Cosmo's 5 Things A Stylist Won't Tell You

I came across an article in Cosmopolitan Magazine and I was shocked and a little offended by the article. This post is my opinion to clarify what cosmo's "hair experts" have said.  I can't speak for all the other stylist out there but I like to think I'm an honest and open professional and have no issue talking/explaining/ recommending anything to the guests in my chair.  This includes products, styling tips, alternative hair cuts that will be more flattering, how often you should be coming in, ways to cut costs etc.


COSMO: 1. You don't need to get highlights every time you get your hair done.
The reality is if your hair has been highlighted every time its been colored, the chances of overlapping and over processing are greater than not. Try breaking your base instead of highlights when it's time for your color touch ups. That way, you'll give your hair a small break while saving money and looking color fresh.
ME: True.  However, this also depends on how often you come into the salon.  If you come once a month for a trim you can skip an appointment or two before you need your highlights touched up.  I personally recommend your highlights should be retouched every 6 - 12 weeks or 1.5 to 3 inches of regrowth to maintain the look.  The main factors that decide how often you need to retouch are how fast your hair grows and how light you are compared to your natural colour.  If your hair grows really fast you need to come in sooner.  If you have naturally dark hair & you get a full head of back light blonde highlights youre going to look rediculous with more than 1.5 - 3 inches of regrowth.  If the reason you're wanting to skip high light appointments is cost, most salons offer 1/2 head & 3/4 head prices. These save you a bit of time & money.  You can start with a full head then 6 - 12 weeks later get a 1/2 head. For the appointment following that, get a 3/4 head. Lastly 6- 8 weeks youre back to a full head.  If you come to the salon for a trim or two in between highlight appointments, you can always have a toner or colour gloss put over your highlights to keep them looking fresh!



 COSMO: 2. Skipping conditioning treatments at the salon is totally fine.
Conditioning treatments aren't bad, especially on damaged hair, however, over conditioning with expensive treatments can sometimes leave you with a big bill at check out time. Try requesting the moisturizing conditioners that are complimentary with your shampoo and ask to be sit under the dryer for 5 to 10 minutes. Compare to see if there's a real difference in the way your hair feels after.
ME: This is only partially true. There are many types of conditioning treatments. Some target damage from heat styling or environmental stressers, others target damage from chemicals. There are treatments designed to soften unruley or age weakened hair.  All treatments add shine to your hair which is always a plus.  Now skipping conditioning treatments at the salon is fine if your hair is in good condition. There is no such thing as "over conditioning."  If your hair is in good condition treat yourself every now and then to an in-salon treatment to add shine and maintain strong healthy hair. Now if your hair isn't in impecable condition, why wouldn't you want to work towards getting there? If cost is an issue, have one done every second or third service. One treatment is better than no treatments & also use a deep conditioning treatment at home once a week can really make a difference in the health of your hair.  As for putting regular conditioner under the dryer, this does nothing.  Technically heat opens the cuticle and the conditioner will go inside, however as regular conditioner is not forumlated to be heat activated so it just comes right out when you rinse.  Instead try a moisture-based heat-activated blow dry lotion.  This will moisturize your hair as it protects from heat styling.


3. It's OK to mix expensive and cheapo products.
Just because you love a high-end shampoo with a double-digit price tag doesn't mean you have to use the same brand of conditioner, hairspray, serum, etc. Your stylist might try to push the whole line on you, saying they work best together, but it's totally fine to save cash by splurging on one haircare item and hitting the drugstore for the rest.

ME: FALSE! Technically yes, you could use a high end salon shampoo and a drug store conditioner. Your hair won't catch fire or anything, but there is basically no point in using the shampoo then.  Products you get from the drugstore contain less concentrated versions of salon products.  They use salt (which swells the product so it takes up more space & dries your hair out) and wax fillers to make up the difference.  If you use drug store conditioner after professional quality shampoo you're basically putting a wax coating on your hair and when you shampoo your hair, the good stuff cant fully or penetrate at all.  Also if you try this method you'll likely be shampooing 2 or 3 times to get a good cleanse just to get some of the wax off. Why bother wasting your good shampoo. If youre really wanting to save money you can use a high end salon brand shampoo and follow with a cheaper salon brand conditioner. Always stick with the same type, so volume with volume, repair with the same type of repair, colour save with colour save etc. My best advice though would be use a cheaper salon brand shampoo and conditioner from the same product line and buy a deep conditioner from a high price point.  The condtioning mask will be used once a week or once every two weeks so you wont go through it as fast but you're still getting the great benefits of your favourite brands product.

**Also, if it says salon quality and you've never seen it in a salon, its not a salon product**



4. Your hair won't grow faster if you trim it.
But the truth is your hair won't look as good as you're growing it out if you let too much time lapse between cuts. So just be sure to tell your stylist you want it to grow longer — that way she can trim only a little bit to keep it healthy, but she'll know to preserve as much of the length as possible.
ME: Ahhh the good old to trim or not to trim. TRUE. It won't make your hair grow faster, but it will keep your hair from breaking.  If your hair is damaged and you're not willing to lose all the length it takes to clean up the ends, get trims regularily.  Get your hair trimmed every 6 weeks and take your hair up to that length you're comfortable with.  Keep trimming it until the breakage/ damage from higher up catch up and are cut off.  Once the healthy catch up, your hair will grown longer & still maintain it's health. No one likes long damaged breaking hairs. Long healthy hair is always great though!
 

5. You don't have to shampoo your hair every day if it's curly or wavy.
The "wash and wear" haircut and the daily shampoo are really only needed if you have really fine hair. If your hair is wavy or curly, it tends to be a little drier, so you really shouldn't shampoo every day.

ME: TRUE! You dont need to wash (shampoo) your hair everyday! Straight, fine, coarse, curly, wavy; you dont need to wash your hair every day!!!! Shampoo, even moisturizing shampoos, gently cleanse the hair by opening the cuticle. By shampooing daily, you open the cuticle so often that some of your hairs' natural moisture is lost.  If you work out alot/ get sweaty, please still shower. Just rinse your hair really well. You can massage your scalp with out shampoo & follow with conditioner on your ends. If you have fine hair & its above the collar bones you likely dont need condtioner (it might be too heavy for your hair) or condtion every other wash (or if you rinse and just need that extra hydration). If your hair is coarse and/ or curly you can leave it longer.  Just rinse & condition to keep the texture feeling soft & hydrated. Dry curls will be frizzy and gross. 

Hopefully this post will help carify Cosmo statements. We, as stylists, are people too sometimes we forget to mention things, so if no one has every told you, we aren't trying to leave you out of the loop! Don't feel like your stylist is lying to you.  If you have a question, ask! If you aren't sure about something, ask!  Also, please keep in mind that Cosmopolitan Magazine's ad space (that is hair related) is bought by drugstore brand products.  From a busiess stand point why would the only promote professional products in their articles? They would lose alot of business.