Basically, I want lovely long hair like Zooey Deschanel's. Sadly, in reality I'm about one year down the line from having a chin-length Louise Brookes bob, so it's only just grazing my collar bones. But a girl has got to have goals! So here's what I'm doing in attempt to make my follicles' growth akin to that of weeds, and keep it healthy for when it gets to Zooey-esque lengths.
- Man up and go to the hairdressers before you start growing in earnest. It may make you weep to see inches of your precious locks fall to the floor, but if you don't do this important step all you'll have is lacklustre long split ends. After that initial cull, going to the hairdressers every 3 months or so should be proficient.
- Stimulating your scalp encourages hair to grow, so treat yourself to one of these bad boys and use it as often as you can remember! When you try it out, you will understand why these are sometimes sold in gadget shops under the slightly seedy name of 'The Orgasmatron'! Also, having a decent hairbrush not only stimulates your scalp, but it distributes your natural oils down the length of your hair. Speaking of which...
- You probably don't need to wash your hair every single day. I wash mine every other day, sometimes even with an extra day on top of that. If you think about it, every time you wash your hair you strip away those all-important oils that are so good for your hair! So it can't hurt - in fact, the opposite - to leave it a couple of extra days to stew in it's own juices (nice!) You can leave it until it either looks stringy or develops that glamorous unwashed hair smell, and even then - hi, dry shampoo! Trust me, it's good for you.
- Once a week, use an intensive conditioner, and leave it on as long as possible. You can make it work even harder by wrapping it in clingfilm then a towel, which acts as a little greenhouse for your head. Or you can let it dry in your hair, sleep in it, then wash it out the next day. Some decent conditioners I've liked include Ojon's Dry Recovery - crazy expensive, but smells delicious like custard - £28 and at the opposite end of the price spectrum, you can't go wrong with a L'Oreal Elvive tub, £5.20.
- I've recently added Moroccan Oil to my hair product roster, and so far I am a big fan. I can't say what it does to your hair in the long term from personal experience, but I've heard from friends that it makes your hair grow like nobodies business. But I can say that it makes your hair feel lovely and soft, it smells like vanilla/ chocolate/ heaven, and all those oils must be doing your hair some good!
- Last but not least, the obvious things that really work but nobody wants to hear - eat better and torture your hair less. Fish, nuts, seeds, and eggs are all ridiculously good for your hair (not to mention skin) so it's worth upping your protein consumption if you're serious about this. And adding a cod liver oil capsule to your morning vitamins will help tenfold. It goes without saying that using less heat appliances on your hair will prevent those attractive split ends, but unless you're a genetically blessed supermodel with natural frizz-free waves, sometimes that's not an option. So instead try and leave your hair until it's at least 80% dry before you attack it with a dryer, and go for a pretty bun or ponytail some days instead of straightening or curling it.
