Yet, so many things can strip that away. Here are some of my thoughts on how to get your hair to really shine!

Simply put, shine is created when healthy hair cuticles reflect light.

A dry, frazzled cuticle is like a pinecone, with openings, breaks, and tears that create a rough surface that absorbs light. A healthy, closed cuticle is like a silky, smooth pine needle that shimmers and refracts light to create a high-gloss sheen.

Harsh color products and overprocessing damage cuticles and work against shine, leaving hair looking dried out and stressed. Drugstore shampoos and conditioning products with inferior or harmful ingredients can clog scalp pores and coat strands, leaving a dull residue that masks a silky shimmer. Environmental and internal stress and injury due to harsh heat from older hair dryers and flat irons also take their toll on the health and texture of your hair cuticles.

Committing to a protocol with the right products, tools and care regimen for your particular hair type and condition is key.

Here are some recommendations we make to our clients, depending upon their specific issues. Consult your stylist for the best choices for you.

• Treatment-based hair product lines like Rene Furterer and Kerastase help you to identify specific types of damage, ranging from overprocessed, stressed, frizzy, aging, thinning hair, unhealthy, clogged, or dry scalps, and more. They offer prescriptive product lines to target those problems and help hair recover for long-term improvement results.

• Cosmetic-oriented lines like Oribe and Shu Uemura provide a range of specialty shampoos, conditioners, and finishing products that achieve certain effects. These provide healthier hair with an immediate, short-term boost to clarify, condition, and add elasticity, bounce and fullness.

• It’s always best to avoid products that contain harmful ingredients that clog the scalp, retain unhealthy bacteria, and leave hair strands dry, lifeless and weighed down with residue. Clarifying shampoos and products like dpHUE Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse remove buildup on hair and scalp. Trimming dead ends will also help to keep your look polished and refreshed. 

• And finally, all heat is not created equal!  Older and non-professional grade hair dryers and flat irons can lack the technology to keep hair protected. We like BaByliss RAPIDO Lightweight hairdryer for its consumer-friendly weight and 2000 watts of hot air velocity, and ghd ‘s flat irons for their calibrated heat. I also recommend applying Oribe’s Balm d’Or heat styling shield and Kerastase Defense Thermique products to heat-styled hair to keep it soft and silky.

I hope this helps you get your shine on!

We’ll be back in touch in a couple of weeks with our next post. Meanwhile, I would love to hear how you are enjoying HairLine here and invite you to join the conversation and share your ideas and suggestions for future topics. 

Regards,

Kenny

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