One of the oldest tricks in the book to instantly add volume to your tresses is to ‘tease’ it. Also known as backcombing, teasing your strands gives your hair the appearance of vivaciousness and fullness.

However, have you ever stopped to think: does teasing your hair damage it? In today’s post, you’ll find out whether this age-old practice has adverse effects on your precious locks.

The magic of hair teasing

Not everyone is blessed with thick, full locks. Those who have to make do with thin strands, most especially, usually have to resort to other tricks in order to lift their hair and make it look a lot more lively.

Ever since the late 80’s and early 90’s, backcombing or teasing has been one of the go-to tricks for instantly adding volume to dull and lifeless hair.

How exactly does it work? Simply put, the act of teasing your hair chafes your strands enough to lift up the cuticles. Since they’re no longer lying flat against your hair follicles, your strands will now look much fuller. Unfortunately, doing this often enough will damage your strands, leading to weak hair that’s more prone to split ends and breakage.

To tease or not to tease

Teasing is certainly a helpful trick, but it does come with a caveat.

Still, this doesn’t mean that you should avoid it altogether. If you’d like to employ this trick for future uses, you have to take some precaution and ensure that you’re mitigating as much damage as possible.

And the best way to do it is by familiarizing yourself with the right process to teasing your hair.

Teasing your hair the right way

Dry your hair fully. Wet hair is always much weaker than dry hair, so make sure that you fully dry your hair first before attempting to tease it.
Comb your hair first. Before you backcomb your hair, you should first comb through all your strands to ensure that your hair is all smooth and ready. Backcombing tangled hair is bound to damage your hair and even cause breakages.
Use the right teasing brush. Don’t use a regular brush for backcombing. In fact, there’s a special brush made exactly for this purpose.
Divide hair into small sections. Teasing your hair properly is not an easy task, so don’t make it even harder by trying to tackle big sections all at once.
Spritz some hairspray. It’s best to spray before and after teasing, for two reasons. One, spraying before will help reduce excessive damage. Two, spraying after will help retain the teased look, which reduces the need for you to do it again.

Alternatives to hair teasing

If all you want is a fuller head of hair, teasing isn’t your the only way to achieve it. You can actually choose other less harmful or damaging options, depending on your preferences.

You can try using hair serums, for example. While most serums are created to smoothen the appearance of hair, there are some serums that specialize in adding volume to your locks. Using serums, in the long run, can also promote healthy hair growth, though that does take some time to show the effects.

Lastly, if you really need to have fuller hair now, consider using hair extensions. Our extensions here at ZALA are 100% human Remy hair, guaranteed to give your crowning glory an instant and natural-looking lift.

Patient enough to see long-term results? Check out our post on how you can make your hair thicker! Of course, for more hair tips and tricks, feel free to check out our ZALA blog.

PUBLISHED 20TH JULY 2019

How To Avoid Hair Fall

Picture this: you just finished showering in the bathroom. As you step outside, you happen to glance at the drain. Uh-oh. If you’re like millions of other women around the world, you’re probably seeing the same thing they’re seeing every time they look at the drain: strands and strands of hair.

Hair fall may be shocking, but the good thing is that it’s absolutely normal. That said, too much is certainly not a good thing, and you wouldn’t want your hair fall to eventually lead to real hair loss in the future.

In this article, we’ve listed down some ways how you can avoid hair fall!

zala-how-to-avoid-hair-fall

1. Switch up your diet.

We’ve already said it multiple times in this blog: hair care is nothing without a good diet. If you’re regularly eating junk food like chips, carbonated drinks, and plenty of processed goods, no amount of hair care can save your hair from deteriorating in the future.

If you want the best diet optimized for your hair condition, make sure that you get in a lot of leafy greens and lean meat. Fresh herbs like basil and parsley can also slow down the onset of hair loss, which is great for your hair’s health.

2. Use protein products.

Hair follicles are mostly made up of keratin, and keratin is a form of protein. Taking in lots of protein work especially well in making your hair healthier and fuller.

Of course, you can always get it from foods like lean meat, eggs, fish, and low-fat dairy products. The good thing is that there are also lots of protein products in the market right now that you can use on your hair. Try one out and you’ll definitely see wonders!

3. Find the best vitamin supplements.

Similarly, vitamin supplements may also help your hair get in its much-needed nutrients. Choose vitamin supplements that contain the following for best results:

Vitamin A

Vitamin B

Vitamin C

Vitamin D

Vitamin E

Iron

Ginseng

Protein

Zinc

4. Maintain a regular hair care routine.

A regular hair care routine is also vital in making sure that your hair is always in its tip-top shape. If you want to avoid hair fall, especially in the future, you should always stay on top of your hair care routine.

Some of the simple things that you can add to your routine are washing your hair every other day, using a conditioning hair mask once or twice a week, and applying hair serum on your hair every now and then. Also, keep in mind that different hair types actually require different routines, so if you’ve got straight hair, you’re probably not going to get the best results if you follow a routine for wavy hair or curly hair and vice versa.

5. Add hair oils into your regimen.

Hair oils can prevent your hair from breakages and dryness. Depending on the type of oil you use, you can even get different benefits.

For example, coconut oil is a good product to use if you want to promote better blood circulation and encourage healthy hair growth. It also helps protect your strands from breakage by binding the protein in your hair. Meanwhile, olive oil is good in moisturizing your hair, thanks to its deep conditioning abilities.

6. Try using natural treatments.

Sometimes, natural treatments can be better than artificial treatments. With DIY treatments, you can avoid potentially harmful chemicals and create a treatment that’s specifically suitable for you.

Here are some of our favorite natural treatments that can also help you avoid hair fall:

7. Minimize the use of heated styling tools.

Once again, heat is the biggest enemy of your hair. By using heated styling tools often, your hair is forced to undergo harsh conditions, thus stripping off moisture from your strands. If your hair is already dry, heated styling tools can further exacerbate the issue, causing your hair to become extremely dehydrated to the point of irreversible damage and eventually hair loss. You wouldn’t want that to happen, would you?

Now you know how to avoid hair fall! For more hair care tips and tricks, check out our ZALA blog!

PUBLISHED 18TH JULY 2019

Can You Really Overhydrate Your Hair?

Here at ZALA, we always emphasize the importance of keeping one’s hair well-moisturized at all times. However, there is such a thing as too much, even when it comes to hair care.

Indeed, is there such a thing as too much when it comes to your daily regimen? Can you really overhydrate your hair? Let’s find out.

One interesting point that we have to make early on is that this problem only really occurs to those who have already been doing hair care for quite some time.

For most beginner hair enthusiasts, the biggest problem is not overhydration, but under-hydration. Oftentimes, these people experience dry hair due to neglect or improper hair care.

Over-enthusiastic hair enthusiastic, on the other hand, may go overboard with their hair care. Simply put, you may think that too much is better than nothing, but it doesn’t always apply in all cases.

When you overhydrate your hair

Surprisingly, overhydration is more common problem than you may think. There’s even an official term for it: hygral fatigue.

Hygral fatigue happens because when your hair is wet or moisturized, it swells, and when it’s dry, it shrinks. It’s basically just another way of saying that our hair is tired from having to switch from dry to moisturized all the time. Just like you, if you have to do something more often than usual, there’s a good chance you’ll get tired too.

There are some simple signs that you can look out for to see if you’re overhydrating your hair.

1. Extremely limp hair

Hair doesn’t just become limp due to dryness. Hair can also become limp if you hydrate it way too much. This type is hair looks lifeless, same as dry hair, except without the straw-like texture. In fact, on the contrary, overhydrated hair actually looks rather sticky, which also doesn’t feel good to the touch.

2. Too elastic and stretchable strands

Soft hair feels good, doesn’t it? But if your hair feels way too soft, softer than usual, then that probably means you’re over-hydrating it. Although it may seem that soft hair is a good thing (and it is! Most of the time) hair that is too soft is also much more prone to breakage. If you can stretch your hair more than usual, whether or not it breaks, then you should probably lay off the conditioners a bit.

3. Hair that doesn’t retain moisture

Sometimes, overhydration can cause your hair to look dry too. It’s not just greasy hair that has this problem. When your hair can’t seem to retain moisture no matter how much product you apply to it, maybe you’re actually applying way too much.

So what causes overhydration? Here some of the common habits that lead to greasy, over-moisturized tresses.

conditioning your hair every single day
using a deep conditioning mask more than twice a week
not letting your hair to dry properly before getting it wet again
staying in the shower for way too long often
not using products that replenish protein

How to avoid overhydrating your hair

Although overhydration is an annoying problem (“We’re already giving you what you want hair, what more do you want!?”) it’s much easier to solve than dehydrated hair.

Apply hair oil before going to the shower. This protects your hair cuticles from getting bombarded with too much water and product.
Stop conditioning your hair too much. Once every few days is okay, and you don’t have to empty out half the bottle on your hair. You also don’t need hour-long conditioning sessions, believe it or not.
Once or twice of hair mask sessions per week is ideal. Just like conditioning, you could also lay off on the hair masks a bit. You really don’t need that much moisture, we promise.
Use protein products. Protein products are specially designed to restore your hair to its natural condition, so utilize these products well!

So now you know the answer: you can overhydrate your hair. Plus, you now know what causes hygral fatigue and how to avoid it. For more hair care tips and tricks, don’t forget to check out our ZALA blog!

PUBLISHED 16TH JULY 2019

How To Clean Your Hair Properly

Do you clean your hair properly? It may seem like a no brainer, but believe it or not, many people have been doing it wrong this entire time.

Listed below are 5 easy steps on how to clean your hair properly!

1. Brush before you shower

Begin the process by giving your hair a decent brushing before you get into the shower. Your hair is most vulnerable when it’s wet, which means that it’s more prone to getting damaged by combs and brushes.

By brushing your hair before you shower, it will lessen hair breakage, help relax your scalp, and lessen the chance of hair fall. After you finish brushing your hair, follow up by letting the water soak your hair entirely. You can use lukewarm water to wet your hair, just avoid hot water since that’s not good for your strands. Remember that to get a good wash, you need to wet your hair well first.

2. Clean your hair with shampoo

Strangely enough, most people actually get this part wrong often. Many just squeeze a big dollop of shampoo onto their hand, slap it on their hair and then start scrubbing away, thinking that they’re washing well. Surprise – this is a big no-no.

To take care of your hair properly, you have to make sure that you’re starting off with clean and healthy hair in the first place. This means shampooing your hair correctly while you’re still in the shower. But what exactly is the right way to shampoo hair? Firstly, you don’t need a big dollop of shampoo. Shampoo dries out your strands, making your hair more susceptible to breakage. You should instead choose only the best hair care products that are more concentrated and use the highest quality ingredients. With products like those, you only need a small amount of shampoo, reducing the chance of your hair getting dried out.

3. Always wash your hair properly

Scrubbing your hair too vigorously and not cleaning your hair long enough are two common mistakes that people usually make when washing their hair in the shower. If you want to maintain a good hair care routine, you have to wash your hair properly first before anything else.

After applying your favourite shampoo to your strands, gently massage your hair and scalp for a solid minute. Giving your hair a “good scrub”, which in this case means vigorous scrubbing actions. will not make your hair any cleaner. In addition, it could even damage your scalp, thus causing problems to your hair follicles and therefore your hair. Always wash your hair thoroughly but gently, that’s the perfect way to do it.

4. Rinse your hair the right way

Once you’re done with that, you now have to rinse away all of that lather, dirt, and grime. Rinsing your hair is an important part of the process. You need to rinse your hair thoroughly–and we mean thoroughly–since shampoo can still stay and wreak havoc on your scalp if you don’t do it properly. You can even do it twice, just to make sure that your hair is thoroughly cleaned.

Truly, proper washing can have a colossal effect on the quality and overall condition of your hair.

5. Condition your hair

Brushing is so much easier when your hair is all smooth and silky. And how do you achieve this? By making sure that your hair is well-nourished and well-moisturized.

For this, you can make use of a good ol’ conditioner. Apply conditioner right after washing and spread it thoroughly throughout your hair length. Afterwards, wash your hair again to get the conditioner out. At this point, you might notice that your hair is already so much shinier and straighter. Just make sure that all the conditioner is rinsed out before getting out of the shower.

Just follow the 4 steps above and you’ll have great, clean hair every time. For more tips and tricks, don’t forget to check out our ZALA blog!

PUBLISHED 14TH JULY 2019

5 Tips To Waking Up With Better Curls

It can’t be denied, curls are absolutely stylish, powerful, and oh-so-sexy! However, it’s also true that they’re pretty much the hardest to maintain of all hair types. One wrong move – like sleeping on the wrong side of the bed, for one – is bound to turn your sexiest asset into a nightmare almost immediately!

Want to avoid this horror? Here are our five tips to waking up with better curls!

zala waking up with better curls

1. Apply hair serum before going to bed

More often than not, curly hair tends to be dry, and dry hair is more prone to breakage and frizz. Keep your hair in its best condition by applying hair serum on your strands before going to bed!

A good serum helps keep your hair well-nourished and moisturized at all times. It can hydrate your hair from the inside and, in the long run, it can also keep your hair soft and smooth. You may have the sexiest hairstyle in the world but if it’s frizzy and all over the place, you can bet that you’d rather stay home all day too.

2. Use only silk pillowcases

Satin pillowcases are so much better than regular pillowcases! While cotton may be an awesome material for your clothes, the same can’t be said about your beddings and pillowcases.

You know how your hair always rubs against typical cotton pillowcases? You may not notice it, but that action actually causes plenty of friction. And friction is not good for your hair, because too much of it can lead to breakage and irreversible hair damage. Silk pillowcases, on the other hand, are much gentler on your hair. You can even rub in your entire hair and face on it all night if you want!

3. Put your hair in a loose bun

A loose bun actually protects your hair from getting twisted and messed up in your sleep, so this trick is perfect for all types of hair. However, curly-haired individuals will especially benefit from it since it helps keep the hair from drying out and getting frizzy in your sleep. Magic hack for instant better curls? Looks like it!

4. Braid your hair

Speaking of magic hacks, here’s another one of our favorites. If you want to retain your curls at night, apply some leave-in conditioner and simply braid your hair in a single plait. The type of braid that you do can even change the look of your curls in an instant, how is that not amazing?

For example, if you want to maintain your natural curls, just braid your hair loosely. If you want something with more ‘oomph’, braid tight. If you have thinner hair than average, you could try doing a French braid to give it more volume!

5. Try the ‘pineapple method’

This method is the quickest, simplest, yet most effective way to wake up with better curls in the morning. Just tie your hair loosely at the very top of your head using a hair tie or a scrunchie. This helps keep your hair out of your face and avoid frizz from developing overnight. Definitely a must-try!

And that’s it for our tips! Now that you know how to wake up with better curls, it’s time for carpe diem! For more hair tips and tricks, check out our ZALA blog!

PUBLISHED 12TH JULY 2019

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