Hi!  I'm new to the forum, and I'd like to say how wonderful it is to see all this great information about long hair!    I've been growing mine out for three years now (started at shoulder level, now I'm about 4 inches from my waist!) and let me tell you, the journey hasn't been exactly easy!   I think it's just great to be able to chat and ask questions about long hair without a stylist coming at me with a pair of scissors!

Here's my question:  How often do you oil your hair?  I bought a jar of jojoba oil at the local health food store, but I want to know how often to use it.  Can you over-oil your hair?  And do you was your hair after you've oiled it?  

Thanks!
Red

I think it depends on whether or not you want to do a deep conditioning or just a bit of managable shine.

For me, I try to do a heavy oiling on my hair about once every few weeks where I heat up a load of sweet almond oil and a few wee drops of ylang ylang and put it in my hair for overnight. I rub it all over the scalp and hair. (Makes for a nice head massage!) Then I wash it out the next morning.

Everytime I shower however, I put a few drops of coconut oil on my hands (because it's easily absorbed and so light) and run it through my wet hair to keep down frizzies and detangle.

My hair is very fine...I don't know what people with thick hair do. Thick haired people...you're suggestions please!

Yep - what Rua said.  I oil my hair more in the winter than summer.  The oil helps with static and the dry hair with the dry air that is prevelent here in the winter.

Thanks for the tips!  I use a deep conditioner treatment every time I wash my hair (Pantene deep conditioner for moisture and Three-minute miracle by Aussie are both great!) and when I'm detangling, I also spray on a leave-in conditioner, even though I let it air dry.  My ends could still use some attention though, so I think I'm going to start by just oiling them, and see how I like it.  Again, thank you so much for taking the time to answer me!

Red

I just rub a little oil on the ends which are prone to damage before I go to bed.  Just about the last 2 inches

Hi All,

I have a question for Rua, please.

Where do you buy your sweet almond oil?
And do you find it to be a little lighter than jojoba?

I also have some ylang ylang and that sounds like it would be yummy in a hot oil treatment!
TIA,
strawberryfine

Hiya Strawberry!!

It's been awhile since I picked up these sweet almond and coconut oils....they've lasted me quite awhile.

I believe that I got them in a wee shop in town thats one of those all-natural shops. Where you get herbal vitamins and dried fruit and organic goods.
They weren't very expensive. Only a few Euros. I think the shop was called Natures Way.

I've never actually tried jojoba oil...so I'm afraid I don't have much to compare to! From what I've read, they are quite similar in consistency.Here's a link you might find interesting.
http://www.wellcat.com/Base%20Oils.htm
I've never purchased anything from this site before, but the information on the different oils is helpful!

The ylang ylang is brilliant when mixed with a base oil. Its fragrance is so relaxing. I've heard that the Victorian women used to put it in their hair to help it grow. Obviously something worked for them because they all had FAB hair!

Hope this helps.... :D

Rua,
Thanks!

That is an awesome website (wellcat). 8)
I've saved it in my favorites.

There is a wealth of information on carrier oils there!

The web address is in Rua's post just before this one.
HTH some more folks!
strawberryfine

How do coconut, jojoba and almond oils compare? I was not sure which one to use for my hair. I have medium thick hair but I have some split ends if not using leave in creme. I was wondering what I should be using for my type of hair and to calm down some frizzies on ends. Some people are a big fan of coconut. But how do you know which one is right for you? Boy, I always learn something everyday.  :)

Hi Aeryn

I'm a 1a/b C ii+ (possibly a 1a/b M/C ii+) and macadamia oil works wonderfully (the refined kind I guess, it's transparent colorless). It's slicker than other oils and doesn't make my hair crunchy. Likewise, coconut oil if you can't find mac oil. Some oils that have smaller molecules and are more penetrating.. such as jojoba... tend to make coarse hair crunchy (much coarse hair being so porous).

Jojoba is still your best bet though, since it is the most moisturizing and close-to-natural oil you can apply. If Jojoba works for you than stick with it, otherwise I recommend mac.

Hugs and nice to meet you ;)
Anais

another thing to promote jojoba: it washes out easily, it's probably the best for scalp masages cuze you don't need to use more shampoo than without any oil applied. i found that almond is pretty annoying to wash out, you really have to scrub which is not the case with jojoba. i don't have coarse hair (but dyed, so maybe also a bit more porous) and jojoba can give straw on me as well ... but it depends mostly on the way i conditioned my hair and if it's been rinsed with vinegar. i have the feeling even coneless conditioners, jojoba and aloe vera used together can leave a build up fairly quickly if you don't shampoo. but nothing that vinegar can't (dis)solve though :D

I really like jojoba oil.  I haven' used the others, but the
jojoba seems to really go well with my fine hair.  I just
oil the tips with a tiny bit before I go to bed at night and
do more of the whole hair before wash day.

well i is amazed!! i oil my hair and i love it!!! my friends say it looks great all hair is great  8)
never be ashamed of doin things with ur hair!!

wrote on Nov 8^th, 2004 at 8:34am:

The ylang ylang is brilliant when mixed with a base oil. Its fragrance is so relaxing. I've heard that the Victorian women used to put it in their hair to help it grow. Obviously something worked for them because they all had FAB hair!

i bought some ylang ylang today in the body shop. and some lavender too but unfortunately it's a blend i think. (unblended lavender smells better that is). their rose EO was gone  :'(

Have you tried the ylang ylang yet, Styg? I love that stuff!

euh ... i think the yy smells pretty dreadful  :-[
it even left some strange urine smell on my horn combs ... luckily it's supportable diluted in jojoba. i think i'll mix it with lavender, i hope it fits. i do like what it does on the hair though, it was even softer  ;D.

today i added 4 drops of lavender and a drop of yy to my conditioner to wash my hair with and i think it's the first time i have an entirely itchless scalp ...  8)

LOL! Yes, I suppose that ylang ylang is an "acquired scent"!

It's nice when it's not too overpowering. I find it relaxing. Then again, I could have a screwed up sense of smell. LOL!

Rua, your smeller is just fine!
Everybody's tastes are different, just like all of our hair is different.  Viva la difference! (mispelled, no doubt).

I love ylang ylang but there are others that I don't love.  I'm not sold on rosemary oil yet.  The smell of vanilla kind of makes me sick.  But I love lavender and rose otto EO and like jasmine absolut (not pure, but all I can get locally).  And monoi oil kind of makes me gag and then my nose stops up REAL BAD.

SF
Phyto makes an egg and rum shampoo which smells wonderful to me, but I'm not sure everyone would like it.

i went to another body shop yesterday and bought me some rose (they had jasmine too which is not absolu if anyone is interested). i wonder if it could be mixed with the ylang ylang. i think i could like it in a mix but pure it's just too powerful. same for rosemary, although i kinda like that smell even pure but you smell too much like a kitchen herbs cupboard!

Oooohhh! Styg!
Where did you find jasmine oil?

I think you could mix it with ylang ylang very nicely.  There used to be a solid perfume in the 60's called Sweet Earth, I think, and I know it had those two and honeysuckle and sandalwood.  It was heavenly!

HTH,
SF

they sell it at the bodyshop, but i bought rose finely.

Pardon, but I have a quick question about oiling hair and since there's already a thread on it I guessed I would just ask here. My question is this: I'm going to try oiling my hair soon for the first time and I'm looking forward to trying something that seems to get good results, but I have very sensitive skin. I have a habit of wearing my hair down alot, and naturally it gets in my face sometimes. My skin has a bad habit of drying, peeling or breaking out when it encounters something it doesn't like. Are there any good oils that would be less likely to bother my skin and what are some that might that I perhaps should avoid? Would adding any of the scents you've been talking about make it less skin friendly?

JOJOBA ... hair and skin beautifying secret used for centuries. it can even be used on acneic skin and doesn't have any harsh smell. and anyways, the amount you put is usually just enough that your hair can absorb it ... a few drops that is.

I have very sensitive skin.  I have to be very careful what I put on it.  Most moisturizers cause me to break out.  Jojoba oil does not cause me any problems.  (I do not add anything to the oil - no scents or anything else).  I think you would be pretty safe with trying jojoba oil.

*nods to agree with Styg and Bikerbraid*

Yep, the JoJoba is best in the way of non-confrontational oils.. *giggles*  It doesn't have a scent and is light and easy to wash off if need be.

Greetings,

Does anyone use baby oil for oiling the ends of their hair?  Why or why not?  I haven't seen it mentioned here, so I was curious!  I used to use olive oil on the ends of my hair (before bedtime, when I braid and pin up my hair), but when I ran out last week I substituted baby oil.  It seemed to add more shine and weight.

Also--how MUCH oil do you ladies use?  I have been putting about a dime sized portion in my palm and rubbing it in.  Is that considered too much or too little, generally speaking? I'm new to this!

Thanks,
Annelise

Baby oil is mineral oil, and mineral oil is slightly taboo around here because it's believed to cause dryness. How, I have no idea. :P The other thing that bothers people is that it's petroleum-derived.

Olive oil is wonderful though, and if that works for your hair then go for it. :D A dime sized portion is good if you are planning for a hairwash the next morning, or at the end of the day, etc.. as a prewash treatment.. normally, a leave-in is considered 1-3 drops. A little bit goes a looong way! ;)

HTH
Anais

wrote on Dec 23^rd, 2004 at 11:16am:

euh ... i think the yy smells pretty dreadful  :-[

i think i finally started to like it now!!  ;D

Ah-Ha!

So it IS an "acquired scent"!

I knew it would grow on you. Only a matter of time. My ylang ylang minions are growing....mwhahaha!

;D

i think the smell is very terrifying in the bottle but since hair doesn't absorb this much scent after all ... blends extremely well with the sweet smell of the Nuxe oil i use together with the yy-scented jojoba.  :D

Been missing in action for awhile.  But I have been using oils and EO's for a good three to four months now and yea, ylang ylang can smell kinda like that.  I've also discovered that different brands smell quite different - take a sniff test.  To me Cedarwood smells like mouse pee and some brands of rosemary can smell like soy sauce  ::), go figure.  A bit of lemon, lemon grass or bergamot can totally change the mix.

I also oil my scalp and have had no problems with the rumoured clogged follicles as far as I can tell ... and I leave it on until the next wash which can be in two sometimes three days.

I can't explain it - but I try no to argue with what works.

It's a never ending process of experimentation and often changing the routine...good luck, gabi

Hey Gabi!  Good to see you around again!

Hi Gabi!

It's good to "see" you back! ;D

Wow!  Jojoba oil is expensive!

Just picked some up for the first time today, and paid $15 for a 4 oz. bottle!  However, I also will say that I live in a rural area, with the nearest natural products store being 45 minutes away, so, even though the oil was expensive, there is nowhere else around I could get it.  I probably would have paid about the same for it online, once the shipping was tallied in.  

I just oiled my ends 5 minutes ago, and so far, so good.  I'll keep you posted as to my experiences with it.  :)

Eww, that is a bit pricey!

Well, Ilovecats, if you find that you like the JoJoba oil and want to stick with it, I'm sure there are some places on the internet you could buy the oil in bulk and actually save some $.  As far as I know, JoJoba never goes bad...

Do let us know how oiling works out for you!

That is expensive, but even the 4 oz will last you quite awhile.  I second the idea of trying to find it online for a bit cheaper.  My 11 oz bottle has lasted over a year, and shipping can't be too much on such a small bottle.  I can't remember the exact price, but I think I paid about the same amount as you did for almost 3 times as much.  

I just paid $7 for 4 oz at Vitamin Shoppe.  Shipping is expensive with them, but I order other items from them so that it is not as much of a factor.  When I do order, I make it a big order so that I don't have to do it as often.

You can get a gallon for $50.00 from Boston Jojoba.

https://protected11.purehost.com/d30044284/index.htm

Thanks for the website, eKatherine!  I checked it out and might buy from them in the future.  

I oiled my hair yesterday, and it is so soft!  :D
I have rather soft hair as it is, but the ends were always dry.  From reading many posts, I know now that my ends were probably suffering from the -cone products I had been using.  I was putting 3 (!) different leave-ins that all had -cones in them.  I just didn't know any better.  Well, haven't used any of them for 2 days, and my hair is loving me for it.  (Except that I use Aussie Moist conditioner, which gets rinsed out.  If I didn't, I'd never be able to detangle my wet hair and would end up with more breakage from pulling on wet tangles.) I'm going to keep using the oil for sure!

I use Aussie leave-in conditioner, Ilovecats, and it works pretty well for me.  It's the last step of my wash cycle, and just a few sprays make detangling a breeze.  

Which makes me wonder, does anyone use a detangler spray?  I know Paul Mitchell has one out, and I think there are like.. cheaper knock-off kid versions, but.. well, has anyone tried them?  What are the product's ingredients?  Why am I so full of questions?   ;D ::)

Maybe it's time to do a little internet research; I'll post my discoveries.

Sorry, novusfemina, I've never used detangling sprays before.  I didn't know that Aussie even made one, since I don't think I've ever seen it at the store.  But generally I have like Aussie products.  Their slip detangler or moist conditioner work well for me.  Have you used any of their other stuff? What do people in general think of Aussie products?