I get quite a few hair related questions so I thought I’d just take a minute to answer a few of the most recent ones.
Iva Messy wondered if I would do a few DIY headbands and since I actually wanted to make some headbands last year but never did, I had all the supplies I needed. I will intersperse a few between questions.
I’m always trying to get my hair to look like this! {soft waves with the curling iron} What products are you using?
I don’t use any products other than shampoo and conditioner and hair spray. I alternate between Fekkai {better for tangled beach hair look} and Dove {better for blow dry days or a soft natural air dry}. Products make my hair feel greasy and then I have to wash and style it more often leading to more damage.
Just curious- how often do you curl your hair during the week? Mine started getting damaged from curling it. I was using the curling iron about 5 times a week though.
I usually curl my hair on the second day dirty …so at least two or maybe three times a week. Since I rarely blow dry my hair, I’m not too worried about the heat.
I would definitely like to know your secrets to such naturally long and healthy hair. I’m sure some of it is down to the fact that you don’t blowdry very often.
Yes …I try not to blow dry as often as I can stand it. Luckily, beach hair is in …lol. I also rarely brush it {never when wet} …and only wash it when it doesn’t look good any more …mostly every other day but when I’m lucky, I get three good days out of it. Usually, second day hair has the best texture to hold a style. I also tend to wait a really long time in between getting my roots done …trying to let my natural hair grow out a bit more {and I’m lazy!}. I get a trim every OTHER time I get my roots done but if you tend to get color done more often than I do, I would get a trim every third salon visit.
add as many ribbons as you’d like at various lengths or stitch the flower directly onto a larger satin ribbon and tie around head. {I personally like removable items because clearly I am afraid of commitment …a reason why I rarely use glue …and it also usually looks like poop
I’m really trying to grow my hair…like long…it’s below my shoulders now, but I wanted to see what tips you have on haircutting/trimming, etc to maximize growth potential??
Much like the answer above …little or no blow-drying or brushing and washing only when necessary. Stylists often say if you must wash it every day, use a conditioner only on the second day …but I just don’t wash it. Also, keep a darker color while trying to grow it out. I went from short and platinum to long and natural -ish in a relatively short time but I had to darken it first. Once it grew out, I added highlights mixed with my natural color as a low light. I also stick to a color that’s pretty close to what my natural hair looks like when the sun highlights it ..this way, I can really wait between touch-ups and strengthen it.
Since, well, forever, I have been flipping my wet hair when I’m done in the shower. I have a lot of hair and flipping it a couple of times separates it pretty well for me so I don’t have to brush it. I rarely brush it actually. If I’m blow drying it straight {it’s already straight so I honestly don’t have to work that hard} I’ll use a brush …and sometimes on a {lucky} third day after using the iron on day 2, I can brush out the waves {just a bit} for a softer, 70’s look.
Every time I flip my hair in the shower I wonder how old I will be when I won’t be able to do it any longer. lol. {photo via}
3. Air Dry …Fekkai shampoo/conditioner {more tangled and stringy look, as if you’ve just been in the salt water and wind …maybe a bit of hair spray and a scrunch or two}
If you have any other questions, leave them in the comments and I’ll include them with a link to you 🙂
Have you always been able to do the every other (or every 3) day hair washing routine? Or did it take some time to “train” your hair? Sadly, my hair is super fine and wants to be washed every single day. I’m slowly teaching it that it doesn’t need to be, but it’s taking forever.
Try some different shampoos and maybe only condition the ends or sparingly. I think because I have a lot of hair it just takes a while to get greasy, however, if I used products on it, I would have to wash it every day. But different shampoos/conditioners definitely do different things.
OMG! I truly do NOT even know where to begin with my comment!! First off all, obviously, my deepest, sincerest THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for the link to me…”thank you” doesn’t cut it though, so I’ll be thinking of something better! next up…I’m still confused as to how to continue..should I start out pointing out how grateful I am that you made these awesome headbands, and showed us step by step how to do it, you are so talented and creative! Or should I point out how beautiful you are, not just on the outside, but also clearly on the inside, because it takes a LOT for a woman to share her beauty tips and techniques! (which by the way, your tips are fabulous, thank you for sharing!)(ahh so many thoughts running through my head right now) ….next up a question for you…could you part with the tie around headband? If you write out “…love Maegan” on BOTH ends PLEASE…. I will wear it like everyday…please please please please can I have it? well, no, I mean can I have it by buying it from you, and wearing it forever? ok, I think thats it for now…I have to go stare at your work! THANK YOU!!
How cute are those headbands? I wish I was more crafty. I seem to get as far as buying all of the supplies, then they end up accumulating in my closet!
i love the big ass flower one. and yea i’m jealous when i read your answers regarding your long healthy hair. no matter how hard i try i will always have frizzy hair so morning work is inevitable. i hope you realize how lucky you are to have such fabulous hair 🙂 great post. keep up the DIY!
What great tips! Question: have you always been able to do the every other (or every 3) day hair washing routine? Or did it take some time to “train” your hair? Sadly, my hair is super fine and wants to be washed every single day. I’m slowly teaching it that it doesn’t need to be, but it’s taking forever.
Wow I love the headbands with the big pink flower. Seriously, I love it and would rock that all the time. Giveaway?
Your blog has to be one of the best… I think I have a problem when I cant go a day without checking what you come up with next! Ur amazing!
i love all of these head bands! they are sooo darn cute, now I want to do a DIY of these. I am loving these DIY posts, btw. PS. you should try out sample sales, you will be converted after your first amazing score! 🙂
Oh, lady, I don’t know where to start… I read this word for word and even thought about taking notes! Then I watched all the hair tutorials! I’m all about my hair and sometimes it’s great, but other days, I swear, I have no idea what I’m doing! I think we have similar hair – length, texture, thickness, blah, blah… So, this is really, really helpful. Thanks sooo much!
Oh my gosh, thank you so much for posting this! My hair is getting pretty long these days and now I’m excited to try all of these different techniques for long hair. AND decorate it with cute headbands!
Ahhh lovebug! So sorry if my post brought up shit. Omg I will die! BUT BUT BUT…as usual, you inspire me because you’ve been in the same exact spot as me, and seeing where you are now, and so happy and in love, reinforces that I did the right thing, and I was debating whether or not to hit publish (one of those) but I was like just fuck it..and this is officially the longest sentence ever.
What I am trying to say-is YES, you inspire with your outfit posts and your DIYs and your hair…BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY-you inspire with your life and your willingness to share the experiences you’ve had and I’m clearly a mess this evening and this should prob be an email but you just need to know that you are amazing. Inside and out. And I’ll never forget the day gabby goes “so there’s this blog you might like” before I knew wtf a blog was…and it was yours and here we are and I know you have a million admirers, deservedly, but somehow we become real friends in this crazy world and you are an angel.
My sister love this post. We just got a lot of things need to be learn for their long hair girls. On how to take care of their hair, and how to style it.;D Thank you for posting it.;D
I can’t stand washed/clean hair. Dirty hair is so much easier to work with and looks so pretty wavy. For the longest time I didn’t brush my hair and wow, mini dreads LOL. But yeah going dark makes the growing out process easy. I’m doing that right now. No knots and little heat so far!
These are so pretty and utterly lovely! You are just filled with creativity. Your hair is stunning, it’s like a crowning glory ontop of your amazing style.
thank you so much for this post, you gave me a lot of ideas. love hairbands, and I’m tired of the ones I see in stores
Thanks for all the tips– i LOVE the iron on applique head band. Ya think this look could be adapted to wear to a wedding? hmmm.
More importantly- do you mind if I link to this post of yours? I’d like to “borrow” the second pic with the applique head band as well. I say “borrow” as I will be clear as to where it came from.
lots of helpful advice, thank you. i’m growing my hair out from it being really short and it’s hard not to blow dry it but as soon as it get long enough for the “beach” look, i’m totally following your advice.
I have a hair appointment today and was planning on getting it all chopped off, but these pics and fab DIY headbands totally have me second guessing myself! you totally own these looks 🙂
love all those headbands…cute and simple…maybe…maybe i should give it a try lol…or better why dont you just put them in an Etsy store so i can just buy them LOL
and thanks for sharing your hair schedule… i’ve been trying to figure out how long i should stretch between washes, and been relying a lot on dry shampoo and anti frizz gel.
What fabulous, fabulous hair you have. I wish I could let mine go a few days without washing. It’s very fine so it gets dried out, but my scalp gets oily fast. Sigh…and I wish mine were that long and healthy like it was a few years ago (I call it mermaid hair, lol). I got an unfortunate layered cut in March that I’m still growing out 🙁
Such great tips, I love your hair its always looks so natural and healhy! I only wash my hair every 2-3 days I think it is the best tip for anyone who wants healthier longer and stronger hair.
Maegan….awesome, awesome, awesome!!! I love your hair so much…..you seriously inspire me with your fab hair daily! AND I am a totaly headband whore, so your DIY ideas are awesome because you are going to save me some serious cash if I do not need to buy them anymore!!!
OOOH! Thanks so much for featuring my question! Your locks are so incredible…they’re simply gorgeous. I COMPLETELY forgot about flipping my hair after I shower…I used to do it all the time- I wonder when/why I stopped?! Gonna start again!
You are SOOOO creative, it’s crazy! I’m definitely going to try these ideas. Ryan already gave me a bunch of his shirts for me to cut up – okay, he didn’t give it to me to cut up – he gave them to me and I told him what I wanted to do…imagine his face! =X I gave u a little shout-out for the fantastic fringe idea! I think i’m going to try it tonight. =) Headbands will have to be this weekend!!
I really enjoyed these posts! I was reading it for the (FAB) DIY but the hair tidbits were interesting as well!
You are so amazing, and love the wonderful tips. !! I am trying to grow my hair out which seems like forever aaagg. But like you I only wash every second to third day. I have naturally curly hair so I am sure if I let it be for awhile it will help with the fried ends, but so hard.
Thanks for the tips. You are too too gorgeous!! I love your hair. Can’t wait until mine is that long again!
your blog just gets better and better (and it was so good to begin with). love all of the advice and your endless supply of creative ideas – you have my utmost respect!!
Oh, I love this post! Thank you so much for answering my question and featuring my blog name! Great advice and amazing information. I’m going to start implementing your routine.
AND love the headbands! I went to UO and saw some but they were kinda pricey for what they were. I’m going to follow your instructions. Btw, will you be selling them on etsy?
thanks for all the hair care suggestions, and btw your hair accessories are amazing! The first one especially is so easy even someone like me could make one. wow! have to try this.
ps: you mentioned in the past sunlight + lemon juice. Does it really give nice highlights? I’ve heard it before, but only wanted to try it for the first time after reading about it here. I trust you 😉
I have used FF for years. Well, you did it, you got me to try Dove an I am loving it. I will never give up the FF glossing creme!!
Ok now I feel silly for not trying these DIYs yet. I kept telling myself they would be difficult or painful but it doesn’t seem to look like it.
First of all….LOVE the post. Sorry I didn’t see it sooner. thank you so much for the excellent tips!
My question is….when you say you don’t brush your hair…do you also not comb it? I always run a wide toothed comb through my hair while it’s wet. Do you not even do that? Because I want hair as gorgeous as yours!
My hair is fine and fragile and bleached so I hate to wash it everyday, but if I don’t it turns into what resembles pathetic strings of greasy yarn. My saving grace? Fucking corn starch. I swear. Best hair product ever. I can go for 3 days easy without washing AND it helps my hair look blonder when I’m putting off getting my roots done! Oh and if I put in too much hair product, a sprinkle of that fixes me up!
I used to cough up $50 a month for Bumble and Bumble’s Hair Powder (which, I thought was totally worth it, btw), but then I found out that the main ingredient was cornstarch. Now I buy a $2 container which lasts almost a year.
Lovely post – am so glad to have found it! I used to have long hair like yours (except even longer – I could almost sit on mine) and then I chopped it off super-short b/c I was sick of the length and all the upkeep.
what do you do after a workout when you’re all sweaty? Do you time your workouts so that they fall on Day 3 of your unwashed hair days? Because I have always washed my hair (yup, even super-long) every single day because after a workout I am so sweaty and icky my hair is greasy and awful to behold. And I workout almost every day. Not even a cornstarch-based product deals with the greasiness at the roots after a workout.
hey Maegan! i’ve been devouring your blog for the past few days thanks to my cold that’s keeping me stuck at my computer and not at school, but that’s not the point actually lol.
i have noticed this problem of yours with washing your hair every other day…i had this problem too and it made my hair dry and not so shiny and i just waited four or five days between washing my hair[i know this souds kinda gross when you’rew used to super clean hair]and also on the 3rd and 4th day i used to pull my hair in a bun so i didn’t displayed to the whole worls that i don’t wash my hair anymore:)).
of course that the results aren’t instant but after 2 weeks i guess i became washing it twice a week and it works just fine!
Hair care doesnt only involve beauty products but also eating foods that help enrich it such as cucumber, eggs.. Like that
I have a very sensitive nose for colognes and perfumes. I’m sure my husband would love to share the fact that I complain about…