Congratulations to Wills and Kate! Wow, that was one heck of a wedding party, and a jolly lovely day orff too. Thanks chaps!
Congrats must go, too, to Kate's hair, which, as far as I could see from my ringside seat in front of the TV, behaved itself. That's no mean feat; a Bad Hair Day is never too far away for the wavy of mane, like Kate.
In the run-up to the big day I would bet you my Kirkburton Wanderers season ticket there was only one thing on Kate Middleton's mind; drizzle, and not the cake-ish sort.
Will it or won't it drizzle will have been a bigger question for May 29th than, 'Do you, Catherine Kylie Jason Middleton take William Bobby Dazzler Wales to be your yaddah yaddah?'
And there's only one reason why drizzle would have been the hot topic; Kate's luscious brunette locks. It takes quite some styling to make that famous mane of hair look so bouncy and sleek; imagine if straw were curly, and that is its natural state. Probably.
Drizzle is the very devil for the wavy of hair. It's worse than a downpour, because at least then there's a chance you'll look soaked and sexy like Andy McDowell at the end of Four Weddings.
I'd imagine a fair few of the wedding guests had been on weather watch last week too. Of 1800 guests, it half were women, and the average guestimated number of women having bad hair days at any one time is one in three, regardless of weather, that's 300 Serena Spiffy-Lovelies and Jaquinta Minted-Twinties crying into their gazpacho about the state of their locks.
But, it doesn't need to be that way ladies! If you're planning to marry a prince any time soon, these are the only bad hair day tips you'll need...
Avoid The Frizz
Ok, it's the big one. Hair that has even the slightest wave in it has a tendency to frizz as soon as a hint of moisture reaches it. And it doesn't have to be rain. A hot day can cause the dreaded frizzies too.
The trick is to prepare in advance by using the right natural anti-frizz products.
Personally, I like to use a natural anti-frizz shampoo, like Giovanni Smooth As Silk Deep Moisture Shampoo, and conditioner and a post-drying light serum or cream, such as Jason's Lavender and Rosemary Curl Defining Cream. Lavender oil smoothes hair, while wheatgerm oil and wheat amino acids separate and define curls.
Just a pea-sized blob massaged into curls or swept with palms over waves will keep frizz at bay.
Hold The Style
So, you've spent hours tweaking strands into places they shouldn't be to achieve this week's Hot New 'Do, and the dratted thing won't stay in place. It's enough to warrant chucking in the bamboo towel and heading back to bed.
The solution, madam, is to think like a professional. What does every professional hairdresser have, that you don't? No, not a denim shirt open to the navel, a chest rug and too-tight jeans; the Warren Beatty Shampoo look went out years ago people. It's Kirby grips and hairspray, isn't it?
The trick is to apply the hairspray before and after styling, and to work with dirty hair, but you know that already right? This is one time to ditch the natural shampoos and conditioners; yucky is good. If it’s too late, and hair is squeaky clean, apply a liberal squirt of Lavera Styling Mouse.
Spritz with a natural spray like Lavera's Volume and Shine Hairspray or Giovanni's L.A. Hold Hair Spritz before styling. Work through with fingers to make sure hair is still supple enough to style. Now, style! It's easier, yes?
When hair is in place, follow up with another all-over mist. Make sure you keep the bottle at least 10 inches from the hair to avoid overkill. You want that style to look as if it happened by magic, even if it's extract of rosemary, nettle, thyme, chamomile, yarrow, mallow, horsetail, soybean protein and birch leaf that got it there.
Make It Shine
Who doesn't want hair with more glint than Kate's engagement ring? It suggests youth, vitality and proves you weren't a teenage Goth.
Again, it’s the preparation. Nothing keeps hair shiny as much as a healthy diet and a moderate approach to using hairdryers, harsh treatments (always opt for natural non-peroxide-based dyes), and the evil hair straighteners. Please bin these, ladies; they are to hair what sunbeds are to skin.
As well as looking after your locks, there is an armoury of natural hair products available to help lock in the shine. Burt’s Bees Super Shiny Grapefruit & Sugar Beet Shampoo and Conditioner are made for the job.
Betaine, made from sugar beets, penetrates the hair to help repair damage and enhance shine naturally.
Btw, if you simply must use hair straighteners protect hair first by applying the Grapefruit and Aloe Vera Smoothing Lotion from the Jason Salon Range. It’s a plant-infused lotion that defrizzes and helps protect hair from heat damage.
Keep The Colour
You simply must use natural hair dyes, ladies. They are widely available and much kinder to hair. Once coloured, make sure you protect hair from fade and dryness with a colour care shampoo and conditioner. They can prolong the life of your colour, which means fewer treatments and healthier hair long-term.
We like Organic Surge’s Colour Protect Shampoo and A’Kin’s Ylang Ylang Colour Care Shampoo. Six botanical cleansers are mixed with Ylang Ylang essential oil to protect and strengthen coloured hair. As befits a natural hair product, it contains no parabens or sulphates.
To avoid a wishy-washy pale day and to enhance your own natural colour, try something like Jason Organic Henna Hi-Lights Shampoo, or for brunettes Faith In Nature’s Chocolate Shampoo, made with luxurious organic chocolate. Just don’t be tempted, on a really bad hair day, to hunker down on the sofa and eat it.