Home made (flax seed) gel - need help

Locke

Hello curlies,

I would like to make my own gel. Light hold would be enough. Unfortunately a lot of old postings are gone, including recipes and hints concerning flax seed gel.

I tried it last night, put 2 tbs flax seeds in ab. 2 cups of boiling water and let simmer for 10 min. What I got was very watery and still is.

Should I use broken flax seed instead of whole seeds? Let it simmer for a longer time?

Do you have other recipes for home made gel?

Thanks, Locke

Iwantcurlyhair

Funny you should ask this. I just made this today for the first time! I found a recipe here... http://www.fromnaturewithlove.com/recipe/recipe.asp?recipe_id=214. It worked well for me. It's my first time making it and the consistency was great, maybe even a little too thick but I did simmer it for a minute or two past 10 minutes because I thought it looked too thin(although I think 10 minutes would be perfect now). My hair is still drying so I'll post my results when it's completely dry. I didn't add the aloe vera this time because I wanted to test whether my hair responded well to the flax seed gel seperately from the aloe. Adding the Aloe to it sounds like a great idea though and I'm sure I'll try that next time if this experiment goes well.
Let me know how you like it, if you try it please! 8)

Locke

Thank you!

I made a new batch, doubled the amount of flax seeds (like in the recipe you linked) and, now, that's a gel! I'm curious what my hair will look like with it.

Iwantcurlyhair

Oh wow, I'm completely impressed with how my hair turned out!! I may never go back to regular gel again. My hair is definitely curlier than usual. I do have some frizz so I ended up applying some Aloe Vera Gel after all.. which really helped. I so desperately want to take a picture of my hair but the battery died on my camera. Hopefully I can take a picture of my hair sometime soon though. I don't have curls like these very often.
I can't wait to hear how your hair turns out!

ariesxtreme

Okay in regards to aloe vera gel, is it the regular aloe vera that one puts on the skin when they get sunburned?

Also in that link it says to refridgerate up to a week does it go bad after a week which means you have to make a new batch every week?

Locke

That sounds good, Iwantcurlyhair! What a pity you can't post photos.

ariesextreme, there is no preservative in it. Of course it will go bad. But it's so easy to make. To be honest, you don't really make it , just let it simmer for 10 minutes, drain it and put it in the fridge later. And it's dirt cheap.

Iwantcurlyhair

Locke wrote:

And it's dirt cheap.

I was thinking that too! I got over a pound of it for 1.35..and it will last me forever! I am going to experiment a little with my formula, but at that price it's worth it!! 8)

Oh and about the Aloe Vera Gel. I got mine from the health food store. It's best to get 100% pure Aloe Vera Gel. If what you use on sunburn doesn't contain any medication or something and is pure, than it should be safe to use. Make sure it doesn't have any alcohol or something like that in it. I've heard that using aloe vera straight from the plant is the best...but unfortunately I wouldn't know about that.

Locke

Just wanted to tell you that I'm very pleased.

I used an ample amount of the flaxseed gel this morning and it does enough to control the frizzies, my hair is shiny and soft. No crunch, no flakes - great!

There's a tiny bit of frizz but I'd rather have that than producty hair.

Iwantcurlyhair

Awesome! Me too. I had no flaking or anything either. My hair felt so awesome, as if I didn't have any styling products in my hair at all. Thanks for updating me!

sunshower

Iwantcurlyhair wrote:

Funny you should ask this. I just made this today for the first time! I found a recipe here... http://www.fromnaturewithlove.com/recipe/recipe.asp?recipe_id=214. It worked well for me. It's my first time making it and the consistency was great, maybe even a little too thick but I did simmer it for a minute or two past 10 minutes because I thought it looked too thin(although I think 10 minutes would be perfect now). My hair is still drying so I'll post my results when it's completely dry. I didn't add the aloe vera this time because I wanted to test whether my hair responded well to the flax seed gel seperately from the aloe. Adding the Aloe to it sounds like a great idea though and I'm sure I'll try that next time if this experiment goes well.
Let me know how you like it, if you try it please! 8)

that's my recipe. glad you liked it. funny you posted this because i've been using Aubrey's B-5 Design Gel lately, and while i really like it, i don't think i want to pay for more once i run out. so i was thinking of going back to using my flax seed gel recipe once i use up the B-5. i haven't used it in a long time, but i have plenty of flax seeds laying around here. might as well use them!

also, i made that recipe before i knew about using preservatives and things like that, so that's why there's no preservative listed in the recipe, and also why i said to refrigerate.

the aloe vera i used was the pure, liquid kind. more like aloe juice than gel.

wow, i posted that recipe years ago. it's funny to read something you've written so long ago. it doesn't even sound like me. lol.

Iwantcurlyhair

Well thank you very much!! I was hoping I would be able to thank whoever it was that was sweet enough to post that recipe. 8) So what preservatives do you add to it if you don't mind me asking?

sunshower

actually, i've yet to make it using a preservative, but Germall Plus would probably be good. this is a good place for buying preservatives: http://www.theherbarie.com/

Iwantcurlyhair

Thanks, that website looks great! 8)

WendyC

sunshower wrote:

actually, i've yet to make it using a preservative, but Germall Plus would probably be good. this is a good place for buying preservatives: http://www.theherbarie.com/

Wow thanks for the link to this site. It is fabulous

cjc

I just finished making the gel, I let it simmer for 10 min but it came out too liquidy. Should I simmer it longer?

redcelticcurls

Interesting recipe!

How hard of a hold does this have?

Iwantcurlyhair

cjc: When I made my first batch I cooked it for 15 minutes and it was much thicker(too thick because I couldn't drain the seeds from the gel). Definitely try cooking it longer. Also the last time I made it I got impatient and turned up the heat and it got thicker much faster.

rcc: It doesn't have a very strong hold(my only complaint). It does make your hair shiny and soft though.

I took a picture over the weekend and posted it. I didn't get quite as good of results as the first time but I still liked it. I think it was because I tried mixing some Curls Goddess Glaze in this time to give it more hold. I didn't like the combination because I got bouncier, curlier hair the first time I tried it without the CGG added in. I just ordered a bunch of hold ingredients to experiment with. If I can add a few hold ingredients and preservatives to it this will be my perfect gel!

ariesxtreme

I'm going to assume that one could find flaxseeds at any grocery store or like a whole food store?

cjc

ariesxtreme wrote:

I'm going to assume that one could find flaxseeds at any grocery store or like a whole food store?

I got a ton of it at Whole Foods for like 50 cents

ariesxtreme

cjc wrote:

ariesxtreme wrote:

I'm going to assume that one could find flaxseeds at any grocery store or like a whole food store?

I got a ton of it at Whole Foods for like 50 cents

Excellent, thanks!

mafalda

I've tried this off and on in the past, and even though I love the shine and curl it gives my hair, I can't seem to find a happy medium. Either it comes out really runny or if I leave it simmering longer, it's too thick to be strained. Any tips?

Locke

mafalda wrote:

Either it comes out really runny or if I leave it simmering longer, it's too thick to be strained. Any tips?

Not really. :roll:

I let my first batch boil way too long, 15 min.? It was too thick to be strained. 2nd batch was runny. 3rd and 4th were good. The 4th batch still looked runny after 8 min. I turned up the heat and it was OK. It seems to get thicker when cooling/in the fridge and I have the impression, with larger batches (2 cups) it's easier to achieve the right consistency than with smaller ones.

Still, my daughter asked "You call this slime a gel?!"

Iwantcurlyhair

Locke wrote:

Still, my daughter asked "You call this slime a gel?!"

My husband calls it "snot."
Yeah the consistency is pretty hard to get just right.

mafalda

Thanks. I'll have to keep trying. I like it thicker, because when it's too thin, I can't distribute in my hair very well. But then again, I can't strain it very well when it's thick. Maybe I'll have to find a strainer with bigger openings.

Dylan60252

redcelticcurls wrote:

Interesting recipe!

Listen mate it is too early in the day to get me started so i will just nod with a grin ;-)

hairdiaries

mafalda wrote:

Thanks. I'll have to keep trying. I like it thicker, because when it's too thin, I can't distribute in my hair very well. But then again, I can't strain it very well when it's thick. Maybe I'll have to find a strainer with bigger openings.

Would it work to strain it and then return it to a simmer to thicken?

~g

mafalda

hairdiaries wrote:

mafalda wrote:

Thanks. I'll have to keep trying. I like it thicker, because when it's too thin, I can't distribute in my hair very well. But then again, I can't strain it very well when it's thick. Maybe I'll have to find a strainer with bigger openings.

Would it work to strain it and then return it to a simmer to thicken?

~g

That's a great idea. I'll try it.

CoilyGirl

I just made another batch of flax seed gel. This time I tried a little experiment . . . I strained the gel as usual, but then I re-used the flax seeds to make yet another batch. I couldn't believe it, but the second batch had exactly the same consistency as the first. Go figure.

I CW daily and use a lot of gel. Since the clean-up requirements are the same for one batch as for two, why not make two?

Coily

Mya_wannaBe

Can you use regular flaxseed oil! just wanted to know cuz i have some in my house.

wild_sasparilla

Mya_wannaBe wrote:

Can you use regular flaxseed oil! just wanted to know cuz i have some in my house.

The gel is made by boiling the seeds, so I would say no. I think it would just be boiling water with flaxseed oil in it, and have no gel consistency. Correct me if I'm wrong, people!

MaybeWavy

Soooo

what'd happen if you mixed a dribble of honey w/ the gel for hold?

Anyone tried that?