THE ULTIMATE HAIR GUIDE

Hair is exhausting. It’s true! Between the washing, drying, styling, coloring, maintenance, and everything else we gotta do to keep it happy, it can definitely feel like a full-time job.

GOING RED

Going to address this one upfront because it’s easily one of my most asked questions! My roots are a combo of 8k , 7kg , and 6k. I don’t need to bleach or “lift” my hair before I dye it red. My hair was bleached blonde before and my natural hair is fairly light so I just use the lotion developer. I touch up my roots about every 4 weeks or it grows out too much and looks like my hair is floating a bit.

EXTENSIONS

I’ve had long, mermaid-hair dreams for as long as I can remember. So shortly after going red, I had Salty hair extensions with the salty method installed. I went with 2 rows of 18” hand-tied wefts but shortened them a bit to better fit me. The bottom one is a red (#30 in her extension) and the top is a combo of #30 and then blonde hair that we dyed with 8k to match my real hair. Extensions are a science and to get the most natural blend you should definitely go to someone who knows what they’re doing.

Extensions are the best and the worst. They definitely extend your wash and look styled for days after the original work but hair wash days can be rough! But I do love them because they are easier and look better 90% of the time than my own natural hair.

HAIR CARE

HairCovery is perfect for fine, brittle, or dull hair that needs a little extra love, while HairPlenish is perfect for normal to dry, curly/wavy, or coarse hair.

HairBalance, on the other hand, is for those with oily hair to effectively combat oil and sebum on the scalp while providing protection and hydration.

Even better? All 3 of these collections are suitable for color-treated hair! I don’t use all 3 on my hair because my hair really responds well to a mix of the HairCovery and HairPlenish systems.

WASHING DAY

I say “Washing Day’ because I only do this once a week. When I transitioned from blonde to red, I had to retrain my hair a bit because the blonde added a layer of dryness and coarseness that my red hair just doesn’t have. My hair is SO much healthier now and I’ve since learned how to get that same volume without the damaging texture.

This routine is similar to my curly-hair routine in that while I'm in the shower I will wash once to get all the products out of my hair and once again to really clean. my hair - I allow this second wash to sit a bit longer. I use the HairCovery Thickening & Volumnizing Shampoo. Once done washing, I will then use the HairPlenish Normal to Dry Conditioner.

This isn’t something you need to do but I really love a double wash and the products I use don’t dry out my hair.

HAIR SERUMS

I use 2 serums from Senegence that are scalp treatments and are meant to keep your scalp healthy and relieve any dryness, itching, inflammation, and/or irritation. These are meant to be applied DIRECTLY to the scalp. It doesn’t make my hair oily but if you have naturally higher oil production just use it the day before you wash so it has time to sit.

DRYING

At this point, this is still very much like my curly hair routine - I air dry my hair to about 70%. I have extensions that can make this a VERY LONG PROCESS and so sometimes I will take my SuperSonic on the lowest heat away from my hair just to cut through the majority of dampness.

I have also used Sebastian Trilliant heat protectant for years and will use it before I apply any heat whether from a hairdryer or curling iron.

STYLING PRODUCTS

There are so many products I love but only a few go-tos. Listing my favorites below:

HOT TOOLS

I use a variety of hot tools (curling irons, wands, wavers) to achieve different looks with my hair! You can see all of my looks HERE. They’re super easy to follow!

Here are all of the hot tools I love to use:

BIO IONIC Long Barrel Styler: I love the longer barrel on this curling iron. Makes it so much easier to get long curls and I use this when I want to create hair with a lot of volume!

Curlipops Ceramic Clamp-Free Curling Wand Iron, 1/2": This is a super-thin curling want that doesn’t have a clamp which makes doing these curls super simple! This is a fun way to experience curly hair!

Nano Titanium Spring Curling: I like both the 1” and 1 1/2” iron - if you have shorter hair or don’t want to wield the longer barrel, these are awesome!

HOT TOOLS Professional Ceramic + Tourmaline Deep Waver: This is awesome for big waves without the curls - I will sometimes use this all on its own or to touch up my own natural curl. I have a few tutorials on using this so make sure you check them out!

OTHER HAIR TOOLS

There aren’t many things I love more than my continuous-spray spray bottle. It’s the little things that make a difference, you know? Here are a few other tools and products that make my life easier:

If you’ve got any other hair-related questions leave them in the comments below!

Katie