It seems fitting that on the first snow day of the new season in Edmonton, we would be looking to talk to you about hair fly-aways and how they are caused by cold, dry winter weather. With the weather taking a turn for the wintery, our follicles easily get dried out and the energy we put into styling our ‘do every morning can be put to waste if static electricity gets the better of it. Static electricity increases as the weather gets drier, as does one’s natural frizziness. It is important to stay on top of it or else the weather can have your cut and style looking a little more than funny when the toques come off.

As our hair gets drier from the dry air around it absorbing all of its moisture, friction is increased and the rubbing together of your strands causes the static electricity that leads to fly-away hair. Depending on the type of hair you have, you might want to be using products in a pinch that help tame those wild lock. A hair serum can keep hair moisturized and shiny, and will also prevent excess rubbing. Hairspray might also keep things in place but be sure to keep it to a minimum as we never want to get too overzealous with this one. If your hair is on the thicker side, a light-weight pomade could also trap moisture from escaping to the surrounding air. Make sure you only use a little bit though so you don’t have a greasy look.

This might sound a bit silly, but if you are really desperate, you can run an unscented dryer sheet over your hair since getting rid of static is what these inexpensive sheets are designed for! You will only want to use these in a pinch as the rest of the time it is just a good idea to stay preventatively moisturized to protect the long-term health of your hair.

Limiting how often you wash your hair in the winter is, generally speaking, a good idea. Over-shampooing is a recipe for a dried out scalp and dried out locks too so unless you work in a particularly greasy, sweaty or dirty place, you shouldn’t wash your hair every single day – especially not when the weather consistently dips below the freezing point. When you do shampoo, make sure you choose an anti-frizz shampoo if you are prone to fly-aways. These products tend to contain moisturizing agents to provide you with extra safeguards against dryness as well as being free of drying scents or essential oils. Lastly, make sure that every time you shampoo, you also use conditioner as conditioner is the foundation of any hair moisturizing routine to which leave-in conditioning products can also be added, as well as periodic deep-conditioning treatments. When hair is moisturized, it doesn’t make static electricity and you can live through the winter, fly-away-free!