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A spirit that is not afraid

Hydrating hair for winter

Olive oil conditioner is an alternative at-home treatement to moisturize dry hair. It can be purchased at local drugstores like CVS and Walgreens. (Raye May / ASSOCIATE INTRIGUE EDITOR)
Olive oil conditioner is an alternative at-home treatement to moisturize dry hair. It can be purchased at local drugstores like CVS and Walgreens. (Raye May / ASSOCIATE INTRIGUE EDITOR)

Dry winter weather doesn't have to mean dry hair.

"Most of the winter months, you are running your air in your car and your house," said Lindsey Ledbetter, stylist at The Cutting Edge. "So the combination of heat and lack of humidity is what dries hair out."

During the summer people give more lubrication to their hair with sunscreen, Ledbetter said.

Becky Adkins, stylist at Envison Salon, said coloring can dry hair out faster.

"The old color in your hair, the point at which you can see your roots, shows that your hair needs treatment," Adkins said. "If you continuously dye all your hair then the roots will swell up, causing them to dry out."

Those who dye with box color tend do so incorrectly by coloring all of their hair again, Adkins said.

"So if you need to touch up your color, only dye the roots," Adkins said.

As a result of drier skin and hair, local salons have seen an increase in customers for spa treatments.

"We do notice a lot of dry scalps and skin this time of year," said Mary Cornett, owner of The Works Salon and Spa.

Cornett recommends Agadr shampoo and conditioner for all hair types.

"It's sulfate-free, so you don't have to worry about colored hair," Cornett said.

There are also treatments specific to hair type.

"People with fine hair have less protein, so we put a protein reconstruction in their hair," Cornett said.

Ledbetter said to deep-condition fine hair every two weeks and use leave-in conditioner every day, but just on the ends.

Thick, coarse and curly hair should be treated the same, Ledbetter said.

"If you have drier or coarser hair, a moisturizing mask would help the best," Cornett said.

Cornett warned not to shampoo too often.

"Shampooing every other day will allow the natural oils to take care of the conditioning," Cornett said.

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Cornett said for a spa-like treatment at home, an olive oil conditioner will help moisturize.

"Just make sure to wash your hair two to three times right after the treatment," Cornett said. "The olive oil may be hard to get out right away."

Along with olive oil treatments, Kristen Matthews, freshman in business, deep-conditions her hair once a week.

"I recommend Pureology Deep Conditioning hair mask," Matthews said.

Small changes to routine can help fight dryness.

Christa Carroll, freshman in pre-physical therapy, uses two tricks for healthy winter hair.

"I'll let the conditioner set for longer before I rinse it out," Carroll said. "I also use a static polish that keeps my hair from looking too crazy."


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