Before Pantene, Queen Helene and Head and Shoulders, women turned to their gardens, woods and fields for plants that met all of their beauty needs. Whether it be a cure to dandruff, premature balding, dull strands or a desire for a new hair color, there was a plant that they knew could meet their specific demands. And when it comes to plants with hair benefits, rosemary has long been used for its hair growth properties and so much more. It’s an all-purpose ingredient to have in your toolkit, and here are just four of the ways you can use rosemary for hair growth.
The benefits of rosemary for hair
Rosemary is commonly used for maintaining scalp health to promote hair growth – because healthy hair starts at the scalp. It stimulates and improves circulation to the scalp to encourage hair growth. Due to its antibacterial properties it also works to gently cleanse the hair and relieve scalp issues like irritated, dry, flaky scalps and dandruff.
4 ways to use rosemary for hair growth
As with all herbs there are many different ways that rosemary can be applied externally onto your hair and scalp. These processes can be used with both fresh and dried herbs. But as with cooking, it is always recommended to use fresh ingredients. If you don’t use all of your herb initially, you can dry them and store for next time!
Here are the most common ways to use rosemary for hair growth.
1. Rosemary Hair Rinse
What is a hair rinse you ask? It’s as simple as a cup of tea. Actually, it is pretty much a cup of tea!
How to make a rosemary rinse
- Simply boil water and add your rosemary to the water.
- Allow it to steep for 15-30min. and then sift away the leaves. You are left with rosemary infused water.
- The water can then be used for a rinse for a cleansing rinse, a treatment for shine, a treatment for dandruff or for calp irritation.
- DO NOT RINSE OUT!
For extra scalp stimulation, which is great for hair growth, accompany your rinse with a nice scalp massage.
2. DIY Rosemary Hair Growth Oil
Purchase rosemary essential oil (which is highly concentrated) and add just a few drops to your favorite daily oil. This is the quickest but not necessarily the cheapest route.
Remember to always dilute essential oils with a carrier oil before applying them to your hair or skin.
Photo by Content Pixie on Unsplash
3. Make a Rosemary-Infused Oil
- Buy fresh rosemary and crush it within your hands to bring out the aroma.
- Put the crushed herb into a sterilized glass bottle and pour your choice of oil such as olive or jojoba oil over the herbs. Try to pick an oil that is not temperature sensitive like coconut oil.
- Put the bottle in a cool, dark space and allow it to sit for 2-4 weeks.
- You can then apply this rosemary infused oil to your hair and scalp for treating dandruff, scalp irritation, to stimulate hair growth, for a scalp massage, or for added shine and luster.
4. Rosemary Vinegar Hair Rinse
- Crush fresh rosemary and add to a jar of apple cider vinegar.
- Follow the same steps as the DIY oil above and store in a cool, dark space for 2-4 weeks.
- After shampooing hair, combine 1/4 cup of your rosemary vinegar to 1-2 cup of water and rinse hair with it.
- DO NOT RINSE OUT.
This is best used as a gentle cleanser, a hair treatment for your scalp’s pH balance, or for shine and conditioning.
Where to buy rosemary
You can find the rosemary herb at any grocery and produce store. It is a very inexpensive and very accessible herb. If you are a gardener, look into adding this wonderful culinary and medicinal herb into your harvest as it grows easily and yields well.
You can find rosemary essential oil at your local health food store, Amazon or at online ingredient shops like The Herbarie and Bulk Apothecary. Here’s a list of the top 10 places to buy ingredients for DIYs.
Well folks, I hope this was informative. I pray that we begin to take our health and beauty into our own hands and relearn practices that are indeed effective and harmless to our bodies. The next herb I am working on is going to be Burdock root. As we learn the herbs we can then learn how to couple what with what until we are mixtresses in our own bathrooms and kitchens!
Have you tried rosemary in your hair recipes?
Is DIY 15 Rosemary Hair Products to Try for Hair Growth
This article was written by Shanti of Around the Way Curls and originally published on CurlyNikki. Her source for today’s research comes from the book entitled “Back to Eden” written by Jethro Kloss. This article was published in 2015 and has been updated for clarity.
