A few months ago I found myself in a room with the most beautiful hair I think I've ever seen.

It was thick, brown, long and glossy. I wasn’t the only one who had spotted these covetable locks. The woman next to me was eyeing them up too. “Your hair is amazing,” she said to its owner, cooing a little at the same time. “How do you keep it that way?”

The entire table fell silent. Apparently everyone wanted to know the answer – everyone wanted to have hair like the lady in the corner.

She said she did nothing special, just washed and conditioned it. She used barrel tongs to give it that rounded, bouncy look. Nevertheless the entire table (all eight of us) hung on her every word: we were taking in her advice as though it was gospel, trying to glean some tip or another from the woman with the perfect hair. What conditioner did she use? How often did she get it cut? Tell us again exactly how you styled it today? Was it coloured? Does she brush or comb it? Is it naturally straight?

We all wanted that hair. I definitely wanted that hair. The hair lady seemed to take it all in her stride. I imagine this wasn’t the first time a table of women had whipped themselves into a frenzy over her hair.

Of course hair envy isn’t that uncommon. Just think of Kate Middleton – the media is obsessed with her bouncy brown hair. Then there’s Kate Moss, whose every hair move appears to cause ripples in the fashion industry.

So how can we achieve glossy locks? A healthy diet and good genes help, but to make the best of what you’ve got, at-home hair treatments are ideal. I like Ojon’s Damage Reverse (£32.50) or their Dry Recovery (£28). Aveda’s Damage Remedy (£21.50) is also good.