Chamomile

I'm 24 years old, almost 25, and for many years I dyed my hair. I have really dark brown hair, and unfortunately, it's not a pretty chocolate brown hair that complements my olive skin, it's a brown color with cool undertones that does nothing for my completion. I had several phases in my life, some where I had purple hair, which suited my green eyes, but unfortunately, the color oxidized and went from purple to red to orange, and neither of the last two colors was exactly pretty. Then I decided I wanted to be blonde. Since I get extremely tanned in the summer I thought it would look good on me. And it did, but it was almost platinum blonde and not natural at all. Maintenance was expensive because even if I had a Balayage (yes, I went through that phase), the roots would quickly become unnatural-looking. Not to mention that bleached hair, plus exposure to the sun every day and saltwater make an amazing recipe for extremely dry hair. Luckily for me, my hair is quite strong and resilient. Obviously, the hair was damaged, but it wasn't dying. After that, I tried to go back to my natural color but it was taking too long so I decided to cut my hair by the shoulders and let it grow back to my natural, healthy color.

I managed to do nothing to my hair for a few years but last year, with all this covid-19 drama, I had a bit of a crisis and decided I wanted to be a redhead. I didn't want anything too flashy, I wanted a nice, natural copper. I loved to see myself in that color but once again the roots had grown in fast and while it didn't look bad, I felt it didn't make sense to continue coloring. A year has passed and my hair has grown a lot, and the color is beautiful, but I'm not super happy with my roots. So what did I decide? As we are on the way to summer and I like to see myself with light hair much better, I decided I wanted to try lightening my hair again but without ruining it.

For this, I thought the best option would be a chamomile spray, a concoction my grandmother used when she was young and wanted to lighten her hair. Chamomile has several associated benefits that we can use to our advantage. Normally chamomile tea is used to calm anxiety and if you pay attention to the components of the infusions that are sold for this purpose, they almost always have chamomile in them. For the same reasons chamomile tea is excellent to drink before going to sleep to help you get a more peaceful night's sleep. This tea also has benefits for stomach problems, as its anti-inflammatory properties help soothe the stomach and help prevent ulcers. Chamomile tea and its steam have antibacterial qualities that help combat cold and flu symptoms.

Topically, the tea can be applied to the skin to help soothe redness from sunburn, rosacea or eczema due to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. It can also be applied to the hair to help with scalp irritation, prevent dandruff, help add shine and lighten hair with continued use. For the tea to actually do the hair lightening effect it takes persistence and it is the action of exposing the hair to the sun, or heat (although sunbathing is always more pleasant than staying at home and blow-drying the hair), that makes it work.

I personally love chamomile tea and had heard of its hair-lightening properties, but had never ventured down that path before. Sunny days are prevailing around here so I thought now would be a great time to start this hair-lightening journey. I can't give my opinion about the effect on my hair yet but in a few months, I may give an update on this experience. For now, I'll just share two recipes using chamomile tea, one for hair and the other is just a nice drink for warmer days.

Chamomile Hair Spray:

You will need:

• 1/4 cup of chamomile;

• 1 cup of water;

• Lemon juice;

Preparation:

1. Make a strong chamomile tea, let it simmer for 20 minutes in low heat;

2. After those 20 minutes, strain the tea and let it cool;

3. Transfer the tea to a spray bottle and then add an equal part of lemon juice. The lemon juice will help with the lightning effect;

4. Shake the bottle until everything is well mixed. You can store the bottle in the fridge for up to one month. Use preferably after washing your hair and apply evenly through your hair, or to the areas you want to lighten.

Chamomile and Lemon tea with vanilla:

You will need:

• 2 bags of chamomile tea;

• 1 litre of water;

• Lemon juice and lemon slice;

• Vanilla extract;

• Ice;

Preparation:

1. Put the 2 bags of chamomile tea in a jar with 1 litre of water in the fridge overnight.

2. In the morning add lemon juice to taste, the lemon slice;

3. Add some vanilla extract drops and ice;

4. Enjoy!