5 easy ways to give stressed hair a detox

Now that you no longer need to do elaborate hairstyles for all those back-to-back parties you have to attend, keep your regular haircare routine simple. Use a gentle shampoo and conditioner to wash hair daily and leave your hair to air dry whenever possible.

We recommend Kristin Ess The One Signature Shampoo, $21. 

This daily shampoo is oh-so-gentle as it cleans the hair of dirt and grime while replenishing moisture to keep hair soft and shiny. Plus, it doesn’t weigh the hair down nor does it strip the hair of its natural oils, making it ideal for all hair types.

Exposing hair to high heat can easily damage it, causing dryness, brittleness, breakage and even split ends. But if you can’t stop using heated styling tools altogether, then try to reduce its usage at least. And instead of blow-drying hair when it’s fresh out of the shower, let locks air-dry naturally until it’s half-dry, give it go with the hairdryer. 

You can also minimise heat damage by applying a heat-protectant before using a hairdryer, straightening or curling iron. This creates a protective shield between hair and heat, and also locks in moisture while preventing these styling tools from causing too much damage at the same time.

We recommend Olaplex No.7 Bonding Oil, $46.

A lightweight hair oil rich in antioxidant green tea that repairs, strengthens and hydrates hair. It also offers heat protection up to 230 deg C, so it’s definitely something to include if you’re a fan of heated styling tools. It also shields the hair against UV damage, enhances hair colour and minimises fly-away and frizz.

Do you know that every time you put a styling product in your hair, not all of it is removed with each wash? There might be quite a bit of gunk left behind. So it’s important to thoroughly remove product residue as too much of it can lead to dull, limp or greasy locks or worse yet, hair loss.

Healthy hair begins with a healthy scalp. And deep cleansing the scalp not only removes product build-up and dead skin cells that can clog the hair follicles, but also stimulates the same follicles for better hair health.

We recommend Hair Rituel by Sisley Pre-Shampoo Purifying Mask with White Clay, $122. 

This pre-shampoo treatment not only removes dirt, impurities and micro pollution particles, but it also absorbs excess sebum, to leave the scalp clean and hair, soft and shiny. This is all thanks to a potent botanical formula of white clay, java tea, celery seed and artichoke leaf extracts, moringa peptides and cotton proteins. It’s like a breath of fresh air for your scalp and hair.

Now that the festive season is over, it’s time to undo the damage from  backcombing, hot curling irons and even crazy hair colours. The easiest way? Nourish your locks by ensuring that your self-care Sunday includes a hair mask for an intensive treatment. How? Simply swap your daily conditioner for a reparative or nourishing hair mask to strengthen hair and bring it back to a healthy state once more.

We recommend Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Hair Cap System, $56 (box of four masks).

A two-part fuss-free treatment to nourish damaged tresses. First, apply the mask, enriched with repairing nutrients, onto the hair, concentrating on the ends, to provide intensive conditioning, then put on the cap to lock in all the goodness and boost reparative effects.

Best bit? The cap keeps everything in place and allows you to continue doing stuff – no need to wait around the bathroom, dripping wet. In addition, the cap contains micro-oil beads in the inner fabric lining to enhance damage repair and strengthen hair resilience at the same time. For best results, let the mask work for 15min to an hour.

While there might not be any definite information that the hair repairs itself while you sleep just like your skin does, there are still plenty of benefits to using an overnight hair mask. Because while you might already be adding a hair mask to your weekly haircare routine, it might not be enough.

So take advantage of the downtime while you’re asleep. Instead of a mere 15min in the shower, your hair will easily be clocking in a few hours’ worth of repair and nourishment each time.

We recommend IGK ANTISOCIAL Overnight Bond-Building Dry Hair Mask, $50.

A time-release mask that repairs and strengthens hair. And to keep it tangle-free during bedtime, silk extracts are included in the formula. Most importantly, this spray-on dry hair mask means it’s pillow-proof and won’t mess up your sheets , no matter how much you toss and turn during the night. Now, you can wake up to soft, shiny and frizz-free hair.