How To Have Seriously Good Hair: The Basics

Have you ever noticed that the women with the best hair tend to be the ones who have the simplest, most straightforward hair routines? Nowadays, it's possible to straighten, curl, dye, and highlight your locks into almost any imaginable color or texture, and yet the ladies whose hair tend to inspire the most envy are those who embrace, rather than fight, at least some aspect of their natural look and find the perfect products and routine to enhance what they've got.

The ladies over at YouBeauty seem to have noticed this, as they recently reached out to various hair pros to find out what the secret is to having low-maintenance hair that's naturally gorgeous. Turns out, it's not that complicated. The building blocks of a great head o'hair are a balanced, healthy diet (do yourself a favor and don't be like this girl) and an embracing of your natural color and texture. By no means do you have to swear off coloring and heat styling forever; it's just that whatever color and texture you were born with tends to flatter your face shape and complexion most easily. So, you might as well start there.

Once you've established what your unique texture is, spring for a great cut and quality products that perfectly fit your hair type — trust us, high-quality shampoo, conditioner, and stylers really do make a difference. If you decide to color or heat style, make sure you're using heat-protective products and that you're using the proper tools (for instance, Nick Arrojo says, “Boar-bristles brushes are great for creating sleekness and smoothness. But round brushes with thermal barrels will create lift and volume in fine hair." Good to know!). Once you get your hair arsenal in order, you're free to stick with the plan — or not! Arrojo suggests mixing it up, even slightly, once in awhile, in order to avoid boredom (and the subsequent temptation to chop it all off and dye it platinum). “Every third or fourth cut, make a subtle change,” suggests Arrojo. “Go a little shorter or longer, add some new layers, or update the bangs — even a little modification keeps your style looking fresh.”

You may be thinking "Thanks, Captain Obvious," but we know how easy it is to get stuck in a hair rut and how tempting it can be to save money by buying low-quality hair care products or going for a cheapo dye job (yes, even we would be guilty of getting botched highlights with a coupon...biiig mistake). But, as our luscious-locked friend Cat Deeley recently told us, you wear your hair every day, so a few extra dollars on the perfect shampoo for your hair type and an upgrade of whatever heat-styling tool you use most can take your hair look from pretty to pretty stunning. And, you know how happy you feel when your hair is looking and feeling awesome? Yeah, we'd say that feeling is more than worth it. (YouBeauty)