Sun damage not only affects your skin, but it's easy to overlook the importance of protecting your hair against UV damage. It's time to plan for beach season, with some summer-specific hair habits you need to adopt - you can thank us later. By editor Trudi Brewer.
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Just as all skin types are vulnerable to sun damage, so are all hair types - especially coloured and blonde hair. Lighter hair lacks the thickness or pigment that naturally protects it from the sun's damaging rays. Use a leave-in-conditioner appropriate to your hair colour and type during summer.
Umberto Giannini Catch a Wave Texture Spray, $25.
If you like that sea salt texture but had a crunchy dry feel in your hair, this new vegan texture spray is unreal. Stacked with coconut oil and UV filters you get the look of a surf chick, while your hair colour is protected from fading and your hair smells like a tropical island.
How to use: Spritz through damp or dry hair and scrunch it in with your fingers. Use heat if you want maximum volume and root lift.
Chlorinated water and salt play havoc with coloured hair. Lightening your hair in summer will make it more vulnerable to the summer stresses of heat and sun. So if you do, invest in hair sunscreen to protect your locks from UV damage.
Moroccanoil Protect & Prevent Spray, $59.
Your weightless UV shield in a bottle. It will protect your colour from fading or looking brassy, with a built-in sunscreen and thermal protection against heat, as well antioxidants to neutralise those outdoor stressors. Finally, the clever ArganID technology means the argan oil gets deep into the hair’s cortex, which seals the cuticle and helps repair the hair.
How to use: Mist through damp hair, concentrating on the mid-lengths and ends and then style as usual.
The UV rays from the sun damage the hair’s cuticle and the protein called keratin. To reverse the damage, one of your best bets is a protein-rich hair mask, used weekly over summer. Make sure the mask you choose is also stacked with antioxidants these help negate the effects of sun damage too.
Davines NOUNOU Hair Mask, $44.
It’s our go-to for reviving blonde hair in summer. Rich in lycopene (from tomatoes) and vitamin C both great antioxidants, which offer natural sun protection, while it’s an ultra-hydration mask it’s also weightless.
And it smells like a tropical cocktail with citrus, with a touch of floral spice.
How to use: Apply to towel-dried, wrap your hair in a hot towel or use a shower cap and leave it on for up to 15 minutes, and then rinse.
Tight elastics damage hair follicles, especially when your hair is wet. Avoid tight topknots at the beach, which put pressure on the hairline. Instead, use a softer style like a low ponytail or braid, or twist the hair and secure with a pin. Use your fingers first to pull your hair up rather than a bush of comb, and always apply a hair serum to help detangle knots and keep your hair well-nourished.
Fanola Smooth Care Smoothing Protection Serum, $28.
Stacked with lightweight linseed oil that is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, and keratin, this is not only a brilliant frizz-fighter but also helps calm scalp issues such as psoriasis and eczema.
How to use: Ideal as a heat protecting serum if you are using straightening irons. Massage into damp hair before style or dry hair to smooth frizz.
Please don't wash your hair every day. It will strip it from its natural oils. When you shower, just rinse your hair, and between washes, protect your hair with a shower cap. If you hair is dry add a little conditioner to the ends of the hair before you hit the beach, so when you swim the conditioner will protect against dehydration and frizz.
Hask Monoi Coconut Oil Nourishing Deep Conditioner, $6.
One of our favourite travel-friendly masks, it's stacked with both coconut and Tahitian monoi oils, with hair strengthening vitamin B5, oat, and silk amino acids to boost moisture in every strand. Ideal to use weekly during the hottest months - the scent reminds us of a summer of sunshine.
How to use: Apply to clean, wet hair focusing on the ends. Leave on for up to ten minutes and rinse well. Each package will give you at least two applications.
Updating your summer wardrobe? Buy a hat (especially one with a broader brim); it will not only be invaluable for protecting your complexion but also for defending your scalp and hair against sun damage. And it is not just direct sun damage; once you are outdoors, the UV rays will damage your hair, so get a hat you like wearing all summer.
Fudge Luminizer Conditioner, $25.
If your hair is looking dull and frizzy the shine-boosting, lightweight oils including Argan and Abyssian oil, with clever hydrating and repairing Opti-PLEX technology will nourish every strand giving your hair instant gloss and shimmer.
How to use: Apply after shampooing, concentrating on the dry ends. Rinse thoroughly.
Here are the tips and products to try now.