Natural hair rules in the summer! Now is the season to let go of perfect, sleek hairdos and embrace that loose, natural look. Learn how to protect your hair from the heat, sun, and humidity without turning it into an endless battle.

1. Cover up!
​Use a scarf or hat to cover your head when you’re out in the sun. Not only does this provide extra UV protection, but it also helps your scalp to retain moisture. A hat reduces damage caused by wind, especially if your hair is prone to tangling, and protects colour-treated hair.

​2. Put your hair up in loose, comfortable styles
​A messy braid is ideal for keeping your hair under control and minimizing exposure to the sun. Tight hairstyles can be damaging because they tend to pull and tear hair, especially if your hair is dry from the summer heat.

4. Reduce the heat
Try to blow-dry your hair as little as possible. It is already exposed to a significant amount of heat on a daily basis in the summer, and it will probably air-dry quickly anyways, so give the blow dryer a break and go au naturel if you can. Avoid flat-irons, too, as they will do further damage to already-dry hair. Plus, a sleek hairstyle only makes that frizz stand out more.

6. Condition always
​Rinse with apple cider vinegar diluted in water for a quick natural conditioner. Use some coconut oil or shea butter (careful with this, since it can be heavy) to smooth, de-frizz, and moisturize your locks after washing. The oil will give some shine and, if you have wavy hair, create natural, air-dried curls. Try a natural deep conditioning treatment once a week to get that extra bit of moisture into your hair.​

7. No more swimmer’s hair
​If you’re a blond who turns green after a dip in the pool, try rinsing out your wet hair with 1⁄4 cup apple cider vinegar and 2 cups water to get rid of discolouration and dullness. It helps to get your hair wet before entering the water because then it won't absorb as much chlorine.

8. Add some sunscreen
​There are shampoos that contain UV protection, but most of those are chemical-laden, conventional shampoos that I’d recommend avoiding. One quick way to add some protection is to run your hands lightly through your hair after applying sunscreen to your body.

9. Try a hot oil rinse
​Coconut, olive, and avocado oils are good at penetrating the hair shaft. Shampoo hair as usual, then work in oil from ends to roots. Rinse, then condition as usual. Your hair should feel moisturized afterward, but not greasy.

10. Fake that beach look if you haven't been there
One blogger recommends this homemade sea salt spray, made with 1 tsp sea salt and 1 tsp coconut oil, mixed with water in a small spray bottle. Spray and scrunch to get that desirable wavy beach look. The coconut oil will counteract the dryness of the salt.​

 11. Use a wide-tooth comb instead of a brush

More often than not, it seems like we’re telling you to put more effort into your lifestyle. Get your suits tailored. Up your grooming game. Revamp your apartment. Upgrade your gadgets. Learn to drink like a classy bastard.

Just once, wouldn’t it be nice if we simplified things instead?
​
Today we’re going to do just that, and tell you how rock dishevelled-but-dapper bed head hairstyles. It’s the best of both worlds: handsome as hell, but doesn’t try too hard to be that way. Keep these pointers in mind if your locks are ready for a new look:

The shag has long been the epitome of rock n’ roll aesthetic – casual, sexy and effortless. In 2021, however, this choppy, layered look from he ‘70s and ‘80s is making a comeback as the year’s most convenient cut. 

Globally, people have been unable to visit their hairdressers regularly, and many are looking for a style that’s low maintenance without sacrificing texture. Enter: the shag, an easy, messy style you can embrace as the triplet to loungewear and no-makeup makeup. And the best part is that a shag can be stretched out for months since it’s built around hair’s natural texture.  

“The typical features that make up a shag hairstyle include choppy, disheveled ends, layers around the crown and lots of texture,” explains Sam Ashcroft, creative team member at Brooks & Brooks, London. “The modern shag is choppy and has lots of texture but doesn’t make you look like everyone in an ‘80s hair metal band.”

The secret of the shag’s success is that it’s fantastic in any length and works on fine and thick, curly and straight hair. But as Ashcroft cautions, too many layers and the style can appear overly choppy and dated. “The key to getting this haircut right and bang on is the fringe. Get the fringe right and the haircut will always fall into place.” 

When it comes to color, there are endless options because a shag has so much movement and texture. Coppers and redheads will naturally look amazing with this cut. For others, the goal should be to create dimension, so hair contouring, or a money piece can really bring the style to life. Even a gentle touch of color on the fringe can be effective for mixing the retro and modern aspects of this trend.  

​Shags are a playful style by nature, but for those who want to adopt the rebellious side of this cut, Ashcroft says to go pink. From pastel rose to vibrant pink, a flash of bold color will turn heads.

Per the Oxford English Dictionary, "bangs" as a term for the fringe of hair lying over the forehead originated in the stables. Horses' tails were sometimes allowed to grow to a certain length, and then were cut off in an even, horizontal trim called a "bangtail." Racehorses were sometimes called bangtails. And Green's Dictionary of Slang suggests "bangtail" actually originated in Scotland, not the US. "Bangtail" was first applied to human hairstyles as early as 1844, but the OED cites the first use of "bang" as 1878. "Bang" meaning "abrupt or sudden" has been used in English since the late 18th century; more details here at Grammarphobia:

Q: Why does the word “bangs” refer to a fringe of hair cut straight across the forehead?
A: The use of “bangs” (or “bang”) for that short fringe of hair originated in the US in the 19th century, according to the Oxford English Dictionary.
But the usage has its roots in “bangtail,” an equine term seen on both sides of the Atlantic. So let’s start our investigation in the stables.

The word “bangtail” is defined in the OED as “a (horse’s) tail, of which the hair is allowed to grow to a considerable length and then cut horizontally across so as to form a flat even tassel-like end.”

The dictionary notes that the term has also been used in Australia for cattle with tails cut that way, and in the US as slang for a horse, especially a race horse.

The earliest citation for “bangtail” in Green’s Dictionary of Slang is from a Scottish journal, suggesting that the term may have first reared its head in the British Isles.

Green’s cites an 1812 issue of the Edinburgh Review that mentions a stud horse named Bangtail, but the name surely came from an even earlier use of the term.

Through a Google search we found a comic British story about fox-hunting, published in 1851, in which “bang-tail” appears least seven times in reference to tails as well as horses.

The story, “Turning Out a Bagman,” by a writer signed “B.P.W.,” is about two London greenhorns who are on vacation and want to hire a pair of hunters.

​The showily groomed horses they hire are called “bang-tails,” and are described as having “such flowing bang-tails as at once stamped them in the eyes of our friends as ‘out-and-out’ thorough-breds.”

The story is chockfull of slang (like “bagman” to mean “fox”), which may explain the repeated use of “bang-tail” instead of “horse.”

Apparently it didn’t take long for “bang” to graduate from horse tails to human hair.
We found an 1844 travel book, Revelations of Russia by Charles Frederick Henningsen, that mentions a man’s hair cut “somewhat in the fashion of a thorough-bred’s ‘bang-tail.’ ”

In another travel book we came across an 1849 entry that describes a woman whose hair was braided in back and “cut in bang style” in front.

The OED’s earliest citation for the human usage is from a letter written in 1878 by Frances M. A. Roe, author of Army Letters From an Officer’s Wife: “It had a heavy bang of fiery red hair.” (The “bang” was on a face mask in a shop window in Helena, in the Montana Territory.)

Another American, William Dean Howells, also used the word in his book The Undiscovered Country (1880): “His hair cut in front like a young lady’s bang.”

A Google search turned up a plural reference in an 1883 article from the New York Times. A Catholic priest, lecturing Sunday school children, “condemned the fashion of wearing ‘bangs’ in severe terms.”

A matching adjective (as in “banged” hair) and verb (to “bang” or cut the front hair straight across) also emerged in the 1880s, according to citations in the OED.

Here are a couple of examples: “He was bareheaded, his hair banged even with his eyebrows in front” (from the Century Magazine, 1882), and “They wear their … hair ‘banged’ low over their foreheads” (from Harper’s Magazine, 1883).

So it would appear that the verb “bang” (to cut hair straight across) emerged after the hairstyle and not before, unless there are earlier verb references we haven’t found.

That still leaves us with a question: Why did “bang” mean bluntly cut?

Both Green’s and the OED indicate that since the late 1500s the verb “bang” has meant to hit or thump, and the noun “bang” has meant a blow or a thump.

And “bang” has been used adverbially since the late 18th century, the OED says, to mean “all of a sudden,” or “suddenly and abruptly, all at once, as in ‘to cut a thing bang off.’ ”

Since the bangs on a person’s forehead, like a horse’s banged tail, end abruptly—you might say with a  “bang!”—perhaps the word is simply a case of creative English.

A collection of humor pieces, Wit and Humor of the Age (1883), takes the creativity a step further. In a story by  Melville D. Landon, one chambermaid asks another “if she banged her hair.”
​
“Yes, Mary,” the first chambermaid says. “I bang my hair—keep a banging it, but it don’t stay bung!”

​A Short, Uneven History of Bangs
From Cleopatra to Kate Moss, a journey through some of history's greatest bangs.

The survey polled 2,000 men, where 20% said that if they could bring one popular hairstyle from a bygone decade back into fashion, it would be the ’80s mullet, ‘90s ‘curtain bangs’ (15%) and the 2010s undercut (10%).

OnePoll conducted the survey on behalf of Sport Clips Haircuts.
​
“While we’re seeing a lot of longer hairstyles in our stores, the truth is that styling men's hair, no matter the length, can be more complicated than it may seem,” explains Stacia Kelley, Sport Clips artistic director and stylist. “Longer hair still requires regular trims, shaping and home maintenance with high-quality products, such as conditioners to avoid breakage or light-hold texture creams that can give the hair some weight and tact.”

Top Five Best-Looking Hairstyles for Men

1. Undercut           3.18
2. Curtain bangs   3.15
3. Shag                 3.11
4. Pompadour       2.97
5. Long/Man bun   2.94

Top Five Celebrity Hair Inspirations for Men

1. Jason Momoa             40.10%           
2. Harry Styles                36.45%
3. James Dean                35.20%
4. David Beckham           35.00%
5. Drake                           31.75%

​from BeautyLaunchpad

One in Five American Men Want the Mullet to Be Back in Style, According to Survey 

Fifty-five percent of men surveyed admitted they want to change up their look but are afraid to try something new

It's synonymous with parties for a reason: one in five American men are ready for the mullet to make an official comeback.

In a survey of 2,000 men, 20% said that if they could bring one popular hairstyle from a bygone decade back into fashion, it would be the classic '80s mullet, followed by '90s "curtain bangs" (15%) and the 2010s undercut (10%).

But even those polled admit that the infamous bi-level look isn't for everyone; in a ranking of various hair trends, respondents found undercuts, curtain bangs and the '00s "shag" haircut to be more universally flattering 'dos.

And even though 39% of men have dabbled in adding highlights to their hair — making it the most popular color technique among those polled — it was also the least-liked hair trend of the entire survey, ranked just under the infamous "frosted tips" look.

It's not surprising that men have tried out some fads they ended up hating later; 55% admitted they want to change up their look but are afraid to try something new, while another 47% don't know what hairstyles would look good on them.

However, of the two-thirds of men who've experimented with a hair trend they were later embarrassed by, only a third said they regretted it afterward.

Conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Sport Clips Haircuts, the survey also revealed that men are experiencing a lot of similarly intense emotions about their post-pandemic haircut.

Not surprisingly, "relief" topped the list for 36% of men, while 32% also described themselves as "excited."

During the shutdowns and social distancing measures of the COVID-19 pandemic, 75% of men chose to forgo professional hair maintenance.

One in four men instead tried cutting their hair themselves — despite the fact that 55% don't think they do a good job at self-cuts — while 27% enlisted the help of a friend or family member.

With the increase of social distanced safety protocols and vaccine distributions, however, men are rediscovering more options for hair care.

Of the half of respondents who've already visited a barber since the pandemic first began, 85% cited it as a positive experience, with 27% describing it as "amazing."

In fact, one in three respondents said getting a new haircut makes them feel "smarter," while one in four admitted to feeling like "a better person" afterward.
​
Twelve percent even said they feel more inspired to ask for a raise after a haircut.

We know, we know…everyone is getting tired of thinking about and talking about and hearing about the pandemic. But it’s still a thing and it’s still affecting our daily lives and our behaviors – in particular, our hair! Sport Clips Haircuts recently talked to 2,000 men in the United States, and 32 percent said that before the pandemic, they had their hair cut by a professional every two to three weeks. Fast forward to 2021, and 24 percent of the men cut their own hair at home last year. I mean, we all remember how terrible those corona cuts were, right?

It just goes to show that you should leave the haircutting to the pros – like the stylists at Sport Clips. Now that things are almost, pretty much back to normal, more than half of the men we talked to have made their way back to their favorite stylist or barber and the majority say they had a “good” experience on that first visit back. In fact, most reported feeling “relieved” to finally get that first post-lockdown trim.

And then there were the guys – 22 percent of them, in fact – who chose to let their hair grow out. Those long, luscious locks may seem easy to maintain, but they require more care than most guys realize. “Long hair requires regular trims, shaping, at home maintenance with a quality shampoo and conditioner to avoid breakage, and an appropriate styling product,” explains stylist Brittany Fitzgerald, a Sport Clips Artistic Team member and North Texas Area Coach.

For others, emerging from lockdown and kicking of 2021 has them ready to try a new style, but a majority of the men surveyed said they were “afraid” to try something new because they don’t know what kind of style or cut would look good on them. Are you sure you can rock the long Jason Momoa locks? Do you have the right face shape to pull off Harry Styles’ look? This is where the expertise of a stylist can really help. “Your stylist can look at your face shape, your hair texture, and figure how to style or cut around a cowlick to make sure you get a haircut that flatters you best,” says stylist Dorian Curtis-Likens, Sport Clips Artistic Team member and Area Coach. “Stylists can also help you establish a new look with a routine of regular trims and the products that will help you confidently style and maintain your cut when you leave the store.”

Ultimately, a haircut should make you look good and feel good. Most of the men surveyed said they have a “surge of confidence” for four-to-six days after a fresh haircut. Many of them say they feel better about themselves and some even say they feel “smarter.” We’ll take their word for it on that one.
​
Men who shared their opinions in the survey conducted by One Poll ranged in age from 18-56+, varied in relationship status and were from all parts of the United States.

SportsClips