The Top 10 Do's and Don'ts of Hair Care

Drum roll please!

There is something about rules that tempts the average bear to break them. If you look around to observe, you will notice how certain drivers slide through the "Stop" signs, a customer will walk right up to the next checkout counter as others wait patiently in a single file line or my favorite...eating the grapes in the grocery store! We all know what the rule are.

Being a stickler to rules are often enforced by teachers, family members, police officers and so on. But no one enforcers rules like a mother. Who can remember the old golden rule, "You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool mom?" Now that I am a mother, I must admit, I enforce rules like no other. And if I thought enforcing rules at home was something else, nothing prepared me for the ultimate in enforcing like enforcement at the hair salon. And just as you can't fool mom, you also can not fool the hair stylist.

Hairstylists are always offering tips; giving up the do's and don't of hair care. Just the other day a customer revealed to another hairstylist that they were doing something to their hair at home that we suggested they not do. Then, as you guessed it, other customers chimed in, "I didn't know that. I do that too!" We were all floored. So one of the customer's blurted out, "You should write us a do and don't list." No problem and no fooling. So, without further ado, below outline the top ten do's and don'ts in hair care....again!

Drum roll please,

Top 10 Don'ts:

1. Put a plastic (or any shower cap) on your hair when you shower. The moisture will convert you relaxed, natural, smoothed, or set hair style. You are creating a sauna on your head with the plastic cap and the oils from your hair. Thus causing the hair to swell and  revert. Instead wrap your wrapped or unwrapped hair in a towel. The towel will absorb the moisture from the steam. Don't wear any kind of cap on your hair. Feel free to open the door or window to let out the steam.
2. Flat iron or attempt to curl hair when it has not been shampooed in over 7 days. The heat will cook your hair along with the dirt. So don't do this.
3. Co-Wash. Do not co-wash. That is like attempting to wash with lotion. Lotion does not clean skin. There is no such conditioner that cleanses hair or should be used in lieu of shampoo.
4. Wait too long to shampoo your hair. The average head of hair should be cleansed within 4 to 10 days. The longer you wait, the more difficult it will be to style your hair, especially if you are over 35 years of age.
5. Cut your hair monthly. If you want longer hair, cutting it monthly will almost always cut your 1/4th inch that you just grew back out. So try cutting it every 2-3 months using the Lunar Hair Cutting System. Google the Morroccan Method...he has it down to a science.
6. Purchase products that read for "Women of Color" or "Black Hair." People of the same race do not have the same hair texture and type. Instead, purchase your products according to the results you want to see and feel on your hair. Words like: rejuvenating, repair, fortifying, shine, manageable, volume, smooth, de-frizz and so on are wise purchases. You will also get a better bang for your buck.
7. Turn down the heat. If straight hair is what you are after, then you will need heat. You will need high heat to smooth hair to ensure that it will not convert back. Don't use low or medium heat to flat iron, curl or soft press hair. Doing so will cause hair to revert and break. Speak to your stylist or read the manufacturers instructions on how high the heat should be for your unique hair fabric.
8. Share products. Do not share hair care products with friends and family members. Remember what will work on their hair may not work on yours and vice versa.
9. Not combing your hair. If you are wearing a smooth and sleek style, it is imperative to comb your hair frequently throughout the day. The less you comb it; the regrowth will swell and convert thus making the hair more susceptible to breaking at the demarcation line. Be sure to comb your hair frequently throughout the day. Frequent combing also re-distributes oils and products throughout hair.
10. Apply hair weave straight from the package to your hair. Artificial and human hair are often treated with some serious chemicals. Those chemicals often irritate. Try lightly misting the hair with a little vinegar and water mixture to reduce irritation.

A little snare please, 

Top 10 Do's

1. Drink plenty of water. Healthy hair comes from within. There is no hair stylist, hair care product or styling tool that can make hair healthy. Instead, they make hair look and feel healthy. Water is a catalyst that gets everything going and working together. So please drink water.
2. Boo Boo. That is right! Nothing promotes growth like healthy bowel movements. Hair like skin reflects the inner working of the body. So move them kits. Eat properly to promote regular healthy bowel movements.
3. Exercise. Read #2
4. Wrap your hair at night. If smooth hair is what you are after, then wrapping your hair at night will keep tresses tamed and smooth. This will also make re-styling in the morning easier.
5. Take advantage of treatments that are scalp specific. The scalp is the foundation of beautiful shiny performing hair. Products such as Decca Plus, P2 by Philip Pelusi and Phyto are my favorites.
6. Invest in products that fit your budget. Salon products are not better than over the counter. If it works; use it.
7. Eat your way to stronger longer hair. Foods are the ultimate source to nourish hair. 
8. Take supplements. If your diet is restricted or if you are a vegan and the likes, supplements can help nourish hair. Understand whole food sources are best. Supplements can help.
9. Use protein. Humans are lean mean protein making machines. Hair is included in that. Under a microscope the varying strands of hair have tiny scales called cuticle layers. Those layers are what hair is mostly comprised of. The second layer is the cuticle. The cuticle layer is where the integrity and strength is. So using quality proteins are best. My favorite proteins are P2's Daily Hair Rx, Decca Plus' Satin Tame and Infusium 23 Original Formula.
10. Invest in a great shampoo. Hair care is like skin care and fabric care. In skin care and fabric care, what is the  most important? Soap and detergent or lotion and fabric softener? Soap! 

That concludes my list of Top Ten. Please print and clip this list. If you have any questions, email me, call me (216-321-1101) or find me on any of the social networks. I gotchu...

Love, peace and hair grease!

The Problem With Hair Care

Albert Einstein's formula for relativity was a result of his constant pondering of what makes things move. In my constant wondering why do so many women turn their hair care and hair style over to the hair stylist or salon, I too developed a formula. I took those thoughts and answers and used them to develop a formula to help. It is my belief that licensed hair stylists should do more than just shampoo and style hair. Therefore, I will join the elite number of licensed hair stylists who care and use my formula to help women nation and world wide learn how to care for and do their own hair. It is my mission to teach the masses how to care for and style their hair themselves continues.

"When one is in chains we are all bound."

There are three simple steps to my mission. The first step is to expose the methods that contribute to the madness hair stylist and salon slavery. The second step is to reveal the formula and the third step is to spread the word.

The method to the madness in hair styling starts with the trouble of no hair care. Make no mistake, it is the overt removal of and disdain for hair care that is often times promoted UNKNOWINGLY by licensed cosmetologists or is passed from generation to generation through family members and/ who both more than likely misinformed. For licensed cosmetologists, the scenario of not being properly educated, trained and tested in hair care further perpetuates this madness. Because hair styling is the primary focus and income earner for most licensed cosmetologists and salon owners, hair care and how to use the salon visit to teach rarely gets addressed. 

The power of marketing!

There is an unspoken contract between customers, licensed cosmetologists and hair care product manufacturers that is dropped off on an impromptu's notice in the salon and in certain CEU (continuing education units) classes by unscrupulous, untrained and unlicensed sales reps that add momentum to the madness that is surely spiraling out of control. The unspoken contract often starts with the solicitation to sell hair care products and education to the stylists as she styles the hair while the customer sits in the chair. The unspoken contract is also where segregation, race, hair textures and hair types are clumped together for the soul purpose of duping salon customers (old, new and potential) and consumers of hair styling products alike that what and who they see as well as hear in the advertisements are true. This statement is easily proven as fact when during this day and time there remains an "ethnic" hair care aisle in the varying stores that sell hair styling products. There remains "ethnic" in the marketing and commercialism in hair styling products. In addition, very few licensed cosmetologists, cosmetology students, cosmetology educators and hair care product manufacturers are bold enough to hold accountable the blatant removal and exclusion of textured hair mannequins in the schooling, education, training and stated tested licensing process. Sheer madness I say; sheer madness.

The unspoken contractual method all hurt and enable the consumer and the licensed cosmetologists. Yet the manufacturers of the multi-billion dollar hair styling/beauty industry become richer by the bulks, threads, needles, bottles, jars, tubes, cords and more. So, it is the method to the madness that hurts hair care.

Einstein's Theory

Now, on to the second step of my mission, sharing my formula. The formula to caring for your hair is simple and easy to use. Einstein's formula of relativity is E = mc2. Ladosha's formula to hair care is mhc2 = E. In Einstein’s relativity formula E=mc2, energy is pertinent; energy is the equivalent of what makes the mass and the speed of light (c) times acutally MOVE!  

In the formula for hair care (mhc2 = E) it is the ability to manage your hair care (at least 2 times per day) that actually takes energy (and time)! In addition, proper knowledge and instructions on which products to use for your specific hair texture and hair type is key to my manage hair care (mhc2 =E) formula.

I have always been concerned with women turning their hair care and hair style over to a hair stylist who don't even wake up with them in the morning, or after a work out and the likes to help when hair styling matters most. So waiting to return to the salon is not always the best option for many. Please keep in mind that the "waiting to return to the salon for two weeks" is another method to the madness. Dirty hair is where the money is. They even create hair styles as well as formulate hair care products and marketing campaigns specifically for consumers who do not shampoo their hair frequently. Hence, "ethnic."

Ladosha's formula on hair care.

Now this is where "the problem with hair care gets sticky." My experience has been, that for the most part it appears to be that there is a high number of women with textured (curly, kinky, wavy and Afro) who have a belief system as well as an earnest sentiment where they correlate the price and time spent in a salon on hair style with hair care. That truly concerns. It motivated my developing this formula. Removing, ignoring, not addressing and not making the time to teach the customer what to do with their hair in between salon visits is directly related to unwanted hair damage and hair loss. It promotes their false belief and sentiment. While it is difficult for a large number of women to fathom that they are being deliberately or unknowingly removed from the equation of hair care; it is true. To address this task (TIME/ENERGY) due to their daily activities (careers, family, children, church and other commitments) many women spend very little time. In addition, very little or none of their energy is spent on hair care. Therefore, I must reiterate the importance of YOU making the time and energy to learn your hair yourself. It is vital to longevity of having it on YOUR head. 

Make it your business to turn every salon visit as a "teachable moment" versus immersing yourself into your electronic device, gossiping, complaining, eating and the likes. Instead, utilize every visit to to include YOU into the formula of learning how to care for and do your own hair. Do not fret if you are a novice to doing your own hair. Any professional licensed cosmetologist would be glad to help you. If not, come see us at The Reverence Design Team Hair Salon in Cleveland Heights, Ohio!

Licensed hair stylist should be teaching every customer
how to care for and style their hair in between
salon visits.

2015 represents a new year. For many the new year brings about a new attitude. Check yours and your hair stylist's attitude toward hair care. See if you two are working on the same equation when it comes to your hair. And in that equation, E=mhc2 we know that you are the vital part of that (E)energy. Managing Hair Care (MHC) 2 times per day is what it will honestly take to keep your hair on your head. It will also give you the ability to style and re-style your hair.

In closing, do not allow anyone or anything to remove you from that equation.