Everything You Need to Know About Hair Masks

Why it is important to use hair masks:

Hair masks are creams that are full of nourishing ingredients that revives your hair from the damage and harsh factors it gets exposed to almost daily. It might seem similar to regular conditioners; however it has much higher concentration levels of nutrients that give your hair a bigger boost from the inside out instead of just on the surface.

You might have noticed that even when using conditioner with every hair wash you could still feel it becoming dry, damaged or even weak and starting to fall out. These are all signs that your hair isn't getting deep treatment from the conditioner and needs that added boost from the hair mask. It'll bring back your gorgeous hair in no time! The most important thing you need to keep in mind though is finding the right hair mask for you.

How to pick the right hair mask:

There are endless hair masks in the market that are considered deep conditioning treatments, but here is a small guide to help you pick the right one for your hair:

Dry Hair: For dry hair you should look for a thick and heavy hair mask that has moisturizing oils such as olive oil, jojoba oil, argan oil, etc.

Damaged Hair: There are different types of damaged hair, but it's usually hair that has been dyed, chemically processed, or regularly subjected to high temperature heat. The best type of hair mask for you would be those that contain protein ingredients such as keratin.

Flat Hair: If your hair is thin and/or flat, avoid using heavy hair masks, but go for lightweight ones that contain natural oils. It'll provide both strength and moisture for your hair such as coconut oil.

Frizzy Hair: Your hair usually turns frizzy due to a lack of moisture in the strands, which is why you need to focus on the heavy moisturizing hair masks. If you feel that it might also be a bit damaged then try something that combines moisture with a little bit of protein as well.

Hair Fall: If you feel like your hair is falling out, then that means your roots and/or scalp is weak and needs a deep conditioning treatment to restore its strength, both through nutrition (healthy diets) and through light weight moisture and protein based hair masks.

The right way to use hair masks:

There are multiple ways to use hair masks on your hair, and here are the best practices:

1- Before the shower, apply the hair mask to your clean hair, leave for 20 to 30 min. Then wash it off with shampoo and conditioner.

2- After shampooing your hair, apply the hair mask. Leave for however long you need then wash it off with water.

3- Leave the hair mask on your hair overnight and wash it off in the morning for a deeper, more intense hair treatment.

For better distribution of the mask, gently comb it through your hair to coat it from the roots to the ends.

It's recommended that you wash your hair from the hair mask using shampoo if it is an oil based hair mask or if it is a very heavy weight cream. Also, you might notice that water based hair masks are preferably applied on wet hair while the oil based ones show better results when applied to dry hair.

Whichever way you will use the hair mask, always read the label to know how long you need to have it on and the recommended application method.

What you should expect from using hair masks:

From the first use of the hair mask you should notice the following:

- Your hair is a lot softer.

- It's less tangled and has a better shine.

- Less fly away hairs and better volume and definition.

If you do not notice these effects, or if you find your hair worse that before, then you have surely picked the wrong type of hair mask for you. This is especially true for the hair masks containing protein ingredients, because too much protein on your hair is never good. If that's the case, I recommend you switch the hair mask with a moisturizing one to give you that needed deep conditioning.

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