Winter weather doesn’t just wreak havoc on your skin, it puts plenty of stress on your hair, too. The cold and wind can create damage and dreaded dryness, but now is a good time to start protecting your hair from winter’s dreary elements. Here are two recipes for some of the best gentle, yet effective, hair masks that will keep your locks luscious all season long.

Banana Honey Mask | ingredients
1 banana
1 T. honey
1 T. almond oil
2-3 drops lavender oil
Tools: Blender, towel, shower cap, shampoo, conditioner

  1. Mix all the ingredients together in a blender. Make sure your measurements are precise and that the ingredients have been blended down to a complete liquid—no banana lumps, this isn’t a smoothie!
  2. Massage mask into your hair from root to tip.
  3. Grab your shower cap and cover hair. Wrap a warm towel around the shower cap; the warmth of the towel will allow for deeper penetration of mask.
  4. Let the mask sit for 15 minutes, then rinse. Shampoo and condition as usual.

Pro Tip: If you don’t have a blender, use a whisk.

Coconut & Olive Oil Mask | ingredients
2 T. coconut oil
1 T. olive oil
Tools: Shower cap, shampoo, conditioner, hair tie, mixing bowl

  1. In your mixing bowl, combine the olive and coconut oils and mix well. Depending on the length and natural volume of your hair, apply a large enough amount to cover your strands from mid-scalp to tip. Generally, 2 T. coconut oil and 1 T. olive oil are just the right amount.
  2. Pay special attention to the hair ends, rubbing oils onto them.
  3. Put your hair in a bun and cover with a shower cap. Leave for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the volume and damage of your hair. The more damaged, the longer you
    should leave on the mask.
  4. Rinse out the mask, and shampoo and condition your hair as normal.

Pro Tip: If you apply this mask too close to the roots, your hair is more likely to appear greasy. Therefore, go easy at the scalp, especially since hair doesn’t tend to damage at the root.