Homemade Alcohol-Free Hairspray that Works

This super simple homemade hairspray takes only 2 ingredients, is a breeze to make, and is a great way to clean up your every day beauty routine! Plus you’ll save a load of money too!

It might sound silly, but I get sooo excited when I find a great homemade personal care recipe.

There are so many toxins in the things we put on our bodies – and they can lead to all kinds of problems from thyroid issues to adrenal fatigue and more.

So when I can find recipes for things like homemade toothpaste, homemade body cream, or homemade eye makeup remover that work well, I am all over it.

Hair spray is one of those things that I wish I didn’t have to use–but I do.

My hair just “needs” it.  Well, some of my hair does.  I used to use a lot more hairspray than I do now… but basically my bangs are the part of my hair that is typically “in need”.

Just like with other things, I have always opted for “fragrance-free” versions as much as possible, but still there are things in hair spray that I really don’t want on my hair.

But now that I have this super all-natural alcohol-free recipe, I feel much differently about it.

Hair Spray and Me

My love-hate relationship with hair spray has gone on for a long time.

I’ve always felt I needed it because my hair is “sorta-wavy-sorta-frizzy-definitely’s-got-a-mind-of-its-own” hair.

It’s fine, but I have quite a bit of it and when I let it dry naturally it’s really curly/wavy, but after a day or so it turns pretty limp.

Well, I used to not worry about the ingredients in hair spray but I’ve had to start reading hair spray labels for several reasons:

The Problems with Hair Spray

– Allergic Reactions

In my 20s, I started having allergic reactions to things and I thought one of them was hair spray so I started trying to get sprays without added fragrance. Not an easy task.

– More Artificial Fragrances

Later, either the hair spray companies started putting more artificial fragrances in their products, or I became more sensitive. Whatever it was, I was really having a hard time finding a brand that I could use without feeling foggy headed.

– Plastic Hair!

Finally I settled on one that I liked, but when I switched to a new hair care line, I found out that my hairspray had plasticizers in it. Well-no wonder it held so well!
I had actually been coating my hair with plastic. Yuk. Believe me–when my hair went through detox it wasn’t pretty.

Rather, I wasn’t pretty.

– Alcohol

Recently, I’ve been noticing my hair getting more brittle or frizzy. I’m not sure what it is, but I dug around the internet and figured the alcohol in my spray wasn’t doing me any favors. I thought it was time to work on making my own alcohol-free hair spray.

Well, I didn’t think it would work–but it does.

And now you can make it too!

Why Make Your Own Hairspray?

1. Reduce your chemical exposure

There are so many things in hairspray that you might not have thought about.

Check out “Is Your Shampoo Making You Sick” for more on what might be lurking in your hair products.

2. Save money

1 cup of water and 4 teaspoons of sugar is about as cheap as it gets!

Compare that to well, some as much as even $25 for only 10 ounces!

3. Save the environment

Less chemicals made.

Fewer plastic containers used.

Even if you are recycling your bottles, it’s better to not have them made at all in the first place.

4. Healthier hair

The alcohol in many hairsprays are really drying. This spray makes your hair healthy and shiny.

Note that there are recipes for salt hair sprays on the internet too.  They might be fun to use, but the salt would be very drying for your hair when used on an ongoing basis.

Personally I wouldn’t recommend using those often.  Thankfully, the sugar doesn’t have the same drying effect.

You can even add essential oils to your recipe, which I recommend doing.  That way you have the benefit of aromatherapy and the possible benefits that your hair might get from the oils as well.

For example, as in my DIY Hair Growth Blend, the oils in that blend could be used in your hairspray and might benefit your hair.

You will note that I do recommend a specific brand of oils.  See my Best Essential Oils Series to see which company I recommend and why.  It’s a very interesting series–and the comments are worth checking out as well, but you might need to set aside some time for those :). Here’s a link to the first post, and here’s a link to the last post, in which I announced the company that I chose.

Other Natural Personal Care Items You Might Like

If you’re into making your own products, here are some others to try.

– Nourishing Hand and Body Cream
– Hand and Body Scrub – this is so easy and works great!
– Invigorating Body Wash – so much better than store bought!
– Nourishing Hair Rinse

Don’t Feel Like DIYing?

Believe me, I have tried TONS of hair sprays. As in basically all of them on the market.  Natural, unscented, supposedly unscented (but they really weren’t), and even traditional hairsprays that said that they didn’t have dangerous fragrances.

I am still on the hunt for good ones but this spray from Giovanni is pretty clean as far as artificial fragrances go. If you have one you like, please do share!

What is part of your natural hair care routine?