Beat the heat! Expert tips for protecting your hair in the sun

We’ve teamed up with our hair experts here at Lush to cut through the noise and give you our best and most effective sun protection routine for your hair, ensuring those tresses of yours stay hydrated and happy wherever you’re off to.

Preparing for the sun

Check your hair into its own holiday from the heat! Holidays are the perfect opportunity to cut back on hot styling tools and opt for the au naturel look.

Step 1. Looking Fresh

Sunny holidays deserve a fresh trim. Get yourself booked in with your favourite stylist and get rid of unhealthy ends.

Step 2. LOC in Moisture

Washing your hair with one of our co-washes locks in maximum moisture, setting yourself up for perfectly nourished hair. Our Afro hair specialist, Sarah Sango, recommends these for the LOC method —“I love using the LOC method products in the summer, the way the heat warms up the ingredients whilst in your hair and sets your curls in perfect timing giving you beautiful defined results.” Check out our range for a variety of hydrating scents!

Step 3. We say it and spray it

Finally, reach for Sea Spray hair mist to achieve that well-loved beach wave before you head out. 

Keeping your hair feeling fresh during the day

The best sun protection for your hair? A hat, of course! Protecting your head with a wide-brimmed hat offers the best protection from UV and means you don't have to rinse a load of sunscreen out of your hair later. While we disagree with the zero-sun trend that overwhelms the beauty industry (read more on why we support sensible sunscreen use here) we still advocate for taking care of our locks before, during and after a stint in the sun. 

While we always recommend shade, sunnies and a hat or knot wrap throughout the day, there’s more we can do to keep our hair hydrated whilst protecting it from those damaging UV rays. While we don’t advise slathering the hair in heavy, greasy SPF 50, we do support beating that dry, brittle feeling on the go. 

Daisy Evans, Lush’s hair category lead, recommends bestselling Super Milk conditioning hair primer in the heat. “A triple whammy of conditioning milks, almond, coconut and oat, delivers essential hydration for hair that has dried up in the heat. Rehydrate (and smell great) on the go by spritzing on your ends, curls, coils, and even your scalp when you're feeling in need of moisture that won’t weigh your hair down. Plus, it contains ethyl macadamiate, which offers some heat protection!”

Sarah Sango, our Afro hair specialist, adores Revive hair moisturiser. “Revive is an effective hair moisturiser that's perfect for curly and coily hair textures in the hot weather. It strengthens and conditions hair with nourishing avocado and olive oil. Top up your hair daily with a small amount on the go.”

Looking after your hair once the sun has gone down

Feeling like you’ve frazzled your strands and scalp under the sun? Just like a soothing aloe gel can soothe sunburnt skin, a deep-conditioning scalp and hair treatment can bring your hair back to health in no time.

Our pro Daisy recommends Roots scalp treatment and H’suan Wen Hua pre-treatment for the hair. “Before heading to the balcony for your pack of Lays crisps, slather cooling Roots pre-treatment all over the scalp, and H’suan Wen Hua through your mid-lengths and ends. While you cool down after a day of sun, fresh mint, peppermint and spearmint soothe and invigorate the scalp, while rich moisturising fresh avocado, fresh bananas and protein-rich aquafaba work to deeply repair and restore the health of your hair. Afterwards, head for an everything-shower and you’ll be glowing"

For Afro hair, Sarah Sango advises Renee’s Shea Souffle scalp oil. While we always recommend a hat or Knot Wrap, “if your scalp has been exposed to the sun when in braids/cornrows, enrich with Renee’s Shea Souffle scalp oil with avocado, almond and coconut oils to boost hydration.”

For post-sun conditioning, why not try our Power conditioner. Sarah recommends Power as it’s “great to use to repair and plump the hair after being in the sun and chlorine. Its protein-rich ingredients: sweet potatoes and hydrolyzed wheat protein, will strengthen the hair while maple syrup will plump, restoring and volumising your curls. This can be left on for 20 minutes under a shower cap as a treatment for that extra boost of moisture.”

For us, it’s all about the preparation, hat protection, and rehydration for luscious happy hair.