Beauty

How Hair Care Became the New Skincare

With increased downtime and COVID-19 restrictions keeping us from the salon, at-home hair care is thriving.
sleeve clothing apparel long sleeve female person human

Since the beginning of the pandemic's social restrictions, many turned to self-care as a way to keep busy while shut indoors. Skincare and other wellness routines have become a source of therapy and experimentation, and the demand for at-home workouts shot YouTube fitness instructors like Chloe Ting and Adriene Mishler into fame. For a while, heavy glam has been losing favor to light-handed makeup looks that let the work of skincare shine, and with extra downtime and the more casual approach to beauty that's emerged after months indoors, hair trends are following suit. 

At the same time, with limited access to hairstylists at salons, many are taking otherwise daunting treatments into their own hands. Besides spontaneous kitchen scissor bangs that crop up during stressful times, at-home dye jobs and full cuts are gaining popularity, with a surge in sales seen in proper products and equipment.

 

Without the embarrassment of facing the public with a botched job, fear around DIY coloring and styles has dissipated, a sentiment that's lead to an increase in popularity of beginner-friendly looks among celebrities and everyday people alike. Last August, Kaia Gerber achieved her own soft pink dip-dye over a Zoom call with hairstylist Guido Palau, later shared on IGTV. Low-maintenance and beginner-friendly coloring techniques like Gerber's, allowing for the root to peek through or focusing just on small sections—like Bella Hadid's new face-framing orange highlights—have proliferated since quarantine.

There's no denying total hair makeovers have certainly been a popular route to take, but many are using their newfound interest in hair care to enhance their natural locks, too. Staying indoors presents the opportunity to ditch heat tools and styling products, and instead focus on hair health, with treatments targeted on growth, restoration, and scalp care now in the spotlight. In the same vein, the privacy provided by working from home has allotted time for longer treatments like hair masks to leave in while working through your daily tasks. Even without expanding their beauty collection, people are utilizing pantry ingredients for DIY remedies, from rice water to speed up growth to avocado and olive oil for extra hydration and shine.

With tips being shared on social media, many are revamping their haircare routine completely as they become more aware of their hair type. Products and techniques for curly hair, like diffusing and plopping, have gained more mainstream familiarity through platforms like TikTok, and users testing them out are uncovering curls previously disguised as frizz or unruly hair.

This focus on sharing trends and treatments for hair follows the boom of skincare influencing online. In the past few years, the beauty industry has been dominated by skincare products and tools, with experts and anybody with a platform sharing their favorite recommendations. As many now turn to hair care, the industry has another opportunity for exponential growth and perhaps we'll see the sustained desire for hair products, too.

While the trajectory of 2021 is still widely uncertain, there's no doubt that we'll be walking out of quarantine with healthier hair.

Tags

Recommended posts for you