How to care for your hair in the upcoming winter

Different seasons require different hair care techniques to maintain healthy hair. While you might wear your hair out much more often in the summer and rely on carefree styles when it's warm outside, your hair care routine will change during winter if you want to maintain healthy locks. Here are some winter hair care tips that will keep your tresses in great shape so that when spring rolls around, your hair will be ready to face warm weather in good health.

1. Beware Breakage

If you experience breakage in one or two specific areas of your hair, it might have nothing to do with how you care for it, but what you wear on it. Wool hats and scarves can rub against and pull on delicate black hair, breaking it off at the nape of your neck (where the scarf might sit) or at the crown of your head. You need a hat and scarf if you live in a snowy climate, but the trick is wearing them the right way to avoid damage. Try sewing a satin or silk lining inside your wool cap. If you're not crafty enough to do this, ask a friend or family member who is. Before wrapping that wool scarf around your neck, make sure your hair is out of the way, either through a protective style or already secured beneath your properly lined hat.

2. Deep Condition More Often

Heated homes and work spaces can dry out your hair, so combat this dryness with extra deep conditioning. Look for humectant products which hold in moisture and use a good deep conditioner about once a week.

3. Wet Less Often

It's no fun leaving the house on a frosty morning with wet or damp hair. If you live in a freezing climate, your hair may actually freeze and break if you step outside with wet hair. Even if a wash n' go was your go-to style in the spring and summer, winter requires less shampooing and daily wetting. You should still shampoo and condition about once a week, but since you aren't swimming often, you don't need to wet and/or conditioner wash as much.

4. Use Heat Even Less

Indoor heating is going to suck some of the moisture from your hair. Don't help it along with flat irons, blow dryers and curling irons. Winter is an ideal season to practice setting techniques like wet sets (completely dry before you head out the door), pin curls and wraps, none of which require heat to style your hair.

5. Rethink Protective Styling

While wearing protective styles is always a good idea for keeping hair ends up and out of the way, they work especially well in winter for protecting your hair from harsh weather. Snow, sleet and heat won't be able to damage your hair as much when you keep it styled in buns, topknots, braids, twists and French rolls.