There's nothing fine about having fine hair! Yep - you heard me, fine hair is hard!!! People with thick hair dream of how quick and easy it is to wash and style fine hair, but the reality is people with finer hair have to spend so much time trying to volumise their volumeless locks.
Gone are the days of teasing the life out of your hair and plastering it up with strong-hold hairsprays. Hair products have come a long way since then, so here I am sharing some simple tips and tricks to help you plump up that fine, limp hair!
First of all, it's important to know the difference between fine hair and thin hair.
Fine hair describes your hair's texture, categorised in terms of width, diameter, and circumference (I knew year 6 math would come into good use at some point!) of each hair strand.
Thin hair is defined as when there is less density between the hair follicles (or where the hair grows from). You could have fine hair, but lots of it, or you could have fine hair that's thin.Either way, we want our hair to look as luscious as possible.
Here are four steps to get you on your way to achieving texture and volume in fine or thin hair.
Use the right shampoo and conditioner (yes, I said conditioner)
Fine hair can often look limp and become oily faster because of the lacking locks to absorb any oil coming from the scalp.
This often results in washing more often or dry shampooing the s@%t out of hair on the daily. But what you will find is that using the right shampoo and conditioner will instantly fix some of these problems, providing volume and reducing oily roots whilst always maintaining your hair's health.
People with fine, limp hair often tell me that they chose not to use conditioner because it makes their flat fine hair oily or limp -THIS IS NOT THE SOLUTION - you're just using the wrong conditioners.
I have also come across many people with fine hair that will not use conditioner as they feel it makes their hair too soft or too limp. I always explain that using a conditioner is still a vital part of your hair regime.
Shampoo opens the first layer of the hair called the cuticle to cleanse while conditioner smooths the cuticle back down, giving it a smooth, shiny finish and minimising damage to the hair.
Conditioners serve an essential purpose & do not need to be weighty on the hair but should instead feel invisible. I like the Wella Invigo Volume Boost Mask. With its clear gel-like consistency, it serves the purpose of conditioner while boosting your hair's volume.
Technology has come so far in the haircare industry. Products have been revolutionised, achieving outstanding results for all hair types, especially people with fine hair! Eleven I Want Body Shampoo and Eleven I Want Body Conditioner are great examples of adding volume while still taking care of the hair.
If you have fine hair, coloured and want to minimise colour fading, then Kevin Murphy's Angel Wash and Angel Rinse are the perfect products for you. Explicitly designed for volumising fine hair, this combination is my number one go-to for the best looking fine hair that has still received all the nutrients it needs!
If soft silky volumised locks are not for you, then texturising shampoos like Matrix Total Results Rock It Texture are excellent at giving soft fine hair that raspy feel and the ability to create style with less effort.
The trick is to ensure the hair is nourished with a leave-in moisturiser!
Yes, you heard correctly, a leave-in that's conditioning. I can hear you yelling from here, "I would never use leave in a moisturiser, that would make my hair oily and heavy!" But, again, it's all about using the right product for your hair type.
We all know how fine hair can tangle, look and feel dry on the ends even when the roots are an oily mess. Leave-in moisturiser will hydrate the hair while strengthening fine, fragile strands & keeping the oily roots at bay.
De Lorenzo Instant Restructurant spray is a weightless leave-in treatment delivering 8 different benefits, including strength, moisture, UV sun protection and tangle-free. It's sheer magic (pun intended!)
Create Volume using Styling Products
It is important to layer the right styling products to boost volume in the hair and make your strands appear fuller and thicker. After leave-in moisture spray, a good root boost spray will help defy gravity from the roots to give you lift and hold. Wella Eimi Root Boost is great to blow dry with, as it will not go tacky. Having the right round brush with at least 35mm diameter (depending on the length of your hair) to blow dry with will give a glamorous voluminous appearance.
The ghd Ceramic Vented Radial size 3 for medium hair to size 4 for long hair is ideal for achieving maximum lift. Once dry, tousle your hair with texture spray to gain that next level volume and texture.
Texture spray is like a blow dry in a bottle and will instantly lift your hair, giving it grit and hold so that it doesn't flop back down. Let's face it, sometimes even the best blow dry may face the challenges of everyday life and drop. I recently discovered KMS Hair Play Playable Texture & have never seen something so good at building instant texture and volume in the hair! I call it a blow dry in a bottle; simply spray into dry hair and use fingers to shape.
Another game-changer for me is the Eleven I Want Body Texture Spray. Imagine spray meets powder; just shake and spray to create weightless texture to any fine or limp hair (my fave to use after curling the hair and creating the sexiest I just woke up like this look).
Embrace a Healthy Hair Diet!
A balanced diet will help strengthen your hair internally. While you're working with your hair volume and strength products, eating the right foods rich in proteins - like chicken, eggs & dairy - will help no end. Alternatively, those on plant-based diets can get plenty of protein from legumes and nuts, which will help hair strengthen from the inside out.
Zinc is an important mineral for hair; a deficiency in zinc weakens the protein structures of the hair follicles, which can lead to slower hair growth or hair loss. Iron deficiency is also a known cause of thinning hair, especially among women.
Bondi Boost Hair Growth Support Vitamins are formulated to support hair growth internally. They're vegan and manufactured to strict GPM standards in Australian manufacturing facilities.
Stimulating the scalp and bringing the blood flow to the scalp's surface will carry the blood and nutrients needed for healthy hair follicles to produce strong, healthy hair. Using your Glam Box shampoo brush in the shower will help stimulate the scalp, while the Bondi Boost Intensive Spray will bring the blood to the surface of the scalp, giving a healthy scalp environment enabling stronger, healthier hair to grow. This is used on clean towel-dried hair before styling.
Get the right haircut and colour.
The right haircut can make a big difference to fine hair. Lightly layering hair can create lift and movement, allowing hair products to work their magic.
On the other hand, long, one-length hair can make hair look drab and heavy. You can also add the illusion of fuller hair with the right hair colour; a multidimensional look with highlights or different tones can add movement to make the hair appear fuller and thicker. Ask your favourite hairstylist how!
Now that you are armed with all the right tools, embrace your fine hair texture and get your locks looking luscious in no time!
