Layered Haircuts Home >> 11 Free Hair Care Tips

Free Hair Care Tips Debunk 11 Common Hair-Care Myths

This Hairstyle Guide Is Crammed with
Great Ideas for Caring for Your Hair.

Hey! How many hours do you spend washing, drying, styling and caring for your hair?

Are you 100% happy with the results?

Probably not. Perhaps it’s because you’re operating in the dark. Or have fallen for one of the many beauty myths about hair care you hear from time to time.

Not no you.

Well, okay. Maybe not. But just in case why not read on to find out for sure? You just might discover some little known salon secrets or other haircare advice here among these haircare facts.

For instance…

Do you feel there are hair care products that will repair your split ends?

Do you think a cold water rinse is how to get soft, shiny hair?

Do you subscribe to the idea that trimming your hair frequently will cause your hair to grow faster?

Do you believe that the special shampoos for color treated hair aren’t worth the money?

If any of those seem reasonable keep reading to discover the simple techniques that lie behind the great hairstyles you see on display in Hollywood, on TV or in the fashion magazines.

Myth #1: Rotating shampoos periodically gives you cleaner hair.

Dawn Lenfield, professional hair dresser and stylist couldn’t help laughing at this one. "Your hair is basically just a mass of dead cells. And how are dead cells going to know anything about what sort of shampoo you are using?” she asked.

“But these facts are true,” Lenfield went on. “Women need to use shampoos suited to their type of hair. Then too if you have extremely oily hair or tend to use styling products that contain wax it pays to use a clarifying shampoo every couple of weeks to wash away any leftover residue.”

Tip: Mixing in a spoonful of baking soda with your regular shampoo makes for one great clarifying shampoo.

Myth #2:
"You're already losing hair daily anyway - whether you're stressed out or not,” Dawn pointed out. “It’s totally natural as on average a human being loses somewhere between 40 to 130 hairs per day. So sure, a few more strands might fall out if you're super stressed due to losing your job, divorce, or some serious illness. Butt that’s about it.”

“Also I’ve noticed that when some are of my clients are stressed out they unconsciously resort to hair pulling for relief. Don’t know why,” Lenfield admitted. “But that can damage your hair or cause it to break off. Yet unless you have been pulling your hair out by the roots, it's all going to grow back!"

Myth #3: Plucking out gray hairs isn’t smart since two or three will replace any you remove.

"No way is that true," returned Dawn. "Still yanking out those gray hairs is never a good idea. There are better ways to deal with gray hair than this. I mean I can easily color your hair if you're worried about the grays."

Myth #4: Fine hair is gonna look limp no matter what.

Dawn guarantees the opposite. "Straight fine hair can be given body simply by using hot rollers. Afterwards apply mousse and brush out well."

Myth #5: There are products you can buy that will help you repair split ends.

“Once they're split, that's it. The only thing you can do at that point is cut them off,” Dawn reported matter of factly.. “Although it is true that if you use some of the silicone based products or beeswax you can make split ends less noticeable. Such a treatment seals up the split ends temporarily. Which gives your hair a softer appearance while making it more manageable.”

Also did you know that split ends are more apt to develop if your hair is dry or brittle? Or that you might be damaging your hair and causing the splits by excessive use of blow dyers, curling irons, or flat irons. Or from vigorous brushing? If so ease up on that. Also using conditioner on your ends can’t hurt.

“So if you were wondering how do I help my split ends, well, now you know,” Dawn added. Or at least you should know more than you did before reading these tips for proper hair care.

Myth #6: To get your hair really clean you want to follow the age old axiom "lather, rinse, repeat."

"Just not so,” said Dawn emphatically. “In fact it’s the over use of shampoos that can damage your hair. You want to wash your hair lathering just once - unless your hair is very oily that is."

Tip: If you want to avoid shampooing every day, try using a light conditioner on your hair to "wash" it. Why? Because it doesn't dry your hair out.

Myth #7: If you want shinier hair rinsing with icy-cold water after shampooing is the way to get it.

Dawn shook her head. “Truth is as long as you don't use very hot water, which can be damaging, to wash your hair it really doesn’t matter how cold the water is you use to rinse your hair.”

Remember that shiny hair is healthy hair. So if you’re wondering how to get soft shiny hair, focusing on dealing with any damage is a good way to make it shinier. Since only by reviving the condition of your hair can you make it appear to be shinier.

Another tip? Avoid alcohol based products since alcohol robs your hair if it’s natural shine. For example if you read the label you’ll see that Aveda’s Brilliant line up of products are alcohol free.

Myth #8: Trimming your hair more often causes it to grow faster.

"Your hair has its own growth rate and how fast it grows certainly does not depend on how often you trim it," pointed out Lenfield. "All a trim does is to make your hair look neater by eliminating split ends. But know what? I still get many women coming in all the time for a trim. Because they've heard hair grows faster that way."

Myth #9: You can damage your hair by coloring it.

"In that case most of us stylists would be out of a job," said Dawn with a smile. "Coloring is safe as long as you follow the instructions exactly. Besides the coloring products we use today are not as hard on your hair as those your mother used. Anymore I use gentle coloring treatments, shampoos and conditioners meant specifically for colored hair. “

Tip: You should still be prepared to spend more time caring for color treated hair. For example it’s smart to use extra conditioner each time you wash your colored hair."

Myth #10: Shampoo for colored hair doesn’t really work all that well.

“Actually the better products like L'oreal’s Color vive can help the color last longer,” said Lenfield. “Or use a glaze like John Frieda Luminous Color. That can do the same. Some clients report it makes your hair very shiny and really makes the color pop too! So along with good hair care tips - shampoo can make a difference for your color treated hair.”

Tip: With colored hair avoid products that contain sulfates. Sure they clean great. But they can also definitely strip the color right out of your hair.

Myth #11: For healthier hair you want to brush it 100 strokes every day.

"That's a really famous myth," observed Dawn. "I see it mentioned a lot in older hair care books. But that 100 strokes stuff is pure nonsense and not much of a natural hair care tip if you ask me. You really never want to brush your hair except to style it. Over brushing like this will only weaken and damage it. In fact whenever possible it’s better to comb through your hair with your fingers instead of using your brush on it all the time."