1. You should be putting bobby pins in your hair wavy-side down.
It will help them stay better — the ridges help grip your hair and lock everything in place. Still having trouble with slipping bobby pins? Coat them with a little bit of hairspray before using them. From here.
4. If you have thin hair, do. not. use. coconut oil.
It will just weigh your hair down over time. Learn more about caring for thin hair here.
5. Dry shampoo can be a time saver, but only if you buy the right kind.
Most dry shampoos come in several shades (these are $8.99/bottle at Walgreens), so pick the one that matches your hair color. Nothing is worse than a white powder shampoo that turns dark brown hair grey.
If you’re still not happy with how your hair looks after some spritzes of dry shampoo, try putting it on before bed — giving it your full eight hours of sleep to fully absorb the excess oils in your hair could make your hair look even cleaner than it would have if you sprayed and sprinted off to the rest of your day.
Don’t want to drop the cash on a bottle of dry shampoo? You can also make your own.
6. Make sure you have the best brush for your hair.
7. AND the right kind of curling iron.
Get more curling iron tricks here.
8. Learn how to use your curling iron to get the curls you want.
From here.
9. But when you need to just quickly curl your hair, use this trick to make it happen all at once.
10. AND (surprise!) the right kind of hair straightener.
Learn some advanced flat iron techniques here.
11. And how to use your straightener so it doesn’t suck every bit of volume out of your ‘do.
12. Clean your hairbrushes and combs on the reg.
It will help prevent products from building up on your brush’s bristles, which will make your brush last longer. Plus, it helps get rid of the bit of gross bacteria that can grow there. See how here.
13. Figure out exactly what is causing your split ends.
Some come from simple dryness and friction, some come from sun damage, some come from too-frequent ponytails, some come from too much heat — and some are because that’s just how your hair is.
14. Then soothe those split ends with an easy DIY hair mask.
See how here. But if you have lots of split ends, it may be best to go to your hairstylist and have them trim them…and ask how you can take better care of your hair next time.
15. Make sure you’re using the right amount of all of your hair products.
Too much or too little and you may weigh down your hair or see no effect at all.
16. If you don’t know how to French braid your own hair (and you want to learn), buckle down and practice.
There’s no hack for this one, but these directions are pretty clear and easy to follow.
18. When those too-tight hair ties leave creases in your hair, swap them out for some creaseless hair ties.
They can be kind of pricey at the drugstore, but you can DIY your own for much less money.
19. Know what those fancy terms on the bottles actually mean.
