With the bite of winter still upon us and the trends of ombre, dip dye and pastels still coating the nation’s hair it’s not surprising that our tresses are in need of a little TLC. Bleach, box dyes and biting winds are no good for our hair and to keep colours bright and locks luscious we need to treat it kindly. Pharmacists and supermarket shelves are stacked with the latest miracle product, guaranteed to make your hair look healthy (‘look’ being the important word). But with steep prices and student bank accounts, how can we afford to keep our hair healthy, on-trend and still have enough left to go out and show it off?
As the proud owner of some very bleached hair (pink, purple and turquoise to platinum in 2 weeks, I wouldn’t recommend it) I’ve tried a lot of the treatments and know what works and when you’re just wasting your money.
The latest trend in hair care is oil. Lauded as a miracle cure, the big brands have reinvented the old ‘Hot Oil’ formula and created a myriad of different options. However with a wide range of choices comes a wide range of prices from mildly justifiable to eye-widening; from TRESemme Liquid Gold Argan Oil Infused Perfecting Hair Treatment at £6.99 to Moroccanoil Oil at £30.45 for 100ml. I’ve tried TRESemme’s Liquid Gold along with L’Oreal Elvive’s Extraordinary Oil with UV Filter (£8.49 for 100ml) and found that both have left my hair soft and shiny although I think the smell of L’Oreal’s is the nicest. However, although they’re both great serum substitutes and do leave hair looking beautiful I found that both of them pale in comparison to the original product.
When I first bleached my hair I was advised to use coconut oil to keep it moisturised and stop it from breaking. At £14.99, from Holland and Barrett, it might seem a little expensive however they currently have an offer where you can get 2 for £15 and at 453g of oil per jar, you get plenty of product. Simply slather it onto your hair, wrap your head in a towel (careful, it runs) and leave it for as long as you want. Unlike many oils this one will actually penetrate the hair shaft, so along with looking shiny and healthy your hair will actually be shiny and healthy. The pure oil works much better than any of the branded products and it smells delicious. If you’re not a fan of coconut there are plenty of other oils you can use, a favourite with hair oil enthusiasts is olive oil which apparently leaves your hair beautiful, and you can cook up a stir fry with what’s left. For those of you desperate to try Argan oil, it’s much better to buy the pure oil than to fork out for the “infused” options, although it’s still fairly pricy it will work much better.
Now I’m sure everyone has heard the old wives’ tale that trimming your hair will make it grow faster. Although this has been disproved time and time again it’s still important to get your hair cut regularly if you want to keep it in good condition. It’s tempting to save your pounds and watch your hair snake down your back but once those ends start to split there’s no stopping them (no matter what some companies would have you believe) and it’s better to have shorter, stronger hair. Talking of split ends, prevention is far better than cut, and the best way to prevent is to take care of your hair. No teasing, no tongs, no straighteners and as little blow drying as possible. Ideally you want to keep the heat off your hair as much as possible as even with the best heat protectors you’re going to damage your hair. And that’s especially important for those with freshly bleached, rapidly snapping hair, or you’ll see it falling down around you in chunks. Just reducing the amount of heat you use or taking a break for a month will show serious improvement in your burnt tresses. Finally, when you detangle your hair the best option is a wide tooth comb. Brushes snag and rip at hair causing more split ends and breakage. Gentle combing when your hair is wet will tease out the tangles whilst being gentle on your hair.
When you do wash your hair the best way to heal your dry locks appears to be moisturising shampoos and conditioners. However while these are good, the problem with shampoos is that they’re full of nasty, hair-attacking chemicals, that aren’t particularly good for your health either. Sulphates are what cause shampoos to bubble and foam however they strip hair of its colour and moisture and therefore aren’t a good idea when your hair is already damaged. Luckily there are now plenty of sulphate-free shampoos on the market. From the incredibly cheap Naked range at Boots which features lots of different shampoos and conditioners including Naked Rescue Intense Care Shampoo and Naked Rescue Conditioner, at £4.19 and 250ml each. To the slightly more luxurious but still eminently affordable Ever Pure range from L’Oreal – the Colour Care & Moisture Shampoo and Conditioners are £5.99 each for 250ml and will keep your hair and body healthy, and your colour vibrant.
But the best way to do that is to stop washing your hair so much. At the very least you want to wash it only every other day, ideally only every 3 days. Dyed and damaged hair is drier anyway so you’ll probably have found yourself washing it less and if you invest in a good dry shampoo, (Batiste is my favourite), you’ll find it easy to stretch out the days. Washing your hair strips it of its natural oils that it needs to stay healthy and shiny so the less you wash it, the healthier is becomes. And when you do wash it, make sure the water isn’t too hot as heat will dry it out in the long run.
Obviously you don’t have to follow every one of these rules but even small changes to your hair routine will make a massive difference to your hair’s health. Start now and you’ll be going into the summer months with glossy, luxurious tresses; beautiful both inside and out.
Products:
http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/beauty/news-features/TMG9587662/Hair-oil-whats-all-the-fuss-about.html
http://www.boots.com/en/LOreal-Elvive-Extraordinary-Oil-UV-Filter-for-All-Hair-Types-100ml_1262085/
http://www.boots.com/en/TRESemme-Liquid-Gold-Argan-Oil-Infused-Perfecting-Hair-Treatment-75ml_1262109/?CAWELAID=1327431720
http://www.feelunique.com/p/Moroccanoil-Oil-Treatment-for-All-Hair-Types-100ml?utm_source=GoogleBaseUK&utm_medium=gen
http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/product_detail.asp?pid=690&prodid=733
http://www.boots.com/en/Naked-Rescue-Intense-Care-Shampoo-250ml_122086/
http://www.boots.com/en/Naked-Rescue-Conditioner-250ml_863348/
http://www.boots.com/en/LOreal-Paris-Hair-Expertise-EverPure-Colour-Care-Moisture-Shampoo-250ml_1250777/
http://www.boots.com/en/LOreal-Paris-Hair-Expertise-EverPure-Colour-Care-Moisture-Conditioner-250ml_1250771/
Image Sources:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/28/unhealthy-hair_n_885771.html#s299245&title=Frizzy_Hair&zoom=huge
http://www.icon-hairdressing.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/moroccan_oil_treatment_100ml-12.jpg
http://the-beauty-bloggers.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/coconut-oil-wonder-hair-product.html
http://glam.co.uk/2012/05/10-natural-beauty-buys-under-10/loreal-paris-hair-expertise-everpure-colour-care-moisture-shampoo-250ml-available-nationwide/
http://makeupblast.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/batiste-dry-shampoo.html