Professional stylists share their best tips on how to achieve shiny, luminous locks.
There’s something covetable about that light-catching sheen that indicates your hair is in prime health. Unfortunately, everyday exposure to things like showers, pollution, and hair styling products can decrease your hair’s health and, therefore, its shine. We tapped a handful of hairstylists to share some tips to help you achieve lustrous, shiny hair.
1. Blast Your Hair With Cold Water After Conditioning
For the brave, an icy cold rinse in the shower shuts all the cuticles down, making them lay flat so your strands will twinkle the most. “Our outer layer of the hair has cuticles, which are like tiles on a roof. The more uneven and curled up at the edges they become, the more the light will be absorbed into the hair, making it appear dull,” says professional hairstylist Tina Outen.
But to do it right, celebrity hairstylist Mark Townsend recommends using hot water on your hair when conditioning. “The humidity from the hot water will open up the cuticle and allow the nutrients from the conditioner to soak into the cuticle and nourish hair. Then, blast the hair with cold water as you rinse out the conditioner to close the cuticle, sealing the nutrients in and allowing the hair to reflect light.”
2. Consider a Leave-In Conditioner
You don’t need a really heavy in-shower conditioner for shiny hair—nor do you need to double condition. Sometimes, heavier conditioners end up leaving hair looking dull and weighed down. But, in some cases, a targeted leave-in conditioner can help moisturize and smooth the hair cuticles.
“I find double conditioning to be a waste of product. If you feel you need extra moisture after conditioning, use a leave-in treatment post-shower,” says Townsend. These are referred to as shine enhancers, an umbrella term used to describe leave-ins like oils, serums, mists, and sprays.
3. Focus on Skin-Friendly Ingredients
There has been much more overlap between hair care and skincare in recent years, especially with the newfound focus on the scalp (which is also skin, after all). “Oftentimes, people will try and fix a hair issue with a topical product like hairspray or shine spray, when in fact you need to go deeper to the root of the problem (pun intended),” says celebrity Clariss Rubenstein.
On the bright side, ingredients that were once reserved for our faces are now being repurposed for our hair and scalp. Townsend recommends hyaluronic acid—try Dove Hydration Spa Shampoo & Conditioner, which has hyaluronic serum infused to imbue moisture and shine for 24 hours.
For dry, natural hair, SheaMoisture’s Manuka Honey and Mafura Oil Intensive Hydration formula is a great shampoo for damaged hair to use to help restore shine.
4. Avoid Harmful Ingredients
Reading the label on your shampoo, conditioner, and styling products have never been more important, as many companies have been making the switch to cleaner products. Rivera notes that while she always recommends professional shampoos and conditioners, there are ingredients to be mindful of when shopping.
“Avoid products that contain sulfates, as these can be harsh on the hair by stripping your hair’s natural oils and leaving it dull,” says Rivera. “Products that contain biotin, collagen, and B vitamins are essential when it comes to the health of the hair and scalp.”
5. Try an Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse
In the quest for glossy locks, you might find yourself piling on a ton of shine enhancers daily. However, product pileup can end up counterintuitively harming your hair goals. According to salon founder Maria Elizabeth, all that buildup clogs up the hair follicles and prevents your scalp from producing its natural oils, which are essential to maintaining a shiny mane.
“If you think your hair may have buildup to the point that it is dull and not styling properly, try shampooing a couple of times with an apple cider vinegar rinse,” advises Rubenstein. “This removes all excess product buildup, hard water residue, and pollutants from the hair, sort of like a scalp reset.”
6. Apply a Clarifying Shampoo Once a Week
Similar in purpose to an apple cider vinegar rinse, washing hair once a week with a professional strength clarifying shampoo will yield stronger results. “Clarifying the hair is important from time to time,” says Rivera. “A professional clarifying shampoo will remove buildup from products and medications that can make the hair dull, thus making it easier for your conditioner to penetrate the hair for better hydration, leaving the hair shiny.”
7. Try a Hair Oil Treatment
“Damage is the number one cause of dull hair,” says Townsend. “When strands get damaged, particularly from heat or harsh chemicals, they begin to break and won’t reflect light properly. The most important thing for shiny hair is that the hair cuticle is closed and smooth so it can reflect the light.”
Well-moisturized, healthy hair is naturally shinier—and applying hot hair oils is the fastest way to boost hydration levels and improve existing damage. “Oils close the cuticle to help reflect light,” says Townsend.
Just be sure you start with a small amount. According to Townsend, fine hair can quickly start to look oily and even get drier if oil is used too often. A couple of times a week is a good frequency; run the oil through your ends and hit it with a warm blow dryer to set the shine.
8. Brush Daily With a Boar Bristle Brush
While 100 brush strokes may be a bit extreme, Marcia Brady was on to something with her nightly hair routine. The sebaceous glands produce natural oils to lubricate the scalp, and using your natural scalp oils to share the sheen is an effective tactic for shiny locks.
While this depends on your hair’s texture and type, a once-a-day brushing is a good place to start. “Run a boar bristle brush through your hair daily to evenly distribute oil from the scalp to the ends. A boar bristle brush will close the hair cuticle, which will help create more shine,” says Elizabeth.
9. Darken Your Hair Color
According to Outen, darker hair reflects light more than translucent lighter tones. That doesn’t mean you have to commit to going all dark. “A bit of contrast with highlights can make your hair appear shinier (as opposed to when it’s one flat shade),” says Outen. “You can also deepen your hair color with a semi-permanent color. Using a semi-permanent that sits on the outside of your hair strand fills up all the gaps in the cuticles so your strands will reflect light more evenly.”
10. Switch to a Silk Pillowcase
Despite the term beauty sleep, in real life, we typically roll out of bed with weird grooves etched across our faces and hair that’s visibly less shiny than it was the night before. Not only are silk pillowcases what you would imagine Disney princesses sleep on, but they also help maintain gloss levels so you wake up looking more like one. “Silk causes less friction to your hair, so sleeping on one will leave it looking smoother and healthier come morning,” says Elizabeth.
11. Limit Heat Styling
It’s no secret that excessive heat can harm your hair. Heat styling such as blowdrying or straightening can cause frizz, breakage, and—you guessed it—a lack of shine. If you’re going to be using a blow dryer, flat iron, or curling wand, use a heat protectant and try to stick to lower temperature to minimize damage.
12. Eat a Hair-Healthy Diet
Achieving shinier hair starts from within. Maintaining a nutrient-packed diet with omega-3 fatty acids, biotin, and vitamin E can help nourish hair and promote hydration. Foods like salmon, walnuts, and avocados all contain key nutrients that can enhance your hair’s natural shine. Don’t forget to stay hydrated as drinking plenty of water keeps hair moisturized, preventing dry strands and dullness.
13. Use a Satin or Microfiber Hair Towel
The way you dry your hair can play a big role in your hair’s overall shine. Regular towels made from cotton can create friction that can damage the cuticle and cause dullness. Using a satin or microfiber towel can help absorb moisture while being gentler on your scalp. When dying your hair, try to pat or squeeze out excess water rather than rubbing, as this can damage hair strands and create unwanted frizz.
