Come month-end your credit balance may fall flat but your hair never should. We reveal insider secretes to thicker, more beautiful hair.
Run your fingers through your hair right now. Do your locks feel full and thick? Or does it feel like you’re just a few strands away from sporting a Nicholas Cage hairdo? If you answered the latter, you need some serious plumping up… and fast. If not, fake it until you make it with these awesome thickening hair tricks from our pros!
Wearing Thin: Is thick hair genetic?
When it comes to the thickness of your hair, the apple doesn’t fall far from the family tree. Research confirms that thick locks are genetic. So if your mamma and granny had serious Beyoncè bounce you’ve probably got it to. Aside from genetics, there are, however, other factors that can contribute to thin locks. Poor diet and stress are common factors for thinning hair. Protein is probably the most important dietary requirement when it comes to hair growth. That’s because a strand of hair is composed of mostly protein.
At any given time, about 90 percent of your hair is in the growing phase. For each hair, this growing phase lasts two to three years. At the end of that time, hairs enter a resting phase. This lasts about three months before they are shed and replaced by new hair. If you don’t get enough protein in your diet, a disproportionate number of hairs may go into the resting phase. A typical scalp has about 120 000 to 150,000 strands of hair and sheds about 50 to 100 strands of them each day.
Most people don’t even notice that small amount. But if an unusually large number of hairs enter the resting phase at the same time, thin hair can become noticeable.
In addition to diet, other factors that can cause thin hair are some medications (including blood thinners, antidepressants, and even birth control pills) and hormonal changes. During pregnancy, your hormonal changes can also cause hair to fall out. Some women start losing hair when they start breastfeeding and some seven months after having their baby.
A Fine Line: What is the difference between fine hair and thin hair?
Contrary to popular belief, fine hair and thin hair are two different things. You may have fine hair, which means your individual strands are thinner, but you could still be blessed with lots of it. Therefore fine hair does not mean little hair. Thin hair refers to a decrease in density. Your scalp may be more visible with thinning hair.
Some struggle with a receding hairline and or a bald spot on their crown area. You’ll know you have fine/limp hair if your locks seem lifeless and dull. Fine strands tend to sit flat on your scalp and you tend to have an oily scalp. Aside from the appearance of thin hair, thin hair poses other challenges when it comes to handling, styling, and maintaining. Fine hair is tricky to heat style due to its delicate nature. It can dry out and break very easily. Too much product use can wear the hair down quickly too. This is why experts recommend staying away from oily serums and heavy conditioners.
Fatten Up: How to create the illusion of hair volume
Fortunately, some products can have the opposite effect and create the illusion of volume. Volumising shampoos and conditioners add humectants to the hair. These are non-oily substances that attract and pull in moisture from the surrounding environment. These humectants help to swell a person’s hair shaft to create the illusion of thicker, fuller hair. We’ve seen and felt the difference in hair once clients switched to products intended for their hair type. If used correctly, they do work. There are also other products you can try. By using the right products you can create the illusion of thicker hair with weightless shine. Some volumising products are heat activated so styling/blow-drying will become a whole lot easier and rewarding. Combine volumising shampoos and conditions with volumising mousse, leave-in treatments, serums, and sprays.
Tried & Tested Hair Thickening Products
For never-fail volumising products try Nioxin System 1 Shampoo and Conditioner Pack, for thinning hair. It amplifies hair texture and protects hair against breakage. Or you can try Nioxin System Kit 4 thinning hair treatment, which is specially formulated as a hair thickening treatment, delivering denser-looking hair.
Expert Tips:
Choose a chemical-free hair product. Swap shampoo with sulfates for sulfate-free shampoo. Replace commercially-manufactured conditioner with naturally made products. And, avoid hair sprays, gels, and pomades that have ingredients you can’t pronounce.
Handle your hair gently when washing and conditioning. Avoid tugging at it and pat dry instead of rubbing. Another tip… don’t brush your locks while wet (as they are more susceptible to damage).
Stay away from heavy conditioners. Apply a light one to the mid-lengths and ends of your hair only. Rinse the conditioner well and use a root lifting spray before you blow-dry. Remember to use a heat protecting spray as your fine hair is delicate.
A good layered cut can help to texturise the hair, creating movement and body. In general, a shoulder-length style works well for fine hair.
A lot of women with limp hair choose to colour and highlight their hair. This amplifies it, giving the hair more volume and lift.
How to fake thicker hair: Wigs, extensions, wefts, closures & toppers
Wigs, hair extensions, wefts, closures, and toppers never go out of fashion. These hairpieces are your best friend when it comes to thicker hair. The queen of hair extensions, actress Kim Kardashian, swears by hairpieces and hair extensions to give her hair body at the click of a finger. Kim, along with Christina Milian, Kelly Rowland, Paris Hilton, and Ariana Grande are known for wearing clip-in bangs, ponytail extensions, wefts, and hair extensions. When choosing wigs, extensions, toppers, closures, and wefts, select hairpieces crafted from 100% real human hair for the best investment.
A word on taped and clip-in extensions
Women with thin hair across the globe have benefitted from hair extensions. Many salons worldwide are following the latest craze – taped and clip-in extensions. Hairdressers are moving away from bonding to the clip-in and tape-in methods. This is mostly due to the time factor. It takes so quick to install and reapply, there is no damage and they’re reusable. Our tape-in and clip-in extensions are 100% real human hair and all the cuticles are kept intact.
Tricks Of The Trade
* A receding hairline can be disguised by wearing a topper.
* Plump-up hair in a rush by using dry shampoo. It eliminates the oils on your scalp and gives your hair instant body.
* Using a couple of shades darker for light hair creates depth and interest. While a shade or two lighter for dark hair looks glossy and groomed.
* When it comes to wigs, wefts, and extensions, human hair is excellent for style versatility. That’s because you can curl, wave, and crimp the hair to your desired style.
* Wefts are versatile and can be used to ‘pump’ volume into specific areas of the hair. They also create highlights and lowlights.
