DIY: Hair Clarifying Treatments

Not only was I cursed with stick-straight limp hair, it tends to get oily pretty quickly and weighed down if I use any mousse or hairspray. In addition, whenever I use styling products they tend to build up in my hair and over time cause my hair to look like it has even less volume. If this sounds anything like your hair, you might want to consider trying a clarifying treatment. 

There are some shampoos on the market specifically formulated with the intention to remove any kind of build-up, dirt or oil from the hair. You can get them at drug stores or specialty retailers, like Ulta or Sephora.

If you’d rather try some at-home remedies instead of spending the money on a shampoo, check out the following DIY options:

One of the simplest ways to get rid of hair build-up is to add baking soda to your regular shampoo. Next time you wash your hair, combine two parts shampoo to one part baking soda. Try to use at least one tablespoon of baking soda—you really want the baking soda to cover your entire scalp and really get to work removing dirt. Shampoo your hair and let everything sit for about one minute, then rinse with lukewarm or cool water. Once you’ve washed your hair, you can condition as you normally would. 

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Another easy way to remove build-up is with lemon juice. Combine about ½ cup of fresh lemon juice with a few cups of warm water. Pour the mixture on your scalp, massage it and let everything sit for five to 10 minutes. Rinse your hair with lukewarm or cool water, then shampoo and condition.

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Get some apple cider vinegar from your local grocery store. Wet your hair and massage one or two tablespoons into your scalp. Let it sit for about five minutes and rinse with lukewarm or cool water. Shampoo and condition your hair.

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Tips and suggestions:

1. With any of these DIY home treatments, I would recommend clarifying your hair once per month. Using baking soda, lemon juice or apple cider vinegar on your hair too often could promote color fading if you dye your hair. If you use a lot of hair styling products, you might want to clarify more often to make sure you’re getting rid of all the build-up.
2. To make things easier with the lemon juice or apple cider methods, you could combine the ingredients for each into a large spray or squirt bottle. This will make it much easier to apply directly to your scalp.
3. If you feel like these at-home remedies aren’t effectively getting rid of the build-up in your hair, you might want to talk to your stylist to see if she/he can recommend a specific clarifying shampoo or method. Or, your stylist might be able to recommend some new styling products that won’t cause as much build-up.

Do you have any DIY methods to get rid of hair build-up? Share in the comments!