Shiny hair is sexy. Shiny hair signals youth and fertility, so instinctively men love a woman with luscious locks. Here are a few simple and easy steps that every woman can take to keep her hair shiny, and to keep those boys breaking their necks.
People with oily hair tend to over wash their hair. When the hair is stripped of its essential oils it goes into overdrive to produce more oils, so it’s a never ending battle to keep oily hair clean. Instead, wash only a few times a week if your hair is oily. The oils in your hair condition the roots and lengths of your hair, and will keep the hair shiny and supple. If the root area looks greasy, use a dry shampoo to keep it immaculate. Klorane Gentle Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk is a great choice.
If you have normal to dry hair and a dry scalp, it’s likely that your hair stays fresh for quite some time. Once weekly washings are appropriate to those that don’t produce much oil at the scalp and the oil that is produced will be beneficial and hydrating to the hair, so use a soft boar bristle brush to pull the oils from the roots through the lengths of the hair.
Don’t overuse heat tools. Stick straight hair is so 2005, so don’t flat iron your hair to its death. Instead, embrace the natural texture that you were born with. Air dry hair when possible, and if you need to use a blow-dryer, opt for a cool setting instead of high heat. My therapist (I mean stylist) has taught me some great hair care tricks over the years, but one of my favorites is a blow-drying tip. Part the hair and spritz with heat-protective spray, then blow dry only at the roots, let the ends of the hair air-dry… this always gives my hair a lot of natural movement but doesn’t leave the top of my head kinked. If you like your hair curly, then traditional curling rods are a better choice than a high-heat curling iron, so if you’re sporting ringlets let dry hair set in curlers for a few hours.
Lay off the chemical processing for a change. Highlights, lowlights, double processing, triple processing, you’ve done it all. Every chemical process does a bit of damage, and when color is constantly pulled out and deposited in, the hair strand becomes more and more damaged. Color only the hair that hasn’t been colored, we advise professional root touch ups every 6-8 weeks. And quit with the drama already… If you don’t have naturally light hair, the peroxide that you use will eat up your healthy dark tresses. And light haired girls that go uber-dark can end up with those grey-looking roots (nobody wants to look like they have a receding hair line). Many colorists say that the most flattering color you can have as an adult is the hair color that you had as a child. Was it sunny and blonde, but turned a little brassy and mousy as you got older? Pump up the volume on the developer and lighten up! Did you have gorgeous black hair as a baby but it looks a little worn and ashen? Deposit a rich hue to bring out the vibrancy!
One of the most important rules in hair care is to trim your hair regularly. Hair that has split ends (no matter how well cared for) can look dry and brittle. Regular trims keep the hair looking slick and smooth, not bushy and unruly.
Remember that hair care products play a huge role in the way your hair looks. Using quality shampoo and conditioner that are made for your specific hair type will be beneficial to the health of your hair. Yes, a shampoo and conditioner made for color-treated hair can improve and prolong your hair color. A shampoo and conditioner made for oily hair will help to balance the production of sebum in the scalp. A shampoo and conditioner made for normal to dry hair will condition the hair thoroughly to provide greater manageability.
Leave-in treatment products are very beneficial to the hair. Leave-in conditioners (in spray or cream form) help to condition the hair and seal the cuticle so it’s pliable and elastic, therefore less prone to break. Leave-in products such as shine enhancing sprays and serums seal the hair cuticle and impart shine, so hair not only feels healthier, it also looks better.
Deep conditioners are intense and really beneficial to thirsty hair. Because I have platinum hair that requires a lot of color developer to lift the ashy-ness out of my roots, and A LOT of toner to keep it neutral instead of brassy, my hair is always thirsty. In addition to using a hydrating shampoo and conditioner and leave-in products I love a once-weekly deep conditioner, and you will too once you try one. When you can’t afford to have it in-salon (or just have no time or desire to sit in a salon chair for two hours) use a hair masque at home instead! After washing and conditioning the hair, apply a generous amount of hair masque that’s appropriate to your hair type (I LOVE the Alterna TEN Hair Masque), put on a shower cap and use your blow-dryer to warm up the hair (make sure the cap isn’t the type that melts), this will allow for your hair cuticle to open up and absorb more of the active ingredients. Then rinse, dry and voila! Shiny, bouncy, smooth hair that’s manageable and silky.
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Hair Care 101
