The glass hippo: The Year of Hair

2013 was the year I decided to get my hair healthy....or at least healthier. My journey started when a new girl started at work, she had the most beautiful hair I had ever seen. She had Disney princess hair, it was that awesome! As it turns out she was pretty awesome too and would answer the millions of questions I had about her hair routine. The biggest thing she urged me to do was stop washing my hair everyday. I have very fine hair, it gets greasy quick! I can just think about greasy hair, and it gets greasy. It's bad.

Another coworker of mine, who also has fine hair, decided to embark on a every other day shampooing routine. Inspired by her, I decided to do it too. For me, the first few months were rough. They were filled with lots of ponytails and days my hair just felt dirty. Gradually my hair became less greasy on days I wasn't washing it. This took months to happen. After somewhat conquering my greasy hair I decided to completely make over my hair routine.

My year of hair had begun. First thing that had to go was using heat styling tools on any setting except their lowest. That was hard, y'all. Since high school I have been straightening my hair till it is stick straight. You can't always achieve this when you use the lowest setting. It also takes longer to style, but I've stuck with it. Next I examined the tools I used on my hair (brushes, combs, ect). After a little research I switched to using a wide tooth comb on wet hair and a natural bristled brush on dry hair. Both are suppose to be gentler and decrease the amount of breakage. The wide tooth comb I got at Sally's Beauty Supply for about $2. The brush on the other hand was more pricy, $25 at Sephora. You can spend a lot more on a natural bristled brush, there are some that are over $300! After getting the appropriate tools, I focused on the products I was using. I did some research into the "no poo" method(meaning you don't ever wash your hair with shampoo), ultimately, I decided it was not for me. I have not found a shampoo and conditioner that I love yet. I do love to try a new products after I run out of whatever I have been using. And I've learned that some shampoos don't work for me (for example Aveeno tends to irritate my scalp). I have added several new products to my routine. My favorite one has to be my hair oil! I love this stuff and wonder how I ever lived without it. Although, I did not scrimp on this product, it was expensive. I also added a hair mask to my routine. This is also a product that I wonder how I got along without it. I do it once every three weeks to once a month. One great thing about hair masks is you can make natural ones at home or buy a pre-made product. Lastly I started getting my hair trimmed every 5 weeks. The ends of my hair look much better, definitely have fewer split ends. Those are the major changes I implement during my year of hair.

The response from people when I tell them about my year of hair has been varied. Most of them are bored by it (I don't blame them! Not everyone is into hair care like I am). One person was interested, she's like, the nicest person ever (Hi Hannah!). Surprisingly, I had several who took offense to my journey. One of them told me that my hair doesn't even look good, especially if I put all this work and thought into it. That's ok, I notice the difference and I'm doing it for me not them.

Overall, I'm very happy with my results! My hair is more manageable, I have less fly aways, and it is much shinier.

Leave me a comment and let me know what works for your hair!

Before:

After:

Summary of my new hair rules and routine:

-Wash hair every other day, rinse with water on non-washing days if greasy or if I work out
-Never use straightner, hair dryer, or curling iron on anything but the lowest setting
-Use wide tooth comb on wet hair, never a brush
-Only use brushes with natural bristles
-Apply hair oil every day to every other day
-Hair mask every 3 to 4 weeks
-Trim hair every 5 weeks