Egg treatments for your hair – is it a viable option for zero waste curlies or just another hoax Pinterest DIY? Today I’m using an egg as a DIY hair mask/deep conditioner to find out!
Contents:
Ingredients
To do this egg mask, I used just two ingredients: one raw egg and some oil. I’m using Africa’s Best Ultimate Herbal Oil because I wanted to finish it up. Pinterest posts I looked at prior to doing this (like this one from Bella Fitness Blog) recommended olive oil and/or coconut oil, which I think would work just as well.
Process
The most important step during this egg hair mask is not cooking the egg. You’ll want to slowly raise the temperature I do this by first getting the egg out of the fridge 20 minutes before I wash my hair. I also submerged the egg in some warm tap water while I shampooed my hair to continue getting it to room temperature.
I then added cracked the egg into a plastic bottle, added about 2 tbsp of oil, and shook them together. I brought this mixture into the shower with me while I conditioned my hair, which allowed it to continue to warm up. Just before using it, I added about ½ c of warm water, which also helps stretch the amount to cover my whole head. I let this sit on my hair for about 8 minutes, before rinsing thoroughly with cool water.
Results
While rinsing out the egg mask, my hair was left with a kind of slick, rubbery feeling, rather than the soft moisturized feeling I’m more accustomed to. I think this may have more to do with the oil than the egg. After rinsing, my hair had a more squeaky clean feeling, likely due to having to rinse it so thoroughly. (With a normal deep conditioner, I don’t usually bother rinsing it all out.)
With my hair still damp, I applied shea butter to my hair and gave myself a trim. While I pieced through my hair, it was definitely super soft. It also seemed stronger and healthier, but maybe that’s just wishful thinking on my part. 😄 I don’t do a lot of protein treatments, but I’m very impressed with the results and I might try to work them into my routine more regularly.
Full disclosure: I did cook the egg a little 😅 I found a few white strings of egg while trimming.
Takeaway
Pros:
- Protein treatments strengthen hair. As mentioned in the results, I’m very happy with how the treatment affected my hair! Shiny, soft, and healthy – can’t complain!
- Zero waste. Eggs frequently come in cardboard cartons that can be recycled, composted, or repurposed, and the egg shells themselves are of course compostable! I can’t think of any other deep conditioning mask that comes in 100% compostable materials, so this is a Zero Waste win for sure.
Cons:
- Not vegan ☹️ It goes without saying that eggs are not vegan, so this mask is not suitable for vegans. Considering the environmental impact of a bottled synthetic hair mask versus an egg though, I’d say the egg mask is probably the more sustainable option, especially if you’re choosy about where you get your eggs.
- A little messy in the shower. Since I added water to the mask, the consistency was pretty thin and pouring it onto my hair left some egg running down my body. Not ideal but not a deal breaker either. In the future, I’d use an applicator bottle or something with a pump top.
Will I be doing this again? Yes, likely about once per month or less frequently.
Bonus
Worried about the smell of your DIY egg hair mask? Don’t be! The oil I used completely overpowered any egg aroma. The Africa’s Best oil happens to have a baby powder-like scent, but you could easily add some essential oils if you want to add scent to a more neutral smelling oil. I think raw eggs have a pretty neutral smell themselves, so as long as you don’t cook the egg, you should be safe 😄
