How To Use Heat Protectant Spray (Because You’re Prob Making These Mistakes)

You wouldn’t think learning how to use heat protectant spray would require a deep dive, but we’ve seen so many of you online asking for how to make this must-not-skip step in your routine work even better. Not to mention the number of heat protectant mistakes we see every day on our FYP.

As fine hair connoisseurs ourselves, heat protectant spray is our ride or die for ensuring our already-delicate hair doesn’t get further damaged or broken when heat styling (something we already should be doing as little as possible). If you don’t believe heat protectant really works, it may be because you’re misusing this integral spray. If there’s any doubts, read on for how to use heat protectant spray PROPERLY.

Shop First: Zero Damage Halo Hair Extensions

How to Use Heat Protectant Spray

Instructions come on the back of the bottle for a reason, but they never go in-depth the way true haircare gurus really need. Here’s how we use ours.

How to Apply Heat Protectant:

For most formulations, there’s no hard and fast rule for how to apply heat protectant–it really just depends if its spray vs. a cream vs. a multi-purpose oil. Always follow the bottle’s instructions on the back for best results as some heat protectants aren’t as effective on wet/damp hair or dry strands.

Once you know what your heat protectant wants wetness wise, we suggest spraying heat protectant quite liberally, focusing on ends, but not forgetting your scalp as well. If you’re curling your hair or straightening, spray each section before applying the hot styling tool. This ensures the section gets a full dose of heat protection.

After you spray your hair or section with heat protectant, LET IT DRY BEFORE APPLYING HEAT. High heat on wet hair sends damage down to the strand’s cortex and can burn your hair all the way through. So, if you hear any sizzle coming from your tool against your hair, it needed to dry more.

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How Often to Use It:

We can’t say this enough, use heat protectant everytime your hair will be subject to heat styling. That means blow drying AND heated styling tools. Your hair isn’t dissimilar to your skin and needs protecting just the same: if it’s hot on your skin, it’s hot on your hair.

If you are a devoted heat styler, we suggest getting other protecting products in your haircare lineup. There are bonding oils, shampoo/conditioners, and leave-in conditioners that offer added heat protection if you’re prone to damage or just hate spraying down your hair every morning.

In short: apply heat protectant often.

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How Much Heat Protectant to Use:

While we’re here to bang the heat protectant drum as loudly as possible, you can overdo it. Dousing your hair until its soaked isn’t great and isn’t going to get you any more protection. Liberally spray hair about 15cm away from your hair until you think its evenly covered and slightly damp.

You can also use a comb to brush the protectant through your hair and better disperse the protectant.

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What to Look For When Buying:

Since heat protectant is a leave-in you want to be aware of what potentially toxic ingredients or irritants you want to avoid. This is especially important for thin hair types as we don’t want anything to cause further thinning or weighing down. These are some we love:

L’Oreal Professionnel, Vitamino Color 10-in-1 Spray available HERE; ghd, Bodyguard Heat Protectant Spray available HERE; DryBar, Hot Toddy Heat Protectant Mist available HERE; Redken, Iron Shape 11 Thermal Holding Spray available HERE.

Try to stay away from parabens and sulfates especially if you have coloured hair as these can fade your shade. We love those with humectants for moisture retention, amino acids like keratin, and natural ingredients like aloe vera.

Always follow the back of the bottle to perfect how to use heat protectant spray, but all in all they’re super easy to use and highly effective.

 

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