What exactly is a "bad hair day?" Research shows that 90 percent of all women claim to have them. But if you have thin tresses, the issue is about more than the odd day when you put your hair up or cover it with a baseball cap.
According to a study commissioned by hair and skin product manufacturer Neutrogena, women described bad hair as being "out of place, flat or limp." For those who have thin hair, their locks can look lifeless every day.
It's not unusual for a woman's hair to get thinner as she ages.
At only 23 years old, Kelly Borden said that she has struggled with baby fine and thin hair her whole life. It runs in her family.
Recently, Ms. Borden, who lives in Acushnet but works as an interior designer on Martha's Vineyard, had a specialty makeover at the DeAraujo Salon in Dartmouth. Owner Daniel DeAraujo said that when there is less hair to work with, every decision about cut, color and hair products really counts.
There is no one-strategy-fits-all solution to producing the best look for sparse hair, Mr. DeAraujo said. The key is focusing on the woman's face. He produces a transformation of style, base color, highlights and makeup that enhances a woman's total look.
"Hair is an accessory. I like problem hair. I love a challenge," he said.
Because she was unhappy with the nature of her hair, Ms. Borden had been experimenting with colors, perms and cuts for years. She avoided curling irons or straighteners to keep from damaging her already fragile locks.
When she arrived at the salon, her style was long and wavy, with plenty of volume at the cheek level and below, but not on top. Coupled with the uneven color, the look didn't do the most for her round, attractive face and delicate features.
Ms. Borden has a rigorous commute to work on the ferry in the mornings and she needed a style that was easy to re-create on her own. Her hair had gotten so long, she said, because she has to take a whole day off from her job to keep any appointments on the mainland. She simply hadn't had time to attend to it lately.
After several intensive hours of grooming at DeAraujo, Ms. Borden was thrilled with the results. "I look in the mirror and see someone who looks like she has normal hair. I always looked older because of the thin hair. This has bounce to it," she enthused.
Ms. Borden's new cut is chin-length with long layers that fall softly around her face. Her hair color has been evened out and carefully crafted with multiple shades that make her tresses appear more dense at the roots, while the layers reflect and diffuse the light. She went from a medium brown color to a mixture of dark blond shades with strawberry tones that enhance the color of her fair skin.
In addition to its visual benefits, coloring thin hair also adds bulk to the shafts, colorist Emilia Medeiros said.
To style the hair, Mr. DeAraujo used only a little spray gel and a round brush for a quick blow-dry. Too much heat can damage fine hair, and products that are heavy weigh it down. Light and gentle hair products are the answer for thin hair, even though people might be tempted to try to control their locks with more spray, mousse, heavy gel or wax, he explained.
"It's nice that it looks like it has volume right now. I think that's great." Ms. Borden said.
In Ms. Borden's case, Mr. DeAraujo used an "unconventional approach" to creating her new style. Though most hairstylists wash hair first then cut it while it's wet, Mr. DeAraujo started Ms. Borden's transformation by cutting her hair while it was dry. That way, he said, he could "see the natural fall of the hair, work with cowlicks, better feel the natural state of the hair." After the dry cut, he washed her hair and finished trimming.
Women with thin hair can lose their sense of femininity, Mr. DeAraujo said. One of the most common concerns is having the scalp show the strands. Rather than focus on that concern, "the most important thing is to work with the hair to make it fit the whole individual. You need to invite that person to see themselves differently," Mr. DeArujo said.
For another of Mr. DeAraujo's clients with thin hair, a short hair cut was the best solution because it suited the woman's features. He cut her hair to about one and a half inches from the scalp, bleached it all very blond, left the bangs longer and died the tips dark. For this woman, he said the edgy look that resulted was a great compliment to her face and her personality, even though her scalp did show through.
"Hair is secondary," Mr. DeAraujo said. "The right focus is on the total look. You don't want to do the female equivalent of a comb over."
Though Ms. Borden struggles with hair that has been thin her whole live, other women can experience thinning hair due to different medical conditions, stress or aging.
Medical causes of hair loss in women include thyroid disease, hormonal abnormalities, infections, adrenal gland disease, systemic diseases like Lupus, liver disease and kidney disease.
Female pattern baldness due to aging is called Androgenetic Alopecia. It usually occurs in women over 30 and may intensify with menopause. Unlike male pattern baldness, which results in receding hairlines and bald spots, female pattern baldness usually produces overall thinning.