Hair Q&A

I got lots of questions about what hair products I use and what styling tools I use. I guess you figured out that I’m a bit of a hair fanatic. I’m going to cover hair products in this post and will talk about styling tools, how I choose a hairstyle/color and how often I change it, etc. etc. etc. in another post. But are you sure you want to trust a girl who has hair like this?

Shampoo & Conditioner

I actually alternate between two shampoos. Right now, I get my hair colored/highlighted every other time when I get it cut so I’m going about 12-16 weeks between color. (I like to think that this haircut hides roots well. Please tell me if I’m wrong.) When my color is still fresh (usually the first 6-8 weeks), I use Pureology Shampoo & Conditioner. (You can buy this at most specialty beauty stores and some drugstores.) It doesn’t contain sulfates, which strip the hair and the color and is very gentle. It also happens to be 100% vegan. I love this stuff.

When I’m not quite as concerned about major color fade, I switch to a cheaper shampoo. Right now I have huge bottles of TRESemme that I bought at Costco. Nothing special but I like it.

Pureology is pretty pricey by my standards – around $20-$25 per bottle (but since  it’s very concentrated, you only have to use a tiny amount, so it lasts a long time). By using an expensive shampoo when it’s most important (i.e. when color is fresh and prone to fading) and switching to a cheaper one later in the “color cycle,” I save money but still protect my pricey hairdo. Also, since the majority of my hair right now is highlighted not colored (besides a few lowlights), I switch to my cheaper shampoo sooner than I would if I had a dark, rich color since fading is more of an issue with color. Got it?

Every few months , I also use a deep conditioner. I looooove this one by Bumble & Bumble. I used it on Monday night when I got back from the beach and my locks felt great again.

Heat Protection Spray

I recently starting using a heat protection spray before blowdrying my hair. This was cheap at Sally Beauty so I bought it. I haven’t noticed a huge difference in my hair but if your hair feels really dry and coarse after blowdrying, you might want to try something like this.

Styling Products

My favorite volumizer is Big Sexy Hair Root Pump (which I actually don’t have right now).

Source

I’m currently using this volumizing and thickening by Brit Style. But if you buy it…watch out, the bottle breaks easily if you happen to drop it on your tile floor. Oops.

It creates a good texture for my short ‘do but I probably wouldn’t recommend it for longer locks since it makes my hair less silky than I like. I also really like and have used off and on the styling crèmes by M.O.P. (Modern Organic Products).

For finishing my hair, I use a pomade. My favorite is probably Pureology’s Dry Shine.

Source

Right now, I’m using Bumble & Bumble Styling Wax and Davines Wonder Wax, both of which I also really like. The Bumble & Bumble can feel a little heavy and greasy on my hair so I have to be careful not to overdo it, but I bet it would be great if you have loads of thick hair.

Other Hair Stuff

• I very rarely use hairspray. The only time I really do is when it’s longer and I curl it. I actually don’t even have hairspray right now.
• I love shine/smoothing serums. I’m not super diligent about using them right now. In the past I’ve used Garneir Fructis shine spray (it was decent) but my favorite kind isn’t sold anymore, which is part of the reason I haven’t been using a shine serum.
• My previous stylist in Utah used ENJOY products on my hair and I loved them. They smelled great and I loved how they made my hair look and feel. When I run out of hair products, I think I’ll try that brand next.