A 9 step slow hair care routine for Betwixtmas 2021
Betwixtmas, or Twixtmas, is the period of time between Christmas and New Year. ‘Betwixt’ is old English for ‘between’, and the term refers to the 27th to the 30th of December. The days of the year when you’re least likely to actually know what the date is.
Those lovely relaxing days when the fun and frenzy of the Christmas season is over and the New Years Eve planning and preparation begins. The days when family and friends have all been seen and it’s time to recharge the batteries. The days when it’s perfectly acceptable to stay in your pyjamas or trackies all day (if you don’t have to work that is).
Betwixtmas is also the perfect time for a bit of self care TLC. With not much going on with the daily schedule, it’s a great time to indulge in a very long bath and slow your hair care routine right down. Especially if your hair has been getting some extra attention from the hairdryer during the Christmas party season. Heated styling and cold weather can be damaging to hair. Leading to moisture loss, ending up with dry hair.
Time to reach for the hair treatment masks for some seriously slow hair care.
One or two minutes is enough time for a regular conditioner to adsorb to your hair. Regular rinse-out conditioners coat the hair cuticle with a protective layer and moisturise it. You don’t need to allow a lot of time for some basic adsorption to happen. But it's important to use deep conditioning treatments from time to time to really moisturise dry hair.
Maximum conditioner adsorption takes 20 minutes to an hour, which is why we recommend using deep conditioning treatments for this amount of time. No more conditioner is adsorbed to the hair after an hour, so keeping it on your hair any longer than an hour isn’t necessary. If you’re in the habit of sleeping with it in your hair to fit your routine, it’s important to be aware of over-conditioning your hair as it can compromise the moisture-protein balance.
It’s important to keep your hair hydrated, too, by using the right hair care products with the right ingredients. Isn’t hydrating the same thing as conditioning or moisturising? No it isn’t.
Hydrating and moisturising are both about water but they're not the same thing
Hydrating means adding water. Water molecules are needed in the hair to keep it healthy and less prone to snapping. Hydration happens when water molecules from the surroundings (air, or actual water) are attracted to the hair strands. Hair care ingredients that are called humectants draw moisture to the hair from the atmosphere.
Humectants are ingredients like aloe vera, glycerine, panthenol, sorbitol and wheat protein, and can be found in our shampoos and conditioners for dry hair.
Moisturising means retaining water, or moisture. It means trapping and locking the water molecules in before they can evaporate by creating a protective barrier. The barrier prevents any loss of moisture, ensuring soft and bendy hair that doesn’t snap. As well as hair care products with humectants in, oils are also great at creating that barrier.
For healthy hair, make sure you’re both hydrating and moisturising your hair by using products with humectants in and a deep conditioning treatment. Our slow hair care routine allows enough time for good adsorption so that effective moisturisation can happen.
We’ve added some sustainable skincare suggestions to the routine too, to maximise your slow self care pampering time.
Hairy Jayne slow hair care routine:
1. Apply pre-shampoo treatment oil to your hair to nourish your scalp and hair
The first step in having healthy hair is to have a healthy scalp. Hairy Jayne Pre-shampoo Treatment Oil is designed to nourish the scalp and hair at the same time with all natural plant oils. Apply with the pipette directly to the scalp and massage all over. Brush or comb it through to the ends of your hair and leave on for at least 20 minutes.
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/products/pre-shampoo-treatment-oil
2. Apply a pink clay mask for silky soft skin
While the oil is working its magic, treat your face to a Pink Clay Mask by Nathalie Bond. The gently exfoliation will give your skin a healthy glow. Blend with a little water and facial oil. Apply to your skin with a brush and leave to dry for 10 minutes. Remove with a reusable cloth or flannel soaked in warm water.
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/products/pink-clay-mask
3. Run a bath and add some Himalayan bath salts for overall wellness
A handful of Nathalie Bond's natural salts in a hot bath transforms your bathroom into a spa. Pink Himalayan salts relax muscles, ease tension and help the treatment of eczema and psoriasis as it contains 84 healing minerals including magnesium, calcium and potassium.
(If you don’t have a bath, try some Hairy Jayne Shower Bombs instead for added aromatherapy while you wash your hair!)
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/products/bath-salts
4. Wash your hair with a sulphate free shampoo with added aloe vera for hydration
As mentioned above, aloe vera is a powerful humectant so using products with it in will help keep to your hair hydrated. Both our Shampoo Bars and Nourishing Shampoo are sulphate free and have added aloe vera. Our Nourishing Shampoo also has another bonus humectant in it – glycerine.
Hair carries a slight negative charge. This is enhanced when you use a sulphate free shampoo, which also has one. Conditioner has a positive charge so adsorbs to the hair better after a sulphate free shampoo is used – because positive is attracted to negative. To make your conditioner work best, wash your hair with a sulphate free shampoo and warm water first. Rinse well and towel dry your hair.
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/collections/wash
5. Apply Hairy Jayne Treatment Conditioner for a deep conditioning treatment
When your hair is towel dried to the point where it’s damp, apply our Treatment Conditioner to the mid-lengths and ends of your hair. Divide your hair into sections to ensure it’s distributed evenly through your hair and comb through with a Bamboo Detangling Comb.
Our intensive Treatment Conditioner has 3 lovely humectants in to give you healthy hair — wheat protein, sorbitol and panthenol. It’s a very hydrating conditioner which is also very moisturising when left in the hair for 20 mins to an hour. (The longer the better, although any longer than an hour is ok but not at all necessary).
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/products/treatment-conditioner-travel-size
6. Put on hair wrap for an even more intensive conditioning treatment
A warmer temperature increases the adsorption of conditioner. Using a hair wrap traps in the heat from your head to help the conditioner work more effectively. Particularly helpful, too, if you have low porosity hair as it can slightly raise the cuticle to allow for better adsorption.
Leave the Treatment Conditioner on your hair, under a Quick-dry Hair Towel wrap, for 30 mins.
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/collections/eco-hair-tools/products/hair-towel-wrap
7. Use Hydrating Cream to for natural facial hydration
While your hair is soaking up the Treatment Conditioner, massage this richly nourishing Hydrating Cream by Bristolmade into your skin. It is packed with natural butters and plant oils so takes a little while to sink in, locking in that all-important moisture.
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/products/hydrating-cream
8. Apply a body balm to improve your skins elasticity
If you’re a fan of Neroli and Geranium essential oils (like us) you’ll love this heavenly smelling multipurpose body balm. It’s great on the more neglected areas like the cuticles, elbows and feet. Massage a small amount into your palm and massage directly into your skin, concentrating on any areas of very dry skin.
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/products/body-balm
9. Apply Natural Beauty Oil to lock in all of that lovely moisture
Once the time is up on your Treatment Conditioner, rinse it out thoroughly with warm water. Towel dry once again to the point that your hair feels damp. Use the pipette in our Natural Beauty Oil to measure out a couple of drops of oil, rub your palms together well and then run your hands through the ends of your hair. For longer and thicker hair, repeat once or twice, accordingly. Comb through to coat all of the hair ends if necessary.
This fragrance free oil is for use both in the hair and on the skin (including sensitive skin), so once you’ve applied the oil to your hair, run any excess oil over your hands and arms. A drop or two of oil massaged and gently patted into your face will seal in all the goodness and leave your skin glowing.
https://hairyjaynehandmade.co.uk/products/natural-beauty-oil
Once you’ve completed all 9 of our slow hair care routine steps, you’ll be stepping out of your bathroom feeling very relaxed and renewed. Recharged and ready to hit the ground running for the New Year ahead. Betwixtmas is the perfect opportunity to slow down and treat yourself to some serious self care.
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