Travel + Leisure - India & South Asia
HIBISCUS HAPPINESS
This monsoon, let hibiscus hair oils and masks bless you with a long, lustrous, and healthy mane.
TO STIMULATE HAIR GROWTH
What you need
20 dry hibiscus flowers
500 ml coconut oil
1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds
2 tablespoons castor oil
Method
Sun-dry the hibiscus flowers to extract all the moisture. Heat the coconut oil on low flame for five minutes and throw in the flowers. Once they’re decolourised, add fenugreek seeds and stir gently till they melt. Turn off the heat and set the solution aside for a night. Strain the oil the next day, mix with castor oil, and apply to your hair roots.
Benefits
The collagen in hibiscus synthesises keratin, which nourishes hair. It also strengthens the skin around hair follicles. Fenugreek seeds and castor oil, together, act as a rich source of protein, and induce hair growth.
TO NURTURE A DRY SCALP
What you need
20 dry hibiscus flowers
5-8 hibiscus leaves
3 tablespoons aloe vera gel ½ bowl neem leaves
2 tablespoons fenugreek seeds
500 ml coconut oil
2 tablespoons castor oil
1 teaspoon camphor powder
Method
Grind half of the hibiscus leaves to a fine paste along with aloe vera gel. Cook on medium flame till the paste halves. Add coconut oil, castor oil, fenugreek seeds, and camphor powder; cook for two hours—the oil will turn white. Then, add the hibiscus flowers and stir well. Next, add small pieces of the remaining hibiscus and neem leaves—infuse for two hours. Strain and apply to roots.
Benefits
Neem, aloe vera, and camphor powder have antibacterial and antifungal properties that boost blood circulation in the scalp. Additionally, the oil itself bestows body, volume, and bounce to the hair by removing excess oil from the scalp.
TO REDUCE FRIZZ
What you need
2 hibiscus flowers
7-8 hibiscus leaves
4 tablespoons coconut oil
3 teaspoons amla powder (Indian gooseberry)
4 curry leaves
2 moringa flowers (optional)
Method
Grind hibiscus flowers and leaves along with a tablespoon of coconut oil to form a paste. Separately, warm three tablespoons of coconut oil over medium flame. Mix in the paste while also adding the amla powder, curry leaves, and moringa flowers. Bring to boil and sieve the mixture with a muslin cloth.
Benefits
Coconut oil and hibiscus make a great moisturising potion for hair; it conditions, hydrates, and makes hair softer. While the antioxidants in curry leaves strengthen brittle hair, moringa flowers treat damaged follicles. Amla caters to scalp infections such as lice and prevents dandruff formation and split ends.
TO MAINTAIN pH LEVEL
What you need
5 hibiscus flowers
5 hibiscus leaves
150 ml almond oil
150 ml coconut oil
Method
Combine the two oils in a pan and put the mix on medium heat. Add hibiscus leaves and flowers, and let them infuse for four hours. Strain using a muslin cloth, and apply it to the hair generously.
Benefits
Hibiscus leaves maintain the pH balance of hair while simultaneously soothing and cooling the scalp. Almond oil is rich in Vitamin B7 or biotin, which not only protects hair from sun damage but also provides silkiness.
FOR STRONG HAIR
What you need
5-8 hibiscus flowers 1 cup aloe vera gel
Method
Blend the flowers to form a paste and add aloe vera gel to it; mix till a smooth consistency is formed. Apply this paste on the scalp and let it rest for an hour. Wash with lukewarm water and a mild shampoo.
Benefits
Aloe vera works as a cooling agent. It contains vitamins A, B, B12, C, and E—collectively called hairbuilding vitamins—and folic acid.
All these nutrients together can help make hair longer, stronger, smoother, and softer.
TO LOCK IN MOISTURE
What you need
8-10 hibiscus flowers
3-4 tablespoons yoghurt 1 tablespoon honey
5-6 drops of rosemary essential oil
Method
Grind the hibiscus flowers to form a paste. Add yoghurt and blend well; use water to adjust consistency. Then, add honey and rosemary essential oil. Apply it thoroughly on damp hair, and rinse it off with a mild shampoo after 30 minutes.
Benefits
Honey moisturises hair. Yoghurt cleanses a greasy scalp, in turn preventing any infection or dandruff formation. Rosemary essential oil prevents hair loss.
TO PREVENT HAIR LOSS
What you need
8-10 hibiscus flowers 1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds ½ cup buttermilk
Method
Soak fenugreek seeds in water overnight, and grind them along with hibiscus flowers the following day. Add buttermilk to smoothen the paste, and apply it to the scalp. Rinse with a mild shampoo after an hour.
Benefits
Fenugreek seeds are known to cure issues like hair fall, hair thinning, and baldness. This superfood also contains lecithin, which hydrates hair and brings back its original lustre and bounce.
TO PREVENT PREMATURE GREYING What you need
15 hibiscus flowers ½ cup henna powder ½ cup curd
Method
Blend hibiscus flowers with henna powder and curd to form a paste. Apply on hair and scalp, and let it rest for an hour before washing it off with a mild cleanser.
Benefits
Antioxidant-rich hibiscus and henna produce melanin, a biologically occurring pigment that lends hair its natural colour. Moreover, the Vitamin C present in this mix neutralises free radicals that tend to damage melanin cells and induce premature greying.