With the weather outside heating up, your personal style and hair can be too! Summer is the perfect time to adopt some subtle or even drastic changes to your hairstyle if you are in the mood for a change. Whether you are hitting the beach, a destination vacation or spending lazy days at home this summer, one thing is for sure, staying comfortable and cool is typically what’s on everyone’s mind during this time of year.

It’s time to ditch heavy hairstyles that can leave your neck feeling like there is a scarf or wool sweater wrapped around it, for something more cool and conventional. Summer ‘16, has already been a year full of inspirational trends in not only hairstyles but in fashion, culture and music. From overgrown layers to shaggy bobs, many of this year’s summer hairstyle trends from the past are coming back and making a statement for both men and women.

When it comes to summer hairstyles and styling, one of the most important things that should be kept in mind is how you are protecting your hair from damage during this time of year. There are two main types of damage that your hair can be susceptible to during summer months, and those are environmental and heat styling damage.

Before we take a look at what’s popular in hairstyle trends this year for both men and women, let’s load you with some tools and tips on how to minimize hair damage during these summer months.

Preventing Summer Hair Damage

The best way to create and mane-tain this summer’s trendiest hairstyles is by keeping your hair in the healthiest, most optimal state possible. Keeping hair healthy can easily be done by taking into account some of these daily stressors that could be impacting your hair and shifting your habits to minimize the effects.

Environmental Hair Damage- There are many daily factors in the environment that can play a role in health state of your hair, so it’s essential during the summer months to do as much as you can to help protect your hair from damage. UVA/UVB rays from the sun during the summer can cause hair damage to the outside cover of the hair strand, called the cuticle. The finer the hair is, the less pigmented and adequate it will be at shielding the sun’s rays. It’s important to use a shampoo and conditioner that contains extra moisturizing properties during this time of year to maintain smooth, healthy looking hair. The key to creating and keeping some of the styles that we will be suggesting is by starting with hair that is healthy and manageable. Other factors that can cause stress, dryness and damage to your hair during the summer time are air conditioning and chlorine exposure from pools.

Heat Styling Hair Damage- Styling with tools such as flat irons, blow dryers and curling irons can cause a lot of stress on your hair, especially if it’s fine and thin. During the summer when the humidity is up and temperatures are rising you may be more inclined to use tools when styling to create smoother styles. Of course, the easiest and most instant way to cut back on heat styling damage is by styling looks that don’t require any heat. This is why textured styles that require nothing but the good hair your momma gave you when you were born are always a good look during the summer. If you are absolutely glued to using your tools when you style, it’s imperative that you incorporate some of these tips to help you cut back on damage:

• Use a flat iron with ceramic or titanium plates.
• Keep the heat medium to low, at around 360 degrees or lower.
• Use a heat protectant spray or serum before styling with tools.
• Try infrared options when it comes to styling tools. They help dry hair from the inside out which will minimize damage over time.

Now that you are armed with these hair protecting tips, let’s take a look at some of the most popular hairstyles this summer.

Top 10 Summer Hairstyle Trends for Women

From shorter haircuts as seen on celebs from Khloe Kardashian to Jennifer Lawrence, to longer blunt layers as spotted on Emma Roberts, this summer’s most popular women’s hairstyles are all about staying chic and low maintenance.

1. Side Twists with Braids

2. High Ponytail

3. French and Dutch braids

4. Bangs

5. Half-way Bun

6. Simple Blunt Bob

7. Half-up/Half-down with Textured

Top Summer Hairstyle Trends for Men

Don’t worry fellas, we haven’t forgotten about you. This summer’s trends in men’s hairstyles are all about self-expression and class. As barbering and classic styling continue to grow in popularity, we are beginning to see a revolutionized twist to some of these most popular looks.

8. Taper Fade

9. Man Braids

10. Pompadour Comb-0ver

Summer Hair Styling Tips for Fine and Thin Hair

Once you’ve chosen the summer hairstyle trend that will work best for you— then it’s time to start styling! If your hair is fine and thin don’t be discouraged or concerned that you may not be able to recreate these looks on yourself.

For women, when styling fine hair into braids, twist or a half-up look that will reveal the scalp, try using a spray like Toppik’s Colored Hair Thickening Spray to help lightly conceal the visible scalp and create a fuller appearance. This Colored Thickening Spray comes in 5 colors that fill in and blend practically undetectable with your hair to quickly enhance your look.

When styling men’s hairstyles, if you are experiencing hair loss, we suggest using Toppik Hair Building Fibers in areas where hair is sparse or balding. When sprayed with the Spray Applicator or sprinkled into the hair, Hair Building Fibers will quickly add fullness to any style for a more youthful look.

We hope this blog inspired you to try a new, fresh trendy hairstyle this summer! We encourage you to put some of our styling tips and techniques to the test when incorporating these new summer hairstyles into your look.

What are some of your favorite go-to hairstyles for summer?