12 Hair Care Tips to Achieve the Look of Healthy, Shiny Hair
Wondering what you need to be doing to get your hair to look glossier and healthier?
Here are 12 hair care tips from HerStyler that will soon have you rocking the sleek and shiny hair of your dreams!
1) Only Shampoo Your Scalp
Shampooing is a big part of every hair care routine, yet many people make mistakes with this. The main one is when shampoo is applied all over the hair, rather than just on the scalp. Why is this an issue? Because shampoos clear away excess sebum, of which there’s plenty on the scalp. The rest of your hair? Not so much. The ends of the hair in particular tend to be lacking in sebum. Apply shampoo here and you’ll only end up drying your hair out, leading to frizz and dullness. It definitely won’t be the shiny hair you’re hoping for!
Instead, avoid applying your shampoo to anywhere other than your scalp. Even if the rest of your hair needs a clean, the runoff from your shampoo when it’s being rinsed off will be enough to do this, yet without drying out your strands.
2) Only Condition the Ends of Your Hair
While a shampoo should only be used on your scalp, the opposite applies for a conditioner. This is a product that should never touch your scalp. Why? Because your scalp produces enough sebum of its own. It doesn’t need the rich and heavy ingredients provided by a moisturizer. Instead, it’s the ends of your hair that benefit from this. As we mentioned, that’s the section that’s driest and usually lacking in sebum.
Want another conditioner tip? Choose one that contains argan oil, just like the HerStyler Argan Oil & Biotin Conditioner. This plant oil will not only leave your strands feeling stronger and better protected from the environment but it will also give you unbelievably shiny hair!
3) Always Protect Your Strands Before Heat Styling
Any sort of damage to your strands will impede your efforts to achieve shiny hair. Sadly, there’s so much out there that causes damage, including the use of heated styling tools. With that said, there are ways to heat style your hair safely, and heat protectant products play a big part in this. They form an additional layer over each strand of hair, which means that this is what’s burnt off by the heat instead of your hair itself.
Choose a heat protectant based on your hair type. Creams are best for dry hair while sprays work well on oily hair. Meanwhile, hair serums, like the HerStyler VitaOil Biotin Hair Serum, can be used to keep all hair types feeling protected against heat damage.
4) Be Smart When Heat Styling
While we’re on the topic of heat styling, let’s talk about the styling tools themselves. Did you know that some cause more damage than others? If you want shiny hair, you need to pick a tool that causes the least amount of damage possible.
The HerStyler Beach Curler is one that does exactly that. With a ceramic barrel, it gently heats the hair while its adjustable temperature feature enables you to turn down the heat to prevent it from taking a toll on your locks.
If straighteners are more your style, check out HerStyler’s Colorful Seasons 8 straightener. Again, it features ceramic plates and an adjustable temperature. It also comes with negative ion technology and infrared technology. Together, these prevent visible damage to the hair surface.
5) Cut Back on Hair Processing Treatments
Another way to save your strands from damage and encourage shiny hair is to cut back on the number of processing treatments you subject your mane to. Whether you regularly bleach, perm, dye, relax, or do anything else to your hair, it’s time to slow things down.
Why? Because each of those treatments will weaken your strands. The more you have them done, the weaker your hair will be and, therefore, the easier it will be to damage. It doesn’t help that once you have one of these treatments done, the next one usually needs to occur in close proximity in order to maintain your look. Try to resist the urge to do this. Instead, give your hair plenty of time to recuperate in between treatments and it will soon start to feel much healthier.
6) De-Tangle With Your Fingers First
There’s no denying how easy it can be to de-tangle hair with a good de-tangling brush, like the HerStyler De-Tangle Brush. However, yank this brush through your knotted strands and there’s a good chance that you’ll end up causing some breakage, even if you do so while your hair is being conditioned.
Instead, the best practice would be to start de-tangling with your fingers first. Your fingers will be more sensitive to any tangles. Rather than breaking through them, you’ll be able to gently work those bigger knots out so that your brush doesn’t have quite as much work to do.
7) Squeeze, Don’t Rub
Ideally, you should always have healthy-looking and shiny hair after washing and conditioning it, especially if you follow the washing and conditioning tips we shared above! However, your drying technique will significantly influence how glossy your hair looks too…
One mistake that many make is roughly rubbing at their strands with their towel. Sure, this may help to remove moisture but it also roughs up and damages your hair cuticles. You’ll be much more likely to end up with dull and frizzy hair if you use this method.
What should you do instead? Gently squeeze the moisture out of your hair. Take sections of your hair and wring out excess water, without any harsh twisting or tugging. A microfiber towel makes this job even easier due to how much more absorbent it is than a regular towel.
8) Regularly Trim Away Split Ends
Not only are split ends a sign of damage, but they also detract from your hair’s natural shine. They give the hair a fluffy and frizzy finish. This affects the way in which the hair reflects light. If you don’t do anything about your split ends, those splits will only travel up your hair shaft, adding frizz to even more of your lengths.
This is why regular trims are essential in your quest for shiny hair. They’ll snip away those split and damaged ends, preventing the rest of your hair from fraying too. Better yet, a trim will refresh your entire look, and a couple of hours at a hair salon will always give you glossier hair!
9) Protect Your Hair From Environmental Damage
As we mentioned earlier, protecting your locks from damage is crucial if you want shiny hair. Not only does this mean being careful about heat styling but you also need to be aware of all of the environmental damage that could affect your strands.
The sun, for example, dehydrates and dries out the hair. Likewise, the wind roughs up hair cuticles and causes tangles while cold temperatures leave hair feeling dry and fragile. Giving your hair plenty of nutrients with products like the Marula Hair Nourishing Serum will help but you should also take measures to physically block those forms of environmental damage. Hats, scarves, and protective hairstyles will all go a long way to keep your hair feeling safe and healthy.
10) Safeguard Your Strands While You Sleep
You may like to think that your hair is safe from damage while you sleep but, sadly, it’s not. Each time your hair rubs against your pillow, friction is created. This will rough up and dry out your strands, leaving them looking frizzy come morning.
To prevent this, invest in a silk or satin pillowcase. These are much smoother materials that will allow your hair to glide over them with minimal friction. They also don’t absorb moisture in the same way that other materials too. Your strands will feel better hydrated each morning, meaning gorgeous, shiny hair!
11) Perfect Your Hair-Brushing Technique
It goes without saying that brushing your hair is important when it comes to giving your locks some shine. After all, brushing distributes all of those oils that your scalp produces through the rest of your lengths. This conditions and moisturizes them, promoting a glossy sheen.
However, if you usually start brushing your hair from your roots, you may want to change your ways. This method only encourages breakages and weak roots due to how you’ll be pulling your brush through any tangles.
Rather than placing all of this unnecessary tension on your roots, start brushing from just above the ends of your hair, in downward motions like usual. Then, move your brush up a bit and do the same. This way, by the time you reach your roots, you’ll be able to run your brush through your strands without any obstructions!
12) Feed Your Hair From Within
No matter how good your hair care regime may be, this isn’t going to give you shiny hair unless you’re also properly caring for your hair from within. This means paying attention to your diet. After all, you are what you eat, and this applies to your hair too.
So, what should you be eating if you want shiny hair? Considering that hair is primarily made up of protein, eating plenty of protein is key. Lean meats, fish, beans, and eggs are great sources.
Zinc is important too, especially if you have issues with hair loss or shedding. Nuts are loaded with this nutrient.
Of course, let’s not forget about omega fatty acids. These are needed by your hair follicles and the sebaceous glands on your scalp. Oily fish, such as sardines and salmon, are packed with this hair-loving nutrient.
The Secret to Shiny Hair
Unfortunately, if your hair is lacking in shine, none of these tips are going to completely transform your locks overnight. Instead, they require commitment and dedication. Rather than simply following one of these tips and hoping for miracles, try to encompass as many of them as possible, and make sure that you stick to your new habits. Give it a few weeks and you’ll soon start to notice an improvement in how shiny and healthy your hair looks and feels.
Click here to boost your hair routine even further with more bestselling products from HerStyler.
