Hair Ideas And Tips For Short or Long Hair

Hair is great stuff, don't you think? Some psychologists say it is the first thing we notice about a person when we meet them, though I'm not convinced of this myself.

We can do so much with our hair and can virtually choose the image that we wish to project. We can cut it, plait it, colour it, curl it, straighten it, hide behind it and even shave it all off.

Hair is important to the way we look and feel and it's why we spend so much time messing about with it, well some of us do. This applies to a lot of blokes as well, Look at all of the treatments, for example, that there are for thinning hair.

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Good hair starts with what we eat, the same as with animals.

To improve a dog or cats' coat the vet will give them B vitamins and it's pretty much the same with us. We need not just 'adequate' but 'optimal' amounts of nutrients to give us healthy, happy hair.

A high potency B Complex vitamin tablet with each meal works wonders. Getting plenty of 'B' also prevents premature loss of colour and helps to preserve sheen and strength.

So called 'wonder foods' for the hair include unsulphured Blackstrap molasses, any type of edible seaweed and one I wouldn't touch with a bargepole - liver (yuk!).

To protect hair in the sunshine use a mixture of one teaspoon each of jojoba, almond and wheatgerm oil on your hair. Leave for about an hour, while in the sun, and then shampoo out as usual followed by a conditioner.Many hair problems are self inflicted.

Chemical dyes, hydrogen peroxide, steel combs, too hot dryers and the like are not exactly conducive to healthy looking hair.

Then there is all that pollution - and the sun. Ahhh the sun! I love it, but 'roasted' hair does tend to become dry and brittle.

So what can we do? Try the suggestion in the box to protect your hair when on a sunshine holiday.

Also limpness can be a problem in the summer. That's still hair I'm talking about!

If your hair is inclined to limpness it can be treated with any flat beer you might just happen to have.

Use one part beer to three parts water and pour this over your head. It'll give a slight brewery smell which may well make you more attractive and appealing to a certain calibre of man. If you wish to avoid this, after using the beer mixture, rinse with clear water to remove the odour.

While we are in the sunshine (I wish) what about a 'sun streak spritzer' to add some subtle tints and highlights.

We'll start with dark hair ...

Add the juice of a lemon to a cup of strong fresh coffee. Strain this and allow to cool. Spritz on the hair while in the sun.

For fair hair, a little more complex ...

Steep 50g of chamomile flowers in 300ml of boiling water (or try chamomile tea), remove from the heat and allow to cool. Add the juice of a lemon. Strain and again spritz the liquid over the hair when lazing in the sun - happy days!

For aubergine type tints ...

I know you are bound to be boiling up some beetroots some time during your holiday! Keep the cooled cooking water and use this as a spritzer. It's best not to be wearing clothes as any stray shots of the liquid will stain garments - whereas a few strange tints to the skin may prove interesting, or at the least be a talking point. "Ello darlin', 'ow come you've got streaky coloured ..."

Separate the white from the yolk, as all you cooks know how, and whisk each separately. Fold them together and massage through dry hair, leaving on your head for about five minutes. Rinse with lukewarm water - it mustn't be too hot otherwise the mixture will scramble and make a right old mess. Do it properly and the egg will clean your hair and it's especially good for dry hair.There are actually loads of remedies and lotions for the hair that you can make up yourself. I find though it's a lot easier to pop into Boots, or somewhere, and get something that you just have to squirt and use.

Let's imagine, however, that you have run out of shampoo - shock, horror, what can you do?

Try an egg! The recipe is on the right.

Both lemons and vinegar have been used for yonks as conditioners. They work, especially on greasy hair, by closing the cuticles, leaving the hair shiny. Use a weak solution of either as a final rinse. One of the best natural conditioners is supposed to be elderberries, which has been used since Roman times.

For a pre-wash conditioner crush some fresh elderberries and dilute the juice with the same amount of water. Pour through the hair five minutes prior to washing, rinse out and shampoo as normal.

Enough of all that, let's move on and have a massage!

Of course, with a scalp massage it isn't necessary to strip off, unless you want to, but it still does you a power of good and improves the condition of your hair. A massage oil isn't absolutely necessary as the scalp's own oils will provide sufficient lubricant. You can use almond or some aromatherapy oils if you wish.

So what does the massage achieve?

Depending on your state of undress, it will relax and ease tension. The massage encourages any oils used to penetrate the skin, which helps to increase the blood supply to the surface. This gets everything moving properly, stimulating hair growth and the shedding of dead skin, It also tones the hair, as well as the scalp muscles, and will improve the manageability of the hair.

It's also very good for men with thinning hair.

There's nothing difficult to it. Cup your hands so that contact with the scalp comes from the finger pads and the base of the palms. Make circular movements of the scalp over a small area for about a minute and then move on to the next area. Do this until the whole scalp has been covered.

If you are self massaging it can make your arms ache. It's better if you can persuade someone else to do it for you and will be much more relaxing - and even quite sensual.

Men with thinning hair: try dunking your head in cold water, for up to a minute, and dry with a fluffy towel prior to massaging.

Afterwards gently tug what hair there is. Your scalp will end up glowing and warm.

This is reported to prevent further hair loss and may stimulate fresh growth if done on a regular daily basis.

My goodness, hair is a big subject. I feel that there is so much more to say but I see I should be winding up now.

I have only had time to mention head hair but I guess, whether you have a landing strip, a Brazilian or a forest, not too many other people are likely to see this.

I haven't had time to mention lice!

Did you know that in the 18th century fashionable ladies wore a small container of antiseptic fluid in their cleavage? As lice fell from the hair, they sunk to their death in the liquid! I can't see this catching on nowadays.

Oh yes, and there is one advantage to getting older, you won't get dandruff.

I've read that it disappears after the late 60's. Sorry, no idea why!

I'll finish with some advice 'for women' from an old 1930's book that my gran has.

You'll have to imagine I'm saying this in one of those old fashioned voices, a bit like the Queen:

'Healthy hair must be kept clean, which is difficult to achieve in towns. Cover your hair when sweeping and dusting; a mob cap can be charming on the right type of face, or a gay handkerchief tied about the head suits almost everyone'.

Trust that helps!

My boyfriend and I are both home tomorrow night, the first time for about a week because of work commitments. I can sense that my hair is growing exceedingly rapidly with the expectation. Hopefully he's having a similar reaction.