Solutions for hairy problems

Hair colouring, stress and heat styling weakens and damages your hair, causing it to become fragile and prone to various problems. Feeling dull, frizzy, limp or fragile? Need a fix?

We look at solutions for all your hair problems from the latest releases in hair products aimed at solving what ails you follically...

Dull colour?

Hair colour fades. It's a fact of life like tomato sauce only lands on the new white shirt and you only meet cute guys when you are taken. But we can try to protect hair colour using targeted products. Wella High Hair Style Foundation ($25.00) is a pump spray that secures your hairstyle while slowing down colour fading. Mist your hair with it for added gloss from a shine enhancement complex containing glucosamine.

Another product we like that adds shimmer and shine to dull hair while holding it in place, is the limited edition Fudge Skyscraper Shimmer ($19.00). The medium hold, apple and coconut aerosol hairspray actually smells very nicely of coconut as you spray it on your hair, and gives light sparkling effects. A nice slim shape for your handbag.

And from John Freida brilliant brunette collection is the new Shine Shock leave-on perfecting glosser ($19.99) for colour-treated hair to illuminate dullness. For a highly glossy finish rub an amount the size of a coin between palms and smooth hands over dry hair.

SP Luminous Shampoo ($31.00) for all hair colours and Lumi Booster, ($41.50) a 5-minute leave in treatment especially targeted at blondes, are part of System Professional's Shine Care range targeting dull hair to give it intense gloss and shine. The unique formula contains tri-complex of citric acid, lactic acid and Behentrimonium Chloride to add strength and shine. We really like Diamond Reflect, ($33.00) a pump spray bottle in a glittery tube that gives the effect of "thousands of luminous spheres" as the old TV commercial would say, to give a sparkling shine to hair.

   

Frizzy hair?

If, like me, you have naturally curly hair, you are faced with two options: either use straighteners which dry it out and it springs back at the slightest hint of moisture anyway, or face the music and go with the curliness. But if you choose the way of the curl, you don't want frizz. Here are some products to try...

Start from the beginning, from when you wash your hair, for the best results at fighting frizz. Biotouch Curl Shampoo and Conditioner ($24.50 each) contain nutrients including olive extract to soften and nourish curls. For extra nourishment to end the dreaded frizzes, apply Curl Intensive Mask ($25.00) for  5 to 10 minutes and rinse off.

Next up, style your hair with the right product. High Hair Crackle Wax ($25.00) is THE most fun hair product to use! When you spray it on your hand it explodes like sherbet on the tongue and audibly crackles. When you rub your palms together, it becomes a clear, waxy consistency to distribute through hair, and style.

For an all-natural approach to frizziness, try Giovanni Organic hair care's magical sounding Frizz Be Gone. The clear serum ($25.50) is slightly tacky to the touch but not too sticky. I put it through my dry hair before venturing outside, as Auckland weather has a habit of making one's hair frizzy. It worked really well and even smells yummy. 



Damaged hair?

Is your hair stressed out by heated appliances? Do you use a hair straightener at least a couple of times a week? This puts hair under stress. With guarana to moisturise and repair, Fudge Smooth Shot Shampoo and Conditioner ($22.00 each) are designed to hydrate and leave hair smooth and sleek. The Smooth Shot products contain thermal protectors to provide a barrier against enviornmental damage and UV rays.

Pantene 3 Minute Miracle appeals to the time-conscious and budget conscious, with its tube of intensive damage repair for dry and damaged hair to use as a moisture boost treatment once a week or more frequently for more damaged hair.

Limp hair?

For volume, extra strong hold and pliability when blow-drying, use High Hair Styling Mousse. The foam gives hair more volume and is targeted at limp hair to give you lovely fullness.

Also aimed at giving fullness to fine hair, Kerastase pumps up the volume with its new Volumactive range which includes at home products an treatments at the hair salon. The new in-salon Kérastase Volumorphose Body Injection Ritual ($30.00 excluding blow-dry) plumps up fine hair from the inside, leaving it feeling thicker with added volume. Use this in salons in conjunction with the Volumactive homecare programme which now includes the new Kérastase Lait Volumintense ($44.00), a new lightweight volumising milk to condition fine hair. Kérastase Lait Volumintense works in harmony with the existing Bain Volumactive shampoo for fine or damaged hair.

The new TRESemme 24 Hour Body Styling collection is a response to the new fashion of voluminous hair as seen on celebrities such as Beyonce, with big beautiful bounce replacing the limp straight looks of locks before. The 24 Hours Body Collection includes Amplifying Mousse, Sculpting Spray Gel, Root Boosting Spray and Finishing Spray, all at the very reasonable price of $8.90 each. I'm using the finishing spray today to sleek down flyaway hair.

   

Brittle hair?

L’Oréal Professionnel’s série expert range has released Force Vector, its first hair care range for fragile and brittle hair. Force Vector Shampoo ($28.00) and Conditioner ($27.00) have five time more reinforcing agents than normal shampoos to fortify hair fibre. Apply the Force Vector Masque ($32.00) to treat fragile hair. There's a thermo-active Reinforcing anti-breakage treatment ($29.00) and for extra help, an in-salon intense reinforcing treatment concentrated in Incell and enriched in royal jelly extract.