So many of us want a straight, gorgeous mane, but we aren’t exactly sure how to get there. Or our hair starts off looking good, but at some point in the day it either falls flat or gets frizzy. Let’s take a closer look at what causes frizz and how to fix it.

You spend a pretty penny to get your hair cut, colored, and styled several times each year. And when you leave the salon it looks fantastic. They straighten your hair beautifully, but then the moment you wash it for the first time after your salon trip that lustrous mane seems to have gone out the window and you end up wearing your hair up in a ponytail or scraping together some sort of sock bun until your next trip to the salon. Is this your story?

What Causes Frizzy Hair?

Generally speaking, frizzy hair lacks moisture, so any of the ways that you strip moisture from your hair can cause frizz. A number of factors in your own beauty routine can actually cause your hair to get frizzy and make it more difficult to tame. These include:

• Taking super hot and long showers.
• Shampooing your hair too often, (which, depending how dry your hair is, can mean every single day).
• Starting off with naturally drier hair.
• In the winter, even though the air lacks humidity (another cause of frizziness) the dry winter air can also cause frizz.

5 Tips for How to Tame Your Mane

Luckily, if you’re not exactly proud of your mane, you can take a number of steps to tame it.

1. Upgrade your blowdryer.

If you’ve had the same junky hair dryer for a decade, it might be time for an upgrade. Ionic technology hair dryers are a great place to start.

2. Wash your hair every other day.

Again, washing your hair every day causes frizz, so it’s best to cut back.  In other words, get yourself a good shower cap.

3. Invest in a good leave-in conditioner treatment.

Combat dryness with a good leave-in conditioner treatment. Acure has a great leave-in conditioner made with argon oil ($10). Some other great products include Rare Elements with it’s luxury brand of leave-in conditioner made with marula oil ($38) and John Masters Organics, which features another great leave-in treatment made with green tea and calendula ($20).

How to Straighten Your Hair

Make sure your hair is completely dry before getting started. You may want to air dry your hair and add an anti-frizz product like Giovanni Frizz Be Gone Hair Serum ($15). Or if you dry your hair with a blowdryer, start by flipping your head and drying from the bottom up.

1. Use a heat protection spray.

If you’re going to use a flat iron, make sure you protect your hair first by adding in heat protection spray like this one from Desert Essence ($7). It adds a layer of protection from the hot iron.

2. Iron it out.

Now it’s time to add in your flat iron. You can divide your hair into sections using hair clips, starting from underneath your hair. Gradually move toward the top of your head. Try and avoid the hair roots, which can dry out your hair.

3. Keep your hair in place.

Once your hair is the way you want it, keep it in place with a good hair spray like Beauty Without Cruelty ($7).

If you want straight and lustrous hair, don’t straighten your hair every day. In fact, do it as little as possible. It doesn’t matter how high quality the products that you use on your hair are if you apply too much heat.

4 DIY Hair Maintenance Masks to Repair Damaged Hair

Gorgeous shiny hair is healthy. That’s why hair maintenance is so important. Eating a healthy diet loaded with fruits and vegetables, hydration, and lots of good fats is a great place to start, but you should also give your hair a break every so often from washing, drying, and ironing. Additionally, a good DIY hair mask or leave-in treatment can also help. I wouldn’t necessarily do these treatments before a big event just in case it takes a few washes to remove the mask.

1. DIY Deep Conditioning Treatment

Ingredients:
1 egg yolk
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. mayonnaise

Directions:

1. Combine ingredients well using a whisk.
2. Cover your hair completely, using your fingers to massage into your locks.
3. Put your hair in a bun and cover with a plastic bag for 30 minutes.
4. Wash and condition your hair to remove the deep conditioning treatment.

2. Coconut and Olive Oil

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. coconut oil
1 Tbsp. olive oil

Directions
1. Whisk together both oils in a small bowl.

2. Using your hands, massage into your hair locks, taking time to ensure it reaches the roots.

3. Put your hair into a bun and cover with an old towel.

4. Let the hair mask sit on your hair for 30 minutes.

5. Shampoo and condition as you normally would.

3. Avocado Hair Mask

Ingredients
½ avocado, diced
1 egg yolk

Directions

1. Using a blender, combine the avocado and egg until smooth.

2. Starting at the scalp, massage into the hair, paying special attention to the roots.

3. Wrap hair in an old towel and let stand for 30 minutes.

3. Wash and condition hair as usual.

4. Aloe Vera and Olive Oil Mask:

Ingredients:

4 Tbsp. aloe vera
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 egg yolk

Directions

1. Combine all of the ingredients with a whisk.

2. Using an old comb, brush the combination into your hair. Massage combination into any remaining locks left untreated.

3. Keep in overnight for best results.

4. Wash and condition your hair as usual. You may want to repeat this treatment daily until your damaged hair feels healthy again.

Do you have any tips on straightening your hair? What are your favorite products? How do you protect your locks from heat damage? We want to know! Drop us a line via Twitter @EcoSalon.

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The post Tame Your Mane This Winter: How to Straighten Your Hair Without Damaging It appeared first on EcoSalon.

Curly haired girls rejoice! Now is your time to shine. A big, full head of curls is totally in. Not so texturally blessed? Straight haired gals can get in on this look too. But first, the difference between a faux fro and a twist out.

Haven’t you always wanted to sport an Afro? To those of us with straight or mildly wavy hair, this look may have seemed an impossible dream. Well get ready to go big, because the faux fro is currently on trend and here to help those with limp, straight or otherwise uninspired locks.

Here’s the deal though. The ‘fro may not be new, but is news as a possibility for women with straight hair. An article in the August issue of Allure magazine features actress Marissa Neitling with a faux fro created by celebrity hair stylist, Chris McMillan. The look is cool, modern and … controversial?

After the issue ran, a backlash soon broke out over cultural appropriation. Many readers felt offended over the idea of teaching white women how to create this traditionally black hairstyle.

While there are many natural versions of this hairstyle roaming around out there on people of all races (looking at you, Seth Rogen), the same goes for straightened hair and many other style. So  maybe the style needs a different name when worn on white women. The coil? The twist? The big bounce? One reader on Twitter claims the look is actually called a “twist out” when done this way. Kinda love it!

We certainly are not intent on offending anyone, and admire and accept women and hairstyles of all kinds. Whether you are natural or do some styling to get your locks straight, curly or somewhere in between, do your thing.

How to Rock a Twist Out (aka, Faux Fro)

Heat Styling: If you want to get the look in less than a few hours time, go for the heat method. This method works best on wavy hair. Blow dry with a diffuser attachment until hair is completely dry. Now use a tiny barreled curling iron on tiny sections of hair. Didn’t say the process was fast, but quicker than the air dry method.

No Heat Styling: If you have the day off or are spending the night in, this is the method for you. Remember rag curls? Same idea only you’ll be using smaller sections of hair. Rip an old, soft Tshirt into skinny strips and roll from roots to scalp. The tinier the sections, the better your curls will look. Let air dry completely and remove the cloth strips.

Now gently loosen curls with your fingers and *voila* you are ready to go. For either method use an ample amount of sturdy mousse or styling product before drying or rolling. Try Rahua Hair Wax for long hair, Yarok Feed Your Curls Defining Crème for wavy hair, or Yarok Feed Your Roots Volume Enhancing Mousse.

*Disclaimer: Help support EcoSalon! Our site is dedicated to helping people live a conscious lifestyle. We’ve provided some affiliate links above in case you wish to purchase any of these products.

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Image of girl with curly hair via Shutterstock

The post Faux Fro or Twist Out? Choose Wisely appeared first on EcoSalon.