The age old question finally getting answered.. Will it be as you predicted?
You've heard it many times before, most likely from your stylist and/or your parents: "to grow your hair you need to cut it", "regular trims will help your hair grow quicker" or "cutting your hair will make it grow faster" any of these sound familiar? I hear this all the time from my guests who have been told this in the past. So I explain to them as I am to you now.
There is some truth in this little white lie but a little more goes into it that just a trim.
So how does it actually work?
As I've mentioned before, whilst hair grows it is only a living cell whilst it's inside the scalp, once it passes the skin it's no longer living. This means it is completely subject to the environment, heat tools, chemicals and anything else that touches it without the ability to repair itself like your skin and body can.
Hair on average grows 1 inch every 4 weeks, lets just think about that for a second, How old do you think that makes your hair? If it is to your jawline it's roughly 12-14 months old, if it's nearing your underarm then it will be around 2 years old, so on and so forth.
Hair is very strong and resilient however if we don't look after our hair, it breaks or wears away. As it splits it keep splitting getting finer and finer and more fragile from the ends upwards, by trimming those split ends you stop them travelling further up the hair so the hair stays stronger and full to the tips so it doesn't break or become thin and fragile, meaning as it grows from your scalp it maintains length and thickness through to the tips therefore growing quicker.
So there you have it, cutting your hair does actually help it grow. It won't speed up the growth from your scalp, but you will keep the hair that it grows. You should have regular trims every 6-8 weeks to ensure you keep the split ends at bay.
Your hair is as individual as you are, with it's own stresses and it's own story to tell. Using the right home-care and styling products will ensure your keep your hair healthy and strong whilst maintaining length and thickness.
I hope you enjoyed this weeks instalment of the hairy truth. Until next time : Happy hair day Nikki
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Hi there and welcome to this weeks instalment of The Hairy Truth.
This week as the title suggests we are talking the easiest and quickest ways to create volume in our hair. Whether you have fine hair or thicker hair but would like to add volume this weeks tips will help you achieve that salon volume at home. TIP #1 - UPSIDE DOWN
This is the quickest and easiest way to create instant volume.
HOW DO I DO IT? Simply tip your head forward and dry your hair, as much as possible you need to keep the dryer up above your head drying from the top (which will be your underneath section). Use a brush to keep your hair smooth and detangled. HOW DOES IT WORK? As you're drying the hair against it's natural growth pattern this creates volume at the roots. HOW LONG WILL IT LAST? This method does last quite a while but mostly it will depend on the thickness and length of your hair. Heavier / thicker hair will drop quicker than shorter / finer hair types. Lasting anything from 2 hours to a day. HELPING IT LAST LONGER: Set your style in place with a strong lightweight spray like joico's flip turn or power spray to get the best longevity from your style. TIP #2 - VOLUMISING SHAMPOO & CONDITIONER
Another great way to add volume would be to use a volumising shampoo and conditioner. You can follow my guide on how to correctly wash your hair to ensure you are getting the most from your shampoo and conditioner.
RECOMMENDED PRODUCT Joico's Bodylux volumising shampoo and conditioner: increase hair density by upto 40% and furthermore the lightweight conditioner will not weigh down your hair. Add this to drying your hair upside down, and you have longer lasting volume that holds for longer. TIP #3 - VOLUMISING ELIXIR
Ever wonder why when you create volume in your own hair it doesn't seem to last as long as it does from the salon? OK OK OK we have training in the salon to blow-dry and create volume however we also need tools to help your hair stay the way we style it.
One of those tools is Joico volumising elixir. Added to the Bodylux shampoo and conditioner your hair will reach new heights and have up-to 40% more density per strand. Make sure you lock it all in with a strong but lightweight hairspray like our power spray. TIP #4 - BACK COMBING
Back combing is a sure fire way to create volume and looks amazing when done well. Not done well it looks a little like a birds nest. So lets chat about how to do it well:
HOW TO DO IT First you need the correct brush, a soft, thin bristle brush also known as a backcombing brush. Take a 1 inch section from your crown and lift it up, Comb back the way from the middle of the length, this will create a tangled look at the root Repeat a couple times up the length of the hair. Pick up a new 1-inch section just underneath and repeat. You can continue this over just your crown area or throughout your whole head. Smooth over. This is the important part to ensure you don't leave what looks like a nest on your head. KEEP IT IN PLACE Once you have a nice smooth surface spray in place with a strong but lightweight hairspray. I highly recommend either Joico power spray or Flip turn. TIP #5 - SLEEP IN ROLLERS
This step may be one of the trickiest but once you get the handle of it they work really well.
HOW TO DO IT Wash your hair using a volumising shampoo and conditioner, Squeeze out all excess water with a towel and add a volumising product and one with hold. Dry your hair, 95% dry, as smooth as possible with volume at the root area if possible. Take 2-3" sections, comb straight up, take a roller and place at the tips. Roll to smooth round then roll down the hair to finish at the root. Pin in place if it doesn't stay. Go to sleep. DRESSING OUT Take out the rollers one by one, twist each section to keep it from going fluffy. Once you have got all the rollers out, run your fingers through your hair to calm and seperate. If your want it curly, leave it like this. If you want it smooth then blowdry or straighten to smooth. HOW LONG WILL IT LAST This method will hold for the longest. It will also take practice to get it right, so have patience and don't give up. You'll get it. RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS Prep: Joico Bodylux shampoo & conditioner or Sexyhair UK big volumising shampoo & conditioner Style: Joico Blux volumising elixir and/or root boost, or Sexyhair UK volumising gel Hold: Joico powerwhip or joiwhip, Set: Joico power spray or Sexyhair spray and play harder.
Now you have 5 ways to create volume and hold it in place for longer. Put all these tips together and you have a recipe for the longest lasting volume you have ever seen. I hope you give them a try and let me know how you get on.
Until next time : Happy Hair Day Nicola Iannetta
For those who skim read:
- Dry your hair upside down - Use a volumising shampoo and conditioner - Use a volumising product - Add backcombing - Try sleep in rollers - Spray in place with a lightweight strong hold hairspray
Today I have an interesting one for you, so grab a quick cuppa and lets get started,
This week in the salon we have had quite a few colour changes and I have been asked on a couple of occasions about doing a final rinse in cold water, does it really help with shine and is there really any health benefits of this for our hair? As this is not the first time I have been asked this I decided to delve in a little deeper and do a write up on it. This is a topic that I can say most likely divides the hair world a little. I see it pop up numerous times in hair feeds across social media platforms as well as blogs and tutorials. So today I am going to give you the facts (we get a little sciencey but don't worry it's only briefly and all explained) and you can make up your own mind before I give you my opinion.
Today there will be many people across the world finishing their morning showers with a, lets face it, very uncomfortable, heart stopping, take your breath away final rinse of cold water. You know the one where you try to avoid the water hitting your body, only your hair. Yes I have tried it in the past before joining the hair professionals and if you've never tried it, it's not a fun task, although maybe should be tried just to be able to put it down as a life lesson. Especially if you're like me and hate cold.
OK so WHY are people doing this? Well, It's because it is believed to make your hair shiny. But is it true? I decided to dive a little into this subject and did a little extra research for you which brought up an interesting point. First I looked into where the belief originates and if it has any merit. This idea comes from the fact: cold closes the cuticle (all be it minimally) Thus creating the belief that a cold water finish will close the cuticle - making it shinier. You can understand the idea, i mean, it does make sense when you put it like that. However there is more than just what meets the eye. Now we know the thought process behind this popular belief let's look at the facts to see if they back it up. When we talk of opening and closing the cuticle layer in professional terms, it's all comes down to the PH level of a product, the temperature of the water has a very minimal effect on the cuticle in comparison, think of the cuticle as a door if you will. Anything we do as professionals always revolves around manipulating the PH level to either open or close the cuticle layers. A higher PH level will swell/open the cuticle and a lower PH level will de-swell/close the cuticle. We should always rebalance the natural PH levels at the end of any service. So this is why when you visit a salon all the shampoo's, conditioners and styling products are PH controlled? Exactly! They are designed to either rebalance or maintain the healthy PH levels of our hair, pre or post service. Ensuring it stays healthy and shiny. The product used to finalise the cleansing process is the conditioner and this is primarily what is responsible for closing the cuticle and creating shine. Not the water temperature. A very interesting fact for you: once your hair has grown past the scalp it is no longer supplied with blood and is technically dead tissue. However because follicles need blood supply you could be causing damage to your hair follicles without realising as cold water will actually constrict the blood capillaries in your scalp. The capillaries carry vital nutrients to the hair follicles, so in theory, you could be constricting the growth and production of healthy hair. The idea of cold water aiding in shiny hair has never really made any sense to me, even before I understood what actually had an effect on our hair, because if we think logically for a moment - a cold water rinse is then usually followed by a hairdryer (heat) and possibly straighteners (heat again) or another form of (heat) appliances. So to me the best time to use temperature logic would be at the very end with a cold blast of the dryer to lock in your style, surely. Another interesting fact is one I learnt during my training all those years ago, all about how PH levels actually effect our hair and what PH certain items/products are. I was surprised to find out water has a PH slightly higher than our hair so hot or cold wouldn't really make a difference at all. Using a good quality conditioner will close the cuticle due to the PH level being designed to be perfectly balanced for our hair. So does a cold water rinse make our hair shiny? in short: No, No it doesn't, Not really.
So there you have it. You can stop with the horrible, heart stopping, take your breath away cold water rinses in the morning and just invest in a quality conditioner. My favourite ranges are Joico which is my salon chosen brand, and Sexy hair UK, Both are amazing ranges, designed specifically for your hairs needs and perfectly PH controlled. Speak to your stylist, they will be best suited to advise you on which is best for your hairs needs.
I hope you found this weeks instalment as interesting as I did. I just love this kind of thing. Science, colouring and hair theory are my fave topics. Let me know if you have any questions or ideas to talk about. I have over 100 in line but I may not have thought of yours so please do share. Until next time : Happy hair day. Nikki Iannetta. If you skimmed : The important bits - Cold water is uncomfortable and takes your breath - It is believed to close the cuticle creating shine. - It in-fact could be causing damage due to constricting the blood capillaries - PH levels effect the cuticle opening and closing - Conditioner is designed to re-balance. - Conditioner is primarily responsible for opening and closing the cuticle. - Best ranges I recommend are Joico and sexy hair uk. - Speak to your stylists for best advise for your hair.
Did you miss last weeks instalment? We talked about how you can DOUBLE the life of your shampoo and conditioner!
Jump on in to find out more
Welcome to the first instalment of the hairy truth so let’s begin.
Have you ever been taught how to correctly cleanse your hair? Have you ever even thought about it? Probably not, however, I bet you have noticed how much it differs from a truly good salon cleanse, right. The beautiful scalp massage, calming and rejuvenating. I don't blame those of you who take advantage of our cleanse and style on a weekly basis, It's just not the same doing it yourself. But we should still make sure we're doing it right. Cleansing correctly brings so many questions, How often should you wash your hair? what products should I use? Are salon pro really better than generic brands? Why sulphate free? I surprised myself this weekend thinking of all the questions that fall under this umbrella. But first we need the basics. So today thats what I want to talk to you about, the basics in cleansing your scalp, conditioning your hair and any fun facts along the way. In short Cleanse your scalp. Condition your hair !
Cleansing
Cleansing your hair and scalp is a vital step in our hair care routine. This process removes any product build up, dirt, grease or grime and clears our follicles (where the hair grows) to ensure they are not blocked and hair can grow through healthily with no restrictions.
Conditioning
You may not believe it but there is also a process for conditioning your hair correctly. The Conditioners has a very important role. It's role is to smooth the outer layer of your hair structure, called the cuticle, and when you condition correctly your conditioner can aid in improving smoothness, shine, reducing tangles, reduction of fragile ends, protecting the internal structure of your hair, reducing split ends and prolonging the life of your colour. Quite an important roll really isn't it.
So there you go, that’s the basics of correctly cleansing your hair.
I bet you didn't think there was that much to think about when washing your hair did you? Neither did I until I started college, its the very first things we learn about and spend weeks mastering the correct techniques, how cleansing the hair is important and and the impact it has on your hairs health. If you start following these guidelines you will find your hair becomes much smoother and more manageable over time. Adding salon professional care to your regime will also work wonders so next time you're in with your stylist speak to them about what they recommend for your hair type. Thank you for reading this weeks instalment of the hairy truth Until next time : Happy hair day Nicola Iannetta
If you skimmed, the important bits:
- Cleanse your scalp, Condition your hair. - Rinse hair well, - Using a small amount of shampoo cleanse scalp - Rinse well - Repeat if necassary - Squeeze out water - Using a small amount of conditioner put through ponytail area - Comb through and leave 1 minute - Rinse throroughly |
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July 2018
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