From her breakthrough role in Desperado to her critically-acclaimed performance in Frida, Salma Hayek has long been a tour de force in the cinematic world. Yet, beyond her prodigious acting talents, Salma’s ageless beauty and cascading curls have consistently captured the imagination of fans and beauty aficionados alike.
Many have wondered: How does she maintain such lustrous locks? Is it the gift of genetics, or are there secrets we can all embrace? Both Salma herself and the professionals she trusts have occasionally lifted the veil on her hair care and styling regimen. Here, we delve deep into the combination of natural care, professional techniques, and the philosophy that underpins Salma Hayek’s iconic hair.
Salma Hayek’s hair routine
Embracing the natural
Hayek has naturally curly hair and believes in letting it shine.
“My hair is curly and wild when I’m not working,” she admitted to Allure.
Often, she finds her hair looks its best on the second or third day after styling, as it tends to be less frizzy. To refresh her locks, she uses a texturiser that doubles as a dry shampoo.
As for her hair colour, Salma also embraces this natural philosophy. Making the decision to let her greys shine through, avoiding dyes is partly about authenticity and partly due to her practical nature.
As she mentions, “One of the reasons I don’t dye my hair is because I don’t have the patience to sit through it.”
Salma’s approach to her hair reflects her broader view on ageing: “I don’t want to spend what’s left of my youth pretending I’m younger and then not enjoying life,” she told the outlet.
The actress shared these carefree sentiments in a recent Instagram post of her using her sunnies to reframe how her hair fell, sharing, “Here’s a tip to cover your white hair without dyeing it… Don’t wear your glasses on your hair. Bring on the wisdom.”
Low-key maintenance
Keeping true to her unfussy hair approach, Salma’s approach to haircuts mirrors her relaxed approach to life.
She previously told Bravo that her haircuts often occur “while working or during publicity tours”, usually when a hairdresser expresses a keen interest in cutting her beautiful locks.
Red carpet routine
Speaking of hair stylists, for red-carpet events and other high-profile appearances, Salma’s stylist Jennifer Yepez shared the secret to the hair curling technique she uses for red carpet appearances with Prevention.
Once the actress’s hair is blow-dried sleek, Jennifer likes to work in sections, starting from the nape of the neck using a wider-barrelled curling iron. She takes 1-inch sections of hair, wrapping them around the curling iron from the root, leaving the ends out.
The true magic lies, however, in the alternating wrapping directions: “The key is to wrap one section going downwards and the following section upwards. When framing the face, wave one section downwards and then wave the next away from the face,” the stylist shared.
After curling, a large-tooth comb is used to give the curls a looser appearance.
Salma’s favourite hair products
While it’s clear that genetics play a large role in maintaining Salma’s tresses, she is also a known fan of Aveda’s products.
As for her go-to, unsurprisingly she likes to switch things up.
“I hear it’s important to keep changing your hair products,” she told Bravo.
Main image credit: @salmahayek
What do you think of Salma’s carefree approach to her hair?
I’m going to have totry that technique
I see it as a sign of confidence, I have plenty of greys but I still colour my hair.
Me too. I can’t go totally grey yet.
I think that little bits of grey are really pretty. Just wonder how it will be when the whole head is grey?
It’s an interesting slow make-over really! 🙂
yes I like her approach but I am not that brave.
Me too! I love the grey streaked look!
She suits the grey mix as her skin tone is complementary.
I’m not as brave as Salma – I’ll be dyeing my hair for a while, yet. When my hair turns more white than brunette, I’ll probably bleach it all platinum.
Salma and I are hair twins, too bad I don’t have her face.
Wearing your hair in a bun or pony tail also shows the greys. Funny though how some younger ones like to dye their hair grey.
Good for her!
She’s such a natural beauty! Love her philosophy on aging!
Elegant and beautiful. Not too many greys either
Aveda is great. She’s doing well.
How cool of Salma! She has so few greys for someone aged 57!
My greys blend into my highlights because I’m not ready to go grey yet.
I like to colour my hair too
Salt and pepper or dark grey is not so ageing but light grey or silver tends to be more ageing especially on women (IMO)
Her hair looks great au naturale
Should I stop pulling out my white hairs?
I colour my hair only occasionally.
That’s a good tip
Yes, I’m getting tired of the time needed for dyeing. But it feels like a big step to stop.
She looks great no matter what hair colour she has.
Completely agree with this, plus adding that many chemicals to your scalp surely can’t be healthy?