I’m posting this entry from a girlfriend’s house—three of us are staying together for a couple nights. I told them I needed help with a homemade cosmetic recipe for my blog, and one immediately remembered putting beer and mayonnaise on her hair when she was a teenager. She and her girlfriends then wrapped their heads in Saran Wrap and laid out in the sun. She thought we’d easily find it on Google, but we came up with lots of refs to beer and mayo alone but none together.

After reading that mayo can have similar rinse-out problems to the olive oil conditioner I tried a couple weeks ago, we decided on a simple beer rinse. It seemed easy for a relaxing night, and we could all help each other apply and rinse, thanks to the spray head in the kitchen sink. It was fun giving each other amateur scalp massages, and to keep things interesting we each tried a different beer. The one with the darkest hair, J, got Guinness. I (K), took a micro-brewed pumpkin ale that smelled like cooking spices, because I’m a redhead. L got a Hefeweizen.

We left the beer out to warm and get flat, but it was still chilly on our scalps. Even a strong beer smell seemed to rinse away easily with water after, but we aren’t sold on beer’s rep as a good detangler: Two of us had knots afterwards. More tomorrow on the results. But for now, J thinks it’s a good excuse to get together monthly, since the recipes we found recommended a beer rinse every four weeks.

If you do my olive oil hair conditioning treatment from last week, please take note: reserve time to shower the next morning. I washed my hair two or three times afterwards, and ran water over it for… well, I like long showers, but I was in there quite a while. To the point that I wondered if all the washing was defeating the purpose of conditioning. Or at the very least getting the state of California back into a drought situation. Anyway, it was hard to tell if I had all the oil out, but I thought I had to be close, so I got out.

The next day, I looked like I don’t wash my hair. Ever. But only in certain spots where I guess my rinsing was less than successful. I had to go to work with my hair in one of those spring-loaded hair combs that were popular in the ’90s. Worse, we went to a movie that night right after work, and by the time we were in line for it, I was feeling pretty disgusting.

Since I had to do more shampooing, I figured out a good method—create lots of suds and sort of run them over your hair and let them sit, so the surfactants in the shampoo dissolve the oil. If I did the treatment again (and I would), I’d start with less oil and try to infuse it with heat more regularly while I had it on, maybe even warming the oil first. That would all help it to penetrate my hair, I think (anyone?).

The results? It did work! People actually commented me on how bouncy my hair looked. It was shinier than usual and felt oh so soft for several days. And my hair never feels soft!

What the heck is hair vinegar? I’d never even heard of it until this week. (Hair oil, yes, but then that leads me to thinking about hair salad and, well, yuck.) When I was browsing through Deborah Burnes’ new book to look for a recipe to try, it had to be the one. She claims it “will restore pH, eliminate product buildup, close cuticles, and leave your hair shiny, smooth, and easy to manage and style.” I am in dire need of a haircut, so this all sounded good. 


Making this took some prep. First, I had to simmer 1/2 cup herbs in a cup of water in a covered pot for 15 minutes, then let them steep for an hour. I chose peppermint and calendula, which she writes are for all hair types, plus chamomile for highlights. After I strained the herbs into a glass measure, pushing out all the dark, richly scented liquid, I added 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar and 1 1/2 cups beer (mine happened to be Jamaican). Then I gave my husband the rest of the beer and put the concoction in the fridge. 


Cost is hard to calculate here, since I buy all my herbs in bulk at this wonderful spot and our vinegar was bulk, too. But the beer cost $2.49 and I had a lot leftover. I consider the application the next morning a success because I didn’t get vinegar in my eyes, but if I did this again (and I probably will!) I’d buy one of those squirt bottles used to apply hair dye because I missed a couple times using the glass measure. 


Here’s how I set myself up: with a towel covering the edge of the tub and a thick hairband on to keep vinegar from dripping into my face, I sat against the side and leaned my just-washed hair over the edge, then slowly poured the vinegar over different sections, combing my hair gently away from my scalp as I went. I let it sit for a while, then got back in the shower to rinse it off. The recipe didn’t say to condition, but I did because I was worried about knots. I applied styling product as usual and went to work.


My wet hair had a very faint vinegar smell, but once it dried I couldn’t smell it at all. (This treatment actually smells shockingly pleasant because the herbs steep so long, their scent is very strong.) After my hair dried, it definitely felt lighter, my curls were bouncier, and I guess it did have more shine. I think you’d have to do this often to see any effect on highlights, but given that some stylists recommend clarifying shampoo once a week, you could do this instead and you’d probably see a difference. Plus your man would be happy with all those beers you’re buying him!
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