WITH an abundance of haircare on the market promising to give you your best ever hair day, doing right by your tresses can be a minefield.

It’s not just the products you have to think about – it’s how often you should be washing, brushing and which methods to use.

Fabulous spoke to A-List colourist Louise Galvin, who revealed the insider haircare tips she uses that can make a huge difference to the condition.

And when it comes to colouring, products and ingredients, you’ll be relieved to hear that less is more.

I NEVER… BRUSH STRAIGHT AFTER APPLYING CONDITIONER

If you brush through your hair after applying conditioner, you’re missing a key step Louise uses to avoid inadvertently thinning her mane: The half rinse.

“Nobody seems to understand this!” says Louise.

“You put the conditioner on, half rinse (because that really disperses the product evenly), then separate it with your fingers because, remember, your fingers are always gentler on the hair, and then start brushing from the ends up.

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“People in their 40s, 50s and upwards have really got to think about it because obviously their hair gets more fragile with menopause – hair does as we get older.”

It’s also particularly relevant to people with long, fine hair.

Louise explains: “That’s the type of hair that mats and rips so much easier and, of course, with fine hair you really notice if it starts breaking off or falling out.”

I NEVER… BRUSH FROM THE ROOT

Any time she takes a brush to her hair, Louise gently starts with the ends, gradually working her way up to the root. 

This method promotes thick, luscious locks.

She says: “All these brushes like Tangle Teezer etc. they’re good, if people know how to use them properly, but most don’t.

“They just get the Tangle Teezer or the brush and start at the root.

“Now, because it does go through the hair quite well, it just slips through it.

“But if you actually looked at the brush afterwards, there would be a handful of hair in that brush.”

I NEVER… OVER-COLOUR

Louise prevents her hair from becoming dry and over-processed by avoiding over-colouring – when hairdressers unnecessarily take the colour straight through to the ends or overlap by a few inches.

She says: “As a consumer, whatever salon you’re going to, you’ve got to be a bit more aware.

“Look at what that colourist is doing.

“If you know you only want that grey touched up, or you just need that little bit of root done, watch they’re being careful and not being sloppy by overlapping your hair colour. 

“It makes a big difference.”

I NEVER… USE PRODUCTS WITH SILICONE

Louise says: “I hate silicone, I don’t have silicone in any of my products.

“Because, for me, that’s what gives that plastic-y build-up and your hair feels slippery, a bit sticky, and again, if your hair is fine, you don’t want that coated, slippery feeling because that’s how you get the build-up.

“Then all those big companies say, ‘Oh, now you’ve got to use a clarifying shampoo’.

“Well, of course you do, because you’ve got to strip out all the silicone!”

Although ingredient lists on cosmetic products can read like a foreign language, silicone is pretty easy to spot.

Louise explains: “Silicone is anything that ends in ‘-one’, so dimethicone, simethicone, silicone etc.”

It can be slipped into any type of hair product, but Louise advises the only place you might want it is in your styling product if you have curly, frizzy hair.

She says: “If you’ve got that type of hair and products like Frizz Ease work well for you, that’s fine, but you don’t need [silicone] in your shampoo, conditioner, treatment and your styling product.”

I NEVER… DOUBLE SHAMPOO DAILY

Living in London, quite a polluted area, most people – including Louise – wash their hair more often.

For that reason, she never shampoos her hair twice. 

“No one should be washing their hair twice a day every day, because then you’re over activating the sebaceous glands and then you end up with your hair getting greasier and getting rid of all the natural oils in the scalp,” explains Louise.

“Once is fine if you’re washing it regularly.

“If you’ve got fabulous, thick hair that only needs washing twice a week, then you definitely need two shampoos: Once to really get the bulk of the grease out and the second to clean it properly.”

I NEVER… BUY MORE THAN FOUR PRODUCTS

You might think a professional hairdresser would have cupboards bursting with haircare products, but Louise says it’s about quality, not quantity.

She explains: “You don’t need a thousand different hair products.

“You need a good shampoo, a good conditioner, a good treatment for when you want to have something a bit more intense, and then, if you use a styling product – that’s it.”

And from cut to colour — keep control of your unruly locks from home with these expert tips.

Meanwhile, hairdressers reveal their ‘dirty little secrets’, from curling hair to cover up mistakes to bumping up the price if you don’t tip.

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