First of, it needs to be said that you should condition your hair each time you shampoo it. The purpose of shampooing your hair is to clean it by getting rid of dirt and excess oils in the scalp. The purpose of conditioner, on the other hand, is to help restore minerals that may have been loss due to heat and/or chemicals (hair dyes, perms, etc.) and to close the hair's cuticles to prevent further nutrient loss. What are cuticles? It's not the dead skin on your nails, it's microscopic shafts in your hair that open and close.
What's the point of all this? The point is, conditioner is basically used as a sealant, much like a top coat for your nails. So you should always condition your hair after you shampoo it.
Allow your conditioner to sit in your hair for a while. Anywhere from 1-5 minute(s) is good. If you make a habit of doing this, after a while you will see a difference in your hair, especially if you're using a good conditioner. An easy way to keep conditioner in your hair while in the shower is to pin it up. I recommend using either a cloth hair tie (a scrunchy) or a hair clip you don't mind getting wet. If you're using a cloth hair tie, choose one that is a dark color or black because if your hair is dyed it will leak colors onto the cloth. I'd advise you to not use a regular thin elastic hair tie because this can break your hair since it's wet. If you use a hair clip make sure you rinse it and allow it to dry after each use, otherwise the metal wire used for resistance and pinching will rust. To tie your hair up, smooth in your conditioner from root (scalp) to tip of hair then ring out excess water. Twist your hair gently to form a bun then gently clip or tie your scrunchy around your bun.
So once I've shampooed, conditioned, and clipped up my hair, I normally wash my body and/or face etc. while I allow the conditioner to set.
When shampooing your hair you would normally scrub your scalp to create a lather (and scrub dead skin, and scrub dirt, etc.), right? Well, would you do the same when rising conditioner? If you think about it, since shampoo and conditioner have different uses its better to rinse differently. Because shampoo is used for cleaning you would scrub, but because conditioner is used for restoring the hair (pampering, in a way) it's a good idea to massage your scalp while rinsing the conditioner.
What good does massaging your scalp do besides it relaxing a headache? Massages have many different purposes such as pampering and health benefits...health benefits? Yes, massages are good for you because they help encourage better blood flow throughout your body. So? So, when you have better circulation in you scalp it actually encourages hair growth. Now, before you think, "Jackpot! Magic Hair Growth!" let me say that it only helps hair that is still on you head...if you're already bald, well I just haven't figured that one out yet. Massaging your scalp can impel your hair to grow faster.
Back to the cuticle thing...what are some good ways to have shiny, healthy looking hair besides conditioning? When your hair is frizzy and looks damaged it's because your hair cuticles are open. Much like the pores on your skin, you want to close your cuticles which is what makes your hair look healthy. To close the pores on your face you need to splash some cold water on the skin's surface. The same applies to you hair. After conditioning, rinse you hair with cool water. Your shower should already be luke warm because hot water can dry out your hair and make it look frizzy (it can also dry out your skin). If you don't want a cold rinse, you can blow dry your hair with it set on cold (not all, but most hairdryers have this setting).
So let's review, shall we:
1.) Always condition your hair after shampooing.
2.) Allow your conditioner to soak in your hair for a few minutes.
3.) When rinsing the conditioner out of your hair, massage your scalp.
4.) Rinse your hair with cold water or blow dry with dryer set on cold for a healthy, shine.I hope these tips were helpful to you!
Mwah! ~Sara
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