As we approach winter, for many of us the only heat our hair will experience is from hair dryers and straighteners, especially as we prepare for Christmas parties. These are great for styling our hair, but they can do damage at the same time. Make sure that you don’t use the highest heat on your hair dryer (and if you can let your hair dry naturally, all the better) and your hair must be dry before you use straighteners – if you can hear a hiss then stop as you may be singing your hair. Invest in products for heat protection – you only need a small amount each time you style your hair, so they last a long time and they really do make a difference.
And after all that full-on styling for the Christmas season your hair will be feeling fragile and looking frazzled so make sure you give your tresses some TLC – after all your hair is the crown you wear every day.
And what a versatile crown it is! We can style it differently, cut it, straighten it, colour it, curl it. Your crown can be changed to suit the mood of the day or the event you’re going to. But how often do we stop, look in the mirror and actually think about what our hair needs? If our hair could talk to us, what would it say?
If your hair was in therapy, ‘wash me properly!’ is one thing it might say. The products that you’re taking into the shower to wash and condition your hair form the foundation of your hair care. Using products by brands that care about hair really does make a difference. You might feel as though your hairdresser is ‘upselling’, but I promise you, they have your hair’s best interests at heart. The investment is worth it and as one famous haircare manufacturer would say, so are you.
Now, imagine your highlighted blonde hair sat n the therapist’s chair. Does your hair really want to be bleached? Does your hair really want to be coloured?
Your hair doesn’t really want to be treated with too many chemicals. Excessive colouring damages the hair. If you’re going to do it though, I would always advise having your hair coloured by a professional hairdresser using professional products. And if you can treat your hair with a nourishing hair mask once a week, either at home or in the salon, then do – your hair will appreciate it.
I know that there are some people for whom hair colouring is an essential part of their mental health toolkit. Banishing the grey can help to boost self-esteem and confidence but lockdown has had an impact on grey hair too: it gave people the chance to explore the possibility of letting their hair be natural and go grey, which, you might be surprised to read, I really support. At The Gallery, we’re helping several clients move away from hair colouring and towards the grey; it’s a gradual process but eventually, they’ll reach the stage where they don’t need any further hair colouring. The hair will be natural, looking great and feeling healthy – you can almost hear the hair take a sigh of relief.
