Vaseline, or petroleum jelly, has found many uses in the beauty world. Dry, cracked lips? Use Vaseline. Need to nourish and protect your skin? It’s great for that. Want to give your skin some extra shine? Just apply a layer of this magical jelly.
People use it when they paint their nails to keep cuticles protected and to keep nail polish from getting on their skin. It’s also an excellent base for DIY exfoliators, and did you know that applying a dab of it where you apply perfume will make the scent last longer?
There are tons of uses that people have found for this multi-purpose jelly. While it’s effectiveness as a nourishing and protective shield for dry, cracked skin is very well-known, something that people know less about is its effectiveness in nourishing and protecting hair as well.
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So, what does Vaseline do to your hair? Let’s find out.
What Does Vaseline Do to Your Hair ?
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1. Vaseline is Excellent for Your Hair
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Vaseline hydrates and nourishes hair. It also prevents split ends. This is because petroleum jelly is actually a blend of waxes and mineral oils. It works by creating a sort of seal that locks in moisture and speeds up the recovery process of hair and skin.
While it’s most often used to protect dry or cracked skin, scrapes, minor cuts, and burns, it’s also great for protecting hair. Whether you have dry hair, curly hair, coarse hair or really any type of hair that could use some extra shine, nourishment and strength, this could be the answer you’re looking for.
I have super dry hair and was at my wits end about how to help it. One day, my best friend, who has super-curly hair recommended Vaseline to me. I never knew she used it in her hair, but she told me that was the secret to her shiny, healthy curls.
So I tried it and within a couple of weeks my hair was looking and feeling much healthier. It took on a shine that I had never seen before. I’ve been using it ever since and I get compliments on my hair every day now.
2. Petroleum Jelly is Totally Safe
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Some people wonder whether this jelly is safe because it’s made from petroleum. You can rest assured that it is, in fact, completely safe to use. People have been using it for more than 140 years to keep their skin healthy.
It undergoes a triple purification process to ensure its safety. This process, which involves de-aeration, distillation and filtration removes all impurities from the jelly, leaving a hypo-allergenic formula that will not irritate the skin, pores or hair follicles.
In fact, Vaseline jelly is recognized by the National Eczema Association as well as dermatologists around the world as a preferred treatment for patients who have dry scalp, sensitive skin and eczema.
3. Application Tips
This stuff is really difficult to remove from your hair, so if this is the first time you’re using it on your hair, make sure you start with just a little bit of it. If you apply too much, it will make your hair look too greasy and it will be pretty hard to get it out.
If you’re using it to fix split ends, just apply a little bit to the tips of your hair. If you’re using it to try to get your hair to grow or to relieve a dry scalp, just apply a small amount around your scalp. As you apply it, massage your scalp softly. This will promote stronger roots, helping to prevent hair loss.
The best time to apply Vaseline is before bed. This way, it will have plenty of time to penetrate into your hair follicles or scalp. You should just apply it once a week, otherwise it will start to build up and begin to look greasy. It will also be more difficult to remove if you apply it more than this.
4. This is not a Moisturizer
Before you go and throw out your hair conditioner, thinking that you found your all-inclusive cure for dry hair, stop!
A very important thing you need to understand is that Vaseline is not a moisturizer. It is an oil that works to lubricate your hair and create a protective barrier between the environment and your hair.
So, the best practice for nourished, protected hair is to moisturize it thoroughly with a high quality leave-in conditioner and then apply a small amount of Vaseline over that. The jelly will prevent the moisture from leaving your hair.
On the other hand, this rule goes both ways. If your hair is totally dry and you apply the jelly over it, you’ll be preventing any moisture from reaching it. Therefore, you should always be sure to moisturize your hair before applying this sealant to it.
5. Fix Your Hair!
Petroleum jelly is a multi-purpose miracle jelly that helps heal everything from cuts to dry skin to damaged hair. If you want to fix your hair with Vaseline, don’t forget the following tips:
- Moisturize your hair before applying the jelly.
- Apply only a small amount to the roots of your hair at your scalp or to the tips of your hair at the ends. If you apply too much, it will look too greasy and be difficult to remove.
- Use petroleum jelly in your hair just once a week.
- The best time to apply it is before you go to bed.
Here’s a great video to help you understand how you should apply Vaseline to your hair properly.
Conclusion
I hope that everything I have learned about this excellent cure for my dry and damaged hair is helpful for you too. There are a lot of myths out there about petroleum jelly and other mineral oils being bad for your hair, but they’re not true at all.
If you use pure Vaseline and use it properly, your hair will be looking healthy, shiny and happy in no time.
If you have any questions or any information you want to share, please feel free to leave a comment for me.
I use vaseline (petroleum jelly) on my eye lashes to remove my mascara…it not only removes my mascara, it makes my eye lashes grow! One of my tricks… when my mascara is running low… or getting dry… put in a small amount of vaseline in the tube, mix/swish it around well with the wand until it mixes well, then apply! It extend the life of your mascara for another few weeks!
Thank you for the information about vaseline on hair, never thought about using it for that, but I WILL!!