Kim Kardashian’s hair secrets

If you’ve seen Keeping up with the Kardashians or any of the spin-off shows, you’ll know that Kim and her sisters have, quite possibly, the most enviable tresses in showbusiness. Well they’d definitely give Kate Middleton a run for her money. We tracked down the ‘mane man’ in Kim’s life Philip Wolff, from Shades salon in Beverly Hills, and asked him to share the secrets of the hair that makes us green with envy. From the cut to the styling, here’s Philip’s guide to Kim’s hair...

You can follow Philip on Twitter @philipwolffhair or find him on facebook.com/PhilipWolffHair

See Kim's Style File here...

In my opinion, long hair only looks great if it's nice and healthy.  However, it is only natural to get attached to length of your hair, especially when it's past the shoulders, but it doesn't necessarily mean it looks good.  A great hair stylist will tell you his/her professional opinion on:

1.  What lengths will look good on you
2.  How much to cut off in order for it to look it's best health wise

Cutting the right amount of layers, length, and of course texture are the three major key points in a long haircut. Without the correct balance of all three, it simply won't live up to its full potential; this is why the most important thing is to do your research on hairstylists, because once you choose one who works for you, trust their words because it's a team effort to get your hair long.

Make sure you don't go six months to a year without getting a haircut... sometimes a great haircut can hold its shape for several months, but for the most part, I recommend trims or reshaping every eight weeks.  Most of you are probably thinking ‘why cut my hair if I'm trying to grow it?’ well, split ends tend to follow up the hair shaft towards the scalp... the longer you leave them, the higher up they will split and the more length you will have to get cut off. 

A good stylist on a set schedule can have your hair looking its best throughout the year while growing it out flawlessly. This way your end result is going to be healthy, long sexy hair. 

Once your hair is at a length that you're happy with, ask your stylist to add face framing layers that will bring out the best in your face shape. For Kim lately we've been keeping her shortest layers around her lips so that it opens up her face from all the length and shows off her amazing cheek bones and pout.   

Rather than copy Kim’s colour, go for shades that suit your own skin tone and eye colour, your colourist will be able to advise you. Just make sure you keep the colour quite natural and subtle, don't have excessive amounts of chemical treatments such as changing hair colour from one extreme to the next and expect your hair to grow healthy... 'cause more than likely, that won't happen.

Use salon grade hair care, this is a must from shampoos and conditioners, to styling products. For me, hands down, the best products are by Neuma – everyone should have them in their bathroom, it’s even great for guys as well. 

You can buy Neuma products from Amazon.com and get them shipped to the UK.

Stay fully hydrated on the inside, so drink plenty of water and make sure you take multivitamins to fill any gaps that may be lacking in your diet. 

Make sure you regularly stimulate the scalp with brushing and massaging; natural boar bristle brushes and organic scalp oils help with this process. It is important to keep a healthy blood circulation to the scalp/follicles so that it promotes the healthiest hair growth your body is capable of producing.

Lastly, if you style your hair often with hairdryers and/or hot tools (curling irons, straightners curling wands) definitely use a leave-in heat protecting product beforehand. 

If growing your hair to Kim’s lengths is taking too long, for instant gratification go with extensions; these are great fun!  Also, if your hair is fine, it is very common to use them for fullness, not just length.  My recommendation is that, if you are new to extensions and have never had them before try a quality set of clip-ins. Take them to your stylist and have them shaped to suit your haircut and BAM! you have a custom set of extensions that you can put in and take out as you wish; low commitment.

As for a more permanent look, I personally recommend sew-in wefts.  Quality definitely makes a difference, and when combined with an expert haircutter, these are seamless and look absolutely amazing! Sewn in extensions are also less damaging to your own hair than other methods.  There are many new ways of sewing in hair these days that make it so natural looking.  I work with some of the best extension artists in the business, and then I take their newly extended hair and cut it into a full transformation while seamlessly blending it in with the client’s real hair.