I was born with a head full of curly hair.
Well, actually, I was bald. But as soon as I got hair, it was snarly and kinky and very ill-behaved. One of my earliest memories was of me sitting on a stool in the bathroom, holding on to the doorknob for dear life so I wouldn’t fall off while my mother tried to scalp me with a comb.
There I am, the cute one with the curls.
She claims she was only trying to brush my impossible hair.
In any case, the whole incident scared the curls right out of my hair. The snarls turned into respectable waves, and everything was songbirds and rainbows until I hit puberty.
Rockin’ the straight hair and freckles
In a twist of providence, the puberty fairy messed up. Instead of bringing me the curvy body and pin-straight hair I’d been longing for since fifth grade, she brought me curvy hair and a pin-straight body.
I still hate puberty. But over the years, I’ve learned to love my hair.
It’s not care-free and easy like all the grocery store checkout girls seem to think it is:
“Oh! I love your hair! Curly hair is so easy!”
Right.
Meanwhile, in the real world of curly hair, that wash-and-go look has taken a lot of perfecting. One of the things I have found to help tame my curls is a magical recipe for flax seed hair gel.
Okay, so it’s not really magical. But it does keep my hair frizz-free and manageable, even though I live in the Pacific NorthWet where frizz is as much a part of life as fleece pullovers and strong coffee.
The best thing is, it costs a fraction of the price of anything you’ll find in the store and it works just as well. I’ll even go so far as to say it works better.
Here’s how to Make Your Own Flax Seed Hair Gel (in less than five minutes!)
What You’ll Need
2 tablespoons flax seed (you can use brown or golden, but brown is cheaper)
1 cup water
Optional ingredients:
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 tablespoon unrefined coconut oil
2-3 drops essential oil (I like lavender)
Tools of the trade
Tools:
Be sure you have a fine mesh strainer, funnel, and a container to store the finished product.
How You’ll Do it
In a small saucepan, combine flax seed and water. Be sure to stir gently because the flax seeds tend to stick to the bottom of the pot and can burn. Bring the water to a slow boil, stirring constantly as it begins to get hot. The mixture will start to get small white bubbles, resembling egg whites, and the flax seeds will begin to suspend in the liquid. This takes about 4-6 minutes.
Once the flax seeds begin to suspend in the liquid, remove the gel from heat and immediately pour through a strainer to remove the seeds. Do not overcook. If you overcook it, the entire thing will turn into a gloppy mess. It is much better to undercook it than to overcook it.
However, even when it is perfectly cooked, the gel will cling to the seeds; stir it around with a metal spoon to get the most gel off the seeds. I find this works best in two batches. Pour the first bit in with as few seeds as possible. Once strained, remove the seeds to a separate bowl and strain the remaining gel. If too many seeds collect in the strainer, it makes it harder for any more gel to get through.
Reserve seeds. You can store them in the fridge and use them for one more batch. Frugal joy! After the second batch, discard.
Meanwhile, you can stir in any or all of the optional ingredients to the strained gel.
Raw honey is fabulous for curly hair (and no, it’s not sticky) because it draws moisture from the air and traps it around the hair follicles. This sounds like it would create a frizzy mess, but just the opposite is true. Well-moisturized hair means less frizz, and that is always a good thing. Raw honey has natural antibacterial properties which means it will help to keep things from growing in your hair gel that shouldn’t. Plus, it has tons of other great things for your hair so I always use it.
Unrefined coconut oil is one of the best moisturizers you can use on your hair. When you add it to the gel, it will solidify as it cools and create tiny flecks of hard coconut oil in the gel. This melts when you squeeze the gel into your hand and adds extra moisture to your hair. If you have oily hair, you might want to skip this ingredient. Will refined coconut oil do the same thing? No. Refined coconut oil is a totally different animal. Or oil. Stick to the good stuff. Your hair will thank you.
Essential oils add a lovely smell to an otherwise scentless product. Plus, they have powerful antibiotic properties which will help to keep the flax seed gel fresh longer. Lavender essential oil is great for your scalp too. It helps to prevent dandruff, encourages hair growth, and reduces buildup that can make your hair dull. Don’t overdue it however. A little goes a long way.
Once you’ve stirred in any optional ingredients and allowed the gel to cool, pour it into a squeeze bottle for easier use. You should have about 3/4 c. of gel.
It is best to store the flax seed gel in the refrigerator between uses. It spoils quickly, especially in the summer months. Simply warm a small amount in your hands and use in place of hair gel in your styling routine.
Note
This hair gel does not make your hair curly. It simply defines the curls you already have. I find it works best when I scrunch my hair or use a diffuser to blow dry. This is what my hair looks like using only flax seed hair gel.
Eat your heart out, Puberty.
Now it’s your turn! Go cook up a batch of hair gel and let us know how it works for you.
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About Kristen
Kristen is fashion-complicated. Her curly hair gives her fits, and at 6' tall, she finds it hard to find jeans that fit, not to mention the fact that it's almost impossible to cram her five children into the dressing room while she tries them on. Most of the time, she just stays home, drinks coffee, and writes about it all at fiveintow.com.
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Dear kristen,
I hv light wavy n frizzy hair. They are broken from front around the forehead due to extensive use of iron.
I have bn trying to look for a gel which has less chemicals but Hv not succeeded. If I want to gel back my hair (to hide my broken hair), will it give the sleek finish look?
Your expertise will be much appreciated
Thanks
How often do you use this in your hair?
I’ve been looking around at different flaxseed gel recipes, and some use a higher ratio of flaxseeds to water, i.e. 1/4 cup flax to 1 cup water, although then it’s just soaked overnight rather than boiled. I have massively thick, wavy-slash-curlyish hair that sounds like yours and has always needed the most intense gels/cremes the industry produces–do you think this ratio would be thick/strong enough? Have you tried using a higher ratio? Thx!
I love your hair, thanks for share. I’ve been using flax seed I’m really glad with the results. My hair is shinny!
Works great for me too! Thanks! I actually put the seeds in my smoothie afterwards – they still tasted good. 🙂
Five kids and you’re THAT slim??! Sheeesh! How do you achieve that, please tell me (!) 🙂
Will this recipe work for my short, wavy hair that tends toward being oily (was very oily in my teens and into my twenties and thirties; am now almost 58 YO)? Also, how would this effect my scalp that has some psoriasis on it? While my hair is short and med-textured, it does need more body for styling with a blow dryer and vented brush, and I hope this could possibly help with that, but I’m seeking direction before I attempt to make this. Thanks!
I also would like to know if you’ve ever made (or considered making) this recipe with added aloe vera gel or xanthan gum.
I made this last night and was a little disappointed in it this morning. The coconut oil did not solidify in flakes throughout, instead it settled at the top of all of the product and solidified there. I had to hold the bottle under running hot water to get it to liquefy enough to use. After that it was great, but that will be annoying to do every use. How do you handle it?
That is so strange. I’ve never had that happen before. I always add the coconut oil right after I strain the seeds out, so it is still very, very hot. I mix it in well, along with the honey and it has always gotten suspended in the gel in tiny bits. But, if I had this problem, I would leave the coconut oil out next time and just apply it sparingly to the ends of your hair as needed to combat dryness. Because you are right–warming the gel up each time you use it would be a pain!
If kept in the fridge, how long does it last?
I have always used it up before it goes bad, so I imagine it would last up to a month in the fridge.
Tried this last Sunday, and it worked fabulously! So, SO thankful to find something that works to tame my hair but doesn’t need to be washed out the next day!
So glad it works well for you!! 😀
I simply must try this. Even if I have to keep it in the fridge.
I can’t wait to try this! Thank you so much for sharing, as I have been wanting a good hair gel but don’t want to spend the time looking for alcohol-free, paraben-free, silicone-free, extremely-expensive products!
Hey, I just made this “gurl” (curl gel ;)) and used flaxmeal instead of flaxseeds. The mixture was so GELly that it wouldn’t even go through the screen. I ended up just throwing the flaxmeal inside with the gel. And then the coconut oil rose to the top and the honey drifted to the bottom. . . . I’m afraid the flaxmeal will get into my hair, and wish I had a little strainer to cover the top of my squeeze bottle.
When I scrunch-squeezed my hair today to break the gel cast, the flaxseeds–most of them–seemed to come off into my hands. Yay!!!
Oh good! I’ve never used flaxmeal before, so it’s good to know that it sort-of worked! I was surprised that the coconut oil and honey didn’t mix in. Did you add them while the flax gel was still hot? I stir mine in right away and I’ve never had trouble with it separating. The coconut oil will solidify as it cools, but it stays suspended in the gel in little tiny flakes, so that’s okay for me. I hope you like it!
Hmm, I probably waited too long. Good to remember for next time though!
I’d like to try this. Right now I use a mousse on my wavy hair. Do you think a gel like this would work or could it be to heavy?
It’s not heavy at all! In fact, it seems to disappear into my hair. I can wet it down the next day, apply more gel, and it still feels almost weightless.
Wonderful! Thanks for the reply. 🙂