hair
PREP YOUR HAIR FOR SWIMMING
Vacation, staycation, daycation? However you decide to classify your next round of downtime, we hope there’s a pool or an ocean involved. But here’s the thing, little mermaids– you need to prep your hair for swimming, especially if your hair has been colored. We’ve talked about POOL HAIR before but only about what to do after you get out of the water. Let’s take a minute to discuss our favorite pool pre-game. Over the last year, I tested out a few random methods like spraying in leave-in conditioner all over, covering my hair in spray-on sunscreen, It’s not a lot of fuss and will save you so much hassle later. Here’s what I find works the best…
- Measure out 4 tablespoons of Wella Enrich Conditioning Mask. I use this particular conditioner because it’s my favorite mask and it leaves your hair abnormally soft, but you can use your own favorite mask if you don’t have or can’t get that one.
- Mix that with 4 cups of warm water. I suggest using a wire whisk to make sure you break up all of the conditioner chunks.
- Once that’s done, pour all of it into a large spray bottle and shake it a little more, just in case! (Also shake it again right before you use it.) TIP: Make sure you get a large spray bottle. You’re going to want to soak your hair with this liquid so if the bottle doesn’t put out a lot of spray, it could take longer than desired.
- Once you arrive at the beach or the pool, drench your hair in this spray before jumping into the water. I always put it in a braid or bun, but you definitely don’t have to.
I think the reason this works is because much like a sponge, hair soaks up the first liquid it comes in contact with. That liquid works its way to the center of the hair once the hair is drenched and then it has little or no room for pool water or salt water. I’ll be honest, I don’t have scientific proof that this is what happens, it’s just my theory because I can tell you– there’s a HUGE difference in the feeling of my hair when I use this method vs. when I don’t. After 4 days of swimming in a pool in the super-sunshiny desert, this is what my red hair looked like…
If you have any favorite pool hair remedies, by all means share them in the comments below. You know we love hearing about your methods!
