Recipes: 3 Coconut Milk Masks for Dry Hair

Coconut oils and milks are great for both your skin and your hair. In fact, people have been moisturizing their hair with coconut milk for generations. And for good reason, as coconut milk is wonderful for keeping hair soft and shiny. Here, are three coconut-milk masks for the hair, plus a recipe for making your own homemade coconut milk.

Simple Coconut Milk Hair Mask

Coconut oils and milks are great for both your skin and your hair. This recipe is a favorite and leaves hair silky and smelling fabulous.

What's best about this hair mask is how absolutely simple it is. Plus, there's no need to use all the milk. You can cover the bowl and use again after a few days.

Ingredients

• 1 can of unsweetened coconut milk
• a few drops of essential oil if you like (totally not necessary, but if you have them on hand it can be luxurious).

How to Use

Pour a can or bottle of unsweetened coconut milk in a bowl and refrigerate overnight so it hardens. Section hair into 3-5 sections. Section by section, apply the milk from roots to ends of your hair (hair should be dry when applied). Cover head with a shower cap and leave the mask on for about 20 minutes. Rinse hair in the shower and comb out.

Coconut Milk & Avocado Hair Mask

Avocado is a wonderful moisturizer especially for dry, frizzy hair. This recipe is for shoulder-length hair. Add more if you have long hair.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp unsweetened coconut milk
• 1/2 avocado
• 1 tbsp honey

Throw the ingredients in a blender to combine. Add another tablespoon of coconut milk if it's too thick.

How to Use

Wet your hair thoroughly, then comb the mask through from roots to ends. Cover with plastic and a towel or a shower cap if you have one and let the mask sit for 10-30 minutes before rinsing thoroughly. I have found that even 5 minutes helps with these masks, so if you're in a hurry, you can rinse after a few minutes and you won't have to leave the shower.

Infused Olive Oil and Coconut Milk Hair Mask

You've heard of hot oil treatments, and you can make your own with an infusion of rosemary and olive oil. The coconut milk is added for extra moisturizing benefits. Don't have time to make an infusion? No worries. Just skip that part. Olive oil and coconut milk are wonderful together even without the herb.

Olive oil infusions should last for six months.

Ingredients

• 1 cup olive oil
• 3 tbsp dried rosemary leaves
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk

To make the infused olive oil, combine the oil and rosemary leaves in an airtight Ball jar for 4-8 weeks. If you don't have time for this, make the infused oil by gently heating the rosemary in the oil for 2-4 hours in a water bath or double-boiler.

Once you have your infused olive oil, you'll make your hair mask by combining 1/2 cup of the infused olive oil and 1/2 cup of the coconut milk.

How to Use

Apply to hair, cover with a shower cap and let it sit for 30 minutes. Rinse thoroughly. You may feel you need to shampoo your hair after a hot oil treatment, which is fine.

How to Make Your Own Coconut Milk

While you can buy coconut milk in a can, there's nothing better than homemade just-from-the-coconut milk. Here's how to make your own.

Ingredients

• 1 coconut
• 4 cups boiling water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Find the eyes on the coconut (they are always the 3 spots on one end of the coconut). You need to pierce these with an ice pick or a sharp skewer. This is to allow the heat to penetrate the coconut.

Drain the coconut water into a cup.

Place the coconut in a pan and bake for 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and place on a large wooden cutting board or other solid work surface. Break the coconut apart with a hammer. Rinse the coconut meat and slice the coconut into small pieces (no need to break the shell away from the meat).

Place the coconut pieces and the reserved coconut water in a blender and blend until finely chopped.

Put the chopped coconut into a glass bowl with the 4 cups of boiling water. Cover the bowl and let it sit for 30-45 minutes.

Using a strainer or cheesecloth, strain the mixture into another bowl. This is your milk. You should have enough for three treatments. Store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.