Shiny, silky, and voluminous hair is the goal of every woman. No one likes when it is dry and brittle. It makes it hard to style, detangle, and causes your confidence to drop.
Many factors contribute to the condition of your hair. Sun exposure, harsh products, high humidity, poor diet, heat styling, and use of flat irons can all lead to your hair being dry and fragile.
If dry hair bothers you, we have good news! It is easy to bring it back to life. All you need is time, a bit of patience, and few hair care products. So let’s have a quick look at six effective ways to care for dry hair!
1. Trim it
Having your hair trimmed gets rid of split ends and unhealthy hair. We recommend going to the salon, but if you prefer to have full control of how many inches are gone, do it at home. You can use those matte black hairdressing shears, or visit your nearest drugstore and check out their assortment. Avoid using kitchen scissors or (God forbid!) paper cutting ones as they will only worsen the situation, as their edges are too blunt.
How often to trim your hair depends on your hairstyle and hair type. Is it thin or thick? Straight or wavy? It all depends. A short pixie cut needs refreshing every month, bangs need it every two weeks, but for long hair once every 3 to 6 months is enough. To make sure you trim it often enough, check out this Healthline article.
2. Use less heat
Heat styling tools like a curling iron and flat iron indeed let you play with your style quickly and easily. However, quick and easy plus heat can often equate to dry and damaged hair.
Using heat every day can seriously dry out your hair. That’s why if you need luminous curls for a night out, try heatless styling. Just apply a bit of shea butter or argan oil, twist your hair, leave it overnight, and BOOM! You wake up with long-lasting curls and moisturised locks. This will also make your hair colour look more vibrant. Argan oil benefits hair by providing essential nutrients to keep it looking healthy and shiny.
When you’re having a bad hair day, it is OK to use heat occasionally. Just do it on dry hair only (wet hair is extremely fragile and prone to damage), protect it with anti-heat hair styling products, like oils and leave-in conditioners, and set your hairdryer on low temperature.
3. Wash your hair properly
Nowadays, nothing is easy, not even hair washing! In terms of shampooing, the first question is, How often should I wash my hair? And there is no right answer. Some women with an oily scalp will feel the need to do it every day, while for others, 2-3 times a week will be enough.
Do not listen to your aunt when she advises “training your hair” by washing it once a week. Too often and rare washing will only get you irritation and scalp issues. Observe your scalp, and wash it only when you feel like it’s the time. To refresh your hair in between the washes, try a co-wash.
4. Avoid harsh products
Even if your hair looks healthy, you should give it the best care possible. Ensure before you buy a hair styling product or a shampoo to check the ingredients list. You can find plenty of information on what ingredients to look for and which ones to ditch on the hair care forums and hair communities’ Facebook groups.
The first principle is to avoid SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) in shampoos. They are very harsh detergents that, if used too often, will make your ends dry. You can use them from time to time as a form of detox for your hair.
We recommend products full of natural oils for everyday use, like coconut oil, olive oil, and shea butter. You probably have them in your skincare products, but they are perfect for hair care too! They contain a bunch of rejuvenating ingredients like omega 3s and other essential fatty acids.
While some products may identify that they are for men, like hair pomade for men, it doesn’t mean that you can’t use it in women’s hair. If you’re finding that hair products targeted towards women are irritating your scalp, you can try different hair products from both genders and find the one that suits you best.
5. Use conditioner after every hair wash
When you wash your hair, you eliminate dirt and dead skin from your scalp but also strip your hair of all the right oils and moisture making it dry and brittle. To restore your hair moisture balance, use a conditioner after every shampooing session.
You don’t have to keep it on your hair for too long. Not everyone can reserve the whole day for conditioning, after all! But try to keep the conditioner on for at least 3 minutes. You can do that while brushing your teeth or taking a bath. Save time by applying a leave-in conditioner. Once a week, leave your conditioner or hair mask on for 20 minutes or more to give your hair a genuine treatment.
6. Find your hair balance
Restoring the moisture balance in your dry hair is all about paying close attention to its needs. Is your scalp oily or sensitive? Do you have dandruff or irritation? What is your hair type? These are all critical questions to ask yourself. If the amount of information is too much, ask a professional hairdresser or a trichologist. They will surely match the perfect hair treatment for you.
Finding the perfect routine takes time. What works for others will not always work for you. So be patient and implement new products one by one to see which ones work the best. Just give your hair a bit of love and lots of pampering! Those are the best ways to care for dry hair.