Lots of people come up to me and wanna know either one of two things -- they ask how I style my wavy hair, or whether or not I'm aware of my fly-down situation. Since the latter elicits a straightforward response and an embarrassed eyebrow raise, I thought I'd take to the Internet to officially answer the FAQ about m'locks. If you're working with wavy to curly long hair and want to know the secret behind making it look professionally polished with very little effort, read on, comrades, read on.
You're going to kill me -- I've been called "disgusting" and the ilk before in comments sections regarding this not-so-controversial statement -- but the key to hair happiness is not washing it. I would scream it from the rooftops if I could. I would drop little notes from an airplane imploring its finder to step away from the shampoo; I'd do just about anything to inform you about the miracles of not washing your hair.
Here's the deal. You exercise. Good for you! So do I. I sweat like a maniac and my hair's soaked through, and possibly dripping, by the time I'm done with my three-minute run. Does that mean I have to wash it? No! What it does mean is that when my hair dries, I'm going to have some serious volume and some big, rockin' waves when I go out to celebrate my rigorous workout.
You're nervous about it smelling. Valid point. To eliminate and cover up the faint odor (it's not like your scalp smells like your armpit, so let's not overdo it here), I use After Party by Tigi. It smooths down fly-aways and has this great, expensive salon smell to it. Bonus that the bottle looks -- interesting. Just yesterday a co-worker thought I had a dildo on my desk. Right. Because that's how I like to relax at work. Come on. IT'S HAIR CREAM GAWD.
Fast-forward. It's day three of your no-wash routine and you've worked out three times. You need a boost, so turn to Ojon Revitalizing Mist. The name says it all. Some leave-in conditioners are really heavy, but not this puppy. Spray on your hair and let the revitalizing begin.
Day four or five, go ahead and wash. Rinse, repeat, the whole deal, then start your non-wash cycle all over again.
There's nothing to be afraid of -- this easy trick saves you so much time and so much hassle, you'll wonder why you didn't listen to me sooner. You'll have better volume, better texture, more manageability, and incredible luster if you just wash your hair less. Touch it up with a small-barrelled curling iron between washes, or run your hands under the faucet, then rub them through your hair for the perfect, salon-done look.
That's all there is to it, folks. Invest in a 99-cent shower cap and some over-the-counter hair products and you'll love your waves more than you ever knew possible. Oh, and go ahead and feel free to throw out that prehistoric diffuser. As if that ever did anyone any favors.
And hey, if you don't like my suggestion, you could always follow this girl's advice. Yeah, she looks like she's having a lot of fun.
What's your hairstyling secret?
Photo via love megan/Flickr
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Comments 11
Holy cow, I watched that whole video. Nuts! I only wash my hair every other day or every third day, I use dry shampoo on the days I don't wash and pull my bangs back. It took my hair a while to get use to it but now that I've been doing it for about a year, I can go 3 days without washing. It's gross in the beginning I think, but once your hair is use to the new routine, it will be just fine :)
I have been doing this for years... I love it... I use a dry shampoo everyday to stop smells and oils building up on my hair and my hair has never look this good!!!! it is a must do for long hair!!!!!
I can't believe that woman spent ten minutes making her head look like a tumbleweed.
I've tried not washing my hair everyday...wish I could. It would be amazing to not everyday. But after about 8 months of hating my oily disgusting hair every other day I decided there are worse things in life than washing everyday.
It also depends what you're hair type is like. Some of my friends have long hair that is on the finer side and they have to wash it everyday or else it gets really greasy. I have medium hair (its too thick to call thin, and too thin to call thick) but its kind of a coarse, wavy texture. My hair looks best the second or third day after washing it because the natural oils smooth it down. Its all about your hair type.
Leaves it nice and wavy and no brushing needed. :)