This sweet-sounding concoction is not a confection; it’s an herbal recipe for soft and shiny hair! Lavender works to strengthen and marshmallow root coats hair while soothing scalp dryness and inflammation. It has a gentle and pleasant aroma that will make this homemade conditioner your new favourite hair care recipe.
Homemade Conditioner and Lotions
Homemade conditioner is easier to make than you might think. When I first started making my own herbal skin and hair care, I was a bit intimidated by making lotions and conditioner. It all seemed to be a bit too complex and I feared that I wouldn’t get the technique quite right. After taking some beginner, then advanced classes, I realized that it’s not only a pretty simple process once you get the hang of it, but that you can make really high quality products for wayyyyy less money than something similar would cost to buy.
If you are a soap maker, then you know that soap making is expensive. And if you are not a soap maker, you have certainly seen the price tag on a bar of artisanal soap. Quality ingredients come with a price tag and the labour (and love) that goes into making soap is quite involved as well.
But lotions, well, that’s a whole different story. A lotion is mostly water. The little bit of oil, emulsifying wax, and other ingredients you use are so small that they barely add up. And yet the final lotion or conditioner is so rich and luxurious, you would think that so much more went into the recipe than it did.
Lavender + Marshmallow Root Homemade Conditioner Recipe
I’m sometimes surprised to hear that not everyone uses conditioner. I would be lost in a rat’s nest of tangles and frizzy hair without it! Hair conditioner has that wonderful nourishing ability to coat each strand of hair so that it can easily be detangled while reducing split ends and nourishing dry hair.
Marshmallow root is a mucilaginous herb that is often used on its own as a natural hair conditioner. In this recipe, I have used prepared marshmallow root tea to replace part of the water in the conditioner. This recipe is great from dry hair that needs a moisture treatment. Use the conditioner for a few weeks, then switch it for another recipe (like this Rosemary one) when hair is repaired.
If this is your first time making lotion or conditioner, please first read THIS POST on How to Make Lotion to read about the ingredients, the three phases, and see the step-by-step photos of how it is done.
Equipment
- Beakers or other heatproof containers
- Kitchen scale
- Double boiler
- Infrared thermometer
- Spatula
- Electric mixer
- Mixing bowl
- Alcohol (to sterilize equipment and tools)
Ingredients
Makes 200g
Aqueous Phase Ingredients
- 92 g distilled water
- 60 g marshmallow root infusion
- 4 g glycerine
Oil Phase Ingredients
- 20 g macadamia nut oil
- 10 g BTMS 25
- 6 g cetyl alcohol
Cool Phase Ingredients
- 4 g leucidal
- 4 g panthenol(Vitamin B5)
- 20 drops organic lavender essential oil
Make it!
The day before: prepare the marshmallow infusion by filling a 250ml / 1 cup mason jar with cut and sifted marshmallow root and fill the rest of the jar with lukewarm water. Add a lid and steep overnight. In the morning, strain out the root and use the liquid for lotion.
- Sterilize all of your equipment and workspace with alcohol.
- Use a kitchen scale to weigh the oil ingredients in a heatproof container and weigh the water ingredients in another heatproof container.
- Create a double boiler and heat both the oil ingredients and the water ingredients to 160 degrees F.
- Keep both the water ingredients and oil ingredients at 160 degrees F for 20 minutes.
- In a mixing bowl, add the oil ingredients first and then pour in the water ingredients.
- Use an electric mixer to whip the ingredients in a large bowl.
- Once the ingredients have reached 80 degrees, you can add the cool phase ingredients.
- Continue mixing your conditioner until it’s thick and fluffy.
- Add the conditioner into a sterilized container with a pump.
More Lotions, Creams, and Conditioners to Try!
- Ultra Moisturizing Natural Lotion Recipe
- Rosemary Hair Care Recipes: Homemade Dry Shampoo, Natural Conditioner, and Healthy Hair Serum
- Rose Skincare Recipes for Brighter, Healthier Skin
- Mango Citrus Whipped Body Butter
- Calendula Summer Lotion Bars Recipe
- Vanilla Bean Winter Lotion Bar
- Coffee Bean Massage Bars Recipe
- Common Garden Herbs for a Skin Care Apothecary
Is it possible to purchase the lavender and marshmallow root conditioner from you? It sounds wonderful and I would attempt to make my own, but do not even know where I would purchase some of the ingredients.
Hi Marge, Thank you so much! I just love this recipe!
I’m sorry to say I don’t sell any of my homemade products. I did link to all the ingredients and materials though. Have a look, each one of the items that is in orange is a link to amazon where they can be picked up easily and shipped to you. For what you would pay me to make and ship you one bottle, you can make 10 of your own. I do hope you give it a try, and please do let me know if you run into any challenges along the way. I’m here to help!
Love your blog! May I ask where you buy your clear glass pump bottles from that you put the conditioner in??
Well wishes
I got those at Ikea for 99 cents!
Hi!
I have just finished my second and third batches of this conditioner! WooHoo! I am handing out to friends and family for feedback, but my long curly hair is quite happy! This time I fiddled with your recipe a bit: I added 2g of argon oil and substituted Aloe Vera gel for the distilled water. Thank you so much for this recipe and for inspiring me to try something new.
Hi, is this a leave-in conditioner, or should it be washed out?
washed out
How many grams of marshmallow root do you use to make the infusion? Thanks!
Fill the jar/not weigh – “prepare the marshmallow infusion by filling a 250ml / 1 cup mason jar with cut and sifted marshmallow root and fill the rest of the jar with lukewarm water.”