In a world where we’re constantly purchasing products and with many of them being very expensive, sometimes you cannot beat a good, tried and tested DIY treatment that is steeped in history and when it is said to help hair growth, I’m all in!
Rice water rinses has its roots firmly planted in Asian cultures where woman in Japan, during the Helan period, utilized rice water for their hair growth and the proof is in the photos of their stunning, floor-length hair!
Some key benefits are said to include –
- Increased hair volume
- Increased shine and appearance
- Stronger follicles
- Repair to cuticle damage
- Dandruff prevention
- Anti-inflammatory effects on the scalp
- Full of amino acids that are essential for hair strength and structure
This treatment is so easy to make and also cheap! You only need one cup of uncooked rice and three cups of water.
- Rinse the rice
- Place it into a jar and add 3 cups of cold water
- Cover and leave for 24 hours
- Then you simply drain the rice and the water is ready to use.
Instructions – Video tutorial here
- Clarify hair
- Leaning over the edge of the bath or sink, place an empty bowl under your hair
- Slowly pour the rice water over your hair, ensuring that the runoff is being caught in the empty bowl.
- Now dunk your hair into the bowl and squish the water in. Dunk & squish!
- Switch the bowls around and repeat the pour, dunk squish two more times. So three times in total.
- Pop a shower cap on and wait 5-10 minutes
- Rinse the rice water off. Do not be alarmed if your hair feels very dry and even straw like. The next step fixes this!
- Pop a deep conditioner on for 5-10 minutes
- Rinse and style as normal.
Now, how often you want to do this treatment does vary for everyone. Those with fine hair would benefit from it more often than those with coarse hair as fine hair needs extra help with strength and structure. I know some people that do this weekly and others that can only do it every 6-8 weeks so it is definitely one to play with and see how often your own hair likes it.
Here are some signs to look out for so you know when rice water may be a great idea!
- Hair is feeling overly soft
- Curls are struggling to hold
- Hair feels like candy floss
- You are experiencing a fluffy kind of frizz
Have you ever played with DIY hair treatments?
Tried this, per your instructions, and hair was much better—less fly away and stringy! And cost-effective!
Love this! So glad it worked for you! x
I tried this once after reading your post on IG, Liane and it was amazing how my curls bounced up. I’ve been wearing it up mostly, due to the terribly humid weather here, but I am ABSOLUTELY doing a rice water rinse again. Question … have you ever soaked your rice overnight and then for whatever reason, were unable to wash your hair the next day? Could the water be strained and even left one day longer in the refrigerator? Thanks for all your encouragement and tips and tricks. You are AMAZING!!
So glad it worked for you! So the longest I would personally leave it is 36 hours, purely because after that the smell will knock your socks off 😂
This worked so well. Fabulous definition right afterwards and my hair is feeling great. I have wanted to give this a try for a long time and I am so pleased that I finally did. Thanks Liane.
I’m so glad it worked for you!