Are You Making Any of These 10 Biggest Hair Care Mistakes?

Maintaining your hair can be an arduous and at times frustrating experience. With so many elements going against your hair every day it can almost be impossible to keep it in its shiniest, silkiest and strongest condition.

While some factors such as pollution and sunlight are inevitable, there are steps you can take to make sure your mane stays in as good a condition as possible.

Read on to discover the top ten mistakes you may be making with your hair and how to avoid them.

#1. Failure to brush your hair pre-wash

It is a well-known fact that your hair is most fragile when wet. This makes it more likely to end up full of tangles and knots that cause your hair to split, break and fray. The best way to prevent these happening is to give your hair a good combing before a wash.

If you must brush your hair while you wash it then use plenty of rich conditioners and remove or loosen any tangles with your fingers before using a super wide toothed comb pre-rinse. Never brush your hair when it’s still wet.

#2. Reaching the roots

You may think that regular brushing can lead to breakage, so you avoid going all the way to the root. The problem with this is that your scalp makes oils that are the perfect conditioner for your hair helping it stay soft and supple. Give your scalp a good massage pre-brushing and then use a fine bristled brush from scalp to tips to provide a beautiful shine.

Give your scalp a good massage pre-brushing and then use a fine bristled brush from scalp to tips to provide a beautiful shine.

#3. Over washing

It is said all over the world that washing your hair with shampoo every day can cause more harm than good. Sure, you may like the feeling of a freshly scented scalp, but the oils your scalp produces are washed away leaving dry and brittle hair that lacks shine and life. If you simply can’t go a day or two without shampoo then make sure you follow up with a good conditioner to breathe life back into your hair.

If you simply can’t go a day or two without shampoo then make sure you follow up with a good conditioner to breathe life back into your hair.

#4. Erratic Conditioning

It is a commonly held belief that only the tips of the hair need to be conditioned otherwise the hair becomes weighed down and flat, but if you are afflicted with fine or wispy hair, you should slap it onto the roots too to help prevent breaks and splits.

Now, you don’t need to use half a bottle of conditioner for it to work, you just need enough so that your fingers can glide through your hair with ease. Too much conditioner and your hair will become heavy, flat and oily looking. Not enough and you will encounter more tangles and damage.

#5. Rough towel use

While many hair products request that you use them on towel dried hair, you want to be gentle enough not to end up with a back-brushed effect.

When you are too rough on your hair, you force the cuticle to become enlarged which makes hair difficult to manage, dull and susceptible to breaks. Opt for running your finger through your hair in front of a desk fan until almost dry instead.

#6. Avoiding Heat Protectors

Heat is one of the top causes of damage to the hair straightening, curling, crimping, blow drying… all of these actions cause the hairs cuticles to open and can lead to breakage, split ends, dullness and just a bad condition to your hair.

Choose a good heat protecting serum or spirits that help seal the cuticle before applying heat.

#7. Using straighteners on Wet Hair

If you use straighteners on wet hair, you are asking for trouble. You may think it will help achieve a glossier and sleeker finish, but all it will do is weaken the hair leading to breakage. NEVER straighten hair when not dry. Ever.

#8. Use of Hairspray pre-styling

Only ever apply hairspray after you have styled your hair. It is designed to set a style, not be a part of the process. Using hairspray with heat can lead to your hair being fried and snapping off. Not a cute look.

#9. Reckless back-combing

Sure, back-combing can add heaps of volume to the hair and help create some pretty amazing styles. On the odd occasion it is fine, but over using back-combing can result in severe damage to the hair shaft.

The best option for volume is a lifting spray and then blow drying your hair with your head upside down.

#10. Trying to fix Split Ends

There are hundreds of claims that split ends can be fixed, but the truth is that once it’s split all you can do is trim it off. Forget lotions and potions that promise to repair them; it simply isn’t possible.