DIY Hair Lightening Spray with Honey + Lemon

Although spring just arrived, summer will be here before we know it! Your summer days might include beach trips, pool days, and time enjoying the bonus hours of sunshine each day.

However, extra hours at your colorist might not sound as fun or be in the budget, or maybe you are looking for a more subtle change. If you are hoping to lighten your hair for the summer season try one of these all natural highlight boosters and hair lighteners to do just that, or to extend the life of your color and add a few highlights without breaking the bank.

Tea

For lightening all shades of hair, tea can be an incredible ingredient. Chamomile, black and rooibos can add dimensions to blond, brunette and red hair colors. The benefits of using naturally derived colors from nature are numerous.

Not only are you skipping harmful chemicals  found in commercial hair color and bleach, but the effects will be subtle AND safe. Bonus is you don’t have to worry about the damaging effects that bleach can have on the hair.  

Beer

This volumizing beer hair treatment can also lighten hair if you opt for a lighter shade of beer. It’ll boost shine, which is always a good idea.

The essential oils present in hops are rich in antioxidants, the alcohol is cleansing for the hair shaft and it softens hair as well. The minerals will also benefit your scalp if it tends to get oily. Beer rinses have been around for decades and now you know why. Added body, shine, softness, a cleaner scalp, and lighter hair. 

All Natural Honey and Lemon DIY Hair Lightening Spray

Lemon and honey also round out our hair lightening ingredients. Honey’s glucose oxidase enzyme has a lightening effect as it produces hydrogen peroxide. Honey is also a wonderful conditioning agent so you won’t trade hair health for a lighter color.

Lemon lightens hair when the citric acid present in lemon juice heats up in the sun and lifts pigment from the hair shaft. This spray can be used all over the hair or spritzed just on the ends depending on where you’d like to add natural highlights. It is most effective when paired with time in the sun. 

DIY Hair Lightening Spray

Following measurements are for an 8 oz spray bottle, cut in half if using a 4 oz. bottle:

• 4 ounces chamomile tea
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon honey
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• warm water- fill remainder of bottle
• dark glass bottle*

*A dark glass bottle is ideal as it will help prevent the premature oxidation of the spray.

Pour the tea, lemon juice, cinnamon, honey, coconut oil and water into a glass bottle. Shake well before spritzing on hair. Ideally you’ll want to spray hair when you plan to spend some time outdoors in the sunshine, the heat and sun will work it’s magic along with these ingredients.

FAQ on Natural Hair Care

I would love to naturally color my hair, but I think I need something that provides more coverage, any ideas?

Thanks to modern science, there are quite a few products on the market now that are non-toxic and almost 100% plant based and they all provide great coverage! A few to check out: Matrix Biolage has a line of plant based color, Henna based dyes provide coverage and are gentle enough for even the most damaged hair, and Madison Reed is a popular at-home color kit that is ammonia, phthalate, and paraben free.

Any other things I can do with tea for my hair other than lighten it?

Plenty! Tea is full of antioxidants and provides many benefits for hair. Green tea especially has minimal processing and provides stimulating effects for the scalp. Try this matcha green tea hair mask or rinse.

My struggle is with lackluster hair, I could really use some help in the shine department…

If you haven’t tried an Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse I would highly recommend to start there. ACV contains numerous probiotics and nutrients and clarifies the hair, removing any gunk or buildup that dulls hair. 

Does taking the vitamin biotin really work for hair?

While not a ton of research has been done on biotin, there has been promising data that B7 (biotin) stimulates follicle growth and keratin production. Many who take biotin regularly report overall improvement in hair quality. 

Do you have any tips or tricks for lightening hair naturally? I’m so thrilled that gone are the days of the coppery orange Sun-In, and now we have so many natural and healthy options to subtly lighten hair. 

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