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SHINY HAIR: WHAT’S THE SECRET?

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RDP Monday: LUSTRE

A friend of mine, also suffering from thinning hair, pointed out that at least my hair is shiny. It’s the result of insanely expensive shampoo and conditioner, a carefully chosen hairbrush … and unmitigated luck.

I don’t have a lot of hair … but by golly, it has lustre.

Photo: Garry Armstrong

The secret — other than the wildly expensive shampoo and conditioner? A very soft hairbrush, wash it ONLY when it is really dirty … like once a week. When it was a lot longer (waist length) and much thicker, I washed it every two to three weeks because the longer it gets, the more fragile it becomes. It was explained to me that the hair at the bottom was the oldest hair on your head.

For example, if you have been growing your hair for four or five years, even with regular end trimming, the hair at the ends has been around for four or five years. It is essentially dead, so treat it with great care.

Also, when your hair is that long, it takes a REALLY long time to dry and when I was working, I had to have a strategy. Wash hair Saturday morning and by Monday, it would finally be dry.

I had a best friend who was a hairdresser and always reminded me to NOT WASH YOUR HAIR EVERY DAY.

Your hair is supposed to have natural oils in it. The first time you let it go a few days, it feels weird, but after a while, it all settles down, so unless you’ve been gardening, running, or seriously exercising, your hair doesn’t need a daily scrubbing.

Of course, there are people who have fantastic hair that never seems to thin and always looks great no matter what they do to it. Sadly, I’m not one of them.

The other thing? DNA. You just have to have “that kind of hair.” I may not have a lot of it, but it is shiny.

Note: My hair is always tied back except when I sleep. When it was very long, it was always in a braid, including when I slept.

Why? I take pictures and my hair is fine. A little tiny bit of wind gets it into everything. It covers my eyes so I can’t take a picture because I can’t see anything. It gets tangled with my glasses. It sticks in my teeth. It’s hard to tell who sheds more — me or The Duke.

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Categories: #Photography, Daily Prompt, Humor, portrait

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22 replies

  1. granonine
    10/22/2018 • 20:20

    I had very, very oily hair, and washed it daily for years. Now? Two or three times a week, sometimes less. Haven’t had it long in years, just too much trouble. Now that there’s lots of silver, it’s a bit shinier than it used to be 🙂

    Like

  2. angloswiss
    10/22/2018 • 17:47

    I have had it all: long, short, curly although it is straight. The result is short, wash twice a week and wet daily in the shower. Let it dry naturally, never use the hair dryer. That’s my way and I am sticking to it

    Like

    • Taswegian1957
      10/22/2018 • 18:12

      That’s my way too. My hair is very thick so I keep it reasonably short, especially in summer. I hardly ever use a hairdryer which is probably why the one mum gave me when I was 23 is still working.

      Liked by 1 person

    • Marilyn Armstrong
      10/22/2018 • 19:55

      That’s a very healthy way to treat your hair. I looked fine in shorter hair, but my hair is so fine and floaty, if I can’t tie it back, I can’t SEE anything. Except hair.

      Liked by 1 person

  3. choosingmyperspective
    10/22/2018 • 14:34

    I wish I knew how to put a photo in the comments section…

    My hair has been my favorite thing about my physical self…sometimes the only thing I like. So as I got sicker, and more and more of it fell out, a reaction to the medication, the more upset and depressed I got.

    I set about grieving the loss so I could just move on.

    And then my 18 year old Heart Cat died.

    Now, I don’t give a crap about my hair. I guess as we age, there are always things competing for the number one spot for losses in life.

    I really miss my hair…but nothing like how badly I miss my cat….sigh,

    Like

    • Marilyn Armstrong
      10/22/2018 • 19:59

      Each time I had surgery or got a new medication, more hair fell out. When I had cancer, two of my dogs died within a couple of weeks of the surgery and each other — and right after my heart surgery, we lost four dogs in less than six months. All our dogs seem to get old at the same time. It’s horrible. I’m pretty sure the reason we got Duke is that both Bonnie and Gibbs are 11 and Bonnie isn’t aging well. I’m trying to wrap my head around her loss because I can sniff it in the wind.

      I’ve gotten used to my hair. As long as I’m not actually bald, it’ll do. I think the anesthesia from the surgeries was part of the falling out process too.

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  4. swo8
    10/22/2018 • 14:19

    Can’t imagine washing my hair everyday. Who has the time for it besides it doesn’t really need it.
    Leslie

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    • Marilyn Armstrong
      10/22/2018 • 20:06

      The only time my hair REALLY needs washing is if I’ve been swimming … or it has reached the end of it’s cycle which is just about a week. Closer to 5 or 6 days. Or if I’ve been out on a boat. I don’t like salt spray on it. It’s pretty corrosive.

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Melanie B Cee
    10/22/2018 • 14:06

    Mine is like dandelion fluff…it’s thin, wispy and flies around at the slightest hint of a breeze. It’s never been shiny nor lustrous, even when I used very expensive shampoo. So I buy Suave and call it all good. At least it smells good. I think…. and mostly I wash mine every day….I just have a phobia about oily (not that mine gets that way much) dirty hair. When I’ve had surgeries, it’s been a huge problem that I couldn’t wash my hair for days or weeks…last time (knee surgery) I had them almost shave my head to avoid the problem. It worked okay and it grew out by the time I was released.

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    • Marilyn Armstrong
      10/22/2018 • 20:05

      Between washing it every day with Suave and other ill health issues, you are flirting with actually NOT having hair. Suave has the same ingredients as rug shampoo. Really. Look it up. Washing it every day seriously stresses your hair. I’ve had this conversation with a lot of people, including one incredibly stubborn husband. When he finally decided to give it a try, it actually started to grow back a bit. I said the same thing when warned about this, but when you stop washing it all the time, it doesn’t get nearly as oily. It becomes much more normal and not as light and fluffy. It takes about of month of NOT washing it daily for it to normalize. It’s sort of like quitting smoking.

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  6. Soul n Spirit
    10/22/2018 • 12:42

    In fact daily scrubbing is not recommended in order to have shiny hairs. In fact I avoid my swimming sessions at times for this reason. They really get bad despite one wears a cap.

    Liked by 1 person

  7. Sue Vincent
    10/22/2018 • 12:22

    Mine shines… and I don’t wash it anywhere near every day… but it will not stay put. Sticks out like it is supercharged wth static, no matter what I do. And heaven help me if it is damp ( ringlets…at my age!) or windy…

    Liked by 1 person