Shine On: Moisturize Your Hair With This DIY Leave-In Conditioner

Ever find yourself doing that dance in the hair care aisle at the drugstore, agonizing over whether or not you need a leave-in conditioner? It can seem redundant when you’re already spending a pretty penny on a fancy rinse-out conditioner, and shouldn’t that do the job on its own?

But a leave-in conditioner is a great thing to have in your beauty arsenal. Just as your skin benefits from extra moisturizer, your tresses can benefit from a little extra hydration, too. Detangling your hair post-shower will be less of a pain, frizzies will get smoothed out, and your locks will boast a shiny afterglow once they’re dry.

But there’s no need to splurge on expensive formulas loaded with chemicals and artificial fragrances. All you really need are four simple ingredients (plus a reusable spray bottle).

Jojoba oil mimics the natural oils produced by your body—ideal for nourishing your hair the way nature intended. Vegetable glycerin has awesome detangling and smoothing abilities. Rosemary essential oil gives this leave in a soothing aroma that will linger throughout your day. (Not to mention it perfectly complements our DIY coconut rosemary peppermint shampoo and coconut lavender rosemary conditioner, which you may have already tried.)

Try this easy recipe for a DIY leave-in conditioner and your newly shiny hair will be blinding bystanders left and right.

½ ounce jojoba oil
¼ ounce vegetable glycerin
10 drops rosemary oil
2 ounces distilled water

Combine ingredients into a spray bottle, shake well, and spritz, avoiding the roots so you don’t get that greasy-head look. (Add more water if your hair is fine and less if it’s thick.) Comb it through and you’re good to go.

Wanna try something even simpler? Just water down your favorite rinse out conditioner and use that as a leave in spray. Use about one part conditioner to three parts water. Shake well every time and spray away.

Not a DIY kinda gal? We’ve got you covered. Check out our variety of defrizzers, hair creams, hair oils and leave in treatments here. Keep on shining!

Illustration by Karley Koenig