Winter haircare

Your mama always told you and she, of course, was right – it’s not wise to leave the house with wet hair. When hair’s wet it’s more vulnerable and prone to break. Why’s that? The water droplets left in hair can enter the hair shaft and when the water temperature reaches freezing it can swell the shaft. This in turn means that the cuticles can move from where it should be, leaving hair exposed to the elements without its usual buffer. Wet hair plus wintry weather can also fade your hair colour faster and harden hair strands, leading to a higher likelihood of breakages and split ends.

There’s no reason why it should come to all that with your dry winter haircare. Simply make sure that you always fully dry your hair before heading out – whether naturally air-drying or blow drying. You may need to build in some extra time to make sure it’s dry before you go outside, yes, but you could also simply switch your hair washing schedule up. Wash and dry at night so you know by morning it’s ready to go. Oh, and one other thing – try to avoid brushing your hair when it’s soaking wet. Even in the comfort of your own post-shower steamy bathroom, wet hair is weaker. Take care of it by squeezing the water out of it with a towel (not rough-drying) and using a wide-tooth comb to gently brush from the ends moving upwards. Your mum would be proud.

Your bathroom is your sanctuary, particularly when you’re in the mood for a restorative bath and a book in the cooler months. There’s nothing more relaxing to help get you in the mood for sleep or take care of tired limbs. But the conditions that you wash in might be contributing to your winter hair.

In short, take our advice – step back from that hot tap. Though it might be tempting to dial up the temperature when it’s a bit nippy out there, extreme water temperatures aren’t going to do your hair any favours. Extra hot water temperatures can strip those all-important natural oils from your scalp and create sensitivity on your dome. And when we say extreme temperatures, that means extra cold water, too – take note in case you’re a fan of a refreshing blast from the cold tap in the mornings. So when washing your hair in winter, make sure that, like Goldilocks, you get it just right. Your water temperature should be lukewarm and comfortable, helping your dry hair to remain its luscious-looking, swish-ready best in the winter months.

You might also consider cutting back on the number of hair washes you’re getting in any one week, scaling back to help limit your hair and scalp’s chances of getting vexed by differing temperatures. If you normally leave a day between hair washes, try extending it to every other day and so on.