bentonite clay

I initially read about the positive effects of using bentonite clay as a hair detox on Naturally Curly (you can check out the thread here), and I decided to try it since it's all natural and relatively inexpensive. I don't use shampoos with sulphates, so I thought this would be a great way to get rid of any build-up. 

I mooseyed my way over to Whole Foods to pick some up. When I asked the Whole Body guy about bentonite clay he showed me a liquid version that was for internal use (you can also detox your body with bentonite but it must be the internal version). I figured I could use it in my hair too since he didn't seem to know anything about the powder version but I ended up finding the powder on my own. If you're looking for it at your local Whole Foods check the section with face cleansers and creams. They only had one brand: Health & Beauty Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay. You get 1 pound for around $6. According to the packaging you can use it for facials, acne, baths, foot soaks, and a host of other things. I have yet to try it for anything but my hair, but it's truly multi-purpose.

I experimented with the clay initially just using purified water and about a tablespoon of honey. I left it on for about 45 minutes (don't let it get hard in your hair because it will be challenging to rinse out) but it left my hair kind of dry feeling. I tried this a couple of times and stuck it in the back of the closet. I got the urge to try something different over the weekend and dug the clay out of the closet and this time I got much better results. I used a scoop of the bentonite clay, and an equal scoop of marshmallow root powder (more on that below). Instead of water I mixed it using coconut milk. I didn't measure the coconut milk but just added it slowly until the texture was yogurt like making sure to get rid of all of the clumps. Applied it to my hair for about 30-45 minutes and rinsed. This time I had smooth, strong, soft hair that was really easy to detangle. 

About the marshmallow root. I used this because Blended Beauty makes a product called Volcanic Clean Mask and the ingredients are just bentonite clay and marshmallow root. The product is $9 for 120 ml which isn't that much so I decided to make my own. I purchased the marshmallow root for about $4 at an all natural pharmacy. I've used this mixture about 3 times and have a good deal of it left. You may be able to get the marshmallow root at your local Whole Foods but mine was out of it.