Fiona is the writer of the uber cool and successful UK hair blog – http://www.loveyourtresses.com/ where you can find out tips for caring for your Afro hair.

In fact it was where I (Louisa) found out about the fabulous technique of co-washing (see point 1) which WILL revolutionise your hair!

Fiona shares with us today her top 5 tips for having fabulous hair on your BIG day!

Over to you Fiona…..

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With the Royal wedding of Wills and Kate fast approaching, there is no doubt that wedding bells are high on the events list this year. Months are spent planning decoration, venue, guests, but on the big day it boils down to a few major things in the life of a bride. Namely, how the dress looks, the hairstyle, and of course makeup! One mistake with any of these things, and an extra 5 minutes is added to the groom’s waiting time! So for brides or potential brides to be, here are some tips on how to treat your hair pre the big day, in order to ensure that things run so much more smoothly.

Ideally Pre-wedding beauty treatments should start at least 3 months before the wedding, so ladies, time to get prepping.

Ideally Pre-wedding beauty treatments should start at least 3 months before the wedding, so ladies, time to get prepping.

1. Make sure your hair is well conditioned.

If you tend to shampoo your hair very often give co- washing a try instead. Co-washing is a process whereby you wash your hair with conditioner rather than shampoo. This way your hair is being stripped of less nutrients, in fact instead it receives some! Co-washing leaves your hair in better condition. Which is what a conditioner should do, right?! If you find yourself victims of constant product build up on the scalp, mix your shampoo with conditioner 80/20 (conditioner/shampoo).

If you find yourself victims of constant product build up on the scalp, mix your shampoo with conditioner 80/20 (conditioner/shampoo).

2. Squeeze in some pre wedding pamper time

If, of course you’re able to squeeze in some pre-wedding bride pamper time, which of course you should, it’s a great idea to do a hot oil treatment a few days before the big day. This is a huge goal scorer and always leaves hair lustrous, soft, shiny and full of character. Plus it doesn’t have to take a lot of time you can have a hot drink, catch an episode of your favourite soap whilst the magic takes place.

It’s a great idea to do a hot oil treatment a few days before the big day.

All you need is:

• some oil (e.g olive oil, coconut oil, almond oil)
• a shower cap
• your hands (to massage the oils into your scalp)

Apply the oils all over your hair and scalp and leave for an hour under the shower cap. Better yet, if you have a hooded/steam dryer you can read a book whilst sitting under for 30 mins on low heat.

Healthy ends are ideal, especially because every bride has to be camera ready!

3. Have a good trim

There’s nothing better than a good trim. Whether or not you’ll be opting for an up or down do, have natural, relaxed or texlaxed hair, healthy ends are ideal, especially because every bride has to be camera ready. We don’t want to catch any split ends in the wedding album!

If you’re considering a new hair colour for the big day, aim to do this more than a week before the wedding.

4. Ease off the Heat and Colour Hair in advance

As routine has it, many brides have a hairdresser create their winning wedding day look, and most often heat is used in creating that wow appeal. So before your big day try and avoid the use of heating tools except of course for the trial hair do. This will prevent your hair from looking thin and will give your hair a break. If you’re considering a new hair colour for the big day, aim to do this more than a week before the wedding. You do not want any surprises and also once the dye has had a week to settle, the colour will look more natural.

Finally, the best thing to do before your wedding is simply to leave your hair alone!

5. Give your hair a holiday

Finally, the best thing to do before your wedding (except of course the above!) is simply to leave your hair alone. There may be the urge to constantly style your hair and comb or brush it but all you’ll be doing is stressing out those strands. Leave all the hair styling to your hairdresser and focus on being a dark circle and stress wrinkle free beauty.

So that’s it ladies, let the hair care begin!

A big thank you from Fiona for sharing these tips with us today, and don’t forget to bookmark the Love Your Tresses blog for more top tips in Afro haircare!