Tips for the greasy haired gal…
I have a confession; up until about a month or so ago, I washed my hair every single day. And not only that, I also blowdried it AND curled it. EVERY DAMN DAY.
Well okay, sometimes I was lazy and threw it up in a top-knot, but mostly I put it through hell on an all-too-regular basis.
Eventually, it retaliated.
I started to notice my hair (which is also bleached…) snapping off in some places, right where I wrap each section around the barrel of a curling tong. Something had to give!
It was time to stop using heat on my hair daily, but I’m not a fan of my hair left naturally (it’s quite straight) so I knew I had to finally forego the daily wash and style routine in an attempt to cut down on the amount of heat I used.
For reference, my almost-straight hair is quite fine and gets greasy quickly. What’s more, I absolutely hate the feeling of unclean hair. It was more an issue of my hair feeling dirty than looking greasy – so I had to change my mentality as well as my routine and age old habits.
I’ve tried to train my hair in the past but I could never manage – I felt disgusting going out with with greasy hair, and it just doesn’t look great upon waking up. It’s quite frizzy in the morning, it sits weird around my crown and it always looks limp and dull with no real style to it.
I was determined though, I wanted to kind of understand my hair so I could work these issues out and have healthier hair (and more time!) in the long run.
Allow me to share how I did it…
Training Your Hair
The idea is that you go without washing your hair for as long as possible, so it’s a good thing to do when you don’t have a packed social calendar! Over time, your hair gets used to not being washed so often and in turn produces less oil to counteract the over-washing. Obviously though, you have to really commit to having greasy hair for a few weeks before you see results!
I think I managed five days before I washed it that first time, and then I left it for four days before washing, and then another four days, and then I slipped down to three days in-between washes and now I wash it every second or third day. I try to plan my hair washes around events, so if I’m at home working at my laptop or just meeting a friend for coffee, I’ll skip a hair wash and save it for when I really need clean, swishy hair.
I still feel like my hair is a bit gross on the second day, but it’s a lot better than it was! All it takes it a bit of dry shampoo and all’s good.
I’ve also noticed that there’s not a lot of difference between my hair from day two and day three, so I can usually make it to day three if I don’t have anything important on.
The Essentials
You’re going to become best friends with dry shampoo during this period, so stock up. I really only use the Klorane Gentle Dry Shampoo because I find it actually cleans my hair, and my scalp never feels itchy after a few days use. I recommend spraying dry shampoo in your hair before bed, and letting sleep do its thing. That way the oil is absorbed before it has a chance to show.
I also use a silk pillowcase so my hair holds the style and doesn’t get too tangled; this is one issue I am still working on actually, my hair doesn’t really hold my waves overnight but hopefully with time I’ll work on this.
One product I’ve found that has really helped is the Living Proof Perfect Hair Days Night Overnight Perfector, which is the product that started it all and made me believe that I could actually become a second-day-hair-washer. I applied this just as an overnight treatment one day, left my hair down while I slept and when I woke up, I noticed my hair looked exactly as it had the day before. No greasy roots, minimal frizz and the style seemed to hold too. It’s become a nightly staple for me!
I find my hair gets a lot of dry shampoo build-up so I try to use the Bumble & bumble Sunday Shampoo once a week to clarify, this isn’t really ideal for coloured hair but needs must.
Then I apply a mask afterwards to really get in there and give my hair some TLC.
As my everyday shampoo, I love the Kristin Ess Extra Gentle Shampoo and Conditioner, I really feel like these don’t weigh down my hair at all so it lasts that little bit longer without requiring a wash.
I also purchased a microfibre hair towel, because I read that normal bath towel aren’t good for the hair – who knew?! I find the microfibre helps to tame frizziness and leaves my hair feeling softer, so it’s definitely worth looking in to.
Some Things To Note…
I always felt like my hair was so slick with grease by the second day that I couldn’t possibly leave the house with it in such a state! The more people I spoke to, I realised that it was me being over-critical. It really wasn’t that bad to other people, so that’s something I’ve kept in mind during this process. It’s never as bad as it seems!
I also find sleeping with my hair down works a lot better for me; if I tie it up (even with a silk scrunchie) it kinks and never sits right the next day. The combination of a silk pillowcase and my hair down as I sleep seems to work for me, but I guess everyone is different!
Changing My Thinking
I used to associate feeling clean with having freshly-washed hair, so for a while even though I was still showering in the morning, without washing my hair I didn’t feel right! It took a few weeks to get used to, but I feel fine with it now.
It’s worth noting that I absolutely love washing my hair these days, it’s become a bit of an event – massaging my scalp, brushing through a hair mask, wrapping it up and then smoothing through a leave-in treatment. I feel so pampered!
All in all, it really has been a bit of a journey! It’s been pretty life-changing for me though, I have a lot more time now and I feel like my hair is already appreciating less heat.
I’m still figuring out what works for me and what doesn’t, so if there’s anything you feel has helped you get to grips with washing your hair less – please let me know in the comments.
Have you been thinking about cutting down on washing and heat?
