I had come across this recipe a while ago for a homemade flax hair gel and finally decided to give it a try today. I love that it only takes a couple ingredients (no chemicals at all!) and that I can quickly make more if I ever run out. Overall, the gel was not too hard to make (although a little messy since this was my first try) and I’m hoping that it will keep in the fridge for at least a couple of weeks.
To start, I added 1 cup filtered water and 1/4 cup flax seeds to a small saucepan. I heated them to boiling on low-medium heat, stirring most of the time. Once the seeds boiled, the water started thickening into a slightly foaming gel. I stirred the gel for a couple more minutes (some recipes say to simmer for 10 minutes more), but I didn’t think this was necessary with the thickness I already had.
Next came the messy part. The seeds are extremely well embedded in the gel and a strainer did not work to separate them at all. After a little brainstorming, I cut a big piece of cheesecloth that the seeds could not escape from and poured the whole mixture into the middle of it. I pulled the rest of the cloth up and held it with one hand. With the other hand, I squeezed the gel out by basically wringing out the part of the cloth cloth containing the seeds.
I ended up with about 1/3 to 1/2 cup gel and at this point stirred in 4 drops of GSE to help preserve it. I could have also added a few drops of essential oil (such as lavender), but I didn’t mind the light nutty smell of the gel and it seemed to disappear anyway once it dried in my hair. So far I really like the gel as it gave my hair a nice shine and held back a little bit of frizz that was trying to escape my ponytail. I also noticed that the gel did not flake and leaves a really smooth look.
I think that next time I make this (by the way the same seeds can be used again!) I will use slightly less seeds (perhaps 1 Tbsp seeds to 1 cup water) in the hope that the seeds will be able to separate easily in the strainer. If you decide to make this, let me know how yours turns out! And one last quick tip, to help clean the gel off your dishes and utensils, add a couple of good splashes of white vinegar to your dishwater- it will make a big difference!
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I was thrilled when I came across your blog, highlighting this post. I have plans to make this tomorrow (rcpe from a book I have). Was wondering about consistency, and how it washed out. Pics are great. Am wondering if you are still using this?
Hi Rebecca! I have not made this in quite some time! I have a new baby and have been extremely busy, in a good way :) The consistency is very gel like and I kept mine in the fridge. It seemed to wash out just fine for me. Hope it works for you!
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