When I get asked, “does my hair need a treatment”, my answer is always uhhhhh…? In reality, your long lovely locks are a wound-up chain of dead cells. OMG! Like the elastic of your swimsuit. All those woven spandex fibers start out perky, springy, and strong yet after some time of use and abuse, the fibers weaken, begin to fray, sag then break.
That’s what happens with our hair. Hair is healthiest at the scalp and root area because it hasn’t been around long enough to get the abuse our mid shafts and ends receive. Chemicals, hot tools, hairbands/ clips, sun, and salt all make a weakening impact. The longer the hair, the more history your hair has had. Which brings me to my uhhhhh. If hair is composedcomprised of dead cells, can a treatment really make a difference!
Knowledge is power so let’s break it all down in threes starting with...The Hair!
Check out this pic. It shows us the hair has 3 layers. The cuticle is the outer most layer that looks like shingles on a roof. Its job is to protect the fort. These tiny shingles lift and close when met with heat, chemicals, acids and alkalisalkalines.
The cortex is the thickest layer and holds most of the pigment giving your hair its color. This is where all the action happens when you color, straighten and/or perm your hair.
Not everyone has a medulla layer. Those that rock this nearly invisible layer are those with coarsecourse hair giving it a little extra strength.
And there we have it, the 3 layers of the hair!
The next three are reasons we would use a treatment; to moisturize, to protect and to strengthen. Moisturizers help to maintain the moisture balance in your hair strand. If your hair is feeling a bit dry or brittle, a moisturizer may do it wonders. A few common moisturizing ingredients are glycerin, aloe vera, shea butter and of course the oils; avocado, olive and coconut top the list.
Protectants like silicone, hydrolyzed wheat protein and copolymers are your hairs armor, shrouding the outside surface of the hair thus creating a protective layer from heat (hot tools) and effects from the environment like the sun.
To strengthen your hair, the best approach is to start inward. Eating a healthy balanced, vitamin and mineral rich diet not only does the heart good, your hair loves it too! To strengthen the hair outward, turn down the heat, brush daily (gently) to stimulate the scalp and move natural oils further down the hair shaft, use protein rich products that mend,rebuild and restore the hair bonds…like Olaplex.
Phew---that was getting heady! Now onto the last set of threes
My top 3 recommendations
If you are a DIYer, you can open your cupboards and find some commonly used moisturizers, pH balancers and strengtheners. Like what you ask?
Check out this link, it is one of my favorite articles with some very sensible and easy to follow recipes.
https://www.womansday.com/style/beauty/advice/g2276/homemade-hair-treatments/
If you are more one and done minded and/or prefer to have all the science to help heal your hair, my top picks are Loreal Professionnel Serie Expert. One of the most science-based treatment lines with Nanotechnology that fills any hair restorative need. Learn more here: https://us.lorealprofessionnel.com/hair-care
Kerastase, what can I say? Tried and true. For more, follow this link:
https://www.kerastase-usa.com/
For extremely damaged hair, nothing can top Olaplex. Olaplex is the first of its kind to actually reverse the effects of overly damaged hair by restoring broken disulfide bonds. Yes! Very intriguing and why I put this link here for you. https://olaplex.com/pages/how-it-works
And last but not least, my ultimate FAVORITE treatment meets DIY and science in the middle. Surface! This not so well-known Organic Hair Care line lets you be your own cook in your hair treatment kitchen. Here is a list of the 3 products you would want:
1) Surface Bassu Hydrating Oil-(it’s in the name), adds moisture to your dry, frizzy, or brittle hair. https://surfacehair.com/product/bassu-hydrating-oil/
2) Surface Trinity One Shot- this protein packed vial adds strength a vitality back into compromised locks. https://surfacehair.com/product/trinity-one-shot/
3) Surface Bassu Hydrating Masque covers the bases, moisturizes, protects and strengthens. https://surfacehair.com/product/bassu-masque/
And the last three:
Mix; Apply: Style
1) Mix the 3 together- you are the chef and get to decide the amounts of each ingredient that your hair craves. I’ll give you a little jump start then you take it from here.
About a quarter to silver dollar size dollop of the Bassu Hydrating masque. (for longer hair use more)bout a teaspoon to a tablespoon of the Bassu Oil ( depends on hair length and dryness), ½ to a whole vial of the Trinity One Shot. This protein blend can be used for one application for intense strength building or use partial, recap, refrigerate and save for your next treatment.
2) Apply like a conditioner from root to ends, comb thru to evenly distribute thru the hair, cap (if you have one) and let sit for 10-20min.
3) Style! That’s right, no rinsing, just blow dry and finish your treatment with a hot tool to seal the deal. This lovely treatment also makes a wonderful styling cream-a 2 for 1!
There you have it! Now you know why the uhhhhhh. All you wanted to know was if your hair needed a treatment and you got 3 pages with 3 topics and 3 options that took me 3 weeks to write!
