How's everyone doing? The NHCG 6inches of growth challenge is well on its way and I'm hoping as many of you as possible have made length check tee's and are pumped for the challenge! Remember the star prize is $100 worth of hair product imports and any NHCG hair kit of your choice, plus other compensation prizes and product giveaways for those who came close to 6inches; do you know how many yummy products $100 can get you?!!
The star prize should be enough to keep you all motivated :)
Now to the topic of the day; for this challenge you have to know your oils! I get quite a few emails regularly of readers asking which oil to use, why I'm recommending a particular oil over another etc and I got inspired to write a post, as usual NHCG challenge tips/tricks posts are straight shooting and brief, this post is just on different oils that are very helpful and beneficial to hair and when to use them to ensure that your hair thrives as you aim for 6 inches this year.
So the first oil I will start with is Castor oil, I have a post dedicated to just castor oil! If you want THICKER hair then castor oil is a must have, use it directly to massage your scalp, add it to your deep conditioning treatments, mix it with lighter oils for hot oil treatments, I have tried the plain castor oil and Jamaican castor oil and I really haven't noticed a remarkable difference between the two except the color, Jamaican castor oil is darker;
As far as I'm concerned they both get the job done!!
Grapeseed oil is a fave of mine at the moment after finding that it has ceramides which help with POROSITY CONTROL and serve as a barrier so your moisture levels stay sealed in. Its a very light oil and I find that it vanishes easily from my hair when I use it so I mix it with other light oils I will list below.
Olive oil; affordable and readily available! The extra virgin oil is most recommended for its unadultration, this oil is also light and absorbs easily into the hair strands and lays down hair cuticles nicely causing light to bounce off from your hair beautifully, so if you want SHINNIER , GLOSSY hair then make sure to use olive oil regularly as a sealant after moisturizer again on its own or mixed with other light oil like grapeseed oil or in deep conditioning treatments, since it's an affordable oil, you go ahead and use as much as you like.
Tea tree oil; Is also a light oil that is great for curbing ITCHY SCALPS! I have mentioned it before, it has a zingy scent to it that makes your scalp feel cleansed especially after a hot oil treatment because it has antibacterial and antiseptic qualities perfect if you are dealing with dandruff!
Sweet almond oil; another light oil, perfect for deep conditioning with eggs as its sweet smell makes the smell of eggs or avacadoes or any other orishirishi concoctions bearable. Almonds are also an excellent source of protein and we all know protein bonds are what make up our hair strands and when they begin to get weak, you need oils with protein that will filling in the lost protein bond albeit temporarily and add STRENGTH to your strands. Sweet almond oil is a great oil for that.
Another superb oil for STRENGTHENING is Coconut oil. This oil is also very rich in protein. It does all that I described almond oil does but also has the added benefit of being a very good moisture SEALANT! By being able to bond with the protein bonds of hair strands it allows the hair maintain its natural moisture content. You see how it melts when warm and solidifies when cool, that's what happens while it's on your hair too so e careful not rouse too much at a time as it tends to stiffen hair strands especially in cool temperatures and most importantly since it will seal in whatever moisture is on your hair, remember to moisturize your hair properly first before using it so it is sealing in moisturized hair and not dry, brittle hair.
Argan oil is the Last oil I recommend you get to know during this challenge, I found about this mysterious oil when I started noticing that every product hair and skin was claiming to have Moroccan argan oil in it, what could be so special about this oil, I wondered till I did my research and found that it contains vitamin E and natural antioxidants making it an oil for many purposes including promoting ELASTICITY of hair strands so they don't easy snap off and break, curbs fizziness and promotes SHINE, LOCKS IN MOISTURE despite its non greasy consistency making it great for daily use. It also contains unsaturated fatty acids like Omega 3 found in healthy fish.
Combine these oils together and you can have for yourself a very potent hair oil mix;
but of course I'd advice you choose the oils according to your hair needs.
I hope this post has helped you know more about these oils and how you can use them for your hair's benefit during the NHCG 6inches of growth hair challenge.
Till my next tip, happy growing ladies!!
Xxx
Dabs