Cleaning Up Our Act
Hair’s the thing : it’s that spring cleaning time of year, so let’s hop to it! Here’s how to spring clean your hair, your products, and your tools:
HAIR: Color
Let’s get started by addressing those ends and your color. Embrace clean lines and softer shades of the tones in your hair.
If you are a blonde, tweak to be a bit lighter and brighter
If you are a brunette, go a shade lighter and soften the tone.
If you are in the red family, it would be best to change the tone maybe a softer red, or violet, or go warmer from an orange to a peach.
If you have a ombré or balayage, minimize the contrast between the colors to have a more melting effect on your strands.
HAIR: Cut
Clean up those ends! Out in hairworld, I’m seeing more blunt ends with more soft layers in the interior, which allows movement, especially when you put those soft, beachy waves in your style.
PRODUCTS
Let’s declutter and purge. Consider donating items that have been in your cabinets that have been in your cabinet for who knows how long.
The average shelf life of products from shampoos to styling aids is three years unopened and 18 months when opened.
Hint: Write the month and year on the bottle, and trust your nose. You can tell by the smell of your product if it’s still safe to use.
You want your products to perform their best.
TOOLS
We need to take the best care of ourselves, and our tools.
Let’s start with blow dryers:
At home, you should be checking and cleaning your filter every three months --- this will keep the air flowing and not overwork the motor.
Stylists, be sure to do a filter check and clean once a month.
Curling irons. On a cool iron, take some Soft Scrub on a scouring pad, without wetting, and remove build-up on the rod. This will help to keep the heat evenly distributed to the hair and not sticking to the hair with product build-up.
• At home, clean every six months.
• Stylists should clean once a month.
Flat or smoothing irons. Check and clean where the plate meets on the side of the iron, and make sure the product is not building up.
When that happens, it starts to melt and go into the heating elements which will then burn out your iron.
At home, clean every three months
Stylists, every two months, but wipe down once a week.
Brushes. Remove the hair using a comb or a brush-cleaning rake
At home, clean once a month, and wash every six months with shampoo
Stylists, I recommend cleaning the hair out after every guest
Hint: Mix some barbercide and water in a spray bottle and spray after every use
Makeup brushes.
• At home, swipe your brushes on a makeup wipe after every use and use brush cleaner after every six months.
• Makeup artists should use cleaner after every use.
Happy Spring Cleaning!