50-100 ml, and made a final rinse with.

Pre wash:
Hesh bhringraj oil on scalp, massaged.
Sesam oil on left ends, cocnut on rigth ends. (Very much of oil on ends.)

Result:
Great, but not finally dry yet.
Oil at ends: Sesam seems to be the better one for me. The coconutted ends are slightly drier.

**HotRag** · March 27th, 2009, 02:06 PM

I am thinking about trying Cassia. Have you tried that? And is that something that is used in India, or is there other herbs that can give the same benefits (except henna)?

I searched for Cassia today, but the store I went to, had never heard of it (though they had all the other powders from the manufacturer that sells the Cassia). Neutral henna was niether anything that she had ever heard about. It was in a store that is the kind that sells these stuff...

**Heidi_234** · March 27th, 2009, 03:01 PM

Originally Posted by HotRag

I am thinking about trying Cassia. Have you tried that? And is that something that is used in India, or is there other herbs that can give the same benefits (except henna)?

I searched for Cassia today, but the store I went to, had never heard of it (though they had all the other powders from the manufacturer that sells the Cassia). Neutral henna was niether anything that she had ever heard about. It was in a store that is the kind that sells these stuff...

It could be also called senna, and there's medical senna (another kind of cassia, not the one sold on HTH for example) that is used for digestion problems or something of a kind. I asked our lovely ladies at the cassia thread and they said that all cassia kinds are awesomely the same on hair, so the medical type can work too.