I have a serious love/hate relationship with my hair. But I finally have a routine that works for this "rat's nest" as my mom would call it. I put my hair through a lot - with coloring and using a flat iron almost daily it's pretty damaged I would say. I try not to wash my hair that much and I think that's the real secret. I have pretty dry hair, so it doesn't get oily until about 2-3 days after it's been washed. When I do wash my hair, I use a red shampoo and conditioner so it doesn't strip my red color as easily. Right now I'm using John Frieda's Radiant Red but it is difficult to find in stores. I happened to grab the last set in the store when I bought mine. I'm going to try Pureology's red shampoo and conditioner next. After I towel dry my hair for a few minutes, I put Morrocan Oil throughout my hair, starting at the ends and working it up to the roots. I don't like the Macadamia brand because I feel like it's too dry - the Morrocan Oil brand is the best although it is a little pricey.
If I'm straightening my hair, I add a heat protectant spray by Alterna that my old stylist recommended (I miss this woman - she was the best!) to my damp hair. They sell this brand at Sephora and Ulta. I sometimes will also put a little of the Living Proof hair primer in depending on my mood. Then, I use a blowdryer to completely dry my hair. I end up looking like a lion since I can't properly use a round brush to smooth my hair, but it's ok because it still gets rid of most of the curl. My newest trick is to add this orange stuff from AlfaParf, which I've been using since I first straightened my hair. It really takes away the frizz and makes it easier to go over with a flat iron. I used to only apply this stuff after I was done with the flat iron, but now I use it before and after. To straighten my hair, I use my trusted Chi flat iron that I have had for probably 8 years. I purchased a ghd flat iron last summer because my Chi doesn't work properly - sometimes it turns off depending on how you hold it. It gets extremely frustrating. After using the ghd for a few months, I used my Chi one day and saw such a huge difference! I much prefer the Chi and although it doesn't work completely, it still straightens my hair faster and makes it smoother and last longer. I still have my ghd for back-up and haven't purchased another Chi yet because they just don't make them the same anymore and it's quite disappointing. I think they sell my version for double the price I paid for, but I don't know if it's the same product.
And if I'm going natural (curly) I use only 2 products in my hair. After washing my hair with shampoo and conditioner, I apply my Moroccan Oil and then I use Miss Jessie's Quick Curls or Pillow Soft Curls depending on my mood. These products are absolutely amazing and life-changing. Without these products, I would never be able to wear my hair natural and curly. I have written about Miss Jessie's before in one of my first blog
posts but I wanted to mention them again. Grace (my sister-in-law) has even curlier hair than me and she has tried the Pillow Soft Curls after I told her about it and also loves it! I'm telling you guys, it's
amazing. It doesn't make your hair crunchy like mousse and keeps your curls soft and in tact all day long with absolutely no frizz. You can find these products at Target or at
Birchbox, which is how I found out about them.
xoxo.
