Some experts even recommend adding in a few drops of essential oil, like tea tree oil or rosemary oil. Essential oils can help nourish and moisturize your scalp as well as your hair. [2] X Research source If you have sensitive skin, place a drop or two of your oil onto the inside of your elbow, then leave it there for 24 hours. If you don’t develop any rash or itchiness, the oil is probably fine to use. If your skin gets irritated, try using a different oil. If you don’t want to make your own mixture, you can buy a pre-made hot oil treatment from the drugstore.
Using a double boiler heats the oil up slowly and evenly. If you can avoid it, try not to heat your oil in the microwave. The intense heat from your microwave can cause oil to break down, and it may heat unevenly.
Your sections don’t have to be super neat. You’ll be taking your hair down in just a second! Start with damp, freshly-shampooed hair for this.
Doing a patch test before using your oil is extremely important. If the oil is too hot, you could burn your scalp. If the oil doesn’t burn your wrist, you can go ahead and start applying it to your hair.
If you deal with any scalp dryness or dandruff, putting hot oil on your roots will really help with that.
Your hair is probably going to look wet or greasy, but that’s a good thing! Use a mirror to check out the back of your head and make sure you’ve coated every strand of hair. Dragging oil down your entire length of hair is going to help combat dryness and frizziness, and it will also reduce your split ends.
If you want to, you could even leave the oil in your hair overnight. For extra moisture, wrap your hair in a hot towel for 20 to 30 minutes while the oil sits in your hair.
Don’t worry if your hair still feels a little greasy from the oil. If it does, you can shampoo it a second time to get all of the oil out.
After your hot oil treatment, use a clarifying shampoo. If you feel like there’s still oil in your hair, use the clarifying shampoo again; otherwise, follow up with a hydrating shampoo.
