Chapped lips and dry skin have long been familiar signs that winter is in full swing. A less-often noted symptom of harsh winter weather: damaged hair. It can sneak up on you before you know it. Keeping your hair healthy during the winter will ensure that it remains long and strong all year round. While there are many (often expensive) regimes out there, there are also many alternative homemade solutions to keep hair healthy. These recipes usually consist of household ingredients such as eggs, avocado, honey, mayonnaise, and…even beer!
Vinegar
That expensive, beautiful dye job that you just got at the salon may not last all winter on its own. To combat this, rinse hair with a quarter cup of vinegar mixed with a quarter cup of water. This is a guaranteed way to keep your hair colour vibrant all season long!
Eggs
As a swimmer, I am constantly looking for new ways to ensure that my hair is healthy year-round. A friend recommended that I mix an egg with a cup of mayonnaise, and put the paste on my hair. One Tuesday night, we attempted this, and while the results were very successful, there was some fine print we hadn’t read. When using any hair-care remedy that calls for a raw egg, make sure that you rinse the mixture out with cold water. Rinsing with hot water can cause the egg to cook in your hair, leading to hilarious, but smelly results. Eggs can be used very effectively to treat hair maladies, and are a great way to provide deep conditioning to dry strands.
Olive oil
While the snow falls outside, prevent flakes from your scalp by using a mixture of two tablespoons each of olive oil, lemon juice, and tap water. Massage into your scalp, and let sit for up to twenty minutes to prevent dandruff.
Beer
Beer isn’t just for the bar anymore. Limp, fine hair can find volume by rinsing it with beer. Beer, with its surplus of yeast, can bring life back into flat hair and boost its volume and manageability. The steps are simple: let a half cup of beer sit out for a few hours to make it flat, and then mix with a teaspoon of canola oil and a raw egg. Apply to hair, let sit for fifteen minutes, and then mix it with cool (to prevent the egg cooking) water. Alternately, flat beer can be put into a spray bottle and spritzed onto dry hair; as it evaporates it will boost volume.
Honey
Keratin treatments are expensive and relatively unnecessary, with this trick. Dry, sun-damaged hair can be cured by massaging a half cup of honey, mixed with a tablespoon or two of olive oil into your hair for twenty minutes. If your hair is super damaged, you can add a couple tablespoons of avocado or egg yolk (protein-rich). This will help to restore the keratin proteins in your hair, and used once a month, will render those expensive keratin treatments at the salon useless.
While the winter blues may have you (and your hair) down, look no further than these simple (and inexpensive) solutions to all your hair woes!