How to Lighten Hair with Lemon Juice and other Natural ways to Lighten Hair

Want natural looking sun-kissed highlights without the cost of an expensive salon visit? Try this easy homemade beauty tip for lightening your hair naturally using Lemon Juice and other natural ingredients!

Lemon Juice

The most heard-of way to lighten your hair at home is by using Lemon Juice. Lemons are a natural bleaching agent, and for some time using it to highlight hair was discouraged because of it’s drying effects, but not any more if you follow my simple trick!

First off, Lemon Juice is not as damaging as store-bought lightening treatments. But it still can dry out your hair especially your ends if you aren’t careful. But I have devised a method of using Lemon Juice without the damaging effects:

1. Use natural Lemons not Lemon Juice out of a bottle or “REAL Lemon” it’s called. Even though bottled Lemon Juice does contain real Lemons, it also contains added preservatives that aren’t as good for your hair.

2. Juice 2-3 Lemons, straining the seeds, into a small bowl. (try and use organic Lemons if you can)

3. Add a 3 tablespoons of bottled Water.

4. Add a squirt of hair conditioner.

5. Mix thoroughly.

6. Apply to dry hair using a spray bottle (for all-over lightening) and comb through to disperse. Or use an old/clean mascara wand to add highlights.

7. Sit in the direct sun for at least 30 min (make sure to wear sunscreen).

8. Shampoo/rinse and then apply a rich/deep conditioner or hair mask like the Kerastase Resistance Masque and leave on for at least 5min.

This process will only lighten hair about a half-shade, but you can repeat this process every week until desired level is achieved. Just make sure you are continuing to use a deep conditioning treatment or mask.

Honey

Honey has a natural amount of Hydrogen Peroxide, which is known for lightening hair, and although messy this beauty trick is a genius way to lighten hair or add warm highlights. No need to lay out in the sun either! Best part about using Honey is that it’s super moisturizing so no need to worry about drying out your ends!

1. Measure out 1 cup of raw organic Honey. It’s very important that it is RAW organic Honey as this has the most pure and effective concentration of Hydrogen Peroxide. The kind of Honey found in a bear bottle is not going to produce the desired results.

2. Mix together the Honey, 1 cup of bottled Water or half cup of Vinegar and half cup of Water (do not use tap water as it contains too many minerals), 1 tbs of Olive Oil, and 1 tbs of Cinnamon (Cinnamon and Olive Oil are great Hydrogen Peroxide boosters, they will boost the lightening power and effectiveness of the Hydrogen Peroxide found in the Honey).

3. Evenly apply the mixture to your hair with a comb or brush. Or apply to highlights using an old/clean mascara brush.

4. Pile your hair up on top of your head and wrap your hair with saran wrap. Or if doing highlights, twist highlighted sections up into little buns and wrap the buns with saran wrap and secure with an elastic.

5. Put on a shower cap to secure the saran wrap.

6. Sleep on it. Leave this mixture on overnight.

7. Rinse (this is the tricky part). Honey is sticky so this may take a while to shampoo and rinse all the mixture out.

8. Finish with a deep conditioner or hair mask like the Alterna Color Hold Mask.

Cinnamon

Lightening darker hair can be tricky to do on your own and is more prone to producing brassy or orange tones. The above homemade lighteners may not be strong enough to produce the desired lightening. But I have found a homemade beauty trick to effectively lighten dark hair, even black hair, without damaging and without the orange tones!

1. Apply a moderate amount of normal conditioner to damp/towel dried hair (this gives the Cinnamon something to stick to).

2. Make a paste of 2 tbs of Cinnamon (get the best quality you can), 2 tbs of Honey, 1 tbs Olive Oil, 1/4 cup of bottled Water.

3. Mix well and let the mixture sit for an hour to allow the ingredients to activate and boost the Hydrogen Peroxide.

4. Apply to dry hair with your hands, avoiding your scalp as Cinnamon will tingle. Apply all-over, or with a mascara wand for highlights.

5. Pile your hair up on top of your head and wrap your hair with saran wrap. Or if doing highlights, twist highlighted sections up into little buns and wrap the buns with saran wrap and secure with an elastic.

5. Put on a shower cap to secure the saran wrap.

6. Leave on for at-least 4 hours but you’ll probably see the best results if you sleep on it. You can leave this mixture on overnight.

7. Rinse and shampoo. Finish with a deep conditioner like Kerastase Chroma Reflect Mask.

Chamomile

Chamomile will not lighten hair; however, it will enhance already present highlights and blonde tones!

1. Take 3-4 Chamomile tea bags and brew a pot of strong tea using bottled water. Try and use organic, high quality, Chamomile tea bags for best results.

2. Pour over hair over the sink or bath tub and massage in.

3. Sit in the sun until dry (remember to wear sunscreen).

4. Rinse

[These at-home hair treatments are gentle, safe, natural, and budget friendly and are offered for those who want a more natural way to lighten hair or can not afford to go to a salon. Although they do work, they do not replace the expertise and benefits of visit a professional hair color specialist, so use at your own risk and do not expect dramatic results. These homemade lighteners will only produce subtle results and may only lighten your color a half to one shade lighter, so if you are after a more dramatic lightening effect please visit a reputable salon. If you are nervous about trying one of the lightening treatments above try a strand test first.]

Tags: DIY, Hair, Hair Color, Hair Tips, Natural

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The Perfume Expert The Perfume Expert is an online Perfume Blog, Beauty Blog and Skincare Blog all rolled into one so you can stay looking good, smelling nice and feeling great all in one place! Written by an expert you can trust, I provide you with Perfume reviews, Best Perfumes, Beauty reviews and Makeup trends that are all written with passion and an eye for excellence.