I shampoo and condition my hair every day. I read the directions; rinse and repeat. I thought I was doing a pretty good job even though my hair never quite looked as luminous and healthy as it does when I step out of the salon. It wasn’t until I recently sat down with Kara Damboise, of Twisted Scizzors Salon, to talk hair health and hair care that I realized I’ve been washing and conditioning my hair wrong for almost 30 years. Wow. That’s crazy. How have I managed to get things so wrong… let’s find out.
Kara Damboise like the rest of the staff at Twisted Scizzors is passionate about hair health. She helps clients learn how to care for their hair. It’s important to know the right way to care for your hair because…
- It will look healthier
- If you color or highlight your hair, it will stay more vibrant longer
- You will get the most out of how much time and money you put into your hair.
That sold me. I’m determined to learn how to correctly care for my hair. Join me on this hair health and hair care journey.
Kara began by telling me about shampooing. Something I do every day. I used to think it was best to put a lot of shampoo on my head, suds it all up until I could make a formidable bubble crown and rinse with hot water.
Boy was I wrong.
Kara says, “When shampooing, start with very wet hair. Put a small amount of shampoo in your palms and emulsify”.
Emulsify in your palms. Did I hear that correctly? In. My. Palms.
“Apply this shampoo and water emulsion to the scalp area only, and massage.”
Massage. Scalp. Only.
Kara continues,”Your hair does not need to be all sudsy”.
No bubble crown. Got it.
“After massaging the scalp, lightly pull the shampoo to the ends of your hair. It’s just like washing your face. You don’t need to later up and scrub hard.”
If there is product build-up, Kara recommends to leave the shampoo in for a few minutes before rinsing. When rinsing hair, make sure to rinse thoroughly and squeeze any excess water from your hair before conditioning.
Conditioning is another area that I needed help with. Typically, I put globs of conditioner on my entire head. I left it globby for the rest of my shower, leaving rinsing to the final task. No wonder my hair lay flat as a pancake.
Kara set me straight, “Conditioner goes on mid shaft and ends only. Do not put it on the scalp. This will weigh your hair down and make it oily faster. The hair that is closest to the scalp is new hair. New hair does not need reconstruction as our other hair does”.
I think I’ve got it. New hair. No glob.
Kara also mentioned that a wide tooth comb or a wet-brush (a paddle brush with wide bristles) is best to use to comb conditioner through. Make sure to rinse quickly through and leave a slippery feel. Don’t over rinse. You’ll rinse out the product. That’s just product and money down the drain.
Not only does Kara like to educate people on shampooing and conditioning, she likes to make sure their daily hair routine compliments the texture of their hair. It’s important to know the differences in fine hair, dry or coarse hair and medium texture hair.
Fine hair lacks structure. It’s delicate and fragile. It does not need moisture. Moisture causes fine hair to go limp. Remember my pancake head? With fine hair it’s better to use a leave in conditioning spray instead of a traditional conditioner. Most clients with fine hair say they would like to have more volume in their hair. Products that have a protein or a reconstructive base can help.
Kara tells a story about one client with fine hair that had been damaged by years of over coloring and mistreatment. Kara provided the client with the proper steps to help her fine, damaged hair.
“We worked on caring for her fine hair and used products that are best suited for fine hair. I gave my client a schedule of appointments to stick to for trims. Just one year later, all of the damage is gone and her hair is super thick and healthy. The hair is more manageable and has a new life,” Kara reports.
Fine hair is especially subject to damage when one does not have it trimmed often enough. It is recommended that clients with fine hair get their hair trimmed no later than eight weeks from the last appointment because fine hair can split easier. The lack of texture and structure make the hair very wispy.
When styling and finishing fine hair, one can’t be rough on the hair. Delicate powders and hair expanders help put more volume in fine hair. Powder volumizers can help plump up the hair. There are even some volumizers that allow you to run your fingers through the hair numerous times a day to re-volumize it. Hair expanding products are best used with the heat of a hairdryer. As the hair heats, the hair expands to help maximize and hold. Firm hold aerosol hairsprays are best to finish off the style with fine hair.
With medium to coarse hair, the shaft of the hair is thicker than the shaft of fine hair. The hair is very dense and strong. With clients that have medium or coarse hair, Kara asks a few more questions. She wants to see if there is damage. Is the client a swimmer; do they use a flat iron; do they color their hair, etc. After accessing the overall hair state, she’ll then recommend what way the client should treat the hair – more like fine or coarse.
Another type of hair structure is curly hair. Take a look at the before (left) and after (right) pictures shown above. Curly hair generally needs moisture. Kara recommends that clients with coarse, curly hair should not wash it everyday. Products for coarse curly hair are best applied to wet hair by scrunching the product from the ends to the scalp. Air or diffused drying is best. She also explains how one should not comb or brush curls. Frizzy hair is the result of brushing, combing or raking hands through the curls. The curl separates and becomes frizzy.
Kara notes, “It all comes down to what people do everyday with their hair. When I tell people how to correctly care for their hair, it makes all the difference. When they start to see results from the regime I’ve given them, the results speak for themselves.”
When I come to the end of my chat with Kara, I can’t wait to get home to start the new hair care regimen that Kara has created for me. I’m excited to have this new information. I still can’t believe that I was doing this all wrong. But I’m confident that if I stick to the plan, my hair will be healthy very soon.
For more information on healthy hair or to create your hair care regimen, please call 919-303-7775 to schedule a consultation with Kara Damboise.
Or another Hair Care Professional at
Twisted Scizzors Salon
919-303-7775
