That little bit of extra freedom was nice while it lasted but talks of a second lockdown are mounting. The country is already in tiers – and tears if hairdressers have to close their doors again. The first lockdown went from 0-to-100 reaaal quick, there was no time to squeeze in a last-minute haircut (what with all that hunting for toilet rolls). This time, we might not be certain it’s going to happen but that doesn’t mean we can’t prepare. With that in mind, here are our tips for lockdown-proofing your hair.
By Beth Ludolf
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1 Getting the chop
Seems like a no brainer, right? Chop it short and then it doesn’t matter if you can’t have it cut again for a few months. The thing is, short haircuts actually tend to be a lot more high maintenance. Bobs, lobs, pixie cuts all grow out of their ‘style’ much faster than longer hairstyles. Plus, short hair is harder to scrape into a topknot and if lockdown number one taught us anything it’s that topknots are sacred.
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2 To bang or not to bang?
We are, of course, talking about fringes. They’ve been having a real moment again (which we’re so here for, by the way), which is typical when we’re faced with the very real possibility of not seeing our hairdressers for a bit. Fringes are notoriously high maintenance so it might not be the best idea right now. As if it’s not hard enough to decide whether you should get one or not *eye rolls into next year*.
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3 We'll be blunt
And the award for most lockdown-proof cut goes too… The blunt cut. You can get a blunt cut at almost any length of hair and, if you’re worried about another lockdown, that’s what you should do. A blunt cut can last several months without a cut and it will look much less straggly on the ends than a more textured cut. Chopping the hair straight across preserves the integrity of the strand too which means it’s less likely to break. The result? Healthier, thicker-looking hair for much longer.
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4 Let's talk roots
Colour is a tricky one but what we will say, on behalf of colourists everywhere, please, please don’t try and DIY it. Go wild with wash-in-wash-outs (pink hair was everything during the first lockdown) but remember that attempting to tackle your roots might leave you needing an expensive colour correction at the salon. Besides, grown-out roots can look pretty cool or you can always hide them with a strategic hairstyle.
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5 Plan your post-lockdown hair
Instead of worrying about your lockdown roots, put the energy into planning your post-lockdown hair. Do you want to go lighter? Start building up the condition of your hair by giving up heat tools and doing weekly protein and hydration masks. Do you want to go short, like short short? Get on Pinterest, find some inspo. Want your curls back? Invest in your routine. It’s a much better use of your time.