‘Tis the time of year when we all go out of the house for some fun and adventure in the sun. With the holy week now in our midst, the summer of 2021 has officially begun. While the government-declared ECQ may have delayed people’s vacation plans for the season, the general intention of many is to still catch as much sun as they could the moment lockdowns are lifted. This is especially true for the country’s celebrities who, for now, have also found themselves stuck inside their homes, foregoing whatever figure flaunting plans they might have for the summer.
Being out in the sun, however, has its own disadvantages. Just as the it damages the skin, it can also damage the hair. Saltwater and chlorine take a toll on our tresses. Prolonged sunlight exposure leads to frying, with the ultraviolet rays actually "cooking” the hair shaft. The damage is even more obvious when color-treated hair becomes faded, bleached, and brassy. Even uncolored hair will get a beating from sun-induced stress. Those UV rays can easily dry out hair and rough up the normally smooth cuticle, or outer layer, of the hair shaft.
Alarmed by what this season can do to my hair, as an added load to all the harm it gets from the various hair products it gets subjected to because of my nightly newscasting chores, I decided to seek hair advice and treatment from an expert. A quick trip to the salon provided answers and rejuvenation to my already injured hair strands.
Hair Expert Rico Pabilic explains: “Pag ganitong summer, kadalasan kailangan natin ng treatment, particularly leave-on treatment gaya ng Moroccan oil. Mas mabuti yun kasi nagsi-seal sya dun sa cuticle ng hair para ma-protektahan from direct sunlight at para hindi sya mada-damage.”
For those who’d rather stay in the water, he says: “Mostly din pag-nagsu-swimming sa pool o di kaya naman sa dagat, syempre maglalagay din ng oil para di rin ma-absorb directly yung salt at saka chlorine ng pool.”
Specifically for those in the spotlight and who frequently have their hair styled, Pabilic issues these words of advice: “Iiwas lang tayo dun sa isasabay yung mga kung anu-anong chemicals like yung bleaching chemicals, kasi pag nasasabay yun tapos yung mga curling iron, plantsa at blower ang most nakaka-damage. So ‘pag gagamit ka nun, dapat lagyan mo na muna sya ng proteksyon.”
“Saka dapat din regular yung treatment. Pag lagi kang nag-aayos ng buhok, once a week talaga kailangan yung treatment para naha-hydrate yung hair natin,” he quickly adds.
Pabilic counts personalities from local show business as among his clients, including GMA star Kylie Padilla. On the day I got my repair rescue treatment and cut, he was also attending to the hair makeover of Ginoong Bulacan 2020 winner, Sean.
Pabilic is a Senior Hair Stylist at the Studio S Salon in Trinoma (Level 1, near the North Parking Area).