Everyone knows that winter weather can be brutal on your skin, but did you know it's also hard on your hair? Cold temperatures, blustering winds, changes in humidity, and minimal sunshine affect the health and condition of your hair. Winter is known for impacting your hair's natural moisture levels, and therefore, its overall health and appearance.

To keep your tresses lush and lovely all winter long, we recommend the 5 following tips. Each is easy to do and will keep your hair feeling its best. Each of the recommended products is designed to support and nourish winter-worn hair, in addition to being as sustainable, natural, and cruelty-free as possible. 

These tips are important for our extension-lovers too! Extensions need extra doses of love and moisture regardless of the season but, it's especially critical during the winter months.

Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate!

Keeping hydrated is one of the most beneficial things you can do in the winter months to have healthy hair. This is because when your body is dehydrated, your hair is dehydrated as well. This can lead to split ends, brittle hair, and dull-looking tresses.

To prevent the effects of dehydration from harming your hair in winter, stay well-hydrated and, add a deep moisturizing treatment to your regular hair care routine. 

Want more ideas to keep hydrated? Try the four super hair hydration tips we've listed below. 

4 Tips for Well-Hydrated Hair

• Drink water. Good hydration can be achieved by drinking the recommended amount of water each day. Make a habit of carrying a reusable water bottle with you at all times to make staying hydrated easy.

• Skip the daily shampoo. Shampoo is great for keeping your hair and scalp clean and healthy, but too much shampoo in the winter can lead to dry hair and even an itchy, flaky scalp. Instead of shampooing daily, try to cut back your hair washing frequency to only 2 or 3 times per week. If you absolutely need to wash your hair more than that, switch to a moisture-rich shampoo.

• Wear a hat. Wind and cold temperatures can wick away essential oils and moisture from hair. In the winter, wearing a warm hat when outside will help to protect hair strands from becoming brittle.

• Oil the ends of hair. An easy way to lock moisture into hair is to rub a small amount of oil into the ends. This oil is ideal for keeping your hair and body soft and supple in the winter months. Or, for a great way to make the most out of your expensive facial and body oils/serums, simply rub the leftover treatments into the ends of your hair instead of a hand towel. 

Don't Go Outside with Wet Hair

This might seem like common sense, but you'd be surprised how many people go outside in the winter with wet hair. And, this advice is not to prevent anyone from catching a cold or flu. On the contrary, it's to protect your hair. Hair is more susceptible to cold weather damage when wet. 

When wet hair is exposed to freezing temperatures, the excess moisture freezes and causes the hair shaft to expand. This expansion effect causes hair to break more easily and become brittle.

Let your hair dry completely before stepping outdoors into chilly temps to avoid developing brittle hair.

Curly Hair Drying Tips

Curly-haired individuals tend to be more prone to going outside in winter with wet hair because of how challenging it can be to dry curly hair without creating a frizzy mess. To protect curly hair in winter and have great looking curls, we recommend the following:

• Invest in a good diffuser. Frizzy curls can be avoided with the right hot hair tools. In cold climates, winter wet "hair-cicles" can be avoided by investing in a hairdryer and diffuser designed for curly hair!

• Sleep on satin. Everything your hair touches can potentially rob it of moisture, including your pillowcase. Switching to a satin pillowcase can help prevent unnecessary moisture loss from hair and help it become less susceptible to breakage.

Maintain Regular Hair Cuts

Getting a regular haircut helps immensely to keep your hair healthy in the winter. By trimming off damaged ends, you're removing any dead or split ends that can cause further damage and make your hair look unhealthy. 

Regular haircuts are also a great way to stay connected with your haircare professional; they can quickly identify and resolve any haircare concerns you may have. For those in the Greater Victoria Area, book an appointment with one of our talented stylists at our three designHouse Salon locations.

Indulge in Scalp Care

Dry skin in winter is common, and unfortunately, so is dry scalp. An itchy, flaky scalp can be both uncomfortable and embarrassing and affect an individual's confidence and appearance. 

Fortunately, successfully combatting an itchy or flaky scalp in winter is often as easy as adding some extra Vitamin D to your diet and as a moisturizing scalp treatment to your hair care routine.

A few scalp-nourishing products we love include:

• The Let it Go Circle, Davines’ hair and scalp mask.
• Replenish Cleanser, by Authentic Beauty Concept
• Nourishing Shampoo & Vegetarian Miracle Conditioner, by Davines

Nourish Hair Weekly

Just as your skin needs a little extra TLC in the winter, so does your hair. A great way to give it some extra love is to use a hair mask regularly. There are many different types of hair masks available, all of which work differently on different hair types. Choose one that best suits your individual needs and slather it on during a weekly self-care session.