I remember putting some crazy things in my hair as a kid. Lemon juice, kool-aid, mayonnaise, avocado, tea, and that scalding hot oil treatment.  With that last one I might as well been torturing myself with tar and feathers.

Then there was the one summer I strived to find the perfect ultra-conditioning hair treatment. I read somewhere that I should condition with olive oil. Unable to find any while pilfering the kitchen cabinets, I did the only thing I could think of.

No, I didn’t go to the store to get olive oil.

I grabbed a bottle of Italian Salad dressing from the fridge, microwaved it. I ignored the heavy scents of vinegar, garlic, and oregano and doused my hair in the hot salad dressing. It got in my eyes, my ears, and my mouth. I don’t recall if it had any negative impact on my hair but I know it caused me a serious dislike of salad for the rest of the summer. Come to think of it, that could explain my reluctance to go to salad bars.

It was the last time I used something not explicitly marketed as a hair product on my hair until…

This afternoon as I went about my chores my long, dry, damaged hair kept getting in my way. Annoying me as I cleaned the kitchen. Feeling like straw as it fell down my back. Existing on my head and annoying me as I baked cupcakes. While putting baking stuff back in the cabinet my gaze fell upon a nearly empty jar of coconut oil. I was reminded of my youthful forays into cooking products as beauty treatments.

Stupid hair. It’s getting long but it isn’t long enough. And though I know I need to cut it a couple of times each year to keep split ends at bay I don’t want to. Also I’m lazy about my hair. I want lots of it but I don’t want to have to do anything with it. Ever. I just want to wake up in the morning with naturally lovely locks.

That’s probably how I found myself sitting on the sofa on a Sunday afternoon hair slathered in fragrant oil wondering exactly how long I should let this sit and hoping it turns out better than the salad dressing…