colored hair care

Protein for Hair : Why You Need It and When You Do Not?

December 7, 2016 Nayantara Karnik 11 Comments

Most of us know the importance of deep conditioning and moisture for our hair. We oil our hair on a regular basis and try to take good care of it, yet sometimes no matter what we do, it continues to be problematic. Assuming that you have no medical or health problems, your diet is reasonably good, you exercise regularly and try to stay healthy, it can be puzzling as to why these problems persist. In that case I’m here to tell you it could be because of a not-very-well-understood hair ingredient – protein for hair. Is your hair getting too much of it or not enough?

Who Needs Protein for Hair?

Our hair is made up of about 91% protein, including keratin which we often see in the hair product ingredients. It is also one of the major hair straightening treatments.

Now, what are proteins? Going back to school chemistry, proteins are larger molecules composed of chains of smaller amino acids.

In the modern world, our hair is exposed to styling, treatment and environmental damage or other stress which cause the hair structure to degrade beyond what our ancestors ever faced. Even though getting protein for hair from inside-out is the key and it should be sufficiently present in your diet, that may not be enough for your hair to remain in a healthy state.

How to take care of your post coloured dry hair? – My Hair Diary

February 29, 2016 Swati 11 Comments

cysteine infusion reviews and hair color — My Red Hair – way back in August

It has been 6 months since I got my dry hair coloured. The reds are the worst as they fade the fastest. That is how Katrina Kaif managed to spend 55L on the Chinar-esque shade she got which I absolutely fell in love with. My red lasted for 3 months and since then my hair is chocolate brown which is not too bad if I can say so.

In the long run, I can also claim that my dry hair is doing pretty well after the intensive chemical treatment it went through. But, yes, the post coloured dry hair care is an intensive process. You can let it go for even a week. I do slip off quite a many times and make up for it by getting a hair spa! Anyways, let me share what I did and did not do which you should do.

How to take care of your post coloured dry hair?

Shampoo less but not too Less

I have noticed in the past one year that my hair behaves best when washed on alternate days. The more I go without washing, more hair falls. Find out the optimum time your hair behaves well without shampoo and stick to that. Two should be good if you have normal hair but three is good for both oily and dry hair.

My Hair Diary – December 2015

January 6, 2016 Swati 2 Comments

When I was young, I remember my mum used to be very particular of not getting me a hair cut except from her own hands and needless to say she was not a hair stylist. I am not sure what is with old mindsets that there is something in the hands of the stylist which lends character to your hair.

What will you say about a person whose hand suited you first and later did not? Well, the same thing happened to me. The stylist I was so gaga about a few months ago is now on my hit list because of the most awful hair cut he gave me this month. Let me go in detail here.

my hair this month — As you can see, the color has faded off leaving a rich brown color in the hair. The roots have started showing long back. Before taking this pic, I had treated my hair with Schwarzkopf hair mask for around 15-25 minutes.

Highlights of the Post

November Hair Diary
December Hair Diary
How to choose your Hair Oil?
How to start Healthy Hair Growth?

My Hair Diary – November 2015

How is my hair doing?

So, this month was decent on my hair. I have to say that if you are chemically processing your hair but not really planning to take care of it, it is best to skip such treatments. The uncared hair grows even more frizzier and drier which is absolutely not recommended. And, can also be subjected to hair fall.

Cysteine Review

If you invest some time and energy into your hair care regimen, you can get as good hair as you would from Cysteine and then it would last for years together and not some few months!

And, as I said, I did not really take much care of my hair in fact. So, obviously, my hair did not do really well unless I did hair spa at home. But, doing hair spa (applying deep conditioner and leaving for 30 minutes after a shampoo) every time is really not feasible because of time issue and weather issue. It is not possible to sit with a wet head for that long, even in Hyderabad winters!

Pre-Wash Conditioning

So, I need to find a better way to deal with this issue this time. A pre-wash conditioner or mask which does not need water and does not create mess and also does not need washed hair. There is this Banjara’s hair mask, right? Do you have any other recommendations for me? I would love to get some so go ahead and let me know in the comments below.

My Hair Diary – October 2015

November 2, 2015 Swati 9 Comments

Wow. We are two months to a brand new year and we will all be one more year older! I think with age people do come to appreciate life more. This year has been very enlightening in that way. And, I can proudly say I shall be entering my 30’s. Now, I can relate to why people say 30’s are very liberating. You appreciate yourself, your thinking changes and you become evolved more than ever!

Anyways, coming back to the post, I did not write about how my hair did last month because by the time I was settled and ready to click pics, it was almost mid-October. The whole of October just went off in the anticipation of Mr. P’s cousin’s wedding and the chronic fatigue becoming a part of life again. It is funny how one can just go on continuously ignoring their health and advising others to not do the same!!

All the travels I have been doing since August has been taking toll on my hair. I have avoided washing my hair except just one place. I think Delhi has hard water because my hair never does well over there! So, the first thing I always do after coming back from lots of travelling is, no not getting a hair spa (I am sure that would be quite lovely and quite expensive as well!), getting a hair spa at home. This has been my routine for the past couple of months, precisely June since it is when I started taking care of myself again! And, it really works for me!!

Hair Spa

Aah..it is nothing special. Just shampoo, rinse twice. No vinegar this time because it would ruin the hair color, if you have any! I have to make sure to wash my hair once every 3-4 days. No, I am not really that diligent. I do get lazy. But, not washing my hair for 4-5 days in a row makes my hair fall because of the dirt so I try not to do it.

After the hair wash, I apply a generous quantity of Schwarzkopf Color Freeze Hair Therapy hair mask. And, sit for anywhere between 15-30 minutes.

Now, I always have one question – How much quantity of conditioner and hair mask is enough? I asked my stylist the same and he actually said a 5 rupee coin sized dollop which I can easily say is not that generous. Then, he added we can add an extra of another half dollop and that would be perfect.

I did try to follow his advise in the beginning and then I started getting bored of the products. So, started scooping a bit more. On second thoughts, I realize now that I am wasting the product unnecessarily and they do not come cheap! So, in case you have the same doubt, you can try this method and see if it works for you.

My Hair Diary – July 2015

August 7, 2015 Swati 20 Comments

So, I have already shared that I got my hair colored (though I have to say that the pic was blurred)! Let us see how my hair is doing after that.

And, yes, you should definitely check out Drishyam movie if you have still not! I have not seen the regional version of it but of course such characters are just written for Ajay Devgan in hindi movies and he has nailed it again 🙂 As usual, Tabu is a treat to watch!

Cysteine Treatment

So, it has been two months since my cysteine treatment. Okay, let me confess here. I did once did a set back on my hair by using another shampoo than the one prescribed to me and it DID spoil my hair. So, when I went back to using the regular deFab products which I have already reviewed, my hair went back to normal and was no longer bad!

And, then, a week later, I found time to visit my stylist and got my hair colored and scheduled an organic hair spa with Moroccan Oil products. Honestly, I am not very sure about the hair spa because I have not seen a dramatic difference for the price I paid! So, it was a bummer for me but then I have prepaid for 3 sessions and two more are left so I am kind of stuck with it.

Anyways, coming back to the cysteine, the hair spa and going back to the prescribed products made my hair as soft and silky and frizz free as it was in the starting days of the treatment. And, yes, you do have to take care of your hair even then. The only thing you can not do is oiling otherwise you can apply hair masks and wash it regularly and keep it gorgeous which takes a little maintenance.

And, even after two months, my hair is doing fairly well and I have not noticed any difference. Only I probably have to say that hair colouring might have dried up the hair a bit which means more conditioning or more maintenance.

Do I recommend it?

Honestly, only after 2 months is a little too early for me to recommend because the treatment is supposed to stay for at least 4-6 months which I am not yet sure. But, looking at the results right now, I am more likely to recommend it. I will say bear with me for 6 more months and I shall deliver my verdict 🙂