Before we get into today's post, I will ask that we have a
moment of silence for my beloved hot tools 1 1/4 curling iron. She served me
tirelessly for four years and she passed on Monday morning after curling half
of my hair. R.I.P., mi amor.
I get asked a lot about hair care and how I style my hair.
My hair is naturally very straight, very fine, and subsequently falls very
flat. If I let my hair air dry, it dries straight but I also look like I belong
in a Nirvana cover band. And because
grunge chic (fortunately) isn’t at thing, I have to make it a point to style my
hair.
I also color my hair every 4 months or so and my hair dresser
does balayage highlights. If you’re unfamiliar, balayage highlights are painted
highlight – as opposed to foil highlights. The highlights are painted on where
the sun would naturally hit your hair so the idea is to create a softer, more natural
sunkissed look. The result is a low maintenance style that grows out
beautifully rather than leaving a harsh line like foils left me with. All that
being said, balayage can be damaging to your hair because of the time it takes
for your hair to process.
Between styling my hair (almost) daily and switching to balayage highlights 2 years ago, it's really important that I maintain good hair care. So, I’ve tested a bunch of tips to
take care of your hair and my favorites are below.
\\ 1. CUT YOUR HAIR REGULARLY //
It’s really important to cut your hair regularly – like every 3 months. It sounds
counterproductive if you’re trying to grow your hair out but cutting off
damaged ends will help your hair stay strong and do you really want long hair
if it’s all scraggly at the end? Yea, me neither.
\\ 2. DON'T WASH YOUR HAIR EVERYDAY //
I try to wash my hair every two days and three days if I’m feeling really
lucky. To go three days, I give myself a proper blow out at home on the first
day, curl it the second day, and sleep in Princess Leia buns before the third
day. Sometimes I can pull off beachy third day waves but most times I just pullit back like I did here. If I go two days, I let it air dry and curl it and rock
day 2 curls on the second day. It should go without saying that I use an unmentionable
amount of dry shampoo.
\\ 3. USING A CLARIFYING SHAMPOO //
If you’re like me,
you’re guilty of loading up your hair with product and go through more dry
shampoo cans than you’re proud to admit. It’s really important to use a good clarifying
shampoo to strip away all that buildup without stripping away your natural
oils. I love the Bumble and Bumble Sunday Shampoo and this Neutrogena Anti-Residue shampoo is a good drug store alternative.
\\ 4. DEEP CONDITION YOUR HAIR //
I usually use a clarifying shampoo once a week and give
myself a coconut hair mask once a week. Sometimes I will use another product if
I get one in my Birchbox but 90% of the time, I’m using the coconut oil you can
buy at the grocery store. I lather it on, leave it for 30 minutes and rinse it
out. The result is super soft, shiny, and vibrant hair.
\\ 5. COOL IT ON THE HEAT //
Yes, I love my curling iron dearly but there is no better
way to damage your hair than to fry it every day. It doesn’t matter if you use
soft rollers, let your hair air dry, or master a 5 minute up do but you need to
take a few days off a week from putting stressful heat on your hair.
\\ BONUS TIP: TAKE SUPPLEMENTS(?) //
The jury is still out on this one but I have been taking
Nature’s Bounty Hair, Skin and Nails for about a year now. At first, I saw a
lot of growth and thickness but I think
it has been tapering off lately but I can’t be certain. Do you have any
recommendations for biotin supplements to try?
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