How To Get Rid Of Greasy Hair (Or Disguise It)

Greasy hair is pretty gross. It feels bad and looks bad, and unfortunately, happens to all of us. No one wants to let their hair get too oily, but there is tons of conflicting haircare advice online about how often you should really wash your hair. It leaves me wondering how to get rid of greasy hair or at the very least, disguise it. The good news is, I'm here to add to all that conflicting Internet advice I mentioned above, but hopefully will confuse you less and help make some sense of it instead.

Ricky Pennisi, salon owner and founder of the RI CI haircare line, spoke with me about the most common mistakes he sees his clients making, and some easy ways to get rid of greasy hair. According to Pennisi, there are some simple steps we can all take to prolong the amount of time between hair-washing and greasiness. And when things do get a bit oily, if we're in a pinch, there are also some tricks for hiding it. (Yay!)

His recommendations will not only help you train your scalp to stop overproducing oil, but will also help you stop slathering your head with extra oil. Seems like pretty solid advice to me!

Here are his top five tips for getting rid of greasy hair:

Apply Conditioner To The Right Part of Your Hair

Try: RI CI Drench Conditioner, $23, Amazon

Try: Shea Moisture Curl & Shine, $30, Amazon

Pennisi says that most often, people have greasy roots and dry ends. But without fail, most people apply conditioner to the top of their heads. This makes greasy roots even greasier. You should apply shampoo to the top of your head, but put conditioner only on the ends.

Stay Away From Clarifying Shampoos

After weighing their hair down, day after day, with too much conditioner, Pennisi said many of his clients try to fix things by using clarifying shampoos. This doesn't work, he says. Instead, it further dries out their ends, encouraging even more conditioner use.

Use A Dry Shampoo For Quick Fixes

Try: Ouai Dry Shampoo, $24, theouai.com

Try: Rene Futerer Dry Shampoo, $19, Amazon

Prevention aside, sometimes we need to get rid of greasy hair immediately, and we don't have time to take a shower. Pennisi's advice is to use a dry shampoo, or even baby powder. Tossing some powder onto your roots can help dry it out, he says. But don't use too much.

Steer Clear Of Middle Parts

If you're styling greasy hair, Pennisi suggests avoiding middle parts. Middle parts are more likely to flatten out and show grease, he said. Instead, he recommended trying a slanted side part, going from the arch of the eyebrow to the back of the head. This will help create body, which will hide grease.

Flip Your Hair

Once you have your side part, however, it'll still fall flat and start to look greasy with time. To remedy this, Pennisi recommends regularly flipping your hair from side to side, to make sure it doesn't settle into one place.

Want more style tips? Check out the video below, and be sure to subscribe to Bustle’s YouTube page for more hacks and tricks!

Images: Isla Murray/Bustle