Sunday, January 20, 2013

Mane Care...Hair Care


I got a request the other day to write a “how to” on hot oil treatments for your hair, and I thought while I was at it I might as well do a total hair care post!

Even if you already have healthy, long, thick hair it’s important to take proper care of what you already have so you don’t lose it! And if you’re trying to grow your hair out, this will help speed up the process. It’s especially important to give your mane a little extra TLC if you work outside a lot.

Once a week you should do a deep conditioning treatment. I use olive oil but you can also use shea butter, which is incredibly moisturizing. I generally stick with olive oil because I always have some in the kitchen!! The books will tell you to heat your olive oil, drizzle it through the ends of your hair then wrap your hair in a hot towel and let it set for a good 20 minutes. I don’t have the patience for that so I just keep a little plastic bottle of extra virgin olive oil in the shower and before I get my hair wet I pour it through my ends and let the heat and steam from the shower work its magic! Just make sure you shampoo your hair twice after one of these treatments or your head will feel very greasy for the rest of the day!



You should also do a rinse once a week to eliminate toxins and buildup you get in your hair from shampoo, conditioner, products and the environment. Once you’ve shampooed your hair rinse with apple cider vinegar. It leaves your hair feeling unbelievably shiny and soft feeling, almost like you’re in a Victoria’s Secret commercial. It does stink like a son-of –a-gun though, so make sure you keep your eyes and mouth shut until it’s all rinsed out! If you have a hot date lined up I would suggest NOT doing a rinse treatment unless you want to smell faintly of salad. Most men prefer bacon, just saying.

It’s healthier for your tresses if you use a natural bristle brush than something synthetic. You won’t have as much breakage and it helps promote stimulation in your scalp, which encourages hair growth!!

Adrian takes prenatal vitamins and she swears it makes her nails and hair grow faster and longer. Just make sure that if you live with your parents (or with a significant other), and you bring home a bottle of prenatal vitamins that you explain you’re taking them for hair growth, not baby growth. 

If you’re like me and your hair is almost always in a braid or a bun, make sure you use elastics that don’t have the little metal clamps in them. Do they even make those any more? I’m not sure, but only use hair ties that are completely elastic.



You should get your hair trimmed every 6 weeks. I know some girls that don’t get their hair trimmed at all when they’re trying to grow their manes out long, but it only causes your split ends to get higher and higher, resulting in shorter hair! A couple years ago I wanted to speed up the process of growing my hair so I started getting my hair trimmed every 4 weeks. It actually worked, I’m not even kidding. Just make sure you have a hair-dresser who isn’t scissor happy. ONLY the split ends. ONLY.

And at the end of the day, all of this won’t count for squat if you’re not eating healthy, drinking a lot of water and exercising. You need meat and veggies and good for you fats to have healthy, shiny hair. All the hot oil treatments in the world won’t counteract a bad diet and no exercise.




If you have any special hair remedies, please share them with us below!

xo xo Liz

Photos Credit: Tumblr

12 comments:

  1. I love using coconut oil as a treatment, and when at the salon, ask for a dusting instead of a trim...it's a special technique that gets ONLY split ends. Regular scalp massage is a nice treat too ;)

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    1. Oh Cassi, thank you so much for the ideas!! I've never even heard of a dusting....my little self is excited!! And I forgot to add that, I do scalp messages too! I'm gonna give the coconut oil a shot as well! thanks for all the tips!

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  2. I have really curly hair and started using shampoo/conditioner/styling balm specifically for my hair type. Also, instead of wrapping it In a towel and then brushing it, I scrunch it sorta dryish with one of the husbands cotton tshirts., then scrunch in the balm. I also color my hair, but with treating it a little better, the curls look way better and I have way less breakage. Also, having a hairdresser that knows what she's doing with my hair type really helps.

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    1. I've heard of using tshirts instead of a towel but I've never tried it! That's cool that you think it helps, I'll have to give it a shot! Thanks for sharing! :)

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  3. I Loved this one!!!! Due to stress of school and and a medical condition I've lost over half of my hair! I'm very self conscious about it, and really miss all of my hair. So I've started being super fanatical about the hair I have left. I use organic shampoos/conditioners as often as I can, natural bristle brush, and I swear by Moroccan Oil. Not Argan, or stuff you get at Wal-Mart, but the actual brand Moroccan Oil from a salon(not everyone sells it). I have wavy/curly hair. I put that in after I shower, and my hair has that nice mostly smooth wavy surfer look. I never used to just let my hair air dry, but I try not to damage it these days so I rarely use my hot tools anymore. Even though its too thin for my liking, it's really healthy. I use apple cider vinegar weekly too! And just use random deep conditioners, but I'll have to try the olive oil! Have you ever tried mayonnaise?

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    1. Amanda, I'm so sorry you're frustrated with your hair! When I was at my sickest with Lyme disease, my hair started shortening. It had been down to my butt and then all of a sudden it was up past my shoulders, such a frightening feeling for a woman! Your hair is beautiful, I've always noticed that it looks really shiny. I actually had a sample of Moroccan Oil and I liked it but I never went back to a salon and got more! Now I feel like I should! I've never tried Mayonnaise!!!

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    2. Oh really? So once you got your health under control it got better? They tell me mine should reverse itself sometime too, but I feel like I may be extension bound! Oh, well thank you so much!! I really do like how my hair feels with the Moroccan Oil. I'm a hair product junky and have used SO many different products, this ones the best by far. I've heard due to the lard in mayo its incredibly moisturizing, but I havent tried it either lol.

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    3. Almost as soon as I started getting better my hair started growing again. Organic and no preservatives in my food made the change for me. And there's nothing wrong with extensions!! Except that I've heard that the ones that are sewn in actually make your hair thinner. Clip ins are supposed to be the best :)

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  4. Thanks for the info!!!!"
    I recently cut off 12 inches (donated to locks of love)
    but now I miss my hair. I'm hoping it grows back fast!!!

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    1. Yes of course!! Wow, that's a lot of love and hair!! :) That is the weirdest feeling, to feel different and imbalanced without our long hair (I chopped mine once above my shoulders when I was about 9, I felt like a different human!) I hope it grows back quickly because you want it to, but I also think it was incredibly lovely of you to donate your hair :)

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  5. When i first got sick with my condition back in 2005, my hair came out in clumps, my sister who was a beautician in a previous life turn me on to Nioxin shampoo that really deep cleans your scalp. You can get it at a salon or at a beauty supply store. Helped my hair grow back and it's thick and shiny today :)

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    1. I have several friends who use Nioxin and love it! Thanks for the input!

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