What Is Hair Slugging?

What Is Hair Slugging?

If you’re not on TikTok this might be the first time you’ve heard the term ‘hair slugging’. It’s the hair equivalent of skin slugging, which, in case you haven’t come across that either, is all about locking in the hydration with an occlusive product, as the last step to your skincare. The name refers to the ‘slug-like’ sheen your skin, or hair, gets after applying the slugging product. Oil is most commonly used for hair slugging and helps to hydrate and nourish your locks.

What Are The Benefits Of Hair Slugging

Leaving the oil on your hair for a few hours, or ideally overnight, helps to hydrate and nourish dry, damaged locks and smooth out frizz. Hair slugging is essentially a new name to hair oiling, which is an Ayurvedic technique that has been around for years and includes massaging the oil into your scalp. This is thought to help not only hydrate a dry scalp but also stimulate hair growth.

How Do You ‘Slug Your Hair’?

You can slug your hair for a couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon as part of your weekly self-care routine or you can wrap your hair in a towel or sock and sleep with the oil on overnight. I chose the latter (I’ve included a picture of my hair before hair slugging above).

I applied a lot of oil to the ends and mid-lengths of my hair before wrapping my ponytail in a sock and secured it with a hair-tie. This ensured I didn’t lose any moisture or transfer oil onto my pillowcase and bedsheets. In the morning, I removed the sock and rinsed my hair.

My Verdict On Hair Slugging

As you can see in the photo above, hair slugging did eliminate frizz and my hair felt very soft and refreshed. Would I do it again though? Maybe. I think I still prefer traditional masks as they help with my curl pattern and make my hair curlier, but this is good for combating extra frizz.

The results weren’t spectacular, it’s what you would expect from drenching your hair in oil. But I would recommend people try it out if their hair is feeling dry. I don’t see any negatives with the trend and massaging the oil into your hair does feel quite therapeutic.

What Are The Best Products For Hair Slugging?

I used Bread Beauty Supply Huile pour cheveux : Everyday Gloss, 13,00 £ and loved it. It made my hair smell amazing, and the texture was lighter than I expected and leave my locks feeling heavy or weighed down. There are plenty of other hair oils you can try, including Ouai Huile pour cheveux, 24,00 £ and Oribe Huile capillaire nourrissante Gold Lust, 35,00 £.

If you’re keen to take the hair slugging all the way up to your scalp, I recommend checking out JVN Hair Huile complète de prélavage pour le cuir chevelu, 25,00 £. The pipette makes it easy to apply the right amount directly into your roots and TikTok is going wild for the formula.