Article Courtesy beautypress.com

How much do you know about hair brushes and shampoos? Test your beauty IQ.

Question: Are natural bristly brushes better?

Answer: Natural bristles come from the wild boar and are softer and more flexible than nylon bristles and help to distribute the hair’s natural oil throughout the hair. The bristles also help close the hair cuticle while brushing, giving the hair a nice, healthy shine. These types of brushes are gentler on hair and the scalp. Split ends are related to hair damage and are usually eliminated by using a boar bristle brush.

Question: My stylist recommended I purchase a vent brush. What type of brush is this, and how should it be used?

Answer: A vent brush features openings in the back of the brush to allow air from the blow dryer to flow through. Drying and styling time is reduced using a vent brush, and it also creates volume for many hairstyles.

Question: What type of brush will make my hair shine?

Answer: Boar bristle brushes make hair shine because they help pick up and distribute the hair and scalp’s natural oils along the hair shaft as well as pull dirt or dust particles off the hair.

Question: My gray hair turned blue when I used a highlighting shampoo. What went wrong, and what can I use to keep it from looking brassy?

Answer: Gray hair can have many different textures and properties, which react differently to the amount of coloring, found in color-enhancing shampoo. This is more of a problem with shampoos for toning brassiness on blonde hair, than for gray.

Question: Because I am allergic to detergents, what is a quality hypo-allergenic shampoo?

Answer: Look for a shampoo with natural ingredients. If you are allergic to plants or natural extracts, you may have an allergic reaction. There is no professional shampoo that is specifically hypo-allergenic or non-allergenic for all people.