Aside from spending cozy nights at home (with a warm mug of our Chocolate Cherry Almond Collagen Latte, of course!), winter’s frigid temps are brutal reminders of the season’s havoc on hair – especially when endless product is piled on and heat styling makes becomes the norm. But it’s not all hopeless. Luckily, Lively consulted experts for the best tips on maintaining conditioned and silky locks despite the dropping temps.
What Causes Dry, Frizzy Hair?
Jamie Middleton, stylist and owner of The Hair Parlour, notes that dry, frizzy hair is almost always due to the dry atmosphere and heaters in our living spaces. It comes down to a lack of moisture in the air, which affects your skin and scalp. “This can often cause your hair to produce more oil, which gives you oily roots and dryer ends,” Kelli Bebermeyer, hairstylist at Helm, shares with Lively.
How to Avoid Drying Out Hair
Fortunately, there are quite a few ways to combat the negative effects of winter’s brisker temps. And lucky for those with busy schedules (read: everyone), a lot of it comes down to doing less, not more. Middleton recommends air drying instead of using a dryer and trying to go a day or two without washing your hair. Bebermeyer shares that the overall goal should be to wash your hair less to try and keep as much moisture and natural oils in your hair for as long as possible. “Try to find a balance,” Bebermeyer tells Lively. “If you can, wash your hair on the weekend or slowly build up to washing once a week.”
It’s important to address both your scalp and ends when moisturizing. “For a dry scalp, I like to massage jojoba oil throughout my head and sleep with it and I'll wake up the next day and lightly wash it out with shampoo,” shares Bebermeyer. “For dry ends, I like to put jojoba oil on my ends only every other night and avoid washing it out since the hair absorbs most of the oil.”
This, of course, can be altered to fit better with your schedule, lifestyle and how your hair responds to oils.
The Do’s & Don’ts of Using Hair Products & Styling Tools
Not all products dry hair out, and some can ultimately put an end to frizzy locks. Styling tools can be rough on hair, but if used appropriately, your hair can still be healthy. Middleton recommends using oils like La Tierra Sagrada jojoba oiland Oway moisturizing mask and brushing the natural oils from scalp to ends. As with anything else, moderation also applies to styling tool use. As a general rule, Bebermeyer recommends putting moisture back into your hair through oil treatments and using a heat-protectant spray when using styling tools. You have to be realistic about your lifestyle, and just be mindful about your styling tool and product use.
If you’re going for a more DIY approach, Bebermeyer recommends being conscious of any product you use that has protein, keratin and coconut oil. “I know that coconut oil has been raved as a miracle oil, but that it is very high in proteins and those proteins can keep building on each other. This can have the reverse effect on hair, causing it to get brittle and break off.”
READ MORE: Your Frequently Asked Hair Questions, Answered