Cynthia Alvarez, a renowned hairstylist who has worked with A-listers such as Shakira, Alicia Keys, and Becky G, understands the importance of accessible beauty, despite her top-tier clientele.
She is passionate about affordable haircare products free of harmful ingredients and chemicals, considering it a necessity rather than a luxury, especially in a market where prices continue to rise and de-influencing is becoming more prevalent.
Cynthia has recently partnered with a new Unilever haircare brand called yes! honey and has shared her styling tips and product recommendations with HOLA! USA.
Shakira’s hairstylist Cynthia Alvarez shares her summer styling tips and product recommendations
What are some styling tips for achieving a professional look without spending much money?
While using certain shampoo and conditioner lines together as a system is always great, my go-to pro tip is to cocktail your products. Mix and match shampoos and conditioners to maximize the benefits of the different ingredients in each product to meet your personal hair needs.
For instance, if your hair is damaged from heat and prone to frizz, start with something that will repair your strands first, like the natural honey and shea butter found in yes! honey Ultra Repair Conditioner. Then nourish your hair and protect it from the elements – like summertime humidity – with something designed to nourish frizz, like the natural honey and coconut oil in yes! honey Silky Smooth Conditioner.
Keep it simple. If you start with a shampoo and conditioner with ingredients that will give you healthy-looking, beautiful hair, you won’t need to invest in a closet full of styling products to achieve the solon-quality look you want.
Other general styling tips include:
-Rough dry your hair until it’s about 70% dry, then use a round brush to style and finish your blowout. This method will prevent breakage and save you time.
-Let your hair cool 100% to ensure your blowout lasts, or it will become frizzy and limp.
How do you balance affordability and quality when purchasing hair care products?
I believe in healthy haircare at an affordable price and know that expensive does not equal good. No matter the cost of your hair care, start with the ingredient list. Ensure products are sulfate, silicone, and paraben-free, color safe, and include natural ingredients you recognize. Budget-conscious consumers want to buy natural products for themselves and their families, but to be able to do so at an affordable price is a challenge.
More and more affordable products at accessible retailers like Dollar General give consumers who are budget and ingredient-conscious luxury yet affordable haircare options that won’t break the bank. Anything needing to do with repairing and products that are required to leave in should not be compromised – these are the products you want to ensure have high-quality ingredients.
What are some common mistakes people make when trying to style their hair, and how can they be avoided?
I love to create hairstyles for my clients and myself using hot tools, hair dye, and ALL the styling products – especially when it needs to be red carpet-ready and last all day (and night)! One of the most common mistakes you can make is turning to these intricate styles daily or too regularly without giving your stressed strands a break.
You need to rotate in nourishing leave-in masks, hair oil, scalp care, and other treatments to ensure your hair stays strong and can keep up with your fiercest looks, especially if your hair is naturally dry, textured, or frizz-prone. And, of course – don’t forget always to use a good heat protector!
With summer around the corner, if you have color-treated or lightened hair, you want to protect it from the sun by using an SPF. And chlorinated water is not our hair’s friend! Before getting in the pool, wet your hair and apply a hair conditioner to prevent the chlorine from damaging your strands.
Do you recommend any particular hair care products for someone with dry, damaged hair?
I’ve been loving the entire yes! honey product line, mainly the yes! honey Ultra Repair and Silky Smooth shampoos and conditioners. These products have the ingredients I look for when treating dry, damaged hair, including natural honey, shea butter, and coconut oil, and none of the harmful ingredients that make your dry, damaged hair worse in the long run.
The line includes six shampoos and conditioners that are free of parabens and sulfates and are also color-safe. The best thing about the yes! honey brand is that it’s affordable luxury and has natural formulations that have been missing from the accessible beauty market – at just $6 a bottle.
Restoring a client’s hair is a true partnership. I like to share my go-to methods to restore hair’s strength, shine, and health and keep it that way. In the short term, I recommend hair treatments designed to nourish and repair strands so that hair is already feeling better after the first wash. Depending on the client, I may also recommend a trim to eliminate split ends or a bold chop to start fresh.
Then I think about my client’s long-term hair goals, including recommending new products or regular treatments to ensure hair stays healthy no matter how they style it and evaluating their weekly hair routine. More often than not, teaching them better hair habits makes a big difference, like shampooing every other day, avoiding brushing or sleeping on wet hair, or investing in a silk pillowcase.
Finally, a client can also help their hair using multivitamins. Often hair needs nourishment from the inside while we also work on the outside!
Related
yes! honey is a prime example of affordable luxury, with its natural formulations missing from the accessible beauty market. The line includes six shampoos and conditioners free of parabens and sulfates while being color-safe.
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© Agencies/Cynthia Alvarez
© Agencies
