My short hair care routine

I used to work with my dad in his print shop and we were known pretty well in the community. We had lots of fun helping others and most of our customers were a dream to work with. I had long hair for years but the hair care routine for it was so time consuming… I’ll never forget the reactions I got the first time I cut my hair short. There were a lot of compliments paired with unwanted advice so that they didn’t sting so hard.

“Men love long hair, you should grow it out again and you’ll look so much better.”

“You look too young now! You looked more mature with long hair.”

“Sweetie, you aren’t going to find a man that appreciates short hair. You have such beautiful hair, you should grow it out!”

Uh, excuse me? I didn’t ask for advice on how to look attractive to other people. Is it wrong to look attractive for myself and if that includes having short hair, I’m going to cut it off!

I had long hair when I moved to The Netherlands. It wasn’t past my breasts but it was long enough to make me unhappy. I had let it grow because I was too concerned with finishing school. It was also a great way to cope with anxiety because it’s easy to hide behind long hair. But the longer I let it grow the unhappier I got. So off it went.

I’m thankful that my hair doesn’t give me a lot of drama. It’s super thick, grows quickly, and can be washed every three days. I’ve got Indian hair, so it can get oily pretty quickly after day 2. It also started to grey when I hit 25 and I haven’t bothered to cover it up. I like how the grey looks!

Let’s get into how I keep my hair looking primed and at its best. This may feel like a Lush campaign but none of this is sponsored. Lush products work well for me, and if it ain’t broken, why fix it? Here’s a look into my short hair care routine.

Shampoo
For a long time I used Big Shampoo in my hair care routine but it ended up being too drying for my hair. When Wasabi Shan Kui came out, I jumped on that bandwagon. It’s got a lot of the same things that Big offered  but Wasabi is less drying. The smell is fruity and a little strange but I love it. I’ve heard that it makes the scalp tingle but I haven’t experienced that. I use much more than is recommended because I like to lather up my hair and give it a good scrub. If my hair particular gross, like after along day in Amsterdam, I give it a double shampoo.

Conditioner
I was more than excited to see when Lush releashed a Big Conditioner. The important thing to know about this, is that it does not lather. The best way to use it, is to wet it and then slide it over the hair. I apply it all over the place, even at the roots. I know I’ve applied enough if I can slide my hands through my wet hair without it catching or tangling. It helps to keep my hair soft, sleek, and less frizzy.

Protection
I never cared about protecting my hair until I had to wash it under heavy water. In California the water was much softer so my hair was just as soft. In The Netherlands, the water feels heavier and I’m not too sure if that’s because it’s heavy water. Either way, I use #Gains to keep my hair strong. I spray it on right after I pat it dry with a towel. After that I wrap it in a towel wrap. I have a very cheap one right now and it doesn’t dry my hair all the way. But it allows me to have product sit in my hair without getting in my face. Eventually I’d like to invest in one like this one.

Styling
Depending on the time of the year I use two different types of hair styling product. For the summer I love the Sea Spray because of those beautiful beachy waves. My hair is naturally wavy so a spritz of this on my wet hair is amazing. It dries wonderfully and has a beautiful hold. Other times of the year I use Willow The Wisp because the scent is a bit strong. This one is supposed to help strengthen and volumize hair by adding in proteins. The scent is a bit strong for me so I don’t use it often but I would like to!