Homemade Flaxseed Hair Gel for Curly, Frizzy Hair

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Introduction: Homemade Flaxseed Hair Gel for Curly, Frizzy Hair

About: I am an artist and clothing designer with a passion for helping others bring their own creative dreams to life.

This gel is easy to make, and it works very well to control my naturally frizzy hair. It isn't sticky or drying like some store-bought gels I've tried, and ever since I discovered this, I don't even use conditioner anymore!

A lot of people ask me if my hair color is real, and the answer is yes. I have never colored my hair, and none of these photos were altered or enhanced in any way. It does look brighter in the sunlight, though. I also get asked if it's naturally curly a lot, and again, the answer is yes. In fact, I do not do a single thing to my hair beyond what I'm going to share in this instructable. So let's get started!

Step 1: A Brief Hair History

This picture shows my hair after I've washed it and let it dry, but haven't put anything on it. This is my hair in its natural state. It's very curly, but the individual hairs are all doing their own thing, making it look fuzzy and messy.

Up until a few years ago, I didn't know what to do about my frizzy hair, so I kept it in braids a lot. One day I searched "crazy frizzy curly hair" on the internet, and that's where I learned about keeping conditioner in your hair and not rinsing it out, which is a method that a lot of people use to control their curly hair.

The problem with leaving conditioner in my hair was that it made it feel stiff, a bit greasy, kind of heavy... and it darkened my hair so that it didn't show its natural color. Many people commented that my hair was turning brown, when it was actually all that conditioner on it that made it look darker! I searched the internet for a clear conditioner to use, thinking that a clear one wouldn't look darker while it was on my hair, but instead, I ran across this flaxseed hair gel. I've been using it ever since, as my "conditioner" as well as a styling aid that defines my curls. The only thing I put on my hair is shampoo and this gel. I love how it makes my hair feel, and how well it works to banish frizz!

Step 2: Boil Flaxseeds in Water

Place 1/4 cup (60 grams) of flaxseeds in a saucepan, and add 4 cups (1 liter) of water.

Bring to a boil, stirring every few minutes. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Turn off the heat and let it cool for one hour.

Start with these proportions for your first batch, but after you see how your hair likes it, you can play around with the recipe. You may need more or less holding power, which can be adjusted to suit your hair's needs.

These things make the gel thinner, with less holding power:

  • Using Golden Flax seeds
  • Boiling it for a shorter amount of time
  • Using more water
  • Using fewer flax seeds
  • Applying the gel to wet or damp hair
  • Reusing the flax seeds

These things make the gel thicker, with more holding power:

  • Boiling it for a longer amount of time
  • Using less water
  • Using more flax seeds

In its plain form of just flaxseeds and water, the gel will smell very mildly like bread. If you want to, you can add essential oils to make it smell nice! I use 1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) each of lime and ginger essential oils, but you can use whatever you have on hand, or omit them entirely. It's up to you.

It will keep in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks, or you can freeze it in a plastic bottle and take it out of the freezer on the morning or night before you plan to wash your hair. You can also add about 2 teaspoons (9 grams) of vitamin E oil if you want, to make it keep longer in the fridge.

Step 3: Strain Gel

Line a bowl with a clean kitchen towel.

Pour the contents of the saucepan into the towel-lined bowl.

Gather the edges of the towel and gently squeeze, straining the hair gel through the towel and into the bowl.

Discard the seeds that are left in the towel, and pour the gel into a plastic squeeze bottle.

Step 4: Put the Gel on Your Hair

Wash your hair with a moisturizing shampoo. Don't use a shampoo that leaves your hair feeling "squeaky clean"... in my experience, that squeaky clean feeling means that your hair is dried out! You might have one already that works well for you.

Edit: Pantene has changed the formula of the shampoo I had been using, and the new version does not work for me at all. If the bottle says "DreamCare" on it, then it is the new formula and I can no longer recommend it.

I now use Aussie Total Miracle 7-in-1 Shampoo, and I really like it. I will update the instructable again if my preference changes. This link and the link to my hairbrush are affiliate links, so I will earn a small commission if you use them to make a purchase.

If you have incredibly dry hair, you could certainly use a moisturizing conditioner after you shampoo, and then rinse it out. However, I do not do this, as it seems to make the gel not hold as well.

After washing, let your hair dry.

Apply the gel to your hair by getting some on your hands, rubbing your hands together, and then rubbing your hands through your hair. Make sure to get all of your hair coated evenly, even the roots! Sometimes it's easier to separate your hair into sections and work with one section at a time.

See how much longer and darker my hair looks when it's wet?

Step 5: Brush Your Hair

I used to have a hairbrush that was made by Goody, but I wore it out and now I use Denman D3 Zebra Striped Wild Hair Brushes, Pink. I like it and think it's cute, too. I didn’t have much luck with a wide-toothed comb; it didn’t press the curls together as well as this brush does. The bristles are thick and flexible, and fairly far apart.

Separate your hair into 8 to 12 sections, and brush each section well while it’s wet with the gel. And then leave it alone! Let it dry without playing with it or running your fingers through it. I just go to sleep at this point, haha. You can use a good diffuser to dry your hair if you’re in a hurry, but make sure that the airflow is gentle enough not to blow your curls apart. You don’t want to start the week out looking like you rode in a convertible for 8 hours!

Don’t ever brush your hair while it’s dry! Curly hair looks frizzy and fuzzy when the individual hairs are farther apart. Brushing your hair when it’s dry will turn it into fuzz instead of smooth, well-defined curls.

Step 6: Scrunch It!

Once your hair is completely dry, it will still look wet, but it will feel very stiff. You can see in the first pictures how it's standing out straight all by itself. It will also sound stiff when you move your head. Now is when you scrunch it! Squeeze it in your fists, pack it against your head, and just in general mash it until it's soft, bright, and fabulous! It should only take about 30 seconds or so.

Step 7: Continued Care and Tips

I don't do a single thing to my hair after that until it's time to wash it again, which will be in 4 to 8 days. I'll need to wash it sooner if I've gotten caught out in the rain, or ridden in a car with the windows down, or gone hiking and gotten my hair snagged on twigs and branches. Usually I wash/gel/brush it exactly once a week.

When I take a shower, I just put on a shower cap to protect my 'do from the water and humidity of the shower.

When I sleep, I just... sleep. I do not braid it, or put on any sort of hat, or use a special pillowcase. I just go to sleep, roll out of bed in the morning, and my hair is good to go. My hair probably does most of its frizzing while I'm asleep, from me rubbing my head against the pillowcase, but I haven't bothered to try to prevent that. I figure an average of washing/brushing my hair once a week is pretty darn low-maintenance! All told, the entire routine (excluding drying time) takes me about 40 minutes every week.

The flax gel doesn't seem to work very well for people who have straight hair, but user zialeon recommends using fenugreek seeds for fine, straight hair. Soak them overnight, and then proceed as you would for the flax gel. Or use part flax and part fenugreek if your hair is in-between fine and thick.

Users JudesJewels, chall35, and zialeon recommend adding some dried herbs to the water, if you don't have essential oils on hand. Let the herbs boil right along with the seeds, then strain the whole mixture. The herbs give the gel a nice scent.

User DeeRilee suggests using muslin to strain the gel.

User raginmama recommends using a silk pillowcase to avoid frizzing your hair while you sleep.

User JudesJewels says that the flaxseed gel works well as a facial moisturizer, as well!

Thanks so much for the tips, to everyone who has contributed. You all make everything awesome!

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252 Comments

0
pi2373
pi2373

7 years ago on Introduction

Thank GOD for your article!!! I've been transitioning my relaxed hair to my natural 3b-3c hair type and was becoming so frustrated not finding the right products for my hair. So I made this FSG for the first time and it worked!! I washed my hair with sulfate free shampoo, put in a placenta based leave in conditioner then saturated my hair with the FSG and finger combed thru it. Since I am not using any heat on my hair I ran the house fan towards me as I worked on my computer. A couple hours later my hair was 95% dry and my hair had fantastic curl definition and so shiny!. I still had a lot of crunchiness but I normally get that from the terrible hair mousse's I'd previously used so I took some 100% coconut oil rubbed in my hands and fluffed out the crunchy areas a bit. I'm telling you my hair looks GORGEOUS!!! Bouncy, shiny, moisturized, no flaky residue, no stickiness or heaviness!! No more store bought gels, mousse's or custards for me. This is the perfect low maintenance hair regime I have been praying for!! Can't wait to see if this will last at least 3 days!!!

1
iamsewcrazy
iamsewcrazy

Reply 6 years ago

That's so great, how well it worked for you! It does make hair shiny, doesn't it? It makes me smile that my instructable was an answer to prayer. ;) I don't think I've ever been told that before, but I love it!!!

1
pi2373
pi2373

7 years ago

Day 2 and my hair looks even better than day 1. I slept on my satin pilliwcase, woke up and the FSG was still holding beautifully! Still defined curls, no flakes and still shiny! I rubbed a little more coconut oil and fluffed my hair a little and now i have the volume i love without the frizzy dryness of those store bought products. I will be using/making FSG for life. Thanks again! ?

0
iamsewcrazy
iamsewcrazy

Reply 6 years ago

That is awesome!!! So glad to have another "convert"!

The good news is that your hair should look better as time goes on and it recovers from that drying store-bought products you used to use (that is, if your hair does what mine did!)

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Suvarna
Suvarna

Question 1 year ago

Can I apply hair conditioner after washing off the flaxseed gel

0
Shanudharu
Shanudharu

Question 2 years ago on Step 4

What about plopping method ?? And should I wait till my hair dries completely to use flaxseed gel on my hair??

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myorganizedadhdlife
myorganizedadhdlife

4 years ago

I started using a different version about 8 months ago. At first, it was amazing. So shiny and bouncy. Lately, though my hair has been dull and frizzy. I suspect it's either from menopause itself or from vitamins I'm taking to combat other menopause side effects. I Saw your post tonight after I tried yet again to make my hair shiny. I never saw anyone else suggest putting it on dry hair. I've already washed and dried my hair tonight with the gel. But now I'm going to put more on some of my dry hair and see what it looks like in the morning. My recipe is different - I have sugar in it for hold and I also put a tiny bit of castor oil in this time trying to get some shine. But if it's any better at all tomorrow after it dries, I'm going to start from scratch and try it 100% your way with your recipe. My fingers are crossed. I will let you know! I'm including a photo. You can see my dry non shiny hair and the gelled experimental section lol.

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iamsewcrazy
iamsewcrazy

Reply 4 years ago

I hope you find results that you're happy with. The castor oil and sugar sound very interesting, I've never tried either one but it sounds a little mad-scientisty so maybe I'll give it a shot!

And I know you said your hair was dull lately but I think it's beautiful.

0
myorganizedadhdlife
myorganizedadhdlife

Reply 3 years ago

aw thank you - that's so sweet. i will try to find a photo of what it looked like last summer when i first started flaxseed gelling - it was so shiny and curly, no frizz at all. i seriously think it's hormonal :-(

okay, so, i tried the flaxseed on dry hair. here are my experiments

(1): i used the one i had already made with sugar in it and used it ON TOP of a little of the dry hair i had already washed and done with sugared flaxseed gel that day (gelled while wet but then regelled while dry). do NOT do that lol. it was so incredibly stiff that i couldn't break it up at all and i actually ended up with board straight hair in two places lol. and my hair was super flaky. SUGAR GEL WHILE WET, DRIED, SUGAR GEL WHILE DRY - VERY VERY BAD AND SUPER DUSTY

(2) made a new batch, no sugar, and put it on dry hair that i had washed and put sugared flaxseed on that day (gelled while wet, regelled while dry). it made my hair super stiff but major reduction in the flaking and dust that flew off every time i moved. SUGAR GEL WHILE WET, DRIED, NON-SUGAR GEL WHILE DRY - SUPER STIFF, MUCH LESS DUST

(3) rewashed, no conditioned, and allowed to totally dry (not a good look). applied non-sugar flaxseed gel to dry hair. very shiny and i loved how it looked - way better than it had before. only i got flaking that you could see right away and also it flaked a lot when i scrunched it out. does it flake for you? NO GEL WHILE WET, NO CONDITIONER, THEN NON-SUGAR GEL WHILE DRY - VERY NICE BUT SOMEWHAT FLAKY (WHICH I DIDN'T MIND AS MUCH AS THE DUST THAT FLEW OFF)

(4) i decided to meet halfway between the way i was doing it and the way you do it and instead of putting it on sopping wet hair, as i had been instructed previously, i dried my hair really well with a t-shirt. then i gooped it on and it's much shinier than it had been with the sopping wet hair and no flaking. SUGAR GEL ON DAMP, CONDITIONED HAIR (ENDS DRY IMMEDIATELY THO) , MUCH NICER THAN SUGAR GEL ON SOPPING WET HAIR

i'm so happy i found your site or i probably wouldn't have experimented at all. your hair is gorgeous by the way.

oh and the castor oil - i only added that because i had some - essential oils don't work for me when i tried them (frizz) but the castor oil i had bought because i have thinning hair - you are supposed to put it on before bed but i realized that if i did that, i'd have to wash my hair in the mornings like i used to before flaxseed gel (for 48 years!). with the flaxseed gel i don't wash it every day and i'm not about to start that up again :-) sorry this is all lower case or upper case - on my husband's laptop and his shift key doesn't really work. i managed punctuation with it but that's about it.

have a great night! ps just looked and found a photo - ignore the weird look (was looking in mirror while also taking a selfie - what can i say, i'm old and not a selfie pro lol)

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0
iamsewcrazy
iamsewcrazy

Reply 3 years ago

Awww, thank you!
You know what, normally I don't have dust from it, but I have made a few batches that were dusty once my hair dried. I have no idea why, because the next batch using the same seeds was different. I wondered if I hadn't rinsed the shampoo out of my hair all the way or something, but I don't know. Sometimes I get in a hurry or zone out, so who knows.

I've never used castor oil, but I do add essential oils on a whim, always different ones, but lavender, lime, and ginger make frequent appearances. It is possible that one of them caused the dust, and I just didn't pay enough attention to notice that the essential oil was the culprit.

So I guess maybe the castor oil could be making it dusty? I don't know. I'm sure you don't want to omit it if it's helping your hair to be thicker, but it might be worth a try to leave it out of one small batch.

0
Ebony Earl
Ebony Earl

Question 5 years ago on Introduction

Lots of people say put it on wet hair, which I have done, is it better to put on dry? X

0
iamsewcrazy
iamsewcrazy

Answer 4 years ago

Hi, sorry for the late reply as I haven't been on the site for a while. If you put the gel on wet hair, it spreads onto your hair quicker and more easily, but the water on your hair will basically water down the gel and give it less strength/holding power. This may work well for you, if you don't need as much hold. :)

0
JennyF33
JennyF33

6 years ago

I just tried making this for the first time. Unfortunately, it's a fail...I can't get it through a towel and I can't even get it to go through a strainer. It's very mucousy/snotty looking.

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TaraT18
TaraT18

Reply 5 years ago

Hi there, not sure if it will help you, but normally you should only boil your flax sees for about 5mins, (adding to already boiling water; try 2cups water and 1/4 flax seeds) if cooking any longer it will definitely become to thick to strain. It doesn't take long at all to get to a good consistency, also adding a few of your fav essentials oils (or evening oils you cook with) to it will take away from the mucous look and feel. I sell a homemade natural hair care line where I live and we have developed a flaxseed hair cream and gel that works really well. Hope one day we are able to ship out of country once we launch our storefront. Good luck!

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pi2373
pi2373

6 years ago

Its been over a year now and still using FSG! My hair has grown from ear length to shoulder length and is the healthiest and thickest it's ever been. I even got lazy a few times and went back to using my old store bought hair mousse and realized how dry it made my hair. FSG gives me at least a week of beautifully defined frizz free voluminous curls. My hair is so low maintenance and even my husband loves me not having to wear the head wraps to bed anymore. My satin pillowcase keeps my curls in tack. Thanks again for this article which truly changed my whole hair regimen for life.

0
staceyclea
staceyclea

6 years ago

This is a brilliant recipe! Thanks so much ?
And my chickens absolutely love the left over flaxseed!!!

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Lazy_bug
Lazy_bug

6 years ago

Can i use organic gluten free flax seeds? Please help.......
P.s - love ur hair??❤

0
jaysh
jaysh

6 years ago

Oh wonderful article. Its been a week I have been googling about flexseed gel. Your method is so different as others usually apply gel to wet hair. I tried that and it took 9 hours for my hair to dry. This was a deal breaker for me. I am certainly going to try your way. How long does it take for you to completely air dry after you apply the gel? I have very dry hair so should I add a little bit of oil in the gel or dab a little on hair ends and then apply the gel to hair? Can we apple the gel to second or third day hair?
Do you recommend adding glycerine to the gel?
Thanks for sharing.

0
MaryW151
MaryW151

6 years ago

My preference is the GKhair gel for creating sleek, smooth and long lasting hair style with strong hold. Best product for strong hold. Love it. :) <3

1
SG48
SG48

7 years ago

Waiting for this to cool as we read! Question though, has anyone tried straining it while still hot through a mesh strainer? Would that really change the desired effect? Just wondering if that would make less mess/clean up. I've also read on other blogs that people have saved the seeds for a second use..any experience with that? Thanks! Cant wait to try this tomorrow! Will let ya know how it went for me then!