Dryness, buildup, and weakness are the three different scandals of hair care, and quite frankly, they all look ruddily similar at first glance.
As dumb luck would have it, your hair might be screaming for a technical shift, but you’re misreading the script. Dryness is a study in tonality—your hair lacks the moisture to capture the glow. Buildup is a tabloid in long-form, where too much “gold dust” and product have created a surface layer that cracks and looks dirty. Weakness, on the other hand, is a deeper issue of protein loss, where your strands are like orthochromatic film that has lost its sensitivity to the light. Each requires a very different personalized approach to assuage the insecurities of your curls.
If your hair feels like straw and lacks shine, it’s about the prep—you need moisture. Think of it as a cream foundation for your strands. If your hair is limp, stringy, and won’t hold a “cupid’s bow” of a curl, it’s likely buildup. You need a reset—a clarifying “exfoliation” of your compact to remove the residue and make it ready to go once more. But if your hair is mushy and stretches without snapping back, it’s weak. It needs the “Flexible Greasepaint” of protein to rebuild its structure and ensure it doesn’t look blank and spooky on screen.
The Diagnostic Edit
Mind the resistance when you test your strands. A “slick lip coat” of oil won’t fix a protein deficiency, just as a protein treatment won’t fix a moisture crisis. You have to be the leading figure in your own diagnostic drama. Start with a reset—the Evian Mineral Water Spray of hair care—to clear the slate. Then, observe how your hair captures the glow. If it’s still moody, move on to targeted treatments. It’s insurance for your hair, doubling your wearability and ensuring your profile is always studio-endorsed. Something I think we’re all still kind of into.
—Lauren Maas