Winter Hair Care for All Hair Types

2. Don’t Over Do it on the Brush Count

Ever remember hearing you should brush your hair 100 times before you went to bed? Stop all practice of such abuse, because that news is old hat!

As you sleep, your hair accumulates its natural oils at its roots, and brushing your hair helps distribute those oils down the hair shaft each morning.

Yes, brush your hair, but please…not 100 counts worth. Over-brushing your hair can actually break your hair. Pair that with winter’s misery, and those effects can escalate quickly. Switch to a wide-toothed comb, and treat your hair with a leave-in conditioner or thermal protectant as you style in the morning.

Wavy Hair

If you have the honor of being the owner of wavy, textured hair, congratulations! You’ve been blessed with caring for the offspring of curly and straight.

The perfect bipolar blend of absolutely drab-ness, and excessive manic insanity, but most of the time you manage. Except for the days you wake up late and have no time to do anything noteworthy before you brisk out the door to work—showing up looking like a live production of The Walking Dead no less, but we feel your pain.

1. Limit Hair Washing and Condition Everyday

One to two times a week should be enough to keep the grease at bay while also allowing your hair to absorb its natural oils, and conditioning the ends of your hair every day can help maintain moisture and softness. It may be in your best interest to invest in a hair mask or deep conditioner and give your hair that treatment once a week.

The fun thing about wavy hair is that you never know when it’s going to turn on you. Some days frizz is pretty manageable, if not completely non-existent. Others may feel as if your pillowcase turned into a wood-burning oven overnight and fried your strands to something closely resembling the texture of a hay bale.

To manage this crazy roller coaster it’s important to find a washing frequency that best fits you personally.

2. Limit Use of Heated Styling Tools

When the moisture in the air is at a low, one of the worst things you could do for your hair is to take even more out of your hair shafts by styling with a ton of heat!

If you must you heat make sure you are always using a heat protectant, and using the lowest setting you can. Flattening and curling irons should never be turned up to their highest temperature setting unless you really want to bake your hair—what are you trying to do, make a pizza crust?

Curly Hair

Drum roll please…now we come to the hair type that undoubtedly loves making an entrance, however grand or embarrassing. Incorporating these winter hair care tips into your weekly routine will help you tame that lion’s mane surrounding your face.

1. Focus Shampoo on the Scalp

News flash: You don’t have to shampoo your entire head of hair from root to tip! Crazy right?

Instead of stripping the whole hair shaft of the nutrients from natural oils, focus your lather of suds on the scalp to wash away excess dirt and oil, but leave the length of the hair shaft alone and let your tresses maintain that moisture they’ve already acquired.

Still sound crazy? Well, hey, look at it this way…if nothing else, we just saved you time and a few gallons of hot water. You’re welcome.

2. Dry with T-shirts Instead of Towels

Here’s another crazy idea…don’t dry your hair with a towel. You think we’ve gone mad, right? No, we haven’t, listen to this winter hair care nugget of wisdom. Trust us.

T-shirt fabrics are a lot more gentle on the hair and cause less damage than those in traditional bath towels. Squeeze your hair with the t-shirt, resisting the urge to pull—I know it’s so hard, but think of the frizz! Scary, right?

3. Squeeze Before You Condition

After you’ve shampooed your hair and rinsed the suds, the shafts of your hair are filled with moisture, leaving little room for the conditioner to get in there and do its job.

Not to add another step to your already lengthy shower routine, but this is important. Before you slap on the conditioner and leave it on for several minutes in vain, press, DON’T pull, the water out of your hair first.

Leave the conditioner in for as long as possible and rinse under warm water. Hot water could potentially dry them out, which would ultimately only lead to more frizz, and we don’t want that now, do we?

No matter your hair type, crazy or sane, there is always something you can do to help your locks retain their vibrant radiance, even in the winter time. Let “Condition! Condition! Condition!” be your new mantra this winter, and always remember:

Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate!