You already mentioned that you blow-dry, but do you mean you just use it for drying the hair or for styling it? Because using a blow-dryer for styling my hair is the only way I’ve been able to get silky-smooth looking, shiny hair.
My hair is very thick, but also rather coarse and dull-looking, and kind of “frizzy” even though it’s mostly straight. After going to a salon once and watching the stylist blow-dry my hair with a round brush, I saw that it almost looked like I had a wig on afterwards - my hair was so smooth and shiny.
So I copied her technique. The key is tension. That is, you grab the hair with a round brush, and gently pull on it while waving the dryer over the hair. Then, as the hair starts to come loose from the brush (due to your pulling) grab the hair again and keep going. Just wrapping the hair around the brush isn’t enough - you need to pull and get tension. If you do a YouTube search for “hair blow out” you’ll find lots of tutorials.
I also put mousse or gel on my hair before the blow-drying, to help the style hold. My hair is at collarbone level, so I usually use a large round brush held in a way that it makes my hair curl under in a sort of pageboy style, but since it’s a large brush, it’s very subtle. Afterwards I apply a small amount of silicone serum for extra shine. If I use too much and the hair starts to look weighed-down, I may have another go with the dryer and brush.
Heh… I have hair that regularly gets complete strangers shouting compliments (and feeling it without asking me, which is a bit less welcome), and I almost totally ignore my hair.
It gets washed, with some kind of cheap shampoo, about once a week (yep, you read that right- but I remember someone once on holiday telling me how lovely it was and how much looking after it must take when I’d forgotten my shampoo, and hadn’t washed it in over two weeks… you really can’t tell) and let it dry by itself (which can take up to 12 hours when it’s cold- most of the reason I wash it so little). I use no other product- I used to use conditioner, but after I started using my current shampoo; a solid shampoo bar, which is excellent for travel 'cos it’s tiny and can’t leak in your bag, and last months- I found I didn’t need it any more.
I haven’t even had a trim since I was 16, and my Mum did that. I’ve never visited a hairdresser, despite several times being offered a free cut (it’s very hard to find people with such natural hair for training- the teacher did say she’d fix it up free if I didn’t like it afterwards). I use the cheapest brush that doesn’t get tangled up in it- it eats combs. My hair’s about long enough to sit on, and though it’s quite fine, there’s a lot of it, so it looks thick.
No-one else in my family has much in the way of hair (the guys are grey/balding, my Mum can’t grow hers past shoulder length)- somehow, I just got lucky.
For an opposing anecdote, I have very fine hair also, and my hair does fine only shampoo’d once a week and rinsed with vinegar solution. This must be eased into gradually, however–an abrupt transition will cause hair to be greasy and stringy.
I can’t go to work without washing my hair for weeks. People will think I’m not bathing at all. And I would feel icky just touching it and especially sleeping on it. And like the article says, it does smell.
I had luck just backing off. Instead of washing my hair daily with a lot of shampoo, I used less. Then I started washing every other day. Then every three. I don’t go longer than three, but there has been a noticeable difference with three days and significantly less shampoo per wash. My hair is far less stripped.
I tell you what. Buying a flat-iron changed my life. Okay, that’s a bit of hyperbole, but I was amazed…my hair looked just like other people’s hair! Hanging right down offa my head and everything! :eek:
I also use some John Frieda product and a blow-drier, which makes for fairly decent Middle-Class Girl Hair. I’m reading the Rich Girl tips with interest, but I don’t see myself ever being brave enough to give up shampoo…I guess you can take the girl out of the trailer park, but you can’t take the trailer park out of the girl.
I got out my Mason Pearson boar bristle brush, and just that has made a difference in shininess. I guess there’s a reason they cost what they do…
I do try to style when I blow dry my hair, using a paddle brush that doesn’t pull the hair an more than a comb would, at the instructions of a Vidal Sassoon stylist who cut my hair Once Upon A Time. Perhaps I need a brush that grips the hair better. On the other hand, aren’t we supposed to Never Brush Wet Hair?
Next time I hit a big store I’ll buy the products lindsaybluth recommended. I’ve been a Pantene girl too long.
That’s why everyone recommends drying the hair 75 to 80% in a specific way (holding up at the roots, same direction air flow with nozzle) prior to using the tension with the round brush. Maybe watch a video? I linked a really good one upthread.
I did forget about climate, I’m sorry! :smack: Stick me in Florida and I need this John Frieda smoothing cream instead of the spray. I also need a ceramic straightener on day #2 for touch ups.
Really, I think no poo is great for some people but it’s DEFINITELY not for everyone or even most, Dung Beetle. Though everyone shouldn’t be washing it every day. The older you get the less frequent it should be as well.
First and foremost: definitely ditch the Pantene (which it seems like you’re already planning to do). According to my hair dresser, that’s literally the only kind of conditioner that she can visually identify as the one that folks use-- I guess it leaves crap on your hair that is both unique and noticeable (to a professional).
I use the previously mentioned L’Oreal sulfate free stuff. I used to use expensive salon shampoo and conditioner, but I think my hair looks far better from the L’Oreal brand. I’ve tried a few of their incarnations, but my favorite is the moisturizing one, Ever Pure Moisture. Sometimes various stores have these buy one, get one, which is awesome!
I think this is a huge thing that people often overlook-- especially brunettes. For whatever reason, it’s incredibly trendy for blondes to get 15 shades of blonde weaved in their hair to have dimension, but often brunettes just get one solid color. Personally, my hair gets dyed three colors of brown-- though you wouldn’t notice unless I was in direct sunlight. Why? Because my hair is fine and if I have my hair one solid color. . . it looks limp as can be. Lots of colors + a good cut with solid layers = bouncy hair.
What else? Oh, the aforementioned dry shampoo on the roots is a good way to degrease and add some volume up top. Also, if your hair is super fine, Osis Dust It or something similar (even just baby powder would do something) will pump up your roots and get your hair bouncy.
Also: deep condition. Make sure you deep condition once or twice a week. I recently picked up Retread from Lush, which works great if you don’t follow their instructions :p. I shampoo my hair, then dry it out half way, put in the Retread, tie it up, and let it hang out in there for a while— sometimes I even sleep with it in and wash it out in the morning. It’s a very light product, but your hair will be SO SOFT AND HEALTHY, it’s amazing.
Another Lush product I use is RnB. This one is much heavier, so I use just the tiniest of bits (barely any on my fingers) and work it just onto my ends-- it helps splitting and drying out tremendously.
Oh, oh! AND! A good flat iron makes a world of difference. I was using a $50 Generic Brand knock off “Chi” from Sally’s for years, thinking flat ironing just didn’t do much for my hair. . . but then my hair dresser talked me into buying a Sultra Seductress from her for her cost ($150). Holy crap— that thing is like MAGIC. My hair looks like instant rich girl hair with that iron AND I can flatten it nicely in a quarter of the time. Literally zero frizz.
How do all you no shampoo and every other day shampoo deal with sweat? I would love to try washing my hair every other day or so, but I work out more than every other day, and I am not one of those women who doesn’t sweat. My hair is dripping with sweat when I finish. Heck, even when I’m not working out, I’ll still sweat on hot days (not a big problem in the winter, but in summer? I’m gross).
Is there a trick to removing sweat from hair without using shampoo or am I going to have to keep the daily washings?
You can still take a shower and rinse your hair, massage your scalp with your fingers, etc. Just don’t add any soap to your hair.
Personally, I enjoy the Ouidad product line for curls myself. The deep conditioning is pricey, but totally worth it to do once a week. I also use Joico K-Pak Reconstructor once a week which seems to help with the brittle ends I get every once in a while. You don’t have to forsake all shampoo, but I would cut down on it to help disperse the natural oils in the hair.
A lot of time the key to “celebrity rich girl hair” is just a shitload of silicon to give it that shiny, thick, bouncy look. If you’re using a lot of silicon products, you definitely need to use a clarifying shampoo once in a while to prevent buildup. And I’ll be the millionth person to recommend you don’t use Pantene, I think the residue Diosa is referring to has something to do with the large amount of silicon in their products. It suffocates the hair, I wouldn’t recommend it.
I have hair that’s too thick and a bit kinky, so my experience wouldn’t be of any use to you.
One of my sisters, however, has fine silky hair that she complained about for years.
Last year she changed her system: now she washes her hair in the evening with the mildest shampoo she can find, and in the morning, she sets it on hot rollers of this type. Amazon.com -these rollers work very fast, just a couple of minutes. I can attest to the fact that her hair is beautiful and shiny. She doesn’t even use mousse or gel anymore.
These are the rollers I use every so often. They were $40 or so at Ulta-- what makes them great is that the clamp heats, too-- so your curls set that much better. I definitely recommend a set with thermal clamps!
I cut back on shampoo as well. I’ve been at once a week for two years now, so it won’t be that much effort to give it up completely. I had some VO5 conditioner that i used today, and it feels different already, so I could get more of that, I am not sure where to find White Rain but I just have to go to a couple stores- it’s round here somewhere.
Mostly I let my hair air dry, although i am not sure if my styling products are silicone-free.
I’ve been using these “turbie twist” style towels for over a decade, and they really do help, regardless of hair length; I’ve had the best success when my hair was longer than chin length, but it was a major relief when my hair got longer than where my bra hit mid-back. They’re also good for if you’re doing home coloring (I used to henna all day/night long) or deep conditioning; if you’re worried about messing them up, add a shower cap/plastic wrap beneath.
Also, make sure it costs a reasonable amount; a big boar bristle paddle brush is going to cost at least $10-15, and if you’re looking for a mix of boar bristles and longer detangling nylon bristles, try Ulta or Whole Foods Market-- they’re two of the only places I’ve found boar bristle brushes that are actually made with real boar bristles.
My best practice is to spend about five or ten minutes brushing my hair in different directions to evenly spread the oils. This works best when the hair is longer than shoulder length, but it’ll work for just about any length.
True. I have different hair depending on where I am to fairly large extremes, but it’s always baby fine in texture with lots of it. I live in one county in South Florida and commute to another county, in a part of the county that is less than 10 miles closer to the beach than I am now. I can have beautiful second-day hair when I get in the car, and when I get out of the car at my destination, I end up with poofy, greasy, unmanageable Hermione Grainger hair. The only thing that changed is the humidity level during my commute.
Another example is going from here to Central Florida. Though Florida is generally humid, there’s a significant enough difference that I have primarily straight hair in Central Florida throughout the year, whereas down here, I have subtle waves and ringlets most of the year. If I go to someplace drier than either place, my hair falls more or less stick straight with the exception of the underside, which is always a little curly-wavy.
Because of this variance, I have a variety of things I do to my hair to help. In more humidity, I resort to using more oils to keep the hair from absorbing a ton of moisture from the air, thus reducing the puffy hair factor. In less humidity, I can get away with washing my hair less often and using heavier conditioners, depending on that boar bristle brush to help redistribute the excess sebum. I also spend a lot more time hot oiling my hair in lower humidity, as my hair needs the extra moisture and my scalp appreciates the treatment as well.
