How to Get Volume After a Keratin Treatment – Follow These Steps
Written by Camelia Smith
Updated on
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Keratin treatments are excellent at straightening and smoothing hair, but they can also result in lack of volume and pin-straight flat hair.
If you’ve recently had a keratin treatment and are looking for ways to add volume to your hair, there are a few tips and tricks you can try. From using the right styling products to incorporating certain hairstyles into your routine, there are many ways to achieve volume after a keratin treatment.
This guide will help you understand how to get volume after a keratin treatment with tips and tricks you can try at home.
Here are the steps to follow:
1. Get a Layered Haircut (Best for Fine Hair)
The main reason why fine hair may look lifeless is its length (besides genetics). Long hair is the arch enemy of volume, and that’s that!
The longer the hair, the heavier it is, making it hard for the roots to lift and get a body of volume. Have you ever wondered what your fine hair will look like with a particular haircut? If yes, your post-keratin treatment hair will love the change!
One of the best, tried-and-tested ways to add volume to thin and lifeless hair is to cut it in layers. Consult with your hairstylist and explain you’ve had a keratin treatment recently.
They may suggest a layered haircut, too. This haircut easily adds volume to fine hair texture, making the hair easy to manage and style.
You might enjoy the shaggy, layered hairstyle that’ll boost the volume like nothing else if you’re bold enough. For those enjoying an evergreen hairstyle, cutting your mane as a classic layered bob can free your fine hair strands from the weight of its length and bounce back with more volume.
Whichever way you choose, remember that the easiest way to add body to your post-keratin treatment hair is to snap some of it off.
2. Use a Dry Shampoo
Flat hair doesn’t have to stay flat after a keratin treatment. In fact, there’s plenty you can do on your own to bounce some of its volume back. If you aren’t ready to snip your locks off, you can try a different approach to add volume to fine hair.
Incorporate dry shampoo or volumizing products into your haircare routine.
Besides absorbing dirt and impurities, dry shampoo also creates “grip” on the hair, which helps to add lift from the roots and hold the hair in place. When choosing a dry shampoo for keratin-treated hair, you must consider other factors, such as your hair color and the ingredients in the product (like sulfates), to avoid surprises.
Products to try:
Klorane
Klorane’s dry shampoo gently lifts buildup from the hair shaft without stripping natural oils. It is an excellent sulfate-free dry shampoo made with botanical extracts and doesn’t contain dangerous aerosols as most do.
Eva NYC
The EVA NYC Invisible dry shampoo is another product that boosts volume for fine hair. It’s lightweight, gentle, and safe for color-treated hair too.
Pantene Cheat Day
The Pantene Waterless dry shampoo is a great option for people with long hair looking to add volume without cutting off their fine hair. This sulfate-free shampoo will help your thin hair gain body and feel like totally new hair!
3. Embrace Volumizing Hair Products
Volumizing sulfate-free shampoos can help your hair peel off the scalp and gain volume. However, please don’t overdo it on the washing. Frequent shampooing can wash out the treatment leaving you with more frizz than volume.
There are many types of volumizing products, such as pre-shampoo treatments, leave-in conditioners, sprays, and mousses. When picking one, look for lightweight and non-greasy formulas that won’t make your keratin-treated hair feel greasy and weigh it down.
When applying these products, focus on the root area of your hair to give it extra lift. You can also use them throughout the length of your tresses if you’re looking for an all-over body boost.
Products to try:
Keratherapy Volume Shampoo
Keratherapy’s Volume Shampoo restores your hair’s volume without using sulfates or sodium chloride. It’s like a gentle clarifying shampoo that deep cleanses the hair to free it from residues and buildup that may add weight.
It adds bounce, body, and superb fullness to limp, straight, or overprocessed hair. This coconut-scented shampoo will boost your hair’s volume after a keratin treatment without weighing it down.
Philip Kingsley Elasticizer
The Philip Kingsley Elasticizer is an excellent pre-shampoo that adds flexibility to the hair fibers, making your hair bouncier and more voluminous. Use it on wet hair to restore the natural shine and bounce.
Fave4 Root Lift Spray
The Fave4 Root Lift spray is suitable for people with dry hair for its moisture and volume-boosting properties. It also works well with hair extensions and curly hair too.
Pureology Instant Levitation Mist
The Pureology Instant Levitation mist is another fantastic volume-boosting product. Designed to keep hair lightweight and create volume, this hair mist is one of the most sought-after styling products. If you have fine hair, give this a shot. You won’t be disappointed.
4. Master Your Blow Drying Technique
Here’s another fun idea to boost volume in your hair after keratin. Besides styling products, you can easily create volume with a blow dryer.
Most of us usually keep the blow dry at the top of our heads and close to the scalp. Plus, the usual way of drying hair can expose your roots and scalp to extreme direct heat, causing damage to your follicles and potentially making your hair fall out.
Blow-drying your hair with your head upside down can make a huge difference. You’ll be adding volume to it without even noticing. By doing so, you’ll also be keeping your scalp away from heat and your hair fibers from drying out faster.
Here’s the step-by-step way to do it:
- Start with towel-dried damp hair.
- Work a volumizing mousse into your roots and through your hair.
- Blow-dry your hair upside down, starting at the roots.
- Work your way down to the ends.
- Use a round brush to lift the hair at the roots and create volume.
- Once your hair is mostly dry, turn your head back to its normal position.
- Use the blow dryer to dry the remaining damp areas.
- Once your hair is fully dry, use a volumizing spray to hold the volume.
- Consider using a nozzle to focus the airflow and give more volume.
- Use the cool shot button on your dryer to set the volume and style.
- Practice and Experiment with different techniques.
Remember, the key to creating volume with a blow dryer is to focus on lifting the roots and using a round brush to create tension and lift. With time and practice, you’ll find the best technique that works for you.
If you prefer to air dry instead of using heat, you can still use a mousse to add body and volume to your hair. Apply the mousse to damp hair and lightly twist your locks into curls or waves, allowing them to dry naturally. Once dry, use a volumizing spray for the extra hold.
5. Switch Up Your Hairstyles
For starters, you can just change the way you part your hair. You’ll notice your roots lift up and create a new hairdo. The hair fibers tend to become rather flat and lifeless by wearing the same part for a long time.
Besides parting your hair differently, you can also try the following hairstyles that work on both thick and fine hair.
Curl it! A curly or wavy style adds volume instantaneously.
6. Use Hair Color for an Illusion of Volume
Here’s a rather creative way to add body to your hair.
Add color to create an illusion of fullness and big volume.
Explain to your hairstylist that you want to color your keratin-treated hair to look as if it had more volume. You won’t have to color all of your hair – a few highlights will do just fine.
Highlight some of your strands in a double tone and see your hair gain texture and volume effortlessly. For instance, dye some of your hair in honey or caramel tone if you’re blonde.
On the other hand, brunettes can dye their highlights in a light chocolate hue to texturize hair and create the illusion of volume. The more contrast in your hair, the greater the visual effect of volume will be.
Remember to use a hair dye product that doesn’t have sulfates and ammonia.
Why Does Hair Go Flat After a Keratin Treatment?
After any keratin treatment, the hair’s balance between moisture and protein is disrupted. Due to the high protein concentration in the treatment, the hair texture becomes coarse and brittle at the beginning before settling into straight hair after a few washes.
Hair feels and looks flat after a keratin treatment because the hair strands are smoothed down, thus delivering a more straightening, smoothing effect.
Do You Lose Volume After a Keratin Treatment?
Yes. Losing volume after a keratin treatment is possible because it is meant to smoothen or straighten the hair. It also depends on the type of treatment.
For example, a keratin straightening treatment will make the hair flat because the hair is pressed with a flat iron at high heat to bond keratin into the hair. This process reduces volume.
If you want to maintain volume, opt for a less intense keratin treatment, such as a smoothing treatment rather than a straightening one. A keratin smoothing treatment will help enhance the hair’s texture without altering the bonds that define its natural shape. Make sure to talk with your hairstylist about the type of treatment most suitable for your desired result.
If your treatment has left you with less volume than expected, read the section below to learn how you can get your volume back.
Key Takeaway
Try different hairstyles, part your hair differently, and use volumizing products like dry shampoos and root mists. You’ll be able to see and feel your straightened hair regain its bounciness and gloss in no time.
About the Author
Camelia SmithCamelia Smith can color hair, perform keratin treatments, bleach hair, and even cut curly hair. She is our go-to person whenever we have hair treatments and styling questions.
She's also currently training as a freelance makeup artist and is passionate about helping others feel beautiful in their skin. When she's not writing or doing hair, she's usually spending time watching British period dramas.