Dry Ends & Oily Roots? 6 Top Tips
Got oily roots by day two and dry, brittle ends by day three? Welcome to the club. It’s like your hair can’t decide if it’s a shiny, healthy mane or a frizzy broomstick. And believe us, you're not alone in this battle of the hair extremes. Whether you’ve got a cute bob or are a real life Rapunzel, striking a balance between your scalp and your ends IS possible. You just need to know how to treat each both ends accordingly. Let’s dive in head first, shall we?
Understanding The Causes
Oily Roots: Think of your scalp as an oil factory, pumping out sebum to keep your hair healthy. But after a day or two, that oil makes its presence known and we reach for the shampoo bottle. How long you can go between washes depends on a few factors, some out of your control. These include the thickness of your hair, the sheer volume of it, and let’s not forget genetics; some people are just blessed (or cursed) with an oilier scalp. Thinner hair tends to look oilier faster, while thicker hair can absorb more oil, giving you more time before becoming an oil slick.
And sometimes, your scalp goes rogue and overproduces oil. Stress, hormones, or the occasional product overload can trigger your scalp to produce more oil than it knows what to do with. While this natural process can be super annoying, it's not entirely avoidable. The good news is, you can find ways to manage it without washing your hair every day.
Dry Ends: Meanwhile, the ends of your hair are the neglected stepchildren of your hair care routine. They get none of the love from your scalp’s natural oils and bear the brunt of all the damage. Heat styling, UV rays, and just the natural wear and tear of daily life can leave your ends looking like they’ve been stranded in the Sahara for a decade.
Just like oily roots, the degree of dryness at your ends depends on a few factors, some out of your control. These include the thickness of your hair, how much hair you have and yes, genetics strikes again making some hair types just more prone to dryness. Thick hair tends to hold onto moisture better than thin hair, and the twists and turns of curly hair make it harder for oils to travel down the shaft, making curly hair more prone to dryness and frizz.
Now that we’ve unpacked this hair dilemma, let's get into how to bring some much-needed balance to your hair and scalp.
1. Don’t Over-Strip
When your hair feels greasy, the urge to wash it is strong. But washing too often strips your scalp of its natural oils and it responds by cranking out even more oil. Instead, try to go 2 to 3 days between washes and always use something natural, gentle and sulfate-free.
Sulfates are cheap detergents used in shampoos to remove dirt and oil, but they're notorious for overstripping. This isn't just bad news for your scalp's oil production, it's also no good for your ends already prone to dryness which is the most common cause of split ends and breakage.
Our Milk Shampoo gently washes your hair and scalp with natural cleansers, so it won't be left stripped, dry and brittle and later oozing with oil. It also contains Milk Protein which revitalizes hair’s natural protective layer for a stronger, easier-to-manage mane.
2. Lighter Is Better
Conditioner does so many wonderful things like providing much-needed moisture and help detangle knots. When you're dealing with oil-ravished roots and particularly parched ends, the trick here is to provide moisture to the ends without adding more oil to the roots. That’s why a lightweight, silicone-free conditioner formula is the perfect pick.
Silicones are used in conditioners and styling products to give hair a nice, smooth feel, but they can be problematic for hair in the long run. This is because they build up on the hair making it look dull, feel heavy, and prevent moisture from getting in. They also don't provide much in the way of real hydration, what your dry hair cuticles are craving.
Our Cream Conditioner deeply hydrates hair while leaving it feeling light, soft and detangled. It also contains Milk Protein which is easily absorbed by hair fibers to revitalize it’s natural protective layer for a stronger strands.
Once you have your conditioner of choice, apply it liberally to your ends and sparingly to your roots. When rinsing, use a wide-tooth comb to gently detangle hair and help ensure an even coat of conditioner. Sometimes, when we are in a hurry, we may leave the shower without making sure our hair is rinsed thoroughly. However, it’s important to not skip this step as leftover product can contribute to unwanted greasiness.
3. Skip A Day, Or Two
When your roots start to get a bit oily, and you'd usually starting thinking about washing it, dry shampoo is your new bestie and hero that will save the day and put off that wet wash for at least another day if not 2 or 3... It works its wonders be absorbing excess oil while also adding volume and making your hair look fresh and smell fresh without any water ruining your creative coif.
Our natural Dry Shampoo powder is your hair and scalp's dream come true. It’s made of natural powders, it's talc and benzene-free, and it doesn't come in one of those tragic aerosol cans. Oh, and it gives your hair the texture and volume boost it deserves. So much volume, you'll get noise complaints. Well, maybe not, but you get the point. Just shake it in, give your roots a little massage, and you’re ready to take on the day, grease-free!
4. Love The Endings
Your dry ends are begging for some extra TLC. As we mentioned before, they get none of the love from your scalp’s natural oils and bear the brunt of all the damage. This is the part of your hair that's been with you the longest, so they've seen some stuff. Curling irons, flat irons, you name it and your ends have seen it. They do their best to obey your heat-styling commands, but sometimes it's all too much and they snap, frazzle and sometimes even split.
A weekly deep conditioning treatment is like a spa day for your ends and would show them how much they're appreciated. Look for a treatment cream that hydrates without weighing things down. That’s why a silicone-free, leave-in formula is the way to go. As we said before, silicones make your hair feel nice but they don't provide much in the way of hydration, what your dry hair cuticles are craving.
Our Protein Shot Leave-In deeply hydrates hair while leaving it feeling light, soft and detangled, and helping to boost its strength and shine. If you're doing any heat-styling, this will help protect hair from damage. It also contains Milk Protein which is easily absorbed by hair fibers to revitalize it’s natural protective layer to help prevent split ends.
5. Avoid Over Doing It
Sometimes, the best thing your ends is... nothing. Let it rest by giving it a break from stying, treatments and products, and just let it be. Air-dry it, embrace its natural texture, and let catch a breath of fresh air. Or at least use your styling tools less frequently (dry shampoo will help with that), on lower heat settings to minimise the fry. If you wonder why your hair never gets any longer, it's most likely due to ongoing damage to your ends causing them to continuously snap off.
As for your roots, to keep your scalp's oil production under control, try to avoid excessive hair brushing. Although it feels great and keeps you looking cute, brushing your hair stimulates the sebaceous glands on your scalp, which can lead to the production of even more oil. While brushing helps distribute the oils from your scalp down your hair shaft, brushing it too much can make it appear greasier. Excessively touching your hair with your hands acts in the same way, so once your hairstyle is done, keep your hands to yourself.
To help find more of a balance between an oily top and dry ends, consider only blow drying your roots or finding heatless styling tools like curling rods you put in before bed and wake up with amagnificent mermaid mane. Cut down on over-using styling products too wherever you can.
We all love a good hot shower, but too much heat can dry out your hair and your scalp. This can cause your scalp to overproduce oil as a defense mechanism, causing your hair to get greasier faster, often leading to clogged follicles. While we aren’t suggesting you give yourself hypothermia by showering in ice-cold water, but to help keep things in balance, aim for lukewarm water instead. It’ll protect your hair’s natural moisture while still getting you clean.
6. Tackle Problems Head-On
You’ve heard it before: healthy hair starts with a healthy scalp. But it’s true! When your scalp starts stressing out, it can quickly become dry, flakey and itchy. Issues like dandruff, irritation, or clogged follicles can worsen oiliness at the roots which makes you want to wash it more, which often exacerbates the issue, and the vicious cycle continues.
Lucky for you, we know a thing or two about soothing scalps. But we want to give you the heads up that satiating your scalp is about more than just settling the symptoms and washing away the flakes. It's about addressing the root cause of your head hardships so they don't inevitably return. Our Scalp Cream is a moisturizing emollient that reins in redness, soothes sensitivity and finally finish flakes with natural ingredients like Tea Tree, Lavendar and Rosemary Oil to help bring restore your scalp to a healthy conditioner and rebalance it's microflora.
Finding That Balance
The key to healthy hair is balance. You want your scalp happy and your ends hydrated, and the right products can help you achieve this delicate equilibrium. Our range of natural hair care products are designed to treat your scalp with respect while giving your ends the nourishment they need.
At the end of the day, healthy hair care is about finding what works for your hair and scalp and giving them what they needs. Whether you’re tackling oily roots, dry ends, or both simultaneously, we’ve got your back (and your scalp). Our entire Hair Care Range is formulated with gentle yet effective ingredients that provide the moisture your ends crave and the balance your scalp needs while steering clear of any harsh chemicals.
