On a recent excursion to the great Canadian wilderness, I discovered how to remain infallibly fabulous for up to four days without access to the luxury of indoor plumbing. Before me, lied the panic-inducing task of having neat, clean-looking hair for up to four days without a real wash or any of the tools I usually have at my disposal. With nothing but my standard hair brush and three hair elastics, I managed to MacGyver four fresh and fast hair styles.

Day one: Wash your hair thoroughly, enjoy it, it will be your last shower for the next four days. Before leaving, french braid your hair as tightly as you can, making sure to incorporate your bangs. You can do single or double braids, which ever you prefer. This will take some time to be able to do it quickly and neatly, so make sure you teach yourself and practice a little while ahead. Use all of the tools and products you have at your disposal before leaving to pull this off. This will become especially beneficial if your trip included open car windows or boat rides, as french braids are nearly indestructible. The one or two elastics you currently have in your hair will be enough for the trip, but you can pack more if you want to, as they do not take up an exceptional amount of room. Sleep with your hair still braided.

Day two: when you wake up, take the braids out of your hair, brush it and put it up into a bun, making sure to twist your hair, as this will counter-act the frizziness acquired from the braiding when you brush out the crimps. Since you braided your bangs, they will be crimpy and can remain out of the bun as they will not be flat and oily looking. The sturdiest way to put your hair into a bun to ensure all-day stability it to first put it into a ponytail with an elastic then tie another elastic around the bun once it is formed.

Day three: things are getting a little trickier now, to continue looking human, today you need to put your hair into a slicked back ponytail. If you wrapped the bun correctly the day before, your hair should be wavy today, and not frizzy. By now, your bangs probably won’t be looking so hot and will need to be put back in the ponytail today, using a bobby pin if necessary. The hair after the elastic will still look clean, and since it will be relatively free-flowing, it should make up for the fact that the rest of your hair is starting to look at little less than lovely, and create the illusion that your hair is impossibly impervious to the effects of three days without a shower.

Day four: there is no way around it, today you will need a hat or some sort of fashionable silk scarf to cover up the atrocity on your head. You brush all of your hair back, away from your face, put the hat or scarf on, and braid your hair from the point where it leaves your hat or scarf. You can either have one single braid down the back or two braids at the sides, just behind your ears, what ever works best for your hair type, length and style of cut. Just don’t take off the hat, and no one will know your horrible secret.

If you play your cards right, everyone will be wondering how you have retained your city sophistication, after four days of dangerously deficient levels of all modern conveniences.