Dry Hair

Tabatha Coffey, the star of Tabatha Takes Over, is known giving the most spot-on hair advice around. And over the next few months the talented hairstylist is sharing her top tips and tricks right here on BellaSugar. We're thrilled to present to you her first post! Take it away, Tabatha.

Hi everyone, I got so many emails and questions on the below topics after I appeared on The Dr. Oz Show, I thought it would be great to write about them in my first blog. Here are some of my favourite products and tips for combating the hair-problem blues. See more after the jump.

There's nothing worse than regularly spending a fortune having your hair coloured to notice only weeks later that your colour is fading. There are various contributing factors, including washing your hair too often, frequent use of heat styling tools without using the appropriate protectant products, swimming in chlorine without wearing a swimming cap, as well as extensive sun exposure. If you've noticed that your colour is looking a little worse for wear and fading all too fast, we've got the tips and tricks to get your hair picture-perfect for the party season.

• Choose shampoo, conditioner and styling products that are designed to cater for coloured hair, and even more specifically, those tailored to every different hair colour. To maintain your colour and shine in-between salon visits, try Aveda's three-part system Color Conserve Shampoo and Conditioner (from $12.95 each) and Aveda Color Conserve Conditioning Treatment ($49.95), featuring soy-derived vitamin E and other enriching plant-based ingredients.

Keep reading for more colour fade-preventing tips!

Luscious locks are the only accessory a girl needs this party season. Take your mane from meh to magnificent with our top tips and trends for you to try, whatever your hair type. Today we're tackling condition, helping you turn dry and damaged hair into shiny strands.

Why so dry? Dry hair can be the result of genetics or environment — or both! Some people are more prone to dry hair, just as others are prone to oily hair. And whilst it's handy that you don't have to wash your hair every day, dry hair doesn't always look as shiny or healthy as you'd hope. Damaged hair is more severe than dry hair and can be caused due to a variety of factors such as heat styling, product build-up or chemical stress from hair colouring.

Keep reading . . .

A girlfriend asked me this the other day. And once I had shut my mouth, picked myself up off the floor and had a stiff drink to recover from the shock, I said I'd do my very best to find out. Because for me, it's never been a question. Like pies need tomato sauce and Imelda Marcos needs shoes, strands need conditioning. Well, that's what I've always thought anyway. To find out if it's true or just an urban myth, we called up Barney Martin, Pantene’s Expert Stylist and Director of Barney Martin Hairdressing, in Surry Hills.

A) Conditioner is a really important step in your haircare routine. After you cleanse your hair you raise the hair cuticles — conditioner smooths these back down to protect the hair shaft. Conditioner is also an important step in keeping moisture in the hair to keep your hair soft and shiny. Conditioner should be used on all hair types, even if you have oily hair you should still concentrate the conditioner on the mid to end-lengths away from the roots. I also recommend using a deep conditioning treatment once a week to really hydrate your hair. You do this as a third step after shampooing and conditioning and it’s especially important if your hair is coloured or heat damaged. A deep conditioning rinse-off treatment, like Pantene’s 3 Minute Miracle ($29.99) or Bumble and Bumble Deeep Treatment ($50), is a great way to restore your hair’s health quickly.

Keep reading . . .

There are some women that just have it. Eva Mendes is one of those women. She graces the August cover of Allure magazine looking ah-mazing wearing a fiercely winged cat eye and seductive pout. More like a young Sophia Loren than ever. She describes a loaded '60s eye — think smudged liner and lashings of mascara — as "insta-sexy" in the accompanying interview so it's no surprise that that's her fail-safe beauty look. And it looks as though she's a D&G fan through and through — she was dressed head to toe in the Italian designs for the sexy shoot — and prefers the dry, textured style of '70s hair that we saw in their A/W 2010 collection over the sleek, slick wet-look vibe that we saw elsewhere. FYI, Eva and I are like two peas in a pod; we use the same foundation: Perricone MD No Foundation Foundation. LOVE. Pretty, huh?

This is a question I get asked wherever I go. In the queue for a coffee. On the bus. While I'm shopping. I would go so far as to say it's one of the most commonly asked beauty questions EVER. Big call. But that's because split ends are a big problem. They look unsightly, they feel horrible and if you miss just one appointment they can start to crop up. Nightmare. So I called up my man T-Dog (or Tony Pearce as he prefers to be known) to help. He's Pantene's Expert Trichologist, which is really just a fancy way of saying he knows lots about hair and scalps.

A) Prevention with regular haircare conditioning and deep treatments is the best option as once split ends develop, they usually cannot be repaired, as a 'split end' is essentially a longitudinal splitting of the hair shaft. [Sounds nasty, huh?] Once this develops only trimming of the hair distal to the fracture will correct them. Regular trims will stop split end in their tracks, as will conditioning treatments like Pantene 3 Minute Miracle ($7.99),

Also try Bumble and Bumble Deeep Treatment ($50) or evo Mane Prescription Protein Treatment ($25.95)