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Upside Down Blow Dry
"When hair is upside down it has more volume. Blow drying it sets up internal bonds called hydrogen bonds that help hold hair in place and maintain that volume longer," says Schueller. This technique was great for adding fullness to Sarah's hair, but since her natural curls were blown out, it seemed a bit poofy. We recommend fully heat styling (curling or straightening) after blow drying for a polished look that's still voluminous.
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Flat Ironing
1. Section your hair horizontally from ear to ear starting right around your eye level. Clip the top portion out of the way.
2. Using sections just as wide as the length of your flat iron, clamp your hair at the root, twist your wrist to create the bump, hold for just a few seconds, then let loose. Do this with three or four pieces per section (depending on the length of your iron). Then unclip the top portion of your hair to divide a new section from ear to ear.
3. Repeat with the rest of your hair. Remember: Only hold your hair in the flat iron for a few seconds to avoid putting a crease in your hair.
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Dry Shampoo
We tried Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray, $19.50, a product our reviewers said would do the trick. This is also a product Sarah swears by, and you can see why: the outcome was full, textured and bouncy hair. Here's how we did it:
1. Divide your hair into horizontal sections starting from the back.
2. Spritz the dry shampoo at the roots of every section. Then aggressively scrunch and tousle at your roots as you sift through each section.
3. For best results, flip your head upside down and scrunch at your roots generously with your fingers.
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Teasing
Here's what we learned on this test: Teasing should be done in combination with other styling techniques. Because when it's done alone (as seen here), it can look a little ... disheveled (sorry, Sarah). But teasing will always help you add fullness at your roots. Here's how to do it:
1. Section your hair horizontally from ear to ear starting right around eye level. Clip the top portion out of the way.
2. Begin teasing your hair using a fine-toothed comb. The more back-and-forth strokes, the more volume.
3. Repeat with the rest of your hair. Be sure to widen each teased section as you go to create an even fullness. To avoid the frizzy, rough-at-the-roots look, leave the very top layer of hair un-teased to conceal the rough teased sections underneath.
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The All-in-One
Some things in life are better flat: pancakes, mirrors, washboard abs. Hair? Not so much (ditto soda, live music, and your chest in 6th grade). Limp, lifeless hair is a downer, and getting that full, bouncy, flowing head of hair you see in slow motion on so many shampoo commercials isn't just a matter of buying the right product.
The first step to adding life to a head of flat hair is figuring out the volume of your hair. According to Randy Schueller, chemist and Editor-in-Chief of the Beauty Brains, four factors determine your hair's heft:
1. The number of hair per square inch of your scalp. The more hairs you have, the greater the volume.
2. The thickness of each strand. The greater the diameter of each hair fiber, the more overall volume your hair will have.
3. The bending modulus (a.k.a. the flexibility of your hair fibers) is the measurement of the stiffness of each hair fiber. Stiff fibers will stand up more on their own, creating more natural volume. Fibers with a low bending modulus tend to be floppy and limp.
4. The interaction between hair fibers. The friction between hair fibers can increase the volume of your hair. As hair fibers rub together, they lock into position.
So what's the solution when you're low on hairs per inch? Or your hair fibers have a low bending modulus? Along with loading up on nutrients and popping hair-stimulating pills (which only do so much compared to good 'ol DNA), we stick to products and styling tricks.
We tested five hair volumizing techniques (volumizing shampoo, blow drying, flat ironing, teasing, dry shampoo) on our Senior Editor, Sarah, and took side-by-side comparison photos so you can see the distinct difference between each method. Sarah was the perfect candidate for this road test because she's dealt with flat hair her whole life and tried every product. "I have a drawer full of volumizing sprays, mousse, and gels, but every day I still wish my hair had more volume at the roots to balance out my poofy ends," she says. "My hair is very fine, although I have a lot of it, so it tends to be very flat at the top, especially when my hair gets long like it is now. I try to skip blow drying when I can because I know it can damage my hair, but drying out naturally leaves my hair even more flat. I couldn't wait to find out which of these tricks actually worked."
The first step to adding life to a head of flat hair is figuring out the volume of your hair. According to Randy Schueller, chemist and Editor-in-Chief of the Beauty Brains, four factors determine your hair's heft:
1. The number of hair per square inch of your scalp. The more hairs you have, the greater the volume.
2. The thickness of each strand. The greater the diameter of each hair fiber, the more overall volume your hair will have.
3. The bending modulus (a.k.a. the flexibility of your hair fibers) is the measurement of the stiffness of each hair fiber. Stiff fibers will stand up more on their own, creating more natural volume. Fibers with a low bending modulus tend to be floppy and limp.
4. The interaction between hair fibers. The friction between hair fibers can increase the volume of your hair. As hair fibers rub together, they lock into position.
So what's the solution when you're low on hairs per inch? Or your hair fibers have a low bending modulus? Along with loading up on nutrients and popping hair-stimulating pills (which only do so much compared to good 'ol DNA), we stick to products and styling tricks.
We tested five hair volumizing techniques (volumizing shampoo, blow drying, flat ironing, teasing, dry shampoo) on our Senior Editor, Sarah, and took side-by-side comparison photos so you can see the distinct difference between each method. Sarah was the perfect candidate for this road test because she's dealt with flat hair her whole life and tried every product. "I have a drawer full of volumizing sprays, mousse, and gels, but every day I still wish my hair had more volume at the roots to balance out my poofy ends," she says. "My hair is very fine, although I have a lot of it, so it tends to be very flat at the top, especially when my hair gets long like it is now. I try to skip blow drying when I can because I know it can damage my hair, but drying out naturally leaves my hair even more flat. I couldn't wait to find out which of these tricks actually worked."