We're fascinated with other people's way of doing things, from how they fit in exercise during the week to their bedtime beauty routines. Whether it's to compare approaches or to poach new techniques and products, we're firm advocates of knowledge-sharing. Next up? Haircare. With trends like co-washing, sulphate-free shampoos, and hot oil treatments influencing people's styling choices, it's easy to get lost in the jargon and struggle to work out what's best for your hair type.
Landing on the best treatments for your hair can be a lifelong journey, from the abuse you put it through as a teen to the regrettable cuts that are best left in the past. Ahead, we quizzed our team on how they treat their hair, from fighting the frizz to the best at-home DIY colour. Click through to see how staff at Refinery29 UK wash, pamper and style their 'dos.
Jacqueline Kilikita, Beauty Editor
I thought my hair routine was basic until I typed this out. I am a beauty editor, after all…
I recently tried the Redken Shades EQ Gloss, which is a demi-permanent hair glossing treatment. It’s given my frizzy hair a mirror-like shine, even when it’s wavy, and really reduces flyaways. I opted for the clear version, as I have virgin hair, but there are coloured options to enhance your chosen shade.
I wash my hair twice a week max, because there’s a lot of it and it doesn’t get that greasy. I’ll always shampoo my hair twice, once to get rid of all the London gunk and then again to feel the full benefits of the product. Right now I’m using Soap & Glory’s Get A Smooth On Smoothing Shampoo, which I adore for its frizz-fighting properties. It makes my hair feel like silk. I wring my hair out (a must before conditioner) and then apply KMS California’s Moistrepair Conditioner, from root to tip – I’m not really bothered about my shampoo and conditioner matching. I then spritz in Redken’s Extreme Cat Treatment, to keep my split ends at bay, rake that through with my fingers, rinse, wring my hair out and then wrap it up in the Aquis Hair Towel Lisse Luxe. At £30, it's a bit pricey for a hair towel, but it absorbs moisture like no other and stops my hair from frizzing.
I then pull through three pumps of Kérastase’s Elixir Ultime Rose Hair Oil and a veil of Moroccanoil's Perfect Defense to protect from heat, then rough dry with my trusty Dyson Supersonic. I know it’s ridiculously expensive, but it has changed my life. It dries hair in two minutes flat without contributing to split ends and keeps frizz on lockdown. After reading hairstylist Luke Hersheson’s book, Great Hair Days & How To Have Them, I now always employ the clever tip of smoothing my roots down with my fingertips while I blow-dry. I’ll either leave my hair naturally wavy, or go over it with the ghd Platinum + Styler. It straightens kinks in seconds but doesn’t surpass the 180 degrees mark, so it's much kinder on strands. I haven’t spotted any major split ends since using these two tools.
Alrionne Kudy, Executive Assistant
I love my hair but I despise wash day! I have a lot of hair and it’s super thick (thanks Mum) and to make matters worse, I recently had to dye it back to black after being platinum blonde for over a year. Since then, I’ve inherited a very thorough and tedious wash routine in a bid to get my hair back, just so I can go back to blonde.
I love to try new things and I'm always on the hunt for a brand that can restore my beloved 'fro. Depending on the style and length of my hair at the time, what I look for in a product changes. I typically co-wash my hair in the shower once a week and I'm currently using Keracare Conditioner For Colour Treated Hair. I limit my use of shampoo to once a month as my hair tends to feel really stripped afterwards. Once I rinse out my conditioner, probably the most vital step, I use Keracare Intensive Restorative Masque which I sleep in, using the Evolve Platinum Conditioning Cap to lock in extra moisture. It uses body heat to allow treatments to penetrate the hair cuticles and hair shaft when conditioning to give it that extra lurrrve. Once I wake up she’s usually had about 10 hours of deep conditioning so I rinse out the masque with lukewarm water.
After rinsing for the second time, depending on my chosen hair style I’ll either air dry or blow it out. I typically use The Mane Choice Hair Growth Oil and Cantu Thermal Shield Heat Protect to shield from the hairdryer's heat. Once dry, I always finish off all my hard work with Mizani’s Thermasmooth Shine Extend Anti-Humidity Conditioning Spritz, which I top up every now and then to keep my scalp and ends looking sweet.
Rose Lander, Marketing & Events Executive
When I was 10, my mum cut my long, naturally blonde hair into a bob that made my head look like a pork pie. My haircare routine has been an almost two decades long effort to try and undo that fateful day. I have blonde balayage every 4-6 months, so my hair is very fair at the ends with my natural mouse-brown at the roots. To counter the dryness of dyeing my hair, I use Redken All Soft Shampoo and Davines Melu Conditioner, which were recommended by different hairdresser friends. I never used to splurge on fancy shampoos and conditioners but I find myself needing to use a lot less with these two.
Though I'm blonde 90% of the time, sometimes I fancy a change so I use a non-permanent dye like Bleach London's Super Cool Colour in Odd Fuchsia at home. It's usually gone in a few weeks but can dry out my hair a bit, so I always smooth on a bit of Kérastase Ciment Thermique before drying my hair. I know I should air dry but as I have fine hair, and a lot of it, it takes hours to dry naturally, unless it's really hot outside. I go over it with a hairdryer, and my trusty ghd Styler for a quick smooth.
Lydia Raghavan, Creative
The naturally wavy, sometimes curly hair I’ve inherited from my South Asian dad always looks slapping the day it’s washed. The other six days, when I let my natural oils do their thing, it feels great but gradually loses curl definition. I had to stop washing it every day because the size of my ever growing hairballs was scaring me. I also air dry, which takes a little while, but more on that later.
At the moment I’m using Eleni and Chris’ Curlimin Defining Shampoo and Conditioner, followed by their Discipline Leave-In Cream, which is essential for straitjacketing my frizz. It also means I use less serum. I’m trying to use more natural products so this range is perfect. It also smells amazing and contains no sulphates or parabens. Big ticks from me.
In the shower, I usually comb the products through my hair with my fingers. I’ll then fine comb again before applying a dollop of Leave-In Cream. After that, I use the flat of my palm to lift the wet ends of my dangling hair up and down in quick succession, which gives my curls a little 'zhoosh'. The air-drying process does require some patience. I recently saw Miranda July’s ingenious plastic tube technique, which lifts hair from the roots and gives it a more natural bounce. I still need to try that. I finish off with some OGX Renewing Moroccan Argan Oil Penetrating Oil, and touch it up in the week when needed. I’ll whip it into a couple of buns when I’ve lost the battle. I really need to learn how to do French plaits.
Now and then I’ll pop on one of Silke London's turbans to sleep in, which does make your hair feel soft and springy the next day. It’s not the sexiest look, but you can always pop it on after.
Jess Commons, Health & Living Editor
I am so low maintenance with my hair – I'm lucky it dries pretty straight naturally, about 10 minutes after I step out of the shower. Although, to be fair, it is pretty boring as hair goes. I use whatever shampoo and conditioner is in the shower (currently Maria Nila Head & Hair Heal because the bottles were pretty), then towel dry my hair and twist it into a bun of sorts. I'll leave it like that all day unless I'm going out, in which case I'll let the now wavy hair down and use one of the many volumising styling powders I own (current fave: Batiste's super cheap Boost It Up Plumping Powder) to lift it up a little.
Oh, and sometimes I steal some of my boyfriend's special expensive argan oil to make it a bit softer – contrary to me, he has great thick and luscious shoulder-length hair.
Anna Jay, Art Director
I grew up with the whitest blonde hair, which appeared to float around my head like a cloud, until it started going darker in my teens and I reacted by bleaching the life out of it. While the bleach did give me some of that beachy texture, it was in horrible condition and I decided to cut it to the shoulder and reclaim my natural, now light brown, hair.
It's now still cut to a blunt bob, but after years of zero texture and in need of a change, I have a blonde balayage at the wonderful Bebop who keep it in tip-top condition with ultra careful bleaching. I always wash it with R+Co Sunset Blvd Blonde Shampoo and condition every other wash with whichever conditioner or mask I have to hand.
On damp hair I run through some OGX Orchid Colour Protect Oil and spritz with Sachajuan Ocean Mist and then it goes one of three ways: 1) When I'm feeling fancy I blow-dry with a diffuser, twisting sections to get some wave. 2) I'll plait in two bunches to get a crimp-like wave when it's dry. 3) I'll sleep on it or leave the house with wet hair...
Laurene Mpia, Associate Production Manager
I try to rock different hair styles (depending on the season) but I usually opt for the long braid game as it keeps my natural hair safe and healthy, especially in winter. Also, let’s be honest, I am too lazy to take 30 minutes to style my natural hair every morning.
In terms of treatment, I keep it very straightforward as I hate changing products all the time. During my last trip to the US (an absolute heaven for afro hair products), I discovered Dr Miracles (available at Amazon). It's a line of ethnic personal care products and since then, I pretty much only use this brand.
I wash my hair with the Dr Miracles Conditioning Shampoo, which is 2 in 1, perfect. It has jojoba and olive oils blended in and is great for keeping my hair strong, shiny and healthy, as braids could damage your hair, especially the baby hair. Once a week, I apply the Anti-Breakage Strengthening Cream to keep my hair healthy as well as the Dr Miracles Follicle Healer Hydrating Oil to keep the baby hair strong. A little advice: Do not use it too much as it makes your hair a bit too hard to style.
Finally, once or twice a month, I do a deep conditioning treatment with the Dr Miracles Deep Conditioner which I leave on for an hour. It has this minty smell that makes your hair feel super fresh!
For a daily style, I only need to style my baby hair and can always count on the Edge Holding Gel. Voilà, I am good to go!
Gillian Orr, Content Director
I mark my life between BD and AD; that’s Before Dry Shampoo and After Dry Shampoo. I used to wash my super long, fine, grease-prone hair every. Single. Day. If I’d spent all that time focusing on other things, I probably could have solved the energy crisis. Now I wash my hair every three days (sometimes four; sssshhhh) in the morning with Kiehl’s Amino Acid Shampoo and its corresponding conditioner, mainly because the coconut oil in it smells delicious and makes me think I’m on holiday somewhere exotic rather than under a crappily pressured shower in Hackney.
I’ll switch this up about once every four washes with Bleach London’s Silver Shampoo which is meant to stop your hair going yellow if you have highlights. This turns into a bright purple lather so, while it doesn’t smell as sexy as the Kiehl’s, it definitely brings the FUN. I might add a bit of MoroccanOil Treatment to the ends after I’m out the shower because I refuse to cut my hair (sometimes I’ll go a whole year; sssshhhh) and it can look a little dry.
Then, while it’s still a bit damp, I’ll braid it and leave for a few hours because my hair is criminally poker-straight and I like it to have a nice wave. Rest assured, if you bump into me wearing a plait, it’s not because I think it looks cute, I’m merely trying to add some kink.
Then, every morning when I don’t wash it, I spray Batiste Tropical Dry Shampoo liberally through the roots. This smells coconut-y and I swear that the fragrance gets more admiration than my most luscious perfume, which can be embarrassing, because when people ask what that heavenly scent is, I have to admit that it’s dry shampoo. My saviour.
Georgia Murray, Fashion & Beauty Writer
I've been through many hairstyles over the years (shout out to my circa-2006 dyed-black emo cut), but I've finally settled on blunt shoulder-length hair with a soft fringe. I have fine hair but there is so much of it that come summertime, I'm only seconds away from a DIY buzzcut (the only thing putting me off is looking more like Phil Mitchell than Kristen Stewart).
I wash my hair every two days, as I like the slept-in look but haven't trained my hair not to get greasy between washes. I'm dedicated to Christophe Robin's Cleansing Purifying Scrub, as a tiny dollop builds into a thick lather, and the sea salt gives my scalp a lovely exfoliation. Next up is Maria Nila's Luminous Colour Conditioner, which protects whatever colour I've been experimenting with lately. It's 100% vegan, smells divine and my mum – who has psoriasis on her scalp – loves how soothing the brand's products are.
I towel dry my hair before applying Bumble and bumble's Invisible Oil Protection Primer, which protects from UV damage and doesn't make my hair oily. I give my fringe a quick straighten with Cloud Nine's The Micro Iron – a teeny tiny hair straightener that fits in the smallest of handbags. Perfect for fixing rain-ravished fringes on the go. I let the rest of my hair dry naturally and just tuck it behind my ears to give it a little kink.
My hair is really light so takes colour easily, and the last of my balayaged ends are great for experimenting with colour. I love lathering on at-home toners on a Sunday evening, and rotate and combine Bleach London 's Super Cool Colours in Bold as Brass, Blorange and Tangerine Dream. I recently discovered Maria Nila's Colour Refresh series, which comes in the likes of Azure, Pearl Silver and Pink Pop – my favourite is Bright Copper, which on application gives me a Fifth Element -inspired 'do and by wash five has rinsed to a lovely pastel.
Tamar Riley, Marketing
Kérastase's Micellar Shampoo makes my hair feel really clean and gives me lots of volume. It lathers rather than foams so takes some getting used to, but it's perfect for cleansing post-gym hair and it smells amazing. This L'Oréal Elvive Extraordinary Oil Nourishing Conditioner is a staple – it feels really nourishing.
With my natural dry (read: straw-like) texture, Shu Uemura's Ultimate Remedy leave-in serum saves my split ends (along with Olaplex). I air-dry my hair on holiday, but it takes so long to dry in London that I blast it with ghd's Aura Professional Hairdryer instead. I flip my head upside down and run through the hair with a big paddle brush. I make sure the last minute of blow-drying is with cool air to make it nice and shiny.
Natasha Slee, Associate Creative
I have naturally curly, type 3A hair. I have struggled to find the right haircare routine for it for years, and it felt like a blind experiment every time I washed my hair – it could come out super soft and fluffy, frizzy, or limp. I tried everything from oils to serum and air dry foam. A new product would work miracles for a week before returning me to rubbish nothingness. I rarely have my hair cut and had grown it long over a year before deciding it needed a big chop for summer. I have an amazing hairdresser (big up Matt at Glasshouse Salon) who cuts each individual curl while it's dry before washing and individually drying each curl using a hood over a cool hairdryer. (Diffusers are a BIG no-no for me.) Losing the length gave my hair new life, and I felt emotionally invested in maintaining this happy halo.
I'd heard about co-washing but was overwhelmed by what I should be using. Much to my boyfriend's amusement, I dedicated an entire evening to diagnosing and researching my curly hair type, discovering styling methods and researching products. I settled on KeraCare's Honey Shea Co-Wash and Natural Textures Defining Custard and a month on I am hooked.
I 'wash' my hair in the morning 2-3 times a week, coating very wet hair in the conditioner from root to tip. I give my scalp a really good massage with my fingertips to lift the dirt and grease before rinsing thoroughly. Out of the shower, while the hair is still very wet, I section it and apply the custard from root to tip and use the 'rake and shake method': running my fingers through a section of hair until it is smooth, stopping to hold it at the ends before giving it a good shake to loosen the curls. Once my whole head is styled, I leave it and vow not to touch it until it is absolutely dry. Once dry, I scrunch the hair to break the crunchy dried-gel feel and create soft full curls.
If my curls need a restyle between washes I either rinse and repeat the rake and shake, or run some oil through to tame. I haven't shampooed my hair in a month and haven't felt the need to yet. The tiny flakes of dandruff I usually had after day two of washing haven't returned, and I don't suffer from fluffy volume. My hair has more weight and substance, which it needs to hold its curls. I just returned from a week's holiday, and only co-washed my hair once despite being in and out of the pool and sea every day. I only needed to rinse it and air dry to return to the desired texture.
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