I am genuinely fascinated to know. I’ve mentioned on several occasions, I am officially crap at hair.
I’m not a lover of sitting in a salon for longer than absolutely necessary. I get arm ache just from attempting to put in a few waves with my GHD straighteners (which are over a decade old I might add) and having tried many a “miracle” product over the years only for the result to be disappointing, I’ve all but given up bothering with my barnet at all.
Ideally I should be having a demi weave of highlights every 10 weeks to keep them looking fresh – I just have bleach, no fancy additional colours or toners. And I really should have a trim on a more regular basis. But I never seem to have the time to do either. As it stands I haven’t been to the hairdressers since May as my usual colourist Beth is currently on maternity leave. A demi weave and a cut normally sets me back about £100 – my “cut” is literally just the ends snipped off. Pre motherhood I managed to make it to the hairdressers about four times a year if I really made an effort. These days it’s more like every 6 months.
My scraggy ends were in such terrible condition that a few weeks ago my nail technician Hannah said she could “dry” trim them there and then – literally right after my manicure* (don’t worry – she’s also a qualified hair stylist!). She charged me £15 and you know what? I honestly can’t tell the difference from when I pay more than twice that. But then I guess I don’t have any special layering and whatnot.
Some time ago I shared my product favourites – When expensive shampoo happens. Unfortunately Kerastase decided to go and change the formulation of my beloved Vital Dermo-Calm (cue massive eye roll) and it took me some time to find an alternative. I’ve tested all sorts of budget buys but alas, they all turned out to be absolute rubbish. I finally discovered Kiehl’s Rice and Wheat Volumising Shampoo and it’s worth every penny. It will leave your locks bouncy, clean and definitely thicker – without any weird residue or build up after a few washes. My Redken Silver Charge Shampoo is still my go-to for an ashy blonde tone and I’ve been bulk buying my 3 More Inches Volumising Mousse from Fragrance Direct as it is £2.99 (usually £12.99!!!!). The latter is the only styling product I use on a daily basis, I apply a big dollop onto towel dried hair and then go haphazardly with the hair dryer to create a kind of undone yet not-frazzled look. I don’t suffer from breakage so I believe it’s heat protection abilities are stellar.
Hilariously I often get asked about my hair, the colour in particular, once I inadvertently made a lady at a tube station very cross as she essentially accused me of fibbing about the fact I only use bleach a few times a year when she asked me how I achieve my silvery blonde hue (!). The magic is in the purple shampoo I swear.
How much do you spend on your hair? Do you ever experiment with home colours? Is there a budget shampoo that really is amazing?
