15 Hacks To Get Soft & Silky Hair Easily At Home

Achieving soft, silky, and healthy hair is all about moisture levels. If your hair isn't moisturized enough, it will be frizzy, coarse, and unhealthy looking. Being gentle and kind to your hair is the next step to getting your hair in beautiful shape. Below are 15 hacks for getting the soft hair you've always dreamed of, all in the comfort of your own home.

A go-to for many people when searching for products to make their hair soft and silky is leave-in conditioner. They're great for quick use in the shower and can be found easily at stores. There are all kinds of various options on the market: for hair seeking only moisture, curly hair, African American and kinky hair, and even men have their own leave-in conditioners! It's important to check the ingredients list to make sure you're avoiding any chemicals that can dry out your hair. Isopropyl alcohol, glycol, any sulfates, and lots of fragrance are ingredients that contribute to dryness and stripping the natural oils of your hair, making your hair the exact opposite of soft. Often times, leave-in conditioners don't do all the hard work for you. Your hair may need more moisture and care than you think. If leave-in conditioners haven't been working for you, check out some of the more intensely moisturizing options below!

Styling oils have gotten popular in more recent years, and with good reason! These oils are usually blends of natural oils and chemicals often found in conditioners. If you're in the market for something to help you out naturally while also having the added benefits of standard products, styling oils might be for you. Most of these hair oils are added to the hair before styling. Only a small amount is needed, spread evenly throughout the hair. You can then continue to blow dry or air dry your hair as you normally would. These oils can also be applied to hair before straightening or curling it, resulting in a soft, silky style. Another great use for styling oils is to only apply it to the ends of your hair. Having moisturized ends will make your hair appear far smoother than it used to! Styling oils are a great option for men as well. Instead of using gel or pomade to make your hair look amazing, try a small amount of styling oil in your hair.

If you've tried a crazy amount of products on the market without any luck, try a homemade hair mask! These are easy to make and have fantastic results. The easiest thing you can do to make your hair soft is apply coconut oil to your hair overnight. Coconut oil is high in fatty acids, so it's perfect to apply to your hair and scalp! It will hydrate your hair naturally. Melt the coconut oil in your hands and apply all over your hair and scalp. You want your hair to be completely coated in the oil, focusing on the ends of your hair. Wrap your hair (or lay a towel over your pillow) and leave the oil in overnight. In the morning, wash your hair to remove the oil. When your hair is dry, you will see and feel how soft it is! The same thing can be done with avocado and olive oils. If you don't want to leave the oil in your hair overnight, you can always leave it on the ends of your hair before you take a shower. The oil will prevent shampoo from stripping your hair. This technique is less intensive than the overnight option, but your hair will still be beautifully soft and shiny.

Apple cider vinegar may seem like the last thing you want to pour over your hair to make it soft, but it really works miracles! Apple cider vinegar is a natural conditioner due to its acidity. Simply mix 2 tablespoons into a cup of water and slowly pour it over your head and hair, making sure each strand is bathed in the mixture. It can be hard to get passed the smell, but once you do, you are in for the softest hair of your life! Preventing breakage, conditioning and moisturizing, strengthening the hair shaft, and reducing frizz are some of the benefits of using apple cider vinegar on your hair.

If your pillowcases are made out of cotton, it may be contributing to your hair not being as soft and silky as you want it to be. Switching your pillowcases to either satin or silk lowers the amount of friction on your hair. The less friction your hair experiences, the more soft and smooth it will be! This is especially true for those with curly or kinky hair, as the hair is more prone to frizz and more easily damaged.

African American hair, and curly hair in general, can be hard to keep looking moisturized and vibrant. Instead of just sleeping on a satin or silk pillowcase, you may find it more beneficial to actually wrap your hair in a scarf while you sleep. This will further reduce any friction and keep your hair as still as possible. Curls won't get stretched or pulled in crazy directions, and you won't wake up with a lion's mane! Keeping your hair under wraps is all it takes to keep it soft and polished. African American hair sure can be managed well!

Cotton t-shirts are thinner than towels and also much softer. Try giving a t-shirt a shot next time you want to dry your hair. This technique works similarly to the wrap: it will keep your hair from moving around and getting frizzy while it dries. T-shirts are much more light than towels. Wet hair is a lot weaker than dry hair. When you wrap your hair up in a towel, it puts unnecessary strain on your hair and roots. A light weight t-shirt can dry your hair equally as well, without risking any damage. Remember, African American hair and curly hair are more easily damaged, so this is especially important to those with this type of hair.

What should you do when your hair looks decent, but is just feeling slightly dry? Try making a refreshing spray with ingredients you have at home. All you need is a few drops of conditioner and water in a spray bottle! Shake the bottle to mix the two together, and spray on the ends of your hair. You want your hair to feel soft and silky, but you don't want it to look too oily and unclean. Spraying the refreshing spray on your ends only will provide extra moisture to only those places where you need it, and also save time!

Protecting your hair is just as important as moisturizing it. If you regularly blow dry, straighten, or curl your hair, you need to make sure you are using a good heat-protectant spray. The exposure to heat dries out your strands and leads to frizz and brittleness. To keep your hair soft and healthy, it is absolutely vital to protect your hair from heat damage!

Instead of needing heat-protectant spray, you could simply let your hair exist in its natural state! This may seem easier for men with short hair to do, but anyone with any length of hair can have fantastic hair this way! It may seem hard to do, but there are also ways of styling your hair that don't involve heat, so you can retain that soft look and feel you worked so hard for. When your hair is wet, you could braid, twist, or tie it to create texture. If you really want the texture to have staying power, wash your hair at night, braid or style it as you please, let your hair dry overnight, and then let it loose in the morning. Your hair will look like you just finished styling it, but it will be shiny, silky, and soft.

Moisture is essential to soft and silky hair. When you wash your hair, you not only remove dirt and excess oil, but you're removing some of the oil that your hair and scalp need to be healthy. The easiest way to solve this problem is to wash your hair only when you absolutely need to! Your hair should be washed after you've been sweating, every other day, or even only twice a week. Your washing schedule depends on your lifestyle and hair type. The key is to wash as little as possible while still keeping your hair clean.

Co-washing is a term that is used to describe a technique in which you wash your hair with conditioner. The conditioner can be the only product used, or you can follow up the co-wash with a shampoo. The idea behind co-washing is that the conditioner creates a barrier over the hair shaft to prevent the shampoo from overly stripping the oils. If co-washing doesn't work for you, you may find a sulfate-free shampoo a better option. Men with short hair, or anyone with short hair, may find co-washing a great alternative. The hair is short and easily cleaned without needing harsh shampoos to keep hair shiny and healthy.

Air drying your hair is the most simple way to avoid damage. Gently comb your hair after your shower and let your hair do its thing! It will be incredibly soft just from doing nothing.

Healthy hair is soft, bouncy, and silky. Healthy hair also starts from inside of our bodies. An easy way to make sure we are providing our body with what it needs to keep up our hair health is to eat foods that are rich in omega-3 and healthy fats. This includes things like avocados, fish, and nuts.

We all know stress is one of the main contributors to health problems. Yes, this even applies to hair! If you've been doing everything to try to save your hair naturally with no luck, your problem may be stress. Of course, it could be something else, but reducing your stress will only help improve your overall health, and your scalp and hair health.

The key to soft, silky hair is to keep your moisture levels up and reduce damage to the hair. If you can dedicate some time each week to really make sure your hair is in good shape, you will have healthy, soft hair in no time!