The best hair care involves the simple act of combing your hair which can be done in many different ways. A child will interpret it as starting at the top of the head and running the comb through the strands of hair to their full length, but this does not serve to give shape to the hairdo.

There are as many ways of combing your hair (and I don't mean styling) as there are hairs in your head. The basic steps of most of these different methods are: putting the comb in your hair, when you take it out, and how you take it out.

By when you take the comb out I mean that you may pull it partly through your hair or through whatever percentage of your hair you comb at one stroke. By how you take it out I mean what movement you use in taking the comb out of your hair and what you do to the hair as you do so.

In other words, the right flick of the comb could mean that curls appear, or waves, or a flat look or a full look. Experiment with different methods or invent your own method, and see what different kinds of results you can get by varying the ways you can comb the same old hairdo.

In combing out hair after it has been set, ninety per cent of all hairdos should be combed away from the face and with an upward movement. This system of combing is suitable both for down and forward hairdos and for those with back or side interest.

One of the purposes of combing the hair this way is to make the bottom hair appear thicker and stand away from the head. You must realize that, even though you may apparently comb and set the hair in a head -hugging line, you may still want it to stand away from the head at certain points. Combing it back first is one of the little magic tricks which you can use to achieve a certain look by using an unobvious method rather than the obvious method, which would be to curl it.

The best hair care will mean lacquer is used only for certain specific purposes. I recommend lacquer simply as a means of securing hair in place, using it as you would a pin, barrette or comb.

For instance, if you want to keep your front hair in place when it is inclined to fall down over your forehead, a "pin-point" of lacquer will do this effectively. Apply a little lacquer at the spot where you would insert a bobby pin or barrette. The rest of the hair will remain soft and fluffy, but the lacquer will anchor the strands in place.

Lacquer is helpful, too, when you want to smooth back the hair at the temples. When the temple hair proves uncooperative or unruly, it can be sleeked back by a light application of lacquer.

Hair should be brushed or combed back before being brought forward, to give it a fuller appearance.

Take care with your comb and you will have a much more beautiful style. This will mean you have the best hair care possible.