The key for me was two fold – don’t wash your hair more than once a week and do not blow dry it. If you need to style your hair than let it air dry until just damp and finish it off with the blow dryer on cool. Once my hair was all one length I’d air dry it wearing a hair band, and then flat iron it quickly if I wanted it straight.

Don’t overprocess it either – I used vegetable dyes for years and then henna to colour it (make sure you get a professional opinion before switching to vegetable dyes or henna – it can do weird things over chemical colours).

The washing once a week is really important to keep your hair healthy (believe it or not shampoo can be hard on your hair) – you can either do it slowly by extending the time between shampoos gradually or all at once by not shampooing for a week (rinsing with warm water is fine). Your hair will feel truly disgusting and itchy by the end of it (wear hats and ponytails) but you’ll be amazed at how soft it feels afterwards. Not overwashing will also preserve your colour.

Be careful how you brush it, too – use a wide toothed comb when it’s wet to keep from breaking it, and invest in a good quality paddle brush (Mason and Pearson make the best, but they’re very expensive – around a hundred dollars.) A natural bristle hair brush helps distribute the oils from your scalp throughout your hair as well as pulling dust and dirt out.

Keep up the trimming until your layers are grown out (if you have any), but then you shouldn’t need to cut it that often – I used to cut it once or twice a year.

Hope this helps