Would you consider my hair dull?

[Larki]

I've always been self-conscious about my hair's lack of shine/dullness. To me, my hair only shines when I move it to make the motion of the hair reflect light (if that makes sense?). When my hair isn't in motion, it seems so dull to me, especially in comparison to darker hair colors - I have a friend with dark brown hair who abuses the heck out of it, and her hair is shinier than mine - makes me feel like mine is super damaged to be so dull. There are childhood pictures of me with really shiny hair, so I don't think it's just because I'm blonde - my hair was much lighter as a child, and it was so much shinier then. I don't know, what do you guys think, honestly? Is there something I could be doing to increase the shine? I've tried rinsing with cold water and it doesn't seem to make a difference.

http://i62.tinypic.com/fjdgtd.jpg http://i57.tinypic.com/6nqmw4.jpg http://i62.tinypic.com/acsvbb.jpg

[Duchess Fuzzy Buns]

I don't know, it looks shiny to me. :confused: I've heard ACV rinses are supposed to make your hair shiny, though I've never tried it myself. I don't know what kind of products you would use, but I used to use some Paul Mitchell shine serum when I was into straightening my hair all the time, and it made it really shiny.

[Sharysa]

My hair is soft-black instead of the shiny blue-black that most associate with Asians. It doesn't shine unless it's just washed/oiled, but nobody has ever mentioned it looked bad.

I'd say your hair is matte instead of "dull"--that just has a lot of negative connotations with it. If it's shiny, it's very subtle, but it looks perfectly healthy to me. Shine is overrated. :)

The cold-water rinse has been debunked somewhere here--either it doesn't work or it actually makes hair worse in the long run. If you want shiny hair, you might want to try an herb rinse instead to bring out the color and make it shinier. Calendula and marigold are said to be very good rinses for blonde hair.

[Sparklylady82]

Mine is not super shiny either but my blond is fake ;-) I really don't have advise but I think your hair is really pretty! Sometimes when I'm focused on what someone else has I can't see my own beauty. Your locks are gorgeous. Just play around with different products until you get your desired shine!

[maborosi]

Hmm, I think your hair is really pretty and healthy-looking.

You might try cassia obovata or ziziphus to enhance the shine, though. What kinds of conditioners and shampoos are you using? I like to use a light silicone conditioner (Ice Shine) when I want some extra slip and shine, if you're okay with silicones, maybe give them a shot?

But blonde and lighter hair colors don't generally reflect light like darker hair colors do. When I had jet-black hair that was trashed at the ends, it was still as shiny, if not moreso, than my hair is now that it's coppery red. My hair is way way healthier, softer, and smoother now- and it is very shiny and soft, but still not like when I had dark hair.

~maborosi~

[RapunzelKat]

Your hair looks very nice to me :) Shine doesn't always pick up very well in photos, so it's a bit difficult to say if it's less shiny than when you were younger, but it looks healthy and pretty for sure.

Have you tried a clarifying wash followed by a deep moisture treatment? That can remove any buildup you might have, and really bring out your shine. Conditioners with dimethicone and other silicones can also boost shine, though they don't agree with everyone's hair.

[Larki]

Thanks so much for the replies! I like the term "matte" better than dull, thanks for the suggestion!

I'm currently using Wen, which has amodimethicone, a water soluble cone. I have absolutely no issues with cones, I love them. No buildup issues or anything.

I know that lighter colors just aren't as shiny, but it's strange to me that my hair was shinier when I was a platinum/white blonde kid than it is now that it's darker. If that was the reason, I'd think that my hair would be shinier now than it was when my hair was white, you know?

[Larki]

Double post

[parallellines]

Larki, I'm no expert and I say your hair is gorgeous.

Maybe softer water = shinier hair for some people. Some time ago, I tried a couple of products that promised to make hair shine. No matter how little I used or when I used it, my hair looked like it had been bathed in grease.

Sharysa's suggestions for blonde hair sound rather promising. If you try them, I hope you let us know how they work :)

[Jumper]

Is your friend abusing hers with a straightener? Because that definitely gives some "shine" but it's not a lasting shine, like healthy hair.

I am just now joining the coconut oil bandwagon but I am loving a tiny bit rubbed over my hair to tame the frizz and add some shine. If I'm lazy or in a hurry though I reach for my Shea Moisture "Smooth and Repair High Shine Glosser" which I also love.

ETA: I didn't answer the question - no, I don't think it's dull. It looks good to me!

[FallingDarkness]

Oh my goodness.
Your hair is gorgeous. Not dull in the slightest. It's shiny (at least the pics make it look shiny) and the color is BEAUTIFUL. *jealous*
Really. It's long (in my opinion) and shiny and slightly wavy which I think is really pretty and a really nice shade of blonde.
Stop bagging on your hair, really. :P

[LunaLuvsU]

I think your hair looks soft. If you want more shine you could try coconut oil or almond oil.

[stachelbeere]

Hey Larki - I think your hair looks shiny and it's a subjective thing.

Here is one thing you should consider - hair looks different in all kinds of settings and lightings. For instance, I have a bathroom which makes my hair look crazy shiny in the mirror - but in other bathrooms, where the light is different it looks dull and frizzy. Maybe this could be the reason why you don't see your hair as shiny...?

ETA: also, Habioku's hair quality improvement comes to mind (https://sites.google.com/site/habioku/My-hair/hair-progress) (the bottom four pics). She was taking her photos with a camera and flash in both cases - you could look at photos of your hair that were taken with flash?

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Have you tried stroking a couple of drops of mineral oil over/through your hair, then brushing it gently with a boar bristle brush to polish it and bring out the shine? That's what I do with mine. Remember though that blonde hair won't show shine as well as dark hair though...

[StellaKatherine]

Your pictures were taken inside. How does your hair look when outside on a sunny day? My hair shines only when it gets some light eather from sun or if it is dark inside/outside then from the flash light of the camera ( I would post photos to show the difference, but ehh I do not want to "steal" your thread, it is about you after all :blossom: ). I like my hair the most when there is sunshine... Anyway I do not think your hair is dull! I would love to have such a shiny hair that even without light it would shine, but that is something that cannot happen same as getting my hair thicker :) So the only thing to do is to take care of our hairs otherwise as good as we can :) Btw, your natural blond colour is STUNNING!!!!!! :crush:

[eadwine]

Your hair shines, it just changed from a glassy shine to a silky shine :)

And isn't silk just so much better? ;)

[Majormiles]

I think your hairs really shiny! I know what you mean though... My hair is fine, wavy and a mousey brown so not very much shine!!! However I believe that the health of my hair is more important

[jacqueline101]

I love cones too and there are two great products I use when my hair feels dull tressemee shine spray and Pantene argan oil 24 hour shine. The Pantene is higher price but well worth it. The tressemee is good too but it's spay bottle is easy to over use. I used them when I wasn't oiling my hair my oil mix adds shine to my hair.

[Johannah]

Nothing wrong with your hair. First thing I thought when I looked at the picture was: wow!

[kitcatsmeow]

I'd say yes (just being honest) Although it looks beautiful and healthy as well so I wouldn't care if it wasn't uber shiny :)

[Hrtchoco]

I think your hair is pretty. I wouldn't worry about it that much. Maybe you need to find the right light to look shiny.

[queenovnight]

I think your hair looks lovely, and healthy. I often think that super shiny hair just looks built up (like too much product or something.) Your hair has a natural shine, which is gorgeous.

[Madora]

Your hair looks perfectly fine, Larki! You might want to consider daily brushing with a pure bbb to bring out the shine. Sure works for me!

[spidermom]

I imagine it looks shiny when it has a bright light shining on it. In the pictures it looks very pretty and shiny enough. As mentioned, light hair like ours won't reflect light like darker hair does.

[Larki]

Thank you for all the opinions, everyone! :) On the childhood vs now, my mom's always pointing to the pictures we have: "Look how much shinier and smoother your hair was when I was taking care of it! Everyone was always complimenting your hair! What are you doing wrong with it?" :/

I currently use argan oil on occasion and want to try switching to jojoba - argan works fine in tiny amounts, like 1-2 drops, but any more makes my hair greasy and I've tried jojoba a few times. I can use more jojoba without making my hair greasy. Plus jojoba is cheaper. :)

I already use a BBB, every night. I love it, and it really does make my hair a little bit shinier.

As far as outdoor photos, I'd love to try it! But I have no idea how I'd take a photo of the back of my head without a mirror. I don't have a real camera, just my cell phone.

[Anje]

IMO, blond hair is more likely to be "luminescent" than "shiny", since it sort of picks up the light and glows within rather than simply reflecting it back. OP, from what I can tell in the pictures, yours looks perfectly healthy and fine!

[Undomiel]

I think like others have said, it's just harder to see in photos. In your first photo, I think your hair looks shiny and the lighting looks best in that one (imo) so I'm going with "it is shiny" :). It's very pretty, not dull at all!

[Sagi1982]

Your hair is beautiful. It looks healthy and has a wonderful silken shine.

I'm a natural ashblonde and can say: it depends on the lighting.
Fair hair simply reflects the light not as hard as dark hair, so mirror-like shine on blonde hair is seldom seen. ;D

[höpönasu]

I've heard it's difficult to have shine in light/blonde hair. Your hair is plain gorgeous!

[MINAKO]

I personally think that blonde hair looks perfely fine with a sort of matte and silky shine instead of highly glossy which i would prefer for darker hair, anywho taking pictures or generally looking at it in the right light does also make a huge differenfe. I consider my hair matte as well but it has a crazy shine when i put the flash on. I rarely ever notice a light blonde head of hair being very very shiny, maybe Amanda Seyfried or Claudia Schiffer would be good examples, but thats not what you need to have you hair looking healthy in the first place, i dunno.

[woodswanderer]

My hair is much less shiny inside than outside. It used to bother me, but I'm over it. I think a medium shine is nice too. I wouldn't consider your hair dull. I would say it has a medium shine and it is lovely.

[meteor]

Many words come to my mind, like gorgeous, silky, translucent, multi-tone... but certainly not dull.
It's just reality of light color that it doesn't reflect light the same way darker hair would. I used to be a blonde and my hair never had the kind of gloss and shine that I have now that my hair is brown. It's really about how light the hair color is, but some change in products/routine might help increase the gloss:
- Clarifying and chelating (if your water is hard);
- SMTs;
- Oiling with something light like grapeseed oil or mineral oil;
- Silicone serums;
- BBBs ;
- sleeping on silk;
- avoiding terry cloth and other rough towels;
- Good technique when blowdrying on cool (if you ever use a blow-dryer).


On the childhood vs now, my mom's always pointing to the pictures we have: "Look how much shinier and smoother your hair was when I was taking care of it! Everyone was always complimenting your hair! What are you doing wrong with it?" :/

[Agnes Hannah]

No I don't think your hair is dull, it is beautiful, do you want to swop?
Lemon is supposed to give shine, and chamomile, Ithink. Some shampoos specifically formulated for blonde hair may enhance your shine, but really, you have lovely hair the way it is, I love it.

[Wosie]

No negative words come to mind when I think of your hair. It is very lovely, has a nice length and colour and is quite enviable. :blossom: Just something I was thinking about--how often do you wash it? I thought maybe that's the reason your hair is more matte now than when you were a kid (?). :hmm: I wash my hair twice as often as I did when I was 14 (two times a week vs. once a week).

[Mya]

Your hair doesn't look dull at all.

I noticed that coarse hair tends to be more "blinding shiny", and fine hair tends to be less of that kind of shine, I think it depends on how those types of hair reflect light (on fine hair, light gets more fragmented). But touching fine hair is like touching the finest satin. :inlove:

Your hair is shiny, it's just that type of shine that suggests softness. It also looks very healthy. I really can't see anything less than pretty in your hair honestly.

[kitana97]

I think your hair already looks shiny - but when I want more shine I use a little bit of olive oil on the ends. I also tried Shikai Henna Gold Highlights shampoo - it only has non-colored henna so it won't change your hair color at all - and it made my hair noticeable shinier.

[Larki]

Thank you everyone! You've made me feel much better about my hair.


Many words come to my mind, like gorgeous, silky, translucent, multi-tone... but certainly not dull.
It's just reality of light color that it doesn't reflect light the same way darker hair would. I used to be a blonde and my hair never had the kind of gloss and shine that I have now that my hair is brown. It's really about how light the hair color is, but some change in products/routine might help increase the gloss:
- Clarifying and chelating (if your water is hard);
- SMTs;
- Oiling with something light like grapeseed oil or mineral oil;
- Silicone serums;
- BBBs ;
- sleeping on silk;
- avoiding terry cloth and other rough towels;
- Good technique when blowdrying on cool (if you ever use a blow-dryer).
No hard water currently, although the water at college is hard, so I'll keep the clarifying tip in mind for when I go back! I haven't used SMTs specifically, but I deep condition for a few hours once a week - I've been doing this for the last month or so and I really like the results! That second picture was actually of freshly deep-conditioned hair, and I think that's the shiniest one. I've been using a tiny bit of argan oil and am planning to switch to jojoba soon - as long as I don't go overboard, my hair is shinier but not greasy-looking.


No negative words come to mind when I think of your hair. It is very lovely, has a nice length and colour and is quite enviable. :blossom: Just something I was thinking about--how often do you wash it? I thought maybe that's the reason your hair is more matte now than when you were a kid (?). :hmm: I wash my hair twice as often as I did when I was 14 (two times a week vs. once a week).
Wow, thank you so much! I actually wash my hair every other day, compared with washing daily as a kid.

[lapushka]

I don't see anything wrong with your hair or its shine. And comparing to childhood pictures is torture, because a child's hair is usually pretty darn healthy (since none of the bad stuff is done to it).

[Larki]

I don't see anything wrong with your hair or its shine. And comparing to childhood pictures is torture, because a child's hair is usually pretty darn healthy (since none of the bad stuff is done to it).
Good point! I'll try to ignore my mom's comments, thank you! It's good to know that most people don't see anything wrong with my hair!

[AmyBeth]

Yeah, right. NOT!! Your hair is gorgeous. Beautiful color, healthy looking. Keep doing what you're doing!