How To Add Life Back To Dull Hair

Everyone wants perfect hair, with curls that are always poppin’ and full of life. For many of us, hair is one of our biggest accessories. Have you ever gotten dolled up, face beat to the gawds paired with the perfect outfit only to look at your hair in the mirror like meh, and then not feel as beautiful?

I’m sure we’ve all been there. Whether a style didn’t come out the way we liked or maybe you’re just in a period where your hair is going through a dull phase where it is lacking luster and shine. Instead of hiding it under a wig* why don’t you do something about it?! There are a ton of things you can do (most at home) to bring life back to your hair but here are a few of my favorites.

Get a Good Trim…or big chop

One of the leading causes of dull hair is improper maintenance that leads to split ends traveling up the hair shaft or dry brittle hair due to a lack of care. These issues are hard to miss so I advise you to immediately head to your trusted stylist and get a proper trim. Chop off all of the dead ends so that your hair can flourish.

A trim and new shape might be just all you need to bring a little life back to your tresses.

In extreme cases, if you have let your hair go for too long, you might require a big chop where you just chop it all off and start fresh.

Proper cleansing

If you are someone who notices a lot of product build up, a proper deep cleansing may be what you need. Styling products can build up on top of your strands and without ridding this entirely during your washes you may experience a dull appearance in your styles.

This is often seen in those who co-wash on a regular basis without use of a shampoo. Consider doing an ACV rinse (I’ll touch more on that later), or use a bentonite clay* mask to help clarify your scalp and hair.

Make sure you are washing under warm water to open the cuticles of the hair shaft to rid dirt, oil and product build up and then rinse under cool water to close the cuticles and seal in the moisture.

Specialized treatments

There are tons of hair treatments and masques that you can create and use at home for different hair needs, many of the ingredients can be found in your own kitchen.

Do you notice your strands seem mushy or weakened? Your hair may be in need of a protein treatment.

Protein treatments temporarily fill in the “holes” in our strands where we have lost keratin, the protein that make up our hair strands. Doing this treatment will allow your strands to strengthen, and stronger hair assists in ensuring that your styles come out the way you desire.

On the other side of the spectrum, your hair may be in need of a deep conditioning* treatment. You should shoot to deep condition at least once a week which adds moisture, softness, and sheen to your hair.

Examine your hairs direct needs and provide what’s needed. You can search sites like Pinterest for recipes for a protein treatment and deep conditioner* you can make at home.

ACV rinses

As I mentioned earlier, apple cider vinegar* (ACV) rinses are great for clarifying your scalp and strands. It also has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties that help reduce flaking of the scalp. If you add oils* to your part ACV-part water mixture you will notice that a rinse prior to shampooing has the power to transform your hair.

For me, I feel like I notice a shine and a more livelier appearance when incorporating this into my wash day. I personally don’t like to co-wash as often because I feel like my scalp and strands don’t get as clean, but when I do I ensure that I definitely do a quick ACV rinse prior to ensure that my hair is clarified.

Switch up products

Lastly, you may want to consider switching up your products a bit. It’s possible your hair has developed a resistance to the products you’re using or it’s original effect has worn off.

Overtime, our hair goes through natural changes. This is expecting being that hair is often affected by both what happens inside our body (including water and food consumption), as well as what goes on outside of it (including environmental effects and direct treatments such as chemicals and heat).

Consider reading up on your hair’s porosity and do the test to determine what types of products you should be using. Shea Moisture* has recently developed a line devoted to both low porosity and high porosity hair types that you may want to consider trying. Overall, listen to your hair. If it’s looking dull and lacking life and luster chances are something needs to change.

What methods do you implement to bring life back into your hair when it’s appearing dull?