Tiffany Raiford
Summertime is a nasty time of year for many things; mosquitoes, bad weather, and bad hair. While we might be able to live with the bugs and the bad weather, it’s the bad hair that really kills most of us women. You can look at it as a vain thing, but we prefer to look at it as a ‘we like to look like we weren’t just electrocuted’ thing. Go ahead and judge us for caring what our hair looks like, but there are too many of us that don’t care. Summer is brutal on our hair; brutal. For those of us with naturally curly hair, the humidity kills us (and really, I do not want to hear anyone from the west coast complain about your humidity. I can actually cut the moisture in the air with a knife here in Florida even at 2 in the morning….kidding, I’m not ever out at 2 in the morning. It’s past my 9 pm bedtime). But still, summer is all about bad hair. That’s why I have to mix up my hair car routine this time of year, and I’m not the only one. My stylish and I speak at length about how to protect my hair this time of year when it dries out, dies and looks basically like crap for 6 solid Florida months.
My hair is thick, dry and overly heat styled. I straighten and blow it dry daily. I also have it colored very blonde (this is new as of earlier this year) every 4 weeks. See, I have developed a head full of silver hair at the tender age of 31 (thanks, mom, and your grey head of hair at 18) and I like to keep that covered. Blonde is my only choice since it blends so much nicer than my natural dark hair, and I’m fortunate enough to look halfway decent with blonde hair, too. But that means my hair is processed, dry, dead and a mess. And that’s why I have to use some very specific hair products and tools this time of year. Cannot live without them, to be quite honest. So what is it I cannot live without? Well, I’ll tell you.
Hair Sunscreen
This is a real thing, and it’s necessary. Not only does hair sunscreen protect your hair, it also helps to protect your scalp and your overall health. None of us wants to fall victim to skin cancer at the hands of the sun, do we? No; so that’s why I have to use this every single summer, and I would even if my hair was Victoria’s Secret supermodel perfect. My favorite is the bareMinerals SPF30 natural sunscreen. It is the one hair sunscreen I’ve found does not leave me feeling as if my hair is greasy and disgusting, and it doesn’t smell too bad. There are many other products out there, though, and they’re in every price point imaginable. If you choose not to use any other product on your hair at all this time of year, make the one you do use this one. It’s going to protect not only your hair health, but your overall health.
Heat Styling Cream
This is a must this time of year. Since my hair is such a frizzed out mess in 30 second flat, I tend to use my flat iron far more than usual. This means that my hair is being killed and damaged like you would not believe, and that’s not awesome with me. I use a variety of different heat styling creams because I have this crazy notion that mixing it up means my hair will not become too used to one product or another. And with the added heat of the sun this time of year, this is a must.
A Hat
Seriously, ladies, invest in a good hat. Not only is this going to make you look more stylish than ever, it’s going to help you. This is going to make it possible for you to cover a bad hair day, skip a wash day and protect your head, hair and face from the heat of the sun. This means you will find it’s possible to have healthier hair and a way of protecting your skin when you are out in the sun. Sun hats are amazing this time of year. Get one, get two. In fact, get one in every color. I love a fedora, too, on the beach, so don’t underestimate the power of great hair even on a hat day.
Dry Shampoo
This is a must-have in the midst of summer. My hairdresser swears by this and wants me to, also. I’ve been using it a lot more often and working on doing what she says, and I’m getting better at it, I think. She does not want me to wash my hair every single day. She feels that I’m causing too much damage, and I should look for other ways to keep it stylish. She loves that I can use this in my hair on days I don’t wash and eliminate any feeling of greasiness and gross and still feel all right. It’s her favorite, and it’s been awesome all summer.
Conditioner
This is a must; conditioner is something you have to have to keep your hair moisturized and healthy, and it is a great way to ensure that you are able to keep your hair looking good on a regular basis. On days you don’t wash, you can still condition your hair to keep it feeling good, looking good and to replace a bit of the moisture that is to easily lost this time of year. I recommend this in a way that’s kind of obsessive, and I do recommend one that’s for a deep condition. Summer is hot, brutal and very dangerous for hair, so this is going to help you make sure you continue to look amazing and good on a regular basis. Your hair will thank you.
Photo by Mireya Acierto/Getty Images
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