Fractionated coconut oil for hair: what it is, what it does, how we blend it
Fractionated coconut oil is coconut with the solid part taken out: a thin, clear, scentless oil that stays liquid in a cold bathroom and slips through hair without a trace of coconut.
| Role | Base oil |
|---|---|
| Weight | 2 of 4, medium-light |
| Chosen for | Lightweight feel, softness |
| On the label | Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride |
| In our blends | Full Measure 78.5%; Clean Line 26.2% |
| Builder limit | Up to 85% of a hair blend |
What it is
Its label name is caprylic/capric triglyceride. Coconut oil is heated and the lighter fractions, the eight- and ten-carbon fatty acids, are separated from the heavier lauric acid that makes virgin coconut solid below room temperature. What is left is a fully saturated, very stable oil with no coconut scent and no cloudiness in winter. It is not the same oil as virgin coconut, and it was not part of the lab studies on coconut oil and the hair fibre.
How it feels on hair
Weight 2 of 4, medium-light, though it feels lighter than its class because it is so slippery. It spreads instantly, gives a dry-touch finish with a little slip left for detangling, and smells of nothing.
Who reaches for it
Short hair, fades and close crops that want a dry-feeling oil (it is the second base in Clean Line), anyone who likes coconut but not the smell or the clouding, and people who use oil to detangle before combing. Full Measure gives it the whole base.
Where it sits in our blends
Full Measure carries fractionated coconut at 78.5% (with Castor 8.4%, Pumpkin Seed 6.3%, Black Seed 5.3%, and more). Clean Line carries fractionated coconut at 26.2% (with Jojoba 52.3%, Black Seed 10%, Hemp Seed 10%, and more). The blends with a product page can be bought as they are; every one of them can be opened in the builder and changed oil by oil.
How to compose with it
Fractionated coconut can take up to 85% of a hair blend as a base. Full Measure leads with it at 78.5% and uses castor, pumpkin seed and black seed as actives; Clean Line pairs it with jojoba. Because it is scentless, essential oils read cleanly over it.
Compose with fractionated coconut Find your formula
Weighed to the gram and blended to order in New Jersey, with the recipe printed on the label. For external use only; patch test before first use. Every oil, with its INCI name, is in the oil library.