This homemade hair conditioner recipe can be used as a leave-in conditioner and is made with all-natural ingredients to promote soft, shiny, healthy hair, and repair split ends naturally.

A hair conditioner is really important when it comes to hair care because it helps to replenish the hair of its natural oils after the shampoo has stripped these oils away during the cleaning process. Our hair follicles make sebum (oil) which moisturises and repairs damaged hair and split ends. However, too much sebum can give hair that greasy look. Not what we want.

Typical store bought conditioners have a thick, lotion-y consistency to them but wash away and don’t result in build-up on the hair. While some homemade hair conditioners can leave build-up on the scalp and hair cuticles, making hair feel greasy when it’s just been cleaned. Not what we’re after.

I wanted to create a recipe that didn’t need replacing every couple of days, and that didn’t leave build-up on the hair.

As we all have different hair types, this recipe can be customised to meet your specific hair needs. It may take some time (and a little trial and error) to find the perfect conditioner recipe for your hair, but the base is the same.

Recipe Tutorial Video

Ingredients Used in this Conditioner

The following ingredients have been specifically chosen for their hair nourishing properties.

Emulsifying Wax

This ingredient enables the oil and water to mix together properly, creating a thick, creamy consistency. A better option is to use a conditioning emulsifier, instead of an emulsifying wax, as this will help to add slip and detangling properties to the conditioner.

Jojoba Oil

Technically a wax, not an oil, jojoba closely mimics our own sebum (oil). It helps to moisturise the hair without leaving an overly greasy look, and may help reduce frizz.

Argan Oil

This oil helps to repair dry, damaged hair and reduce frizz (plus adds shine).

Glycerin

Glycerin helps capture moisture and incorporate it into the hair. However, in extreme weather conditions such as extremely dry or humid climates, it can be problematic and can either pull moisture from the hair, leaving it even more dry and brittle, or leave hair feeling sticky. But, for those living in more stable environments, glycerin (in small amounts) should be okay.

Essential Oils

Essential oils are wonderful for giving a beautiful scent to the conditioner (and in turn, your luscious locks), but also provide an array of benefits for hair, too. Our Oily House shares the ten best essential oils for hair here.

Choice of Preservatives

If you’re wanting to use a preservative in this conditioner recipe to increase the shelf-life, Leucidal Complete is highly recommended as it contains all-natural ingredients. It needs to be used at 2% to 4% to be effective, so I’ve included it at 4% in the recipe below. Leucidal has also been approved by ECOcert (a certification for organic products). The shelf-life of this conditioner is hard to pin-point exactly as it’s not sent to a lab for testing, however, adding a preservative and minimising contact with water will help it to last up to several months. If excluding the preservative, I do not recommend keeping it for more than a week.

As this recipe calls for water, the water used needs to be clean and microbe-free. Distilled water is best, but boiled filtered water is also fine.

Mommypotamus also shares a wonderful natural leave-in hair conditioner using just coconut milk.

Before we get started in learning how to make this homemade hair conditioner, if you like what you’re seeing, subscribe to my email newsletter at the bottom of the page to keep up to date on the latest recipes, DIYs, gardening and health tips I share!

Homemade Leave-in Hair Conditioner

By using a pump bottle or a squeeze bottle, it will help to reduce any unnecessary contact with the conditioner, increasing the shelf-life of the product.

This recipe makes approximately 5 ounces (150 mL) of hair conditioner.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (120 mL) distilled water (or peppermint, tea tree, or lavender hydrosol)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons (7.5 mL) jojoba oil
• 1 teaspoon (5 mL) argan oil
• 1 teaspoon (5 mL) glycerin (optional)
• 4 teaspoons emulsifying wax (or a conditioning emulsifier)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons (6.25 mL) Leucidal Complete preservative (or a preservative of choice with the usage rate set by the manufacturer // optional)
• 10- 20 drops (0.5-1 mL) essential oil (optional)

To Make:

1. Place a heat-proof glass bowl on top of a saucepan filled with water to make a double boiler. Next, add the jojoba oil, argan oil, and emulsifying wax (or conditioning emulsifier) to the bowl and bring the water to a gentle simmer.
2. Stir the mixture occasionally until the wax has completely melted, and the mixture reaches a temperature of about 70-75° C. Then, remove the bowl from the heat.
3. Next, in another heat-proof glass bowl, add the distilled water (or hydrosol) and glycerin, and place the bowl over a saucepan filled with water and bring the water to a gentle simmer. Heat the ingredients until they reach about 70-75° C, then remove the bowl from the heat. This helps the emulsion process form more smoothly and and create a better consistency.
4. Slowly add the heated water and glycerin mixture to the bowl of oils a little at a time, while whisking the solution until the mixture starts to thicken and emulsify. You can use a hand mixer or immersion blender to help you with this process.
5. Once all the water has been added, continue whisking the mixture while the conditioner cools and thickens.
6. Once the conditioner has cooled to below 40° C, add the preservative and essential oils (if using), then whisk well to combine.
7. Transfer the mixture to a clean pump bottle and allow it to cool completely before capping the lid on tightly. To make this process easier you can use a piping bag to pipe the mixture into the bottle. Store the product in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight and away from excess heat. If you choose not to use a preservative, this conditioner will only keep for up to one week or so.

This blog is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice. The use of information on this blog or materials linked from this blog is at the user’s own risk. The content of this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard, or delay in obtaining, medical advice for any medical condition they may have, and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

Have you made your own hair care products before? What did you make? Share in the comments below.

Lots of love,

Vanessa