Who among us doesn’t watch shampoo commercials with envy for the models’ lustrous locks? The problem is that having gorgeous hair is those models’ job. They and their employers invest thousands in treatments, trims, products, and styling to get that look.
We can’t promise you’ll be waving your shiny hair around in a meadow, but there’s still hope. There are plenty of ways to get gorgeous hair without blowing your life’s savings on hair care products.
For beautiful hair you can afford, try these tips for great savings.
Tips to Save on Hair Care Products
Most of us can’t afford the highest of high-end hair care like Cuvée Beauty, but it turns out it’s not necessary. Here’s how to save on your favorite hair care products.
1. Cut Back Your Shower Routine
It might sound obvious but one of the best ways to pay less for a hair product is to use less of it. We’re not suggesting that you abandon shampoo and conditioner. However, you should use shampoo as little as possible.
Instead of shampooing every day on autopilot, wait to shampoo until your hair is oily. You’ll probably find yourself shampooing two or three times per week instead of seven.
In fact, shampooing your hair too much will strip the natural oils and dry out your hair. You’ll end up spending even more money buying hydrating products you shouldn’t need in the first place.
2. Experiment With Dosages
Another effective way to cut down on your hair products is to use them in smaller amounts. Most of us squeeze a certain amount of shampoo or conditioner into our hands without thinking about it.
Instead, start paying attention to how much you use. Use less and less each day until you find the point when your results suffer. Use a touch more product than that an voila, you’ve stopped wasting hair product.
3. Coupon, Coupon, and Coupon More
Hair products are a couponer’s heaven. They’re some of the easiest items to find coupons for, and you can score huge savings if you plan well.
On top of your local paper, there are often printable coupons for hair products. With their long shelf lives, it’s easy to stock up on them too.
4. Go the DIY Route
Making your own laundry detergent and household cleaner has become a popular way to save cash. Did you know you can do the same with your hair products?
There are countless recipes online that let you make your own shampoo. It’s also easy to find recipes for conditioner, hair masks, and other hair products too. If you’re planning to try them, now’s the time to start saving your spent bottles and containers.
We have a word of warning, though. Not all DIY recipes are cheaper than store bought alternatives. Do a careful cost analysis before you spend $20 on ingredients to make a $2 bottle of conditioner.
5. Get Every Last Drop
If you added up how much money you’ve thrown away at the bottom of product bottles, you’d be kicking yourself. Over time, the leftover product you toss out adds up.
Instead, try some simple tactics to get every last drop out of your product bottles. One option is to use the old “add water and shake” trick. A few drops of water can pull make the product accessible without diluting it too much.
It’s even more effective, though, to use a tiny spatula. There are spatulas with the specific purpose of clearing out makeup and hair product bottles.
6. Sample It Up
The best way to save on something is to get it for free. You might be surprised how easy it is to score free hair products if you know where to look.
Free samples are common marketing techniques for hair product manufacturers. In many cases, brands have forms on their website you can fill out to give free samples.
There are also third-party websites with the sole purpose of finding free samples for you. Keep in mind that some of these sites end up sending you a lot of spam, though, so be prepared to delete some emails.
7. Keep Your Styles Simple
We’d all love to hop out of bed with a flowing mane, but that’s not reality. For most of us, styling our hair is the most time-consuming part of our daily routine. Beyond time, though, many styles require a lot of expensive products too.
If your mornings are full of sprays, gels, pins, shine enhancers and more, maybe it’s time for a change. Cruise the web for more natural styles you can try that don’t require so many products.
Keep an eye out for styles that keep heat to a minimum too. Heat tools can damage your hair so you’ll need pricey products or treatments to keep frizz at bay. That’s a recipe for taking more money out of your pocket.
8. Get Organized
Most of our money-saving tips have focused on how to use fewer products and save on them when you buy them. There’s another common reason we waste money though: buying duplicate products because you’ve lost yours.
While this doesn’t happen as much with shampoo and conditioner, it’s the scourge of bobby pins and ponytail holders. You buy a 100-pack and seem to run out after only throwing out a dozen of them. The rest are lost somewhere under furniture or in purses.
Instead, find a way to organize your hair supplies in one reliable place. You’d be surprised how long your hair products will last when you use them until they wear out.
Gorgeous Hair for Less Green
There’s a reason wealthy people always seem to have better hair. The easiest way to make your hair look its best is to dump money into high-end products and stylists.
That isn’t the only way, though. The tips above can help you have all the hair care products you need without blowing your budget.
For more awesome ways to save without compromising your style, check out our frugal living blog.