Oily/Greasy Hair Solution

So last weekend was the dry hair solution, today is the greasy or oily hair solution! So if you have this problem, keep on reading!
So this first idea, is slightly different than getting rid of grease for good. Use a dry shampoo. Doing this will absorb the grease already in your hair, and will make your hair less greasy that day, but it does not change how fast your hair will get greasy. So if you're just looking for something to spray in, in the morning to reduce the greasy look then try purchasing a dry shampoo. I like the Dove Dry Shampoo and TRESemme Volumizing Dry Shampoo is also pretty good. But that's just for my hair, so try out some different kind and see what works best for you! All you have to do is spray it into your greasy roots and sometimes rub it in a little if it gets a little white looking (generally not a problem for people with lighter hair). Another thing to consider if you don't want to use dry shampoo is baby powder. It will also absorb grease from your hair. The cons to using baby powder though are that it's harder to apply to your hair, you can either shake it straight onto your hair or brush it in, but it's rather difficult. Also it tends to make your hair a little staticy and can leave more white in your hair than dry shampoo will, again, not a problem for people will light or blonde hair.
So that being said let's look at ways that will actually help eliminate grease all together! Try purchasing a clarifying shampoo and rubbing your scalp vigorously. Often the problem is the oily build up at the roots of your hair that causes it to be more greasy so if you have a shampoo that is to clean really well the top fo your head, and if you scrub it into your roots well it will get rid of some, or all of the build up and your hair will take longer to get greasy.
Another thing that will really help is avoiding conditioning at your roots and scalp. Conditioner adds moisture to your hair and if your roots are generally getting greasy fast, you won't need any extra moisture there. So when usuing conditioner only condition the ends of your hair, that's where it's needed most!
Also to get rid of build up on your scalp, once a week use a scalp scrub. You can either buy one in the store, or make one using things you probably already have in your house. I'll post one idea below, however I have never had a need to use a scalp scrub, therefore it's just an idea from online and I haven't yet tried it so I couldn't tell you whether it worked well or not. But basically you just take the scrub and scrub it onto your scalp... pretty straight forward, right? I will post the link from where I go this recipe below. Here's a recipe:
Step 1
Combine 2 tbsp. brown sugar and 2 tbsp. finely ground oatmeal in a small bowl. Add 2 tbsp. hair conditioner to the mixture and knead the ingredients together with your hair
Step 2
Add 15 drops of the essential oil of your choice to the scrub mixture. Work the oil as evenly through the mixture as possible
Step 3
Shampoo the hair before beginning the scalp scrub if you have styling products such as gel or mousse or hairspray in it. If no styling products are in hair, wet the hair and scalp thoroughly.
Step 4
Get a few tablespoons of the scalp scrub mixture onto your fingers, but not all over the palms of the hands. Put your fingers on your scalp and begin to work the scrub into your scalp, using a circular motion.
Step 5
Add more of the scrub mixture, as needed. Continue to massage your scalp in a circular motion for a few minutes, until you have covered the entire scalp area.
Step 6
Rinse the scalp scrub from your hair, shampoo and conditioner as normal.

You could also just use your fingers to massage your scalp which can help loosen the build up but may not be quite as effective.
As much as you try to minimize the grease in your hair it's usually hereditary, meaning it runs in your family, so there's not a bunch you can do about it. But I hope you found this useful and will try out some of the ideas!
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions feel free to e-mail me: damagebegone@hotmail.com
-Ashley

Dry Hair Solution

Alright so a lot of people either struggle with dry hair or overly greasy hair. It's not uncommon and often questions are asked, begging for advice on how to prevent your hair from being this way or at least make it more manageable, so I would like to do a post on dry hair, and hopefully soon greasy hair. I'll give you the best advice that I can!
First of all what causes dry hair? Well there's not one 'right' answer, it can be brought on by dandruff, your diet, chemically processing your hair, or being in the sun too long. So those are things you want to watch out for by taking care of dandruff right away, keeping yourself on a healthy diet and drinking plenty of water, not bleaching or dying your hair and if so doing it as healthily as possible (see post on bleaching and dying hair) and using heat protectants while going out for a long day in the sun or using heat tools on your hair!
Now you know some of the ways you can prevent it, but what about those who already have dry hair? Well first of all, all the ideas listed above are still relevant in helping restore moisture in your hair but there's even more you can do for your dry hair.
Number one being, doing everything you can to make the rest of your body healthier through exercise, healthy diets, drinking plenty of water (8 cups a day) and trying not to get overly stressed. Next you do not want to be washing your hair every day, which could very likely be the cause of your dry hair. You want to wash it only every other day, even longer if you can without it looking too greasy. Washing it everyday will strip it of its natural oils making it dryer and dryer. Although the ends of your hair might be super dry at the ends you may feel like your hair gets greasy at the top so you need to wash it everyday, well try purchasing a dry shampoo to absorb grease so you can go longer without washing it, baby powder also works but tends to need to be blended in more that dry shampoo as it makes your hair white, which is generally not a problem for blondes.
Next I would suggest looking into the shampoos and conditioners that you buy. I would always encourage getting a moisturizing shampoo, whether your hair is dry or greasy, it's just simply the best for your hair. So always look for a shampoo that says something about moisture or moisturizing. Apply shampoo to just your scalp and roots and conditioner to mostly your ends. You can also look into buying a deep conditioner and using it once a week, applying it to your hair (but not scalp as it will generally get greasy easier) and then leaving it in for at least 5 minutes, longer is always better, then rinse it out. When rinsing out the deep
conditioner or normal conditioner start with warmish water (not hot water, you should never shower in hot water as heat is bad for your hair) the warm water will open up your hair cuticles and let the moisture from the conditioner in but then rinse with cool or cold water to close the hair cuticles and trap the moisture within.
Also look into buying a natural oil product for you hair such as coconut oil or olive oil. The product will generally say whether to apply it to wet, damp or dry hair and how much but I wouldn't apply it to scalp or roots because it's oil so it tends to be slightly greasy and could make your roots look greasy quicker. Another really great thing for your hair is hair masks! You may or may not have heard of them but they're extremely good for you hair and you shouldn't have to buy anything for it, generally the masks are mixed with things you would find in your house. You can see more on hair masks if you go to my blog post about it, there are different hair masks to try out there. I'm pretty sure it's just titled "hair masks".
And almost anything suggested for getting "healthy" hair on this blog should help with dry hair considering, dry hair is generally damaged and damaged hair is generally dry. So feel free to flip through the rest of the blog to get even more ideas!

I can make another post on this with more ideas if you guys would like that, feel free to e-mail me with comments, questions and suggestions at: damagebegone@hotmail.com
Thanks for reading,
Ashley

What Type of Foods to Eat for Healthy Hair

So awhile ago I posted a tip on eating healthy to help maintain healthy hair but there are specific foods that can help with your hair in different ways, so here's some ideas!

The following foods have a lot of Omega-3 in them so they help keep hair, nails and skin healthier. You should try and have some of these food everyday.
-Salmon, tuna, mackeral and other fatty fish
-Flax seed oil
-Walnuts, almonds, milk

Vitamins B-6, B-12 and folic acids are important for your hair. Taking multivitamins helps get more of these nutrients but the following foods have lots of these vitamins and are good to add to your diet
-Vitamin B-6: bananas, potatoes and spinach
-Vitamin B-12: meat, poultry, fish and dairy products
-Folic acid: citrus fruits, tomatoes, whole grain, fortified grain products, beans and lentils

So those are the main ones. I hope this gave you some ideas or helped inform you a bit more on foods for healthy hair!
Questions, comments or suggestions? Feel free to e-mail me!
damagebegone@hotmail.com

Tip 15: Switch Your Shampoos and Conditioners

So you know when you find that one shampoo/conditioner that just is AMAZING and works MIRACLES in your hair and then a couple weeks later the effect kind of wears off. Maybe you've experienced that maybe not. But here's a tip for those of us who have. Alternate what kind of shampoo and conditioner you use, whether that be every other day or every other week it's good to switch things up so the 'wow' effect never wears off. You should try to find 2 shampoos/conditioners that work really well for your hair and alternate between them so your hair doesn't get too 'used to' just one kind.
That's the tip for today! Enjoy your evening, or whatever time of day it is right now where you live!

-Ashley
damagebegone@hotmail.com

October Favorites

So, often YouTubers have a 'favorites' video for each month. I'm not promising one for every single month but I will have one this month- a little early because otherwise I might forget or just not have time! This month I've purchased some really great products I would like to share with you, hope you enjoy.

This is a product my mother actually bought from I believe it was TJ Maxx although I'm not 100% sure when we were in the States. It's a Deep Moisture Shampoo and Conditioner for damaged hair by Giovanni. I've never heard of Giovanni before but my mom thought we should try it. Anyways I used it once and my hair was noticeably softer and more healthy looking, after ONE use. I was super impressed. I really do feel like it puts a lot more moisture into my hair than the previous shampoo and conditioner I used and would definitely recommend it if you have dry or damaged hair! I did not purchase this item myself so I'm not sure how much it costs.

The next product I've really been enjoying this month is my Chi Shine Infusion hair shine spray. Mostly I've been LOVING the smell, it's amazing. That's actually why I bought it. So not only is the product weightless and not only does it make my hair look shiny and polished without flyaways, it also provides protection against heat damage! Which is awesome! Although it says it will repair split ends, which is impossible I still love the product for it's other abilities. I would highly recommend purchasing this product if you're looking for a shine spray for your hair! I got it for about $8.00 but I believe it was on sale.

This product I believe I've blogged about before, I recently repurchased it because I ran out. It's my favorite heat protectant that I've had before and this month I've just been really especially enjoying it because with school on I've been using a bit more heat in my hair lately and I'm really thankful I have this heat protectant so I can be reducing the damage done. It smells AMAZING and works really well and instead of making hair sticky and gross it actually makes it softer I find! It's a really great product. I got this for about $5.00.

This is the last product on my October Favorites post. Aussie still continues to be my all time favorite hairspray brand! I haven't actually found an exact Aussie one that I prefer over other Aussie ones but anyways this is the one I have right now. I've really been loving it, after straightening my hair I just go ahead and spray some in and then brush through it and it doesn't even feel sticky after, but it holds my hair in place all day! And of course it smells great too! Approximately $4.00 dollars at Wal-Mart.

Tip 14: Keeping Your Hair Safe From Chlorine

Alright so during the summer, what better way to cool off then jumping into a nice, clean pool? Even as the winter season approaches, indoor swimming pools can be just as much fun! But here's the problem, pools have a bunch of chlorine in them, and chlorine is not good for your hair, it can dry it out and do damage to it. But there are some steps you can take so that it reduces the amount of damage done to your hair.

1. Shower before going into the pool.

So often swimming pools will have a freshwater shower for you to use before entering the pool, so use it! It helps prepare your hair for the pool water. So you need to saturate your hair, by doing this is won't soak up the chlorine water in the pool,  it should keep your hair from getting dry and weak.

2. Rinse out your hair after swimming.

If chlorine stays in your hair for a long time it can damage your hair. If you wash it out right away there's less chance that it will dry out. So when you're done swimming just quickly rinse it out in a shower!

3. Take special care of your hair.

So after you swim, once you get home you should shampoo your hair with a moisturizing shampoo and leave your conditioner in for 3 minutes, to get moisture back in your hair. Do this the next couple of times that you wash your hair after swimming, if you don't already do it every night. Also once a week use a deep conditioner to really help your hair to not dry out. \

4. Leave conditioner in your hair.

Before entering the pool, shower then put conditioner in and don't rinse it out, just swim with it in. The coating should help protect your hair from the chlorine, but if you're swimming for a long period of time it may wash out, making it ineffective. 

5. Purchase a special shampoo.

There are shampoos out there made especially for people who spend a lot of time in the water. If you're a professional swimmer or just spend a lot of time at the pool you might want to consider purchasing one.

6. Swim Caps

Yes, they can be dorky. I get it, but if you feel your hair really needs it and you're comfortable with doing it, then you could use a swim cap to tuck your hair in so it doesn't even get wet, then getting chlorine in it really isn't an issue. Professional swimmers may use these anyways.

There you have it! Some tips on what you can do to protect your hair from chlorine damage. Hope it helped you or gave you some new ideas.

-Ashley

damagebegone@hotmail.com

Tip 13: Don't Always Thin Your Hair

So if you have really thick hair, or pretty thick hair you may have discovered getting your hairdresser to thin it out is a great solution! I know I did! So lately I've been thinning my hair almost every I go to the hairdresser but lately it seems that my hair has gotten kinda thin on its own so yesterday when I was getting my hair trimmed the lady asked if I wanted it thinned and I said I didn't think I would do it this time and she brought to my attention something I didn't know. She told me that thinning my hair can actually make it weaker and damage it. You know the tool they use to thin it? Well it tends to be really hard on your hair, pulling it a lot and it can end up making your hair more prone to get split ends. So my hairdresser said if you're going to be thinning your hair try to only do it about every other time you get it cut to help keep it looking nice. So just take that into consideration when you next get your hair cut!
-Ashley
damagebegone@hotmail.com

Tip 12: Drink Water and Eat Healthy

So this tip is rather straight forward. Like the title says, drink water and eat healthy, drinking water helps moisturize hair and skin. Eating healthy will also help your hair and skin. Your body is all connected somehow, if you are eating healthy, drinking healthy and getting enough exercise you should have a healthy weight, a clear face, healthy hair etc. I mean there are some exceptions and conditions but learning to eat and drink healthy is a great start to strengthening your hair. If you're noticing really dry hair then drinking 8 cups of water a day can help you get a bit more moisture in your hair. Also homemade hair masks are kind of linked to that because they're putting the nutrients in the foods directly on your hair instead of inside your body, then used by your body and then a bit is used towards your hair. I'll post a direct link to my hair mask blog post, so feel free to check that out. For further questions on specific foods you should eat for healthier hair just comment or e-mail me at damagebegone@hotmail.com and if you want me to make a post about it I can do that too.

http://damagebegone.blogspot.ca/2012/08/tip-7-hair-masks.html

Tip 11: Letting Your Hair Dry Naturally vs. Blow Drying

First and foremost, please do know that in the side poll at the blog, the 'light brow' is supposed to be 'light brown' as I'm sure you assumed. Sorry about that but because people have already voted I cannot change the spelling. So as you all already know if you've read my blog at all I am very against heat on hair and avoided it a bunch. But here's a question that I've seen come up a couple of times. This is the question. "What is more damaging, straightening or blow drying?" or "If I don't blow dry it I have to go over one piece of hair with a straightener more than once but if I do blow dry I don't have to straighten each piece more than once, which is better?". So here is my answer. Although I am no professional hair dresser or anything this is partly my opinion. I personally think that blow drying is a lot less damaging than straightening. Here's why, a blow dryer generally doesn't get as hot as a straightener would, so that's already a good thing, but that also depends what heat you have your straightener at. But also the heat is not being applied directly to your hair, I mean yes it's blowing heat on your hair directly but its not like a hot plate TOUCHING your hair. If that makes sense. Also if your blow dryer has a 'cool' setting be sure to use it. Because cool= less damaging than heat, as you probably already know. So in my opinion if blow drying your hair will reduce the amount of straightening you need to do, then you should do that. But before you blow dry your hair, although I believe it's less damaging you should still spray in a heat protectant, wait for it to dry and THEN blow dry your hair. Hope this answered your questions. If you have further questions regarding this subject or anything else about your hair, feel free to e-mail me at damagebegone@hotmail.com
-Ashley