I need to remind myself when I chat with my guests about their scalp issues, that they most likely have never been shown or taught how to wash their hair properly.
The reality is, that your parents (even my own!) don’t actually know how to do it properly, so they have just taught you what they know.. Which is not always correct.

The number one thing you need to know is that you are washing your scalp, not your hair. And the next thing you need to know is that you need to shampoo more than once! Yes, two, three, four times.. However many times you need to do it until your hair is clean. Don’t worry, i’ll explain to you how you know if it’s clean or not.

The first shampoo is to remove dirt from the scalp and the second shampoo is to cleanse the hair.

Firstly, one thing I hear constantly from guests is that they use waaayyy too much shampoo because they need enough to shampoo their long hair.
The idea of washing your hair is to clean the scalp, then condition the hair to close the cuticles.

First thing is first, wet your hair down. Don’t stop wetting it down until your entire scalp is wet, you can generally feel the water getting through to your scalp. Sometimes it tickles.

Once your entire head is pretty wet, you need to grab some shampoo. I always recommend using a 20c piece size amount of shampoo in your hand. Then rub it into your hands to evenly disperse it and it will have a slight lather.
I like to start at the front of my hairline and around the ears. Run your hands through your scalp area so there is shampoo in there. Rub your hands together to evenly disperse the shampoo over the hands again and apply to the scalp at the back of your head.
Depending on how dirty your hair is, you may need a little extra shampoo to get into places you didn’t get with the first squeeze of shampoo.

Start scrubbing away at your scalp with your fingertips, with enough pressure that your fingertips will start to go tingly. Not only does this stop your hair from matting, but you will also lift all of the dirt and grime from the scalp and also help lift dead skin, which if that isn’t lifted, you can see flakes of dandruff throughout your hair.
If you’re finding you’re not getting much foaming happening, duck your head under the water for a split second to help reactivate the shampoo and keep scrubbing away.
Don’t forget to clean behind your ears! You get really hot there so it is a hot spot for oil build up. Plus, you want to make sure you are cleaning the grime that can build up in the ear crease, so get in there and give it a wash while you’re doing your hair.

Now, give your hair a ½ to ¾ rinse out. You don’t need to remove the shampoo 100% out of your hair, i mean you certainly can, but it is not necessary.
I like to leave some in because it helps with the second shampoo.

Your second shampoo, do exactly the same as step one! You will most likely find that you will be some good lather happening, which means your hair is getting clean, YAY!
If on the second shampoo you aren’t still getting much lather, don’t stress, this just means you either have a large build up of oils in your hair or your hair is super dirty! (which this is normally me because i am known to leave mine for too long between washes)
So then I would do a third wash.

Keep repeating these steps if necessary, but 9/10 times, you will most like only need the two shampoos.

If you’re always finding that you need more than two goes at it, i would highly recommend looking into a deep cleansing shampoo for your first shampoo to help break through these oils, then follow onto your second wash with your desired shampoo.

Now your hair is all clean, time to condition.
I know there are people out there with super oily hair or super fine hair that just goes flat with a conditioner. That’s totally fine, if not conditioning works for you, then great! Keep doing what works.
Also if you have a pixie cut or short hair, have you ever tried not conditioning it? You may be surprised that you may not need to condition the hair.

My number one rule when conditioning is stay away from the scalp!
Not many people out there NEED to condition their hair right to the scalp, it causes unwanted oil.
As a rule, you want to condition ½ to ¾ down the hair strands to just close those cuticles.
I always like to finish off with a nice comb to get all the knots out and to help move the product in the direction of the cuticles.
You honestly don’t need much conditioner, depending on hair length and thickness, you may only need a 10c piece size of conditioner.

One thing that i have learnt since doing my curly hair training is that water also activates conditioner! Wow. Game changer.
Hair needs hydration, not to be smothered in the conditioner.
Once you are ready to apply your conditioner, don’t ring out the water from your hair.. Keep it as wet as you can from rinsing your shampoo. Then apply the conditioner and start to comb. If you’re finding it’s feeling like it needs more, just trickle some water on that area and you will most likely find that it feels like it has a conditioner on there.

Points to remember from this blog:
First shampoo is to remove dirt and the second shampoo is to cleanse.
Shampoo scalp not the hair
Keep hair hydrated while conditioning
Only condition the bottom ½ to ¾ of your hair.

See how you go with your new way of washing and I hope this has helped even a little bit.

Ashlee xx