I have pretty long hair myself and wondered multiples times in my life how to take care of long hair in the best possible way. I want my hair to be healthy and in perfect condition, and so do you. In today’s blog post I’m sharing my tips and tricks on how to take care of long hair so you’ll never have unhealthy hair again!
A lot of women (and some men too) will recognize the struggle: how to properly take care of your long hair? I’ve been at this point that I just didn’t know what to do to keep it healthy, so I just let it go and didn’t take care of it at all. I can tell you, that’s not the right way. It made my hair look unhealthy, I had split ends, and my hair was tangled all the fricking time!
But… What’s the healthiest, best way to take care of your long hair?
Through the years, I gathered some very nice tips from hairdressers and I found out some things myself which work very well for my hair. I have thick, heavy hair, and slightly wavy hair. To describe the length of my hair, I would say it falls over my boobs. As you can tell, it’s pretty long. I feel like, how longer the hair gets the more you need to take care of it. Alright, let me share my favorite tips!
How to take care of long hair
1. Use the right hairbrush
This one is really important! A wrong hairbrush can really damage your hair. A natural fiber brush, such as a boar bristle brush or a synthetic/nylon bristle brush are the best. These brushes make sure to minimize any breakage and friction. I use a paddle brush myself, this one has nylon bristles and this works very well with my hair structure.
Don’t brush your hair with these types of brushes when it’s wet! The best way to brush your hair when it’s wet is a wide-tooth comb. Brushing your hair when it’s wet can cost a lot of damage, especially when using the wrong brush. It stretches the strands rather than separating them.
2. Heat protection
As you might know, using tools to curl, blow dry or straighten your hair aren’t that good for your hair. If you don’t want to give up on that, I would definitely recommend using a heat protectant. A heat protectant wraps the hair shaft, forming a protective barrier, thus preventing damage and ensuring you’re frizz-free.
3. Use the right hair bands
This one changed the game for me! I was always using these normal hair bands with the little metal. This damaged my hair so bad, I was always pulling out all my hear when I tried to get the hairband out. Then a friend of mine wanted to try a plastic coil type of hair band together and this saved my hair a lot! No more hairs stuck between that metal thingy. Also, scrunchies are super fashionable right now and are way better for your hair, that’s a win-win!
4. Don’t overwash your hair
Throw your hand in the air if you’re guilty of overwashing your hair. I think most of us can relate to this lol. A couple of years ago, I washed my hair EVERY. DAY. Your hair’s natural oils are designed to condition and protect your tresses, so when you shampoo daily, it strips these vital oils away. It creates a vicious cycle of over-production of oils and a need to shampoo very often. Besides that this isn’t so good for your hair, it’s also not eco-friendly.
5. Hydrate your hair with hydrating treatments
Hydrating your hair once in a while is important, especially when you’re using heat often. I would recommend a hydrating treatment 1-2 times a week. A couple of my favorite products are OUAI Conditioner, IGK Mistress Hydrating Hair Balm, Moroccanoil Intense Hydrating Mask, and Briogeo Curl Charisma Hydrating Shampoo.
6. Wash & dry your hair the right way
I’m pretty sure most of us do this wrong. I did so too. Once I heard this tip from my hairdressers, I was shocked. She told me that the right way to wash my hair is to ONLY wash my scalp with shampoo. Wait, what?! Yes, only your scalp! That’s where most of the oil buildup happens, and it’s important to massage the shampoo into the scalp gently with your fingers (not nails!) to get rid of it. Then put conditioner in the lenght of your hair to hydrate.
After I shower, I always put my hair in a towel. This is not good. Rather than a towel, use a smooth fabric, such as cotton or linen, to get rid of frizz and damage.
I hope these tips answered your questions on how to take care of long hair! If you have any questions, please let me know in the comments!
Did some of my tips surprise you? Let me know!
See you next time loves,
These are also tips that I do for my hair. I have also really thick long hair, so taking care of it is so important for me. I would also advice using serum or some sort of oil on ends of hair. Since I’m doing that I don’t have any split ends. xx
That’s such great advice, thank you so much for sharing! Do you have recommendations for a serum or oil? xx
The last tip was the most surprising for me! I had never thought about using a smooth fabric like cotton on my hair but now I think about it makes so much sense. Thanks for the tip!
You’re welcome! Thank you so much for reading and commenting!
Wash your roots – that makes perfect sense – and what I’ll be doing tomorrow! Thanks for the great insights!
You’re welcome! Thank you for your sweet comment!
OMG, when I was younger I used to wash my hair every day! So crazy, I finally did my reading (thank goodness for the internet, right? LOL) and learned not to wash my hair so often and also learned about the shampoo/conditioning technique you mentioned.
My hair is sort of thick and long, I’m still on the hunt for the right hair mask. I’ve tried so many over the years, but nothing I’ve found has stuck.
Thanks for sharing your tips!
Des | https;//www.itsbetterinheels.com
I’m so happy for the internet lol! The Moroccanoil Intense Hydrating Mask is one of my favorites, as I already mentioned in my post but I really recommend that one. 🙂
Thank you for your comment!
Girl, your hair is flawless!! I agree with your tips so much – once I switched over to those micro fiber hair towels, I saw a huge difference in my hair.
I need to be better about washing my hair less, but I can usually only go every other day with my hair washing because my scalp is so ultra sensitive.
Thank you so much, that’s so sweet! I struggle with washing my hair less sometimes too, now that I don’t have a job and don’t have to go outside every day I can give my hair a break and let it get used to not being washed like every day lol.
These are fantastic tips! I never knew about only shampooing your scalp and it is something I am now definitely going to try. I only wash my hair twice a week and have a silk hair wrap to help stop my hair from getting frizzy post wash.
Thank you so much!
Your hair is literal goals, I’m so jealous. I’m really lucky in the sense that my hair is super straight and sleek, so I find it always stays in good condition as I rarely use heated products on it and because my hair is oily, I never suffer with dry hair, even on the ends. However, my hair is so greasy and I need to stop washing my hair every other day as I’m sure that’s not helping with the amount of oil that’s in there. I also should stop using towels and invest in a better brush as I sometimes worry about the amount of hair that comes out lol. But, your hair is incredible, so if I follow your steps, maybe my hair will get somewhere near to the lusciousness if yours! Thanks for sharing girl
Awh don’t make me blush! Thank you so much lovely ❤️ You have beautiful hair yourself, so I’m pretty sure if you make a couple little adjustments it’s going to look even more beautiful!
I always shampoo the whole if my hair. I’ll try only shampooing the scalp next time I wash my hair. Thanks for this tip!
You’re welcome! Thank you for your comment. 🙂
I have very long hair (thigh length) and I do a lot of these things myself. Mine is wavy/ light curls and slightly thicker than average so it can be hard to manage at times. I stopped using heat on my hair years ago, unless for a special event, which really helped. Paddle brushes are my favourite too! I also only shampoo the root and only condition the lengths and wash my hair either once or twice a week. My downfall is products – I get so lazy with them! I should oil my ends more but i forget all the time, such a bad habit x
Sophie
You’re really taking good care of your hair! That’s so good.
Oooh! I have long hair and it takes a lot to maintain it well. Love all of these tips!!! It is interesting that different brushes can really damage your hair. I love scrunchies! Hydration is so important as well! Thanks for sharing!
Nancy ♥ exquisitely.me
Thank you so much for commenting! 🙂
These are such great tips! I used to wash my hair everyday, now I do it every other day, but my hair gets oily so fast! Thank you for sharing!!x
Thank you so much! Xxx
I was struggling many years… I had a long hair but they was always demaged and I couldn’t change it.. once I even cutted them away. Then I started to learn about hairs and shampoos and everything!!! And that changed my life! In less than 2 years my hair grown back, get better and stronger! Now I love them! With those tips you are totally right! 😉
What a struggle you’ve had, I’m glad your hair is getting better and stronger! 🙂
This post was made for me! I especially love the tip about haircare. I will be looking into more OUAI product as I hear a lot of people saying good things about them! Thanks! X
Thank you so much for the sweet comment!