24 Hacks to Make 2016 Your Best Hair Year Ever

Girls with especially thick and/or long hair have been doing this for years — but any style or cut can benefit from this time-saving hack. Whether you’re sleeping in braids, a texturizing product, or even on straightened locks, styling the night before saves you the morning hassle. Plus the next-day look is always better.

One of the best parts about a blowout is that you can make it last a few days after the actual treatment — aka, skip the hassle of washing and styling your own hair. Win, win. One of the best ways to extend the blowout without letting your hair turn greasy is to apply dry shampoo to the roots, around the ears, and at the nape of the neck. Then massage it in, brush it down, or blast it with a blow-dryer. Poof. Your hair is perfect again.

One of the most embarrassing hair problems is undeniably the culprit behind white flakes left behind on collars and scarves: dandruff. For a homeopathic and DIY solution to this common issue, use a combination of lemon juice, olive oil, and water to lift the flakes and moisturize the scalp underneath.

If your roots tend to get greasy after a blowout, it may be your moisturizer that’s doing the harm. By applying moisturizer up to the hairline, some is likely to travel to your roots — instead, leave an inch border between this product and your blown-out hair to ensure that your style lasts longer.

The religion of 2015 was coconut oil, and there’s no surprise that this moisturizing product makes a great DIY hair mask. To get the best benefits, smooth it over your hair before bed and leave in (after wrapping it up to spare your sheets) while you sleep, and then wash out in the morning.

Wavy hair can often be difficult to define and coax fuller curls from, but it’s possible courtesy of the twisting method. By turning strands into twists while still wet — even before blotting dry — it helps curls take shape.

Since frizz is a form of hair static, it makes sense that this laundry product also works on our strands — even if it does sound a bit odd. Grab one sheet, and rub it over your head to solve this common problem on the run.

Yes, you read that right — all you need to achieve salon-worthy mermaid waves are a few pairs of socks. Check out the tutorial from Nicole Sykes to learn this supersimple and convenient trick for waking up with a ready-to-go style.

By mastering the "plopping" or "plunking" technique, which involves applying product to and then wrapping wet locks up in a t-shirt, your hair will do the work — while you sleep. The result is a head of tight, defined curls, free from frizz or tangle.

Shorter cuts may be in style right now, but chopping your hair takes some serious commitment, so we understand why you might be hesitant to make the jump off the bat. Instead, find ways to test out what you might look like with the cut you’re considering — like this this faux lob hack.

For those of us with a somewhat (read: huge) addiction to hot tools, finding the right product to protect from damage is key. The pros suggest looking for a protector made with silicone to ensure that your locks will be smoothed and shielded.

In a rush or want to hang on to a blowout for another day? Bangs can pose the biggest problem, especially in terms of greasiness. To ensure you’re looking fresh (no matter how you feel), pull the rest of your hair back and quickly wash and blow out your bangs.