Sun, surf, steamy days and sultry nights -- all the things you love about summer also make it the toughest season for managing curly hair. But instead of hiding your ringlets under a scarf, follow these tips from the pros and learn how to care for your hair ’round the clock.

1. Ready, set, wet. Sticky summer days may send you to the shower, but washing your hair every day can lather away the nutrients that help keep it manageable, says George Gonzalez, owner of George: The Salon in Chicago, and a hair stylist at the spa at Harpo Studios. Instead, a few times a week, just wet your hair in the shower without shampooing. Apply a conditioner, rinse out and follow with a leave-in conditioner.

2. Wash and protect. Curly hair’s twisty structure impedes the flow of natural oils, leaving your hair prone to feeling rough and dry, says Dr. Jeni Thomas, senior scientist for Pantene. “If you have curly hair, avoid clarifying shampoo,” says Thomas. “A clarifying shampoo offers zero protection from damage, especially when hair is in its most vulnerable state -- wet.” Opt for a moisturizing shampoo that is specially formulated for curly hair and you’ll whisk away summer’s stubborn buildup and styling residue while defending your locks against damage and frizz.

3. Quench thirsty curls. “Curly hair has more protein and less moisture than straight hair, so it seeks to balance itself by absorbing any available moisture,” says Craig Carter, an ethnic-hair expert with the Carlos Lobo Salon in New York City. If your hair is parched, it will pull moisture from the humid air, leading hair shafts to become puffy and frizzy. A weekly deep-conditioning mask will help curly hair stay well-hydrated and will create a humidity barrier.

4. Put down the hot styling tools. Make that half-hour walk or drive to work your drying time and embrace your hair’s natural texture. “In a perfect world, I would love to wet everyone’s hair, put on conditioner and let it air-dry,” says celebrity hairstylist Daven Mayeda. She advocates styling curly hair without direct heat whenever possible -- and that’s especially true in summer, when your hair is already getting a light frying from sun exposure.

5. Use portion control. Applying products to curly hair should be more like buttering toast slices than tossing a salad. “If you want a uniform curl pattern, you need a uniform application of styling product,” says Gonzalez. Try this: Emulsify a small amount of product by rubbing it between your hands, and then apply -- starting at the ends and coating the entire strand -- up to the scalp.

6. Prepare to defeat beach head. Exposing the porous cuticle of curly hair to wind, salt and moisture at the beach will lead to frizz in a flash, says Gonzalez. “The trick to avoiding this is to coat the cuticle with thick leave-in conditioners or with styling gels,” he says.

7. Soak, coat, dunk. If you swim in the ocean or in chlorinated pools, rinse your curls before and after you get out of the water, then apply leave-in conditioner. “Spray-on conditioner is great for wavy hair or hair that’s fine and curly,” says Gonzalez, “but if your hair is coarse or frizz-prone, a cream or thicker leave-in conditioner is best.”

8. Sleep silky. A satin pillowcase helps keep curls from tangling and won’t soak up natural oils as much as cotton, says Ebony Mikila, a hairstylist at Paint Shop Beverly Hills salon. Avoiding friction is important, adds Thomas, because the complex web of curly hair’s rough fibers can rub against each other, causing damage.

With all that outdoor play under the midday sun, tennis takes a toll not only on elbows and knees, but also on skin and hair. Today’s younger players in the Women’s Tennis Association seem to be learning from the creased faces and fried hair of their older teammates. At this spring’s BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., where the dry desert air can feel like a sauna, we saw tennis bags bulging with sunblock and hair conditioner. So we asked the players to share a few beauty and makeup tips.

The Right Sunscreen Formula for Sports
Currently ranked No. 1 in the world, 20-year-old Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark has a peaches-and-cream complexion that she intends to keep. “I use a lot of sunscreen because I don’t want to get wrinkles,” she says, adding that she reapplies it to her “shoulders, arms, everything.” The only problem with being so diligent is that it can make her hands slippery. So out comes a bottle of alcohol-based hand sanitizer to dry her palms.

Says dermatologist Jessica Wu, author of Feed Your Face: Younger, Smoother Skin and a Beautiful Body in 28 Delicious Days: “Playing sports outdoors means you’ll most likely be sweating, so look for waterproof formulas that are less likely to melt off in the heat. Swimmers and heavy perspirers might like the new formulas designed to be sprayed onto wet skin. And please remember an SPF lip balm, since that skin is so thin it’s vulnerable to sun damage and skin cancer.”

Scorch-proof Your Hair
Known for her long glossy locks, 26-year-old Jelena Jankovic of Serbia uses a conditioning hair mask twice a week. “I leave it on for 15 minutes so that the moisture sinks in,” she says. “And when I play, I’ll spray a UV protectant on my hair.” Although she pulls her deep-chestnut hair into a high, tight ponytail on the court, we saw no signs of damaged hair or split ends. One possible reason is that darker pigments confer a protective benefit on hair. “Darker shades absorb UV light, unlike lighter shades, which let the hair’s proteins take the full insult,” says Jeni Thomas, principal scientist for Pantene. “In short, darker hair helps preserve hair’s natural strength.”

The surest way to shield hair from the sun’s rays -- whether you’re a brunette, blonde or redhead -- isn’t an option for the WTA players during competition: wearing a wide-brimmed hat. “In addition to regular conditioner and treatment usage, hats offer the best UV protection,” says Thomas.

Sun-smart Foods
No. 5-ranked Victoria Azarenka knows whom to thank for her long, blond locks. “I got good hair from my mom and grandmother, and I’m trying to take care of it,” says the 21-year-old from Belarus. Her healthy hair care regimen includes leave-in conditioner and heat-protectant spray.

Azarenka recently made a few headlines when The Tennis Channel peeked into her tennis bag and saw -- junk food! Fitness-obsessed fans were abuzz. But it brings up an important point: Eating healthy snacks has beauty benefits.

“If you load up on antioxidant-rich foods, particularly fruits and veggies, you’ll be giving your body the weapons it needs to fight the signs of aging and protect itself from UV rays,” says Wu. After all, she explains, the primary function of antioxidants in plants is to keep them from getting sunburned in the field.

While some of Wu’s favorite sources of antioxidants aren’t exactly tote-able to a workout (such as cooked tomatoes), those that are include green tea, apples, citrus fruits, berries and cherries.

Adds Wu: “We’ve all had times when we’ve forgotten to apply or reapply SPF, or we miss a spot, so eating the right foods can give you some backup protection. Just remember: It’s not a substitute for sunscreen.”

Photo: Getty Images

In the hair care battle of women versus their curly locks, monotony often comes out the winner. Curly hair, in all its varieties of texture and curl patterns, can be maddeningly difficult to manage. Small wonder that once curly-haired women find a cut and style that works for them -- more or less -- they settle into wearing that day after day.

“Women with curly hair struggle a lot,” says Craig Carter, an ethnic-hair expert with the Carlos Lobo Salon in New York City. Dealing with curling hair’s twisty ringlets, tight coils or something in between may require additional deep conditioning and preparation with styling aids -- such as curl-defining or enhancing mousses and gels -- than other types of hair, he says. But with a regular at-home conditioning regimen and a few new and simple styling tricks, you can easily bust out of a hair rut.

Braids
If your hair grows in spiral curls, twist it into five French braids down your back and then sleep in them, suggests Daven Mayeda, a Los Angeles hair pro who styled Mariah Carey’s hair during her Angels Advocate tour. “When you wake up and take out the braids, your hair will be an amazing texture,” says Mayeda. “It’s a great no-heat, organic way to do a curly hairstyle, and it will last for several days.”

Buns
For a full, wavy look, create five or six small buns in places where they won’t interfere with your sleep, says Mayeda. Dampen hair with a mix of water and conditioner, then coil hair into ropes, twist into buns and secure with bobby pins. Let the hair dry overnight and simply unpin and tousle in the morning.

Asymmetry
“With curly hair, anything asymmetrical is amazing,” says Mayeda. He suggests experimenting with a few coils pinned up on one side. Another off-center look that’s a cinch to achieve: side-part your hair, and then plait it into a low-slung loose braid on the heavy side of your part.

Layers
“I’ve been giving women with really curly hair a few shorter layers or a bit of fringe around the face to help create shape, instead of letting the top and sides be flat,” says George Gonzalez, owner of George the Salon in Chicago and the hairstylist for Oprah’s in-house spa at Harpo Productions. With layers and bangs, you’ll have loose pieces that you can keep free when you create the half-up-half-down hair trends you’ve long admired on women with straight or wavy hair.

Creativity
With her waist-length, shiny black ringlets, Timon Cana, a Beverly Hills hairstylist, has lots of opportunities to experiment with new styling options. Unlike slick, straight hair that can slide around, “curly hair will stay where you put it,” says Cana. She’s a fan of a loose ponytail that you secure wherever it looks and feels best -- high at the crown, low on the nape or folded into a loop on the back of your head. Curly hair looks great slightly mussed, so Cana often allows some portion of a ponytail, braid or bun to hang loose.

Accessories
Curly hair is a great anchor for all types of accessories, including chopsticks, banana clips, combs, chignon pins and silk head scarves. Bun cages are a favorite of Cana’s; these cages or domes fit over a bun and are held in place with a hair stick. You can find them online or at your local beauty-supply shop in a wide variety of materials, including tortoise shell, beads and rhinestones.

Every woman has had the experience: A tried-and-true beauty routine that once left your hair beautiful and shiny and your skin its radiant best suddenly seems to have stopped working. Is it time to move on to a new set of products? Here, advice from the experts.

Should You Change Your Shampoo and Conditioner?
When your once bouncy, gleaming hair starts looking flat and dull, you may wonder if it has “gotten used to” your favorite shampoo or conditioner. There are two things to keep in mind. No. 1: As hair expert John Gray, author of The World of Hair Colour and lead consultant for P&G Beauty, says, “High-quality hair products are rigorously tested to ensure that their performance does not deteriorate.” No. 2: Hair is technically dead, so it can’t develop a tolerance to a product.

That doesn’t mean that you’re imagining the changes in your hair. Residue from styling products is one common reason why hair may look and feel drab. To give your hair a clean slate, try a one-time wash with a clarifying shampoo. These shampoos contain ingredients -- such as enzymes and citric acids -- that bind to product deposits and whisk them away.

Seasonal changes can also make it seem like your shampoo and conditioner aren’t doing their job. In fact, these products are delivering consistent results, but it’s your hair itself that behaves differently in the high humidity of summer than it does during dry winter conditions. While you always want to choose a shampoo and conditioner that’s right for your hair type and texture, if you use a volumizng shampoo and conditioner in the summer, you may find that richer and more hydrating versions of those products work better in winter.

Coloring, highlighting, relaxing and perming all affect the fundamental properties of your hair, says Gray. If you’ve had one of these chemical processes, you may need to add deep-conditioning treatments, including masks, to keep your hair in tip-top shape. Ask your stylist for advice on how frequently to use these at-home hair care treatments.

Do You Need to Swap Your Skin Care Products?
If the feeling that your skin care regimen isn’t working any more is a familiar one, then the fault may lie with your own expectations. “Using skin care products is a lot like dieting,” says Tom Woodhouse, head esthetician at Sally Hersberger’s Face Place, a skin care clinic in New York City. “Often, you’ll see a lot of improvement over the first three months, and then when you’ve achieved the maximum benefit from the products, your skin goes into more of a maintenance mode. What you’re missing is the excitement or novelty of those early results.”

Then again, our skin is dynamic, changing in some way almost every day, says Ellen Marmur, dermatologist and author of Simple Skin Beauty: Every Woman’s Guide to a Lifetime of Healthy, Gorgeous Skin. Rather than thinking of yourself as having one static skin type, Marmur says it’s more effective to learn to read your skin and be flexible in the types of products you use. While you may have a general tendency toward dry skin or oily skin, irritation or acne, it’s important to adjust your regimen to the type of skin you’re having today. If, for example, your skin is looking greasy and starting to break out, you may want to switch temporarily to a cleanser that contains salicylic acid, which will help unclog pores.

The active ingredients that keep our skin looking its best, like peptides or retinol, work year-round. But just as cotton feels cool against your skin in July and cashmere is cozy in December, different formulations feel -- and look -- better as the weather changes. Consider rotating your skin care regimen to include oil-free or gel-based products in summer and richer creams and lotions in the winter.



Photo: @iStockphoto.com/manonroy

You don’t need a meteorologist to tell you that this winter has created a beauty SOS! Record snowstorms and punishing winds, combined with dry indoor heating, are leaving your hair static-y and dull, and your skin rough, dry and peeling.

What kept your tresses lustrous in summer and your skin dewy in July doesn’t work in February and March. Here’s how to tweak your beauty regimen so you can achieve healthy skin and healthy hair during the frosty season.

Hair

1. Hydrate every time you shampoo.
Switch to moisturizing shampoos and conditioners, and skip at least one day between shampoos so you don’t deplete your scalp of the natural oils it’s able to retain. To fight flat tresses, apply conditioner only from mid-shaft to your ends. Your roots are just a few weeks old and still getting nourished form your scalp’s sebum, so keep them lifted by skipping the added weight of conditioner.

2. Protect against heat damage.
Parched locks are especially vulnerable to the damage caused by hot styling tools. Letting your hair air-dry in the winter is unrealistic, and walking out in near-zero temperatures with a wet head will cause your strands to freeze and lead to damaged hair.

Instead, partially dry your hair by blotting it with a microfiber towel. Then, apply a heat-protecting hair care product before firing up the hair-blower. Or, eliminate blow-drying by shampooing at bedtime, suggests Natasha Sunshine, owner-stylist of the Byu-ti Hair Therapy Salon. In the morning, style your hair with a flat iron or curling iron. Use the lowest heat seating that will still allow you to achieve the styling results you want, and keep the hot tool moving to avoid scorching your strands.

3. Warm up your hair color.
Hair color that worked beautifully against summer’s bronzed skin can look ashy with winter’s paler complexion. Add warmth to your palette by taking blond hair from beige to golden, brunette tresses to chestnut, or chocolate-brown and red hair to copper or auburn.

Skin

1. Modify your skin care routine.
Your summer skin challenge is most likely controlling oil, while during winter, it’s combating dryness. Replace your exfoliating or sudsing cleanser with a milder, non-sudsing one. Ease up on your use of retinoids; switch to a less-concentrated formula or use them only every other night. Moisturize twice a day, in the morning and at night. Consider switching from a light formula, such as a gel-based moisturizer, to a slightly thicker one. Or, boost the potency of the year-round moisturizer you love by layering a serum underneath.

2. Choose the right soaps and moisturizers.
Long, hot showers or baths can feel great on a bone-chilling day, but they’re extremely drying. “The intense heat actually breaks down the lipid barriers in the skin, which leads to a loss of moisture and dehydrates the skin,” says Naomi Donnelley, a dermatologist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. “Keep showers and baths short and lukewarm.” Use a soap-free body wash instead of a harsh antibacterial soap. Apply a body moisturizer while still slightly damp for smooth skin. “In general, lotions don’t cut it in winter,” says Donnelley. “Choose a cream, or if your skin is very dry, a petroleum-based product. Some ingredients to look for include ceramides, dimethicone, urea, hyaluronic acid, glycerin, petrolatum and lanolin.”

3. Invest in a humidifier.
If you experience itching or flaking, consider a home humidifier. The extra moisture it pumps into the air not only soothes chapped lips and hands and relieves all-over dry skin, but also helps nourish midwinter’s straw-like damaged hair. Just be sure to clean your humidifier regularly to prevent the growth of mold and bacteria.

Photo Credit: iStockphoto.com/piskunov