We have all been conditioned (pun intended) to think that oily hair is bad and that we need to wash our hair frequently with shampoo and condition it after to add back moisture. If you think about this a little more, it doesn't totally make sense...But don’t worry, we won’t tell you to stop washing your hair, but we do have a solution for how to wash yours without damaging it further. 

Washing your hair frequently, even with just water can dry out your hair and cause it to become more porous, damaged and less pliable. Just like your hands will dry out and become chapped & flaky if you wash them a lot, your hair reacts the same! Every time you wash your hair, your hair absorbs the water and the inner core of your hair strand begins to swell like a sponge.  When this happens your hair becomes waterlogged and the water begins to chip away at the cuticle of your hair and the proteins that keep your hair strong and shiny wash down the drain. This is where pre-wash oil treatments come in. 

So if you notice that your hair is fluffy or wispy at the ends, gets tangled easily, or seems to float away, this means that your hair is probably pretty porous and you could benefit from periodic pre-wash oil treatments. If you use oil, particularly hair-penetrating oil, it can coat the hair’s cuticle, fill in the holes or damaged places in your hair, and protect it from absorbing water and getting waterlogged. After-all oil and water don’t mix, right?

So what’s hair-penetrating oil mean? These oils “waterproof” the inner spongy part of your hair that absorbs the water and makes it expand. Our main ingredient, Batana Oil, is a great hair-penetrating oil. Our Repair Hair Mask has the largest percentage concentration of Batana Oil on the market. You may be used to taking a palm full of product to reap results and this is because of the amount of filler ingredients many commercial products have. However, with our 4 ingredient mask, a very little goes a long way. You can also tailor the amount you need depending on the porosity of your hair. If you have curly or color treated hair, you're more likely to have porous hair, so you can probably use a little more oil than someone with pin straight hair. It’s all about trial and error, we suggest to err on the side of using less and build up from there. 

Another important tip to keep in mind while using a pre-wash oil treatment is that you need to give the oil time to penetrate in order to protect it from water absorption. We recommend at least a half hour but really 4-8 hours is best. That's why we recommend using the product as an overnight mask, applying before you go to bed and washing it out in the morning. You’ll notice that your strands will look shinier when you first apply the oil to your hair than it will look when you wake in the morning. This is because you’ve given your hair enough time to absorb that oil from just sitting on top of the strand to penetrate into that inner core. Once that oil is absorbed you can wash your hair without causing more damage. 

Pre-wash oil treatments are an integral first step towards a healthy hair routine and will keep your hair hydrated throughout the washing process. Remember, you can customize the treatment to suit your hair by the amount of oil you apply or how long you leave it in. They are an excellent way to add weight to frizzy hair, keep curls or waves defined, or add shine and flexibility to straight hair.