Step one: Boil linseed in water You’ll need one tablespoon of whole linseeds and add around 250 ml of water. Put both in a pan and bring to a boil. Take the heat down once it does and simmer for about 10-15 minutes. You’ll see a white, frothy foam start to emerge like in the picture.

Step two: Sift out seeds from gloop I’ve used a little tea sieve (see picture), but you could use a cloth as well. Do not let the mixture cool beforehand as it turns into a gloopy gel very quickly, making sieving a pain. I’ve found that using the gel as a setting lotion means my hair won’t dry (or set). So I add about 200-300 ml of hot water, turning the gloopy mixture into a spray that’s slightly thicker than actual water. The water that you add needs to be hot for the mixture to blend well. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator and it will keep for about one to two weeks.

Results I’ve been using this recipe for over two years now. Overall best results have been with a spray version, and not a gel, on freshly washed hair or ‘day-old’ hair. The curls are very bouncy and last all day. For re-rolling you can dampen the ends with the spray again, but you usually don’t even need to do that. 

Have you tried linseed/flax seed setting lotion?