HAIR & BEAUTY
Locks in Lockdown
How to avoid your quarantine hair quandaries As you read this, we are still in the midst of the Covid-19 lockdown. As the days, weeks and - heaven forbid - months drag on, so does the unstoppable march of roots, grey hairs and split ends. You may have seen that early in the lockdown, male actors and footballers were all over social media, showing off their new lockdown buzz cuts. However, opting for a DIY do can be fraught with danger. Literally, if you don’t know what you’re doing with scissors or clippers. Ironically, before we were all ordered to stay at home one of the gents at our salon walked in and baffled his regular stylist by telling her that he was thinking of growing his hair long again. What did he know that we didn’t?!
Coluring your hair
Anyway, if you’re thinking that DIY stands for Dye It Yourself, a word of Craig warning. Be careful. If you’re not 100% confident about colouring your hair at home, don’t. Always do a patch test first, to make sure you don’t suffer an allergic reaction. The chemical found in many home dyeing kits, PPD, is quite harsh and can produce a reaction. The last thing anyone wants is to trouble the NHS in the middle of the Coronavirus crisis with a dodgy dye job.
Grey hair can be tricky, as there’s no pigment in the base to lift. So, it can be difficult to achieve a truly satisfying result from home colourants, especially when you could end up with a tone that looks a bit like cat wee or butterscotch-flavour Angel Delight. Neither shade does your skin tone a favour. Trust me! But if they’re the don’ts, what are the dos? Here are my tips for quality quarantine hair: If you have dyed hair, touch-up root sprays are fantastic. A quick spritz and you can mask the different shade instantly and the colour will safely wash out. Don’t forget to keep conditioning your hair. You could also try a hair mask, as there is a huge variety for different needs and hair types. Consider parting your hair in a different way. Doing this can either hide or indeed show off your natural ‘highlights’. The chap I mentioned who wants to grow his hair has done this and has a fine ‘Mallon Streak’ that he’s very chuffed with. Alternatively, a diagonal parting is a great way to make your roots a little less prominent. Of course, if all else fails a hat covers a multitude of sins. Literally.
by Craig Smith Director of Grateful Heads Hair Salon
Providing Providing expert expert hair care hair care to Essex to Essex for 30 foryears. 30 years. Isn’t Isn’t it time it time you made you made your your headhead grateful? grateful?
01702 01702 340965 340965 32 Alexandra 32 Alexandra Street, Street, Southend Southend SS1SS1 1BU1BU 40
www.oraclepublications.co.uk
June 2020
