Archive for June 13th, 2006
Gray hair represents the loss of pigmentation. It’s wiry because it’s sheathed in more cuticle than most hair.
How good you look with gray hair is determined by its texture vis-a-vis the rest of your hair, plus how it goes with the tone of your skin and eyes.
Graying hair is the start of a natural lightening process to which you should adapt the colors of your clothes and makeup. If you opt to go gray, sample a “blue” shampoo to inhibit yellowing. Try leave-in conditioners and moisturizers to soften coarseness. Consider having a professional add “lowlights” (streaking of your original color) to give shading to gray areas. Observe the pattern of graying (some heads gray all over, some acquire streaks, some gray grows in to frame the face) and have your stylist shape it to celebrate it. If you opt to color your hair, pick a tone one shade or two lighter than your original color. Going too light or too dark will make you look older. To test the look, try a semi-permanent solution that lasts 6 to 12 shampoos before going for lasting color.
June 13th, 2006
Jessie, visitor of this site, wrote me as follows:
1 Curly hair is more susceptable to frizzies. Normal hair can be taimed by a leave in conditioner, or something to that effect.
I have found that the best way of keeping frizzies down is a light spritz of light hair spray, and when it get’s dry, run your fingers through it.
Not only does the hair spray hold nice zig-zag parts, but it also cozes the firzzies to stay down.
2 Curly hair gets the curliest when it’s wet. When you only wash your hair every other day, it’s hard to keep those nice ringlettes perfect. One good way of doing so is when it’s wet, put it in nice curles, nice thick curles that only loosen when brushed. I keep my hair down all day the first day, and in a “frump bun” the second, or a braid.
3 Keeping curly hair can be tough. Sometimes you just want them to be straightened. I straighten my curles with a conair steam straitner. First, I let my hair dry completely, and brush it with a boars bristled brush. I put my hair in a braid, and sleep on it. When I wake up, it’s wavy, but not in tick curles. I spray a little leave in conditioner, and when it dries, let the hair straitner go to work.
4 Washing my hair is a trip. First, it’s long, second, it’s curly, third, it tends to be dry. I use Aussie shampoo (it seems to clean really well) and panteen’s friz controle. I keep the conditioner in for three minutes before washing it out. While my hair has conditioner in it though, I run my fingers, or a really wide toothed comb through it to get the tangeles out. I dont brush it when I get out of the shower, and let it drip dry. That seems the be the best method for me.
June 13th, 2006
Ladies with long hair have to take extra precaution while they are at work.
This applies in the same way for office work, as it does for housework.
Erika gives a tip for ladies who have to wear a protective hat:
I work at a chemical plant, mostly in the lab, and I have to wear a hard hat when I go out to collect my samples. I have too much hair for a bun to fit under the hard hat. I thought about just putting my hair in my shirt, but the safety rules forbid that. You aren’t allowed to have more than four inches of hair sticking out from under your hard hat.
I had to come up with my own solution to the hard hat problem. Here’s what I do: I braid my hair (one long braid) before I go to work. When I need to put the hard hat on, I put it on loosely and then thread the braid up and around the band. While holding the braid, I flip the hat back and clip the braid about an inch or two above the loop over the band. I then put the hat back on, tucking the braid over the little ribbons that separate the hat from your head. I have had no problems with my hard hat coming off. I think that this method would work for people with hair up to a foot longer than mine, at least.
If you have more tips like these, I like to hear about them!
June 13th, 2006
When there’s low humidity or the air is dry, hair loses water to the surrounding air and dries out. Dry hair builds up negative electricity
(hair is predominantly negatively charged to begin with) and all those negative charges repel neighboring hairs, resulting in flyaway.
Fine hair tends to get flyaway more than super thick locks because if individual hairs repel one another it’s more obvious to the eye when hair is sparse. Sparse hair also dries out more quickly.
Most flyaway problems occur in the winter when their own static electricity. The simplest way to eliminate flyaway is to add water back and avoid products that tend to dry out hair.
DO shampoo your hair with a moisturizing or conditioning shampoo.
DO use a cream rinse after shampooing. Cream rinses reduce static electricity and flyaway because they keep hair from getting too dry.
DON’T overuse heat styling appliances. Using a blow-dryer everyday on a hot setting and then wrapping your hair in hot rollers will only dam-flyaway. Avoid heat damage by using a warm set ting on your blow-dryer, hold it away from your head as you dry hair, and keep the blow-dryer moving.
DON’T apply heavy gels to hair. Even though gels can weigh hair down, too much can have a dry
DO use a humectant (water attracting) styling product.
DON’T use styling sprays with alcohol. There are many products available that are alcohol-free.
DO use natural bristle brushes—they reduce fly away. Plastic bristles create more negative charges.
DON’T overuse hairspray. The old trick of spraying your hair or your brush with hairspray to tame static doesn’t provide a quick fix—it just dries out hair
DO use a humidifier in your home.
DO mist hair with water. Carry a travel-size spray bottle with you or keep one in your desk to combat dry office air.
June 13th, 2006
One of the best tools to help get more out of your conditioner (and who doesn’t, when you go through as much as we do!) is a cheapie plastic
shower cap (I usually pay about a dollar for mine, and one will last several months).
This is my daily ritual for wonderful conditioning:
1 Wash hair and squeeze out excess water.
2 Flip your head over so the hair hangs down in front of you.
3 Apply conditioner generously, beginning at the top and working your way down. I’ve found that conditioning “upside-down” like this gets the conditioner to more of the hair.
4 Work the conditioner in gently with your fingers.
5 Carefully finger-comb through the hair, to separate tangles and further distribute the conditioner.
6 Here’s where the shower cap comes in: hold your hair near the scalp with one hand. With the other hand, wrap the length of the hair up around your head, kind of piling it up like you are making a bun. Get your fabulous shower cap and put it on over your hair. Now your long hair has a place to go while you wash those other parts 
7 While I’m washing my other parts, my hair is conditioning and not getting in the way or being rinsed off prematurely. While washing & rinsing my body I try to stand under the warm water so that it hits the shower cap… this is the key…the water will obviously not rinse the conditioner out but will help it penetrate much better.
8 When you are ready to rinse out the conditioner, remove the cap. Rinse it out and hang it somewhere out of the way to dry.
9 Get yourself a sturdy wide-toothed comb. Again, flip your head upside-down and get under the water to rinse. While you are rinsing, gently pull the comb through. This not only saves time by helping the rinsing go faster, it helps with detangling.
The tip was contributed by Joelle.
June 13th, 2006