5 fixes for your most common hair problems

Despite layering a plethora of hair products and meticulously styling your mane, some days your hair just doesn’t sit right. Here, top hairdressers solve your niggling coiffure complications to make achieving a salon-worthy style a cinch. Oh, you’re welcome.

The Problem: Growing out your pixies

You’re trying to grow out your pixie cut, but it looks thin and stringy rather than long and luscious. While cutting isn’t going to change the actual condition of your hair, regular snips will perk up the overall look and shape of your grown-out style. Hairdressers unanimously agree on visiting the salon approximately every six to eight weeks for medium to long hair, and every four weeks for shorter styles to prevent fraying ends. ghd ambassador Jayne Wild agrees, adding that “it’s a good idea to combine frequent cuts with a weekly treatment or a daily leave-in conditioner to seal dry ends”.

Tool kit: Percy & Reed Lovingly Light Foaming Treatment Mask, Charles Worthington Strength & Repair Masque, Kevin.Murphy Young Again Masque

The Problem: Dry brittle hair that's breaking

Dehydrated and brittle strands are generally a result of both environmental and physical factors (the overuse of colour and bleach, or heated styling), which weaken your hair’s cuticle, causing split ends and snapping. Care for your hair at home with the right cleansing regimen: shampoo, conditioner and a weekly treatment. And choose your tools wisely – use a wide-tooth comb when detangling wet strands, and style dry ones with boar-bristled brushes.

Tool kit: John Frieda Frizz Ease Miraculous Recovery Repairing Shampoo, Brushworx Aruba Boar Bristle Radial Hair Brush, Dove Hair Therapy Damage Solutions Intensive Repair Conditioner

The Problem: Lack of volume

There is a solution for hair hair that lacks volume and looks limp. “To get the volume you want, it’s important to conquer your strands while they’re wet,” says Harry Josh, John Frieda’s international creative consultant. He suggests starting with a lightweight, yet volume-building shampoo and conditioner. “Fine hair tends to hold more moisture,” he explains, so go easy with styling products, steering clear of heavy serums (which rob your strands of body), and choosing light-hold mousses and mists instead. For weightless volume on the go, dry shampoo is essential for adding texture, grip and bulk to slippery fine hair.

Tool kit: Goldwell DualSenses Ultra Volume Boost Shampoo, Moroccanoil Extra Volume Conditioner, Redken Pillow Proof Blow Dry Two Day Extender Oil Absorbing Dry Shampoo

The Problem: Dull strands

“To restore luminosity to dull strands, adopt a long-term care ritual to build-up your hair’s resistance to cope with daily stresses. Conditioning (both after you wash and with a weekly mask) is essential, sealing moisture into your strands and filling in any cracks in the cuticles, leaving your hair soft and glossy.

Remember, anything left on your strands has longer to soak in, so leave-in conditioners and oils are a great shine-boosting option. Try directing the nozzle of your hairdryer down the hair shaft, to help flatten the hair’s cuticle and create a silky, smooth surface for the light to bounce off. But to impart instant gloss, Josh and Wild both rely on shine sprays to keep hair in place while also adding lustre.

Tool kit: TRESemmé Liquid Gold Anti-Frizz Perfecting Treatment, ghd Final Shine Spray, L’Oréal Paris EverSleek Humidity Defying Leave-In Crème

The Problem: Crazy curls

The outdoor elements are making your curls crazier than usual. “The curlier the hair, the longer it takes for natural oils to travel from the scalp to the ends, causing the lower half to appear dry and frazzled. Start by adding moisture in the shower, then protect and hydrate every inch with a styling product that doubles as a leave-in conditioner. Don’t forget the more you manhandle curly hair, the more you ruffle the cuticle which equals more frizz. The key is to cut down on friction, so stop rubbing damp hair with a towel after showering. Instead, Wild tells clients “to keep a roll of paper towels in the bathroom and when they get out of the shower take a square of it in each hand and squeeze the water out of the hair”. Applying curl-controlling products after this should keep the fuzz at bay.

Tool kit:

Eleven Australia Keep My Curl Defining Cream, Bumble and Bumble Curl Conscious Calming Creme, Pantene Pro-V Intensive Treatment Program 3 Minute Miracle

Main image credit: Getty