Nourishing Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse
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This super refreshing apple cider vinegar hair rinse is easy to make and guaranteed to give you healthier, cleaner hair, and a healthier scalp too!
This recipe is one of the easiest DIYs around, but the impact on your hair is huge. So let's get started.
Do you want healthier, shinier hair?
Look no further…you need this hair rinse.
I started using a homemade apple cider vinegar rinse quite awhile ago to remove build up from hair products.
But I've learned that there are more reasons to use them.
Read on to find out how a good hair rinse nourishes your hair and how you can make your own hair rinse easily.
Did you know that your hair has shingles?
Well, sort of.
Your hair is made of a hair shaft that is covered by cuticle.
The cuticle is overlapping layers that cover your hair, kind of like shingles on a roof.
When the cuticle is in good shape, the layers lie flat and your hair looks shiny and healthy. And this rinse is one way to get your cuticle in much better shape.
Benefits of a Vinegar Hair Rinse Rinse
The layers open when you shampoo your hair, so a good ACV rinse will:
– remove build-up of hair products and other toxins so your cuticles are healthier
– close cuticles so your hair slides more easily and you get fewer tangles
– improve circulation to your scalp
– retain a good pH balance
– help with hair conditions like hair loss, dry scalp, dandruff, and more
How to Use
An apple cider vinegar is so simple to use. Try it and see the benefits for yourself.
- Wash: Shampoo your hair as usual, then rinse.
- Apply: Lean your head forward or back and pour the rinse over your head and hair, working it into your scalp. Avoid contact with your eyes. Let the rinse sit on your hair for 1-2 minutes.
- Rinse: Rinse the hair rinse thoroughly.
- Condition: Apply conditioner following manufacturer directions, if desired.
Customizing Options
You can adjust this apple cider vinegar hair rinse according to your needs.
Following are some herbs to consider adding to the rinse.
Oily Hair – Rosemary, Lemon, Lemongrass, Basil, Patchouli, Ylang Ylang, Tea Tree
Dry Hair – Peppermint
Hair Growth – Rosemary, Basil, Lavender, Ylang Ylang, Cedarwood
Dandruff – Clary Sage, Lemon, Cedarwood, Eucalyptus, Lavender, Myrrh, Patchouli, Tea Tree
Where to Buy Equipment & Ingredients
1. Aloe Vera: You can purchase aloe vera in a health food store or at Trader Joe's, or on Amazon.
2. Essential Oils: For essential oils, it's really important to really make sure that the oils that you purchase are pure and that you're not getting taken by some marketing ploy Read my Best Essential Oils series to find out more.
3. Plastic Bottle: I reused an old plastic bottle (the most environmental way to go :)), but you can purchase plastic bottles with flip tops on Amazon. Just look under “Plastic bottles” (I'm pretty smart, huh?).
4. Guar Gum: I use NOW Brand. I love that company for so many things.
5. Apple Cider Vinegar: Two things to keep in mind–1) You should strain out or somehow not use the mother if you are using unfiltered apple cider vinegar and 2) Watch out for the strength of the one you are using. Most on the market are 5%, but if you happen to buy one that's 6% or more (not that common), you'll need to dilute it more. Learn more about this (and other fun stuff) in my post about Katy Perry and Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar.
Tips
1. You can just use more apple cider vinegar and water instead of the aloe vera juice, but aloe vera has many healing properties, so I prefer using it.
2. You can either leave this rinse in your hair or rinse it out. Leaving it in for awhile, especially for the first use, will likely help remove more buildup, residue and toxins.
3. Use at least once per week to several times per week.
4. I keep a plastic cup in my shower. When I am ready to use my ACV rinse in my hair, I pour about 1 capful of the rinse into my cup. Then I add shower water to make up about 1 cup of water plus rinse. I dump all of that on my head after shampooing.
More DIY Personal Care Items You'll Love
– The BEST Homemade Eye Makeup Remover – really
– Simple Nourishing Hand and Body Cream
– Nourishing Lip Scrub – your lips will truly thank you!
– Hand and Body Sugar Scrub
– DIY Facial Oil Cleaner
– Rose Water Spray
– Homemade Tooth Powder – gets great results!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup filtered water (see How to Make Your Water Safe)
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup aloe vera juice
- 1/4 teaspoon guar gum or xanthan gum (optional, but makes for a nicer texture)
- 1-2 tablespoons dried lavender optional
- 5-10 drops rosemary essential oil (or other essential oil as desired)
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a container and mix well.
- Store in a plastic container in the shower.
- To use, mix 1 T with approximately 1 cup water and pour over freshly shampooed hair.
- Massage in and rinse out if you desire.
Notes
Have you ever used an apple cider vinegar hair rinse?
How did it work? Let me know in the comments.
I think I pretty much Evernote clip every article you post 🙂
My husband uses ONLY vinegar to wash his hair these days. After a few weeks of his hair readjusting it’s oil levels (and, boy were those fun), his hair looks great. This might be a nice way to keep him from having to use conditioner too. Right now he adds some Wen to his hair to soften it.
:). Thx! I have to figure out Evernote :). What’s Wen??? I would think vinegar would be a little to acidic. What do you think?
I just switched to apple cider vinegar and trying the nopoo. I need a hair cut before I decide if I like it. I LOVE the plain acv rinse! I didn’t think I would, but I sure do.
The vinegar smell dissipates VERY quickly– your hair will not smell if you rinse the conditioner out.
I have not tried leaving acv in and not rinsing– I imagine it would stop smelling, but take a while– so that may be where I’d use an EO.
I’m thinking about giving this a try with a half batch and using a fresh aloe plant– ours is growing quite big and I don’t think it would miss it if I took a few pieces off to add some to the conditioner. I wonder if this will be similar- or if aloe is cooked or processed in some way?
Jessica
I don’t know about that, but the aloe gel is what easily comes from inside the plant and the juice is produced from a different part of the plant so there are 2 different things there. I don’t know if they are interchangeable in this way. Sorry :).
What a coincidence! Just yesterday I started actually using an apple cider rinse I made and my hair feels amazing. I have really curly, coarse, dry hair and it did wonders. My hair is so soft and not frizzy at all!
HI Amanda! Thanks for stopping by!
This is interesting! I love the idea, and wish I had these ingredients on hand.
I’d love to share this with my readers at the Hearthfelt Hopes linky party. Please give it a thought; you’d be the perfect fit! 🙂
Hi,
Thanks for the post. Dosen’t aloe vera juice require refridgeration? Have you noticed an issue with keeping it in the shower for for a length of time?
Thanks. Your blog is great
I’ve never read that it needs refrigeration. I have tried natural hair rinses that have similar ingredients and I think the shelf life from opening to usage is 6 months, but it never lasts that long :). It gets used up pretty quickly. You are so welcome!
Great! Thank you!
Forgot to write my question. Good gravy! Could you use aloe Vera gel instead of liquid?
I think I answered this a few comments ago. They are different things from diff parts of the plant. I guess you could try thinning it out but they are different :).
I just wanted to thank you. I had started using baking soda with a vinegar rinse, until I recently dyed my hair & saw baking soda shouldn’t be used. I see someone posted here about the rinse, I’m curious if it worked ok? Thank you for this!
I just heard back from someone w/ a lot of knowledge about hair products and she said that the hair rinse should be fine for colored hair – enjoy!
Do you think I could use aloe vera gel instead? I have Lily of the Dessert Aloe Vera Gel. Thanks!
They are made from different parts of the plant, so I am not sure. I am thinking you could just thin it out a bit but the gel is what’s inside the plant and the juice is made from the outer parts of the leaf.
Thanks, I will try to thin it out. If not I will just have to buy the juice I guess.
Thank you!
You are welcome! I look fwd to hearing what you think!