It’s impossible to not laugh when looking at this photo. If there was ever a disturbing “before” photo it is this. Note to self: Never take said picture before [and then proceed to post it all over the internet]. All jokes aside, you can see my hair has gone through a transformation over the past couple of years. If you’ve been following along with this journey for awhile now, you may remember my decision to try NBR or Natural Beaded Row extensions [read more about those here]. Fast forward a year and I felt my hair was finally healthy enough to remove the extensions. Today I’m sharing my daily hair routine and a few of my favorite products!

Favorite Products

• Shampoo: Olaplex No. 4 Bond Maintenance Shampoo
• Conditioner: Olaplex No. 5 Bond Maintenance Conditioner
• Leave-In Treatment: Olaplex No. 3 Hair Perfector
• Oil Treatment: Morrocanoil Treatment
• Heat Protectant #1 [use on wet hair before drying]: Pureology Colour Fanatic
• Heat Protectant #2 [use on dry hair before styling]: Morrocanoil Thermal Protection Spray
• Dry Texture Spray: Morrocanoil Dry Texture Spray
• Dry Shampoo: Oribe Gold Lust Dry Shampoo
• Hair Dryer: Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer
• Curling Wand: L’ange Titanium 25mm Lustre Wand

Styling Tips & Tricks

Step #1: For Shampoo & Conditioner, I use this Olaplex Bond Maintenance. I feel like my strands of hair have never been stronger or healthier. I’ve used it now for at least 6-8 months and love it! I’m proud to say I aim to wash my hair as little as possible — a maximum of every other day, but I can usually make it to day 3 or 4 using the Oribe Gold Lust Dry Shampoo. You can find our full Dry Shampoo Comparison post here.

Step #2: This Olaplex treatment mask is great to do once a week. I keep it in the shower so I remember to use it!

Step #3: One small pump of Morrrocanoil goes a long way! I use directly after the shower and/or on dry hair to help with frizz.

Step #4: I use a heat protectant before styling which is so important! Recommending two here–

• This one I use before blow drying [while hair is still wet]: Pureology Colour Fanatic
• This one I use before styling with a hot tool [on dry hair]: Morrocanoil Thermal Protection Spray

Step #5-6: The Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer is my personal favorite– you can see my full review and the entire hair dryer comparison post here. To style, I use the L’ange 25 mm Titanium Lustre wand. You can check out a quick styling tutorial here!

Step #7: After styling, I finish it all off with a few spritzes of the Morrocanoil Dry Texture Spray for [you guessed it] texture and volume! Not to mention it smells ahh-mazing.

And that’s a wrap! I’m living breathing proof that with a little effort, a LOT of patience, and consistent hair appointments you can successfully repair your damaged mane one day at a time. Thanks for stopping by!

Erin Schrader

Founder and creator of LIY, Erin turned her dream of a hobby blog into a full-time career which she now runs alongside the LIY team! When not in front of her computer screen [with a La Croix or wine in hand] or in front of a mirror taking mirror selfies, you can find Erin spending time on the water, cuddled up with her two pups and husband most likely watching the latest Shark Tank episode, or getting lost in an easy beach read.