TIRED OF THE FRIZZ?

So you want to wear your hair big? Well here is my guide to wearing your hair high and mighty.

Lets start with our equipment checklist. Why? Well if you don’t get the drying aspect right you make the job so much harder for yourself.

1. A good hairdryer is essential, your stylist can recommend one for you. Professional hairdryers dry quicker, give you more control, make it easier to get frizz control and help eliminate static.

2. Diffuser — Particularly if you have wavy/curly hair. A diffuser attachment is a great way to give your hair a little oomph! A diffuser is designed to circulate the airflow to a wider area giving your hair time to wave/curl as you scrunch your hair dry. Its a great way to encourage waves and curl.

3. Curling irons/wand ghd — Adding curls/waves to your hair will give you width and height. On short hair you can use your irons to create tonged curls, on medium and longer hair you can use your wand/ghd to create softer waves/curls for bang on trend looks.

4. Vent brush — Use a vent brush when blow drying your hair from damp. A vent brush is designed to allow the air from your hairdryer to circulate around the hair, blowing through the brush and creating body and bounce in a controlled manner.

5. A big round brush — Will always make getting root lift and bounce into your blow dry much easier. Rolling your brush up and down the length of your hair as you are drying it will encourage more volume.

6. Heated rollers — Always good for fine lacklustre hair and a must for the girls on weekends away. Wind them into dry hair, go do your makeup for the night out. Once they have cooled down unwind them, then run your fingers through the lengths for root lift and lots of bounce.

7. A backcombing brush/comb — Essential for becoming a true volumised diva.

Ok, now we have our styling tools lets talk about a few products that will make your styling even easier still.

Shampoo — A shampoo and conditioner specifically designed to help create volume is a great place to start (particularly for fine hair), we recommend Il Salone Mythic Shampoo by Alfaparf Milano.

Mousse/thickening spray/volumising spray — These give brilliant volume when added to damp hair before drying. They coat the hair shaft giving a thicker appearance when blow dried. They will also lift the roots giving your style root boost, volume and excellent hold. We recommend mousse’s/sprays/volume gel from the Yellow Liss range by Alfaparf Milano.

Hairspray — never ever be without hairspray. It doesn’t matter what trick you are using to big up your hair, if you don’t hold it in place its all going to count for nothing. Be careful not to overdo it though, as over use of any product can weigh the hair down, removing all that body. There are numerous hairsprays/fixing sprays/shine sprays worth using and we recommend checking out the Yellow Style range Strong Hold Hairspray by Alfaparf Milano or the Colour Wow range for one that suits you.

So now we are all tooled up here are our final tips to make your big hair day as long lasting as possible.

Towel dry your hair until it is damp rather than wet, do this without being too vigorous. If you blow dry from really wet you run the risk of blow drying volume out of your lock.

Don’t apply too much product. Too much (especially the wrong product) especially on fine hair can make the hair heavy, dragging your style down. Be sparing when adding product, add little by little and in time you will quickly discover the ideal amount of product to use.

Make sure your hair is completely dry after the blow drying. Damp roots or damp mid lengths/ends will pull the hair down and undo all the volume you have been creating.
Practise the art of root massage. This can be very helpful when you are on a night out and you want to give your hair a quick oomph. Pop to the loo, flip your hair over your head and massage your fingertips into the root area. Flip your hair back again and arrange the hair for that extra oomph.

Change your parting — It seems super simple and it is…moving your parting from one side to the other will instantly give you root lift at the front, leaving your hair lifted and thicker looking.

Dry shampoo/hair powder — Dry shampoo used on those days when you really only have five minutes to spare can give your hair a thicker look. Apply and brush out and you will see added volume. Hair powder added to dry roots and backcombed give great volume or sprinkle on mid-lengths and ends for matt texture.

Backcombing — Learn the trick to backcombing/brushing for the purpose of creating root lift. Working section by section hold the hair vertically then push your comb/brush from below your holding hand right down to the roots. Depending on the height/volume desired you may want to repeat this more than the once. Repeat the process on all other sections required.

Finally, you may want to consider the actual hairstyle you have. Is it allowing you get the maximum volume you desire?
A consultation should be complimentary. If you chat to your stylist about trying a style that will help thicken up your locks he/she will probably suggest layers. Layers encourage movement and texture in your mid-lengths and ends which in turn, makes your hair look thicker and healthier, especially if styled with movement. Adding colour to your hair can help boost volume. If you have never coloured your hair before, consider adding some high/low lights or even an all over colour. The colour will plump up the middle of the hair leaving you with thicker looking hair.

I hope this has given you the necessary to help create that big look, but even if it has why not consider pampering yourself at home? Go on, click on my appointment diary and treat yourself, alternatively contact me to arrange a suitable appointment for my complimentary consultation and free skin test.