The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - The Telegraph Magazine
Beauty brains My all-time hair heroes
There’s a whole raft of products that promise healthy hair, but which ones are actually worth investing in? Lisa Armstrong finds out
One thing you soon realise when you colour your hair is that the trip to the salon is only the start of the story.
That’s just as true when you’re growing out your colour. I’ve noticed many more women proudly sporting their grey lately, but take note, embracing nature still involves a few chemicals and a lot of upkeep to keep things smooth and shiny. Weekly masks, heated oils, scalp ‘purifiers’ and exfoliators… it’s easy to end up with a cabinet full of halfused bottles. So here’s what I find genuinely beneficial.
First stop is a thorough but gentle shampoo. I love to use George Northwood’s Unpolluted (£12) once a week, which gets rid of any residue without stripping the hair. I also like Ameliorate Clarifying Shampoo (£16, ameliorate.com), which stands out, in a sea of promises, for moisturising the hair. I use the accompanying conditioners in each range, as well as Philip Kingsley’s Elasticizer, (£19.50, philipkingsley. co.uk) once a week. I feel I write about this product a lot, but it doesn’t really have any rivals. However, I recently tried Revlon’s Nutri Color Filters in Intense Platinum on my blondesilver-growing-out-tint – and what a revelation. It’s an excellent smoother, glosser and de-brasser, while silvering up strands that may have gone a tad yellow. All that for under £10.
I also use a tiny amount of oil on the ends as they get drier – try Kiehl’s Magic Elixir (£30, feelunique.com). If your grey hair is prone to frizziness, Sisley Hair Rituel Volumizing Spray smooths without adding grease. Pricey, but it lasts me a year. If you want volume, Color Wow’s Raise the Root (£19.50, colorwowhair.com) is best in class and has now been joined by Xtra Large Bombshell Volumizer, which, because it has no alcohol, claims to be less drying. Using heated appliances as little as you can get away with will help maintain condition. George Northwood, who’s just launched a straightener and curling tongs, recommends always starting on the lowest setting and working up from there.
Buzz treatments in haircare right now are masks and exfoliators that treat the scalp. Some promise thicker hair. Since results can take weeks, if not months, to show and also depend on other factors such as diet and stress levels, I’d be wary of recommending specific brands. It’s too soon to say whether these are worthy additions to our hair regimes, or a spot of marketing opportunism.
If you suffer from a dry scalp, it’s probably better to switch to a gentle shampoo rather than risk clogging pores with scalp masks and oils. I’d rather take a supplement, such as Fulvic Acid Elixir, which comes in liquid form ( just it add to water and sip throughout the day). Rubber scalp massagers are becoming popular and can help stimulate blood and lymph flow, which may improve growth activity. At the very least they make hair look thicker by working in the same way as a bit of backcombing – only gentler.