Looking for a bleach-free alternative to lighten your strands? You’re in luck because we’re telling you how to lighten your hair with lemon juice ahead!

Who doesn’t love a DIY beauty hack? Especially when it comes to the health of your hair. If you’re looking for a subtle, natural way to lighten up your strands, look no further than your kitchen. That’s right, we're talking about using lemon juice to lighten your hair in the sun. This passed down from our elders' beauty secret not only works, but it’s way nicer to your hair than harsher lightening methods like bleach, which can leave it brittle and broken. If you’re ready to go blonder, au-naturale, we’re telling you how to lighten your hair with lemon juice. Plus breaking down all the benefits of lemon juice for your hair and the best products to keep your hair shiny and healthy while using it. Ahead is everything you need to know about lemon-lightened strands.

Lemon juice is an age-old Ayurvedic remedy for promoting healthy, strong, and shiny hair. Lemon is a citrus fruit high in antioxidants, vitamin C, and minerals that are extremely beneficial for the hair. Lemon juice can help revive dull, dry hair, fight dandruff, promote hair growth, and strengthen your strands. It also helps to balance the pH level of your scalp, reducing itchiness, irritation and oiliness. 

There are lots of key nutrients found in lemon juice that benefit the hair. First, lemons are rich in the plant compound limonene, which gives them their antibacterial properties. This makes the citrus an ideal natural remedy for treating the flakes, itchiness and irritation associated with dandruff. Next, lemons contain citric acid, which is an exfoliant that helps dissolve dead cells on the surface of the scalp. This helps to rid the scalp of flakes, dryness and product build-up for a squeaky clean scalp, and in-turn stimulates healthy hair growth.

And finally, the vitamin C in lemon juice also helps add shine, volume and manageability to the hair.

Lemon juice contains citric acid, which is an oxidizing, or natural bleaching agent. It lightens the hair by chemically attacking and reducing the melanin in the hair. Exposure to sunlight accelerates this process, breaking up pigment and leaving a lighter color in its place. But be sure to note that this isn’t a temporary color change, lightening your hair with lemon juice is permanent. The hair won’t fade or darken naturally until it grows out. Ready to try it for yourself? Start by mixing two parts freshly squeezed lemon juice and one part warm water in a spray bottle. If you have really dry or damaged hair, mix three parts lemon juice with one part leave-in conditioner. Then spray your hair, concentrating at your roots, especially if your ends are already chemically highlighted. Then sit out in the sun for 1-2 hours on four different occasions. You should see noticeable results by then. Be sure to rinse the lemon juice out of your hair after each sun session- lemon juice isn’t meant to be a leave-in treatment and can really dry out your hair if it isn't rinsed out.

So in addition to lightening your strands, what does lemon juice do to your hair? These are the added benefits of adding lemon juice to your hair care routine.

Lemon juice promotes shinier hair. Lemons are rich in vitamin C and nutrients that can make your hair look shinier, especially after you’ve spent time in the sun.

Lemon juice prevents flakes and an oily scalp. Lemon juice helps to balance the scalp’s pH level, reducing excess oils,scalp itchiness and dandruff causing bacteria and flakes.

By now you may be wondering, since lemon juice acts as an exfoliant on your scalp, can you use it as a natural alternative to shampoo? The astringent properties of lemon juice will help to reduce oiliness in your hair and rid your scalp of excess dirt and oil. But using it to cleanse your hair every time you wash can really dry out your strands. So stick to using lemon juice in place of every third shampoo in your wash rotation.

So we know it can leave your strands noticeably lighter, but is lemon juice good for your hair? Well it’s important to note that lemon juice works mainly on natural blondes or on light brown hair. Dark brown and darker shades can go orange. For those who color their hair, lemon juice can have a completely different effect. Equally as important is that artificial colors behave differently than natural pigment. It's hard to predict how hair dye and lemon juice will react. Lemon juice also has the potential to cause hair damage, dryness, or phytophotodermatitis, which is a contact reaction to certain plants. It’s a good idea to do a skin patch test a few days before using lemon juice in your hair and scalp. To do a patch test, apply a small amount of the lemon mixture to your skin. If no reaction occurs, you’re good to go.

Once you start using lemon juice on your hair, the more you expose it, the more likely it is to become dry or damaged. So use it sparingly and avoid products that contain peroxide. Which combined with lemon juice can turn your hair orange and permanently affect the texture of your hair. Use high quality leave-in conditioners like our Sheer Glaze, which infuses natural botanicals for shine and elasticity. And if you’re using lemon juice to help reduce flakiness, our products for dandruff are rich in antioxidants with anti-inflammatory properties to help.

Lemon juice is an old school beauty hack for lightening the hair, in addition to adding shine, strength and balance to your strands and scalp. So is lemon juice good for your hair? In short, yes. As long as with all natural remedies, you practice a safe and a balanced approach. If you’re planning to use lemon juice in your hair, remember to perform a patch test, dilute your lemon juice, avoid overexposure, and practice proper aftercare. Use high quality hair products like the ones from Davines to compliment the health of your lightened hair, starting with our healthy shine set to restore, nourish and soften your strands

by Jaclyn LaBadia, featured contributor