How to Hydrate and Moisturize Dry Hair in 3 Steps
Moisture is the key to healthy, shiny hair. It’s a remedy to damage, an antidote to dullness, and a frizz fighter for all hair types – from straight and fine to thick and curly. So, when your client is struggling with the condition of their tresses, knowing how to hydrate hair is essential. These are the tips, tricks and three essential steps they need to know for the glossiest mane…
3 Essential Steps to Hydrated Hair
‘Shampoo, condition, treat’ is the ‘cleanse, tone, moisturize’ of the hair world; a three-step approach that covers the care basics, while boosting moisture from root to tip. So, to treat your dry hair, your first step is to reach for the ULTIMATE SMOOTH regimen – a suits-all-hair-types range that locks in nourishment and keeps frizz at bay. Here’s how it works…
Step 1: Wash with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Shampoo
Start your regimen with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Shampoo. Its luxurious lather pampers strands from root to tip, while gently cleansing away impurities to leave dry, dull hair soft, fresh and nourished. It also harnesses Wella’s Metal Purifier to detox strands of drying metals, so if you live in a hard water area, the purifying formula will bring pollutants to a halt.
Pro tip: Work shampoo through wet hair in sections to purify each and every strand. By massaging the lather through strands instead of rubbing, you’ll reduce friction and tangles in dry, damaged hair.
Step 2: Hydrate with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Conditioner
Follow up the Shampoo with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Conditioner, featuring a boost of Squalane and Omega-9 fatty acids to deeply nourish the inner and outer layers of your hair. The formula is ultra-creamy – perfect for treating even high porosity hair – yet rinses completely clean to leave all hair types feeling beautifully smooth.
Pro tip: After squeezing out excess water, massage ULTIMATE SMOOTH Conditioner through the mid-lengths and ends of hair, leaving the roots clean. Then, to boost its hydrating powers, wrap hair up in a warm towel for five minutes while letting the conditioner absorb. Finish by rinsing hair clean with lukewarm water, followed by a final blast of cool water to lock in shine.
Step 3: Treat with ULTIMATE SMOOTHER Miracle Hair Oil
Complete your ULTIMATE SMOOTH regimen with Miracle Oil Serum; a hair oil and serum hybrid that leaves the hair shaft visibly smoother and shinier, while shielding against UV rays and heat styling. It gives you 96 hours of frizz control*, whether you have straight hair, wavy hair or curly hair. A must in every hair care kit when you need to dial up moisture levels.
Pro tip: It may be a nourishing heavyweight, but Miracle Oil Serum is wonderfully weightless. This means you can layer it with other styling products, depending on the type of hair you’re working with. For example, if your hair is wavy, you could mist NutriCurls Milky Waves over the top to enhance that tousled shape. Or, if you have curlier hair you want to define, NutriCurls Curlixir Balm will help every ringlet stand out.
7 Moisturizing Add-Ons for Hydrated Hair
Looking for more tips to hydrate parched strands? Think of the three steps above as the foundation of your regimen, then include these moisture-boosting add-ons for extra TLC…
1. Deep Condition Hair Weekly
One of the best things you can do for dry hair is use a rich hair mask or deep conditioner. These supercharged moisturizing treatments level up nourishment, lending a weekly boost of hydration that lasts from wash to wash. Try ULTIMATE SMOOTH Mask, a sumptuous cream that reduces frizz and leaves hair visibly smoother in five to 10 minutes. To level up its hydrating benefits, wrap your hair up in a warm towel while it absorbs. You could also try a treatment bun; simply twist masked lengths into a sleek bun on an off-duty day, let it sink in, then rinse later on and style as usual.
2. Skip Hot Showers and Go Lukewarm
Hot water is bad news for brittle hair. It can lift the hair cuticle, which may allow for deep cleaning but also leaves strands vulnerable to moisture loss and breakage. So, what's the solution? Don't switch to cold water, as it won't rinse away shampoo and conditioner effectively. Instead, hit the happy medium; wash with lukewarm water to keep hair clean and cared for.
3. Hydrate Dry Hair Overnight
Wake up to softer, smoother hair by adding overnight nourishment. This is a great trick if you have fine hair and fear the weight of extra moisture, as the product will absorb while you sleep. Try it with EIMI Perfect Me, a delicate lotion that tames frizz, hydrates and repairs hair. If you have thicker hair, apply it to dry lengths and ends morning and night, so you get a round-the-clock dose of moisture.
4. Prevent Heat Damaged Hair
Heat damaged hair takes time to treat but is simple to prevent. So, safeguard locks before dryness happens with a heat protectant, like ULTIMATE REPAIR Protective Leave-In. The delicate cream doesn’t just shield the hair shaft from the damaging effects of heat, but it also protects against UV rays, breakage, mechanical damage and excess frizz. Perfect for straight, wavy, curly and coily hair, it’s designed to be worked through the lengths and ends of clean, damp strands, giving you a reduction in frizz for up to 72 hours**.
Image Credit: @alea.hairr
5. Switch to a Silk Pillowcase
Another tip for overnight success is to sleep on a silk pillowcase. While cotton tends to absorb moisture from strands, silk allows hair to retain more of the hydrating formulas applied. It’s also softer and kinder to hair than cotton, so it won’t cause friction. This is key when locks are dry and susceptible to breakage, as your hair will simply glide over the pillow as you sleep.
6. Skip the Daily Shampoo
It’s rare that hair needs daily shampooing, and excessive hair washing can actually strip your strands. So, if you're lathering up every day, try switching to every other day to rebalance your hair’s natural protective oils . If your lengths and ends are dry, you can also use your shampoo on the roots only, then let the lather run through the rest of strands (no rubbing in) for the gentlest cleanse.
7. Top Up Oil in the Morning
Dehydrated hair will love an extra drop or two of ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum each morning. Infused with moisture magnet Squalane, it delivers instant softness and smoothness to brittle strands. Start low and go slow when applying hair oils, as it's easier to add more than it is to take it away. Smooth it through your lengths with fingertips, then gently comb through with a wide-tooth comb for an even veil of shine.
What Dries Out Hair the Most?
There are so many reasons you might be dealing with dry hair. Here are just some of the culprits behind straw-like strands that you should avoid:
- Heat damage: Hot tools like straighteners and curling irons can strip hair of natural, essential oils, which is why a heat protectant spray – or even scaling back on heat styling – is crucial for avoiding dry hair.
- Chemical over-processing: Hair can become overprocessed and dry with too many or the wrong type of chemical treatments. You don’t need to skip services like relaxing or coloring altogether, but talk with your Wella Professionals hairdresser about a service schedule that’s best suited to your hair’s condition.
- Too-harsh hair routine: Is your shampoo leaving your hair too clean? Are you skipping conditioner to save time? If you're not following a nourishing regimen, like the ULTIMATE REPAIR regimen, your hair may gradually turn drier and more brittle.
- Lack of nutrients: It’s thought that what we eat can have an impact on the condition of our hair. So, if your hair is dry, you may be lacking certain hair-kind nutrients, such as vitamin C (found in citrus fruits, tomatoes and tomato juice), vitamin A (in sweet potatoes and spinach), and vitamin B7 (in eggs, meat, fish, nuts and seeds).
Image Credit: @jhonyveiga
Does Spraying Water on Dry Hair Hydrate It?
While straight and wavy hair types may find a spritz of water leaves their locks frizzy, curly and coily hair can benefit from a between-washes misting. It’s the most basic yet essential moisturising agent for those delicate ringlets, so recommend your curly client sprays water through their hair daily for an instant hydration boost. For extra nourishment, they could also use a leave-in conditioner, like Elements Renewing Leave-In Spray. With Aloe Vera, Vitamin E and Olive Essence, this moisture mist combats frizz, static and breakage.
Looking for more ways to help your client care for their hair? Discover our complete collection of Hair Care Guides, featuring tips for every type and concern.
* When using Miracle Oil Serum.
**When using Ultimate Repair Miracle Hair Rescue or Protective Leave-in. Versus non-conditioning shampoo.
