2011 Beauty hits and Misses Part 2, Hair Care

Ok so to round out the end of year regrets and triumphs, here is part two of  MY beauty hits and misses, hair care edition.



Hits

1. Frizz Ease 3 day straight. It's a spray keratin that helps lock in you flat iron form humidity and re curling. It works and was great in the summer.

2. Kevin Murphy, Hair Resort. beach wave and texture, smells amazing!

3. Loreal Everpure shampoo. I like the tube, it's rather thick, but decently priced for sulfate free shampoo.

4. Batiste dry shampoo. cheap and it works

5. Fructis, Instant Mask Repair, nice thick conditioner, made my very damaged hair feel soft. Smells lovely. good for dry thick hair.

6. Rusk 2.5" curling iron, any curl iron is great really I like the Rusk products. they are pro quality and you can usually find them anywhere.

7.  Loreal Elnet hairspray. Amazing and cheap, industry favorite.

8. Sebastian Laminates Cellophane's. I was blond for most of the year. I used the platinum to tone my hair every 4 shampoos. Semi colour, adds shine. easy to use. it is a pro product and pretty pricey, but one could get it on amazon.com. it works much better then most colour enhancing conditioners.

MISS

1. Kevin Murphy Texture Master hairspray. It is a sticky super hold hair spray. Unless you want to look like Amy Winehouse or Robert Smith, it is not workable to the average Jane. nozzle gets clogged every time I use it.

2. Kevin Murphy Colour Bug, temporary fun colour powder. I'm waiting for more shades. They only have three and I liked it for a day then I never used it again.

3. Loreal, Sublime Mousse hair colour. This stuff was weird. I liked it in someways, east to use, no mess, no bad smell, but the results were just so so. I used black and it turned out 3 shades lighter. So coverage was not great.

4. mini crimper. I used it twice, it is now for photo shoots only.

5. loads of Big Bow clips and hair bands fascinators  I don't know why I would think I'm allowed to wear something Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, or your average 16 year old would wear. I am having a hard tie reconciling that I'm 38.

6. FHI heat iron. I have bought many of these irons since the company launched. The quality in my opinion has gone down. I had my last two for less then 6 months before everything was falling apart and the thermostat failed.

Can you colour you hair at home?

Well the answer is Yes! and no.

It really depends on you interest, skill, organization, and how far from your natural colour you want to go.

There are many options out there in the drugstore, and quality is far superior then in the past. So the old wives tales that you hear from hairdressers about the dangers or home dyes are BS quite frankly. The reason mistakes happen my friend is not the colour...it is you, (and that also goes for the pro who turned your hair green last year) Wrong colour selection, improper timing and application are the main culprits. Most professional lines have drugstore counterparts. I would stick to higher quality colour. (It's 6 bucks for a reason) Consult the products websites for more info, they are usually great.

Basically, home colour is safe and effective if you play by the rules.

1. You are not DRASTICALLY changing the colour. 1 or 2 shades lighter or darker is best. Anything more you need to see a pro, too much can go wrong. No Bleaching (unless you are really experienced) No going back to natural from blonde. Very tricky.

2. Your hair is in GOOD shape, not bleached, highlighted, permed, relaxed, overly dry. This is crucial. Dry and damaged hair is unpredictable, it can take too bright, too dark or not at all.

3. Root touch ups on grey hair. It is essential to chose the same exact colour every time. Write it down or save the top panel (with the brand and name of colour) in your wallet so you don't forget. If you change brands, you will get different results. Too light or dark. READ the directions. you cannot make a darker dye lighter, It has to be removed first.

4. You use enough colour for the amount of hair you have. One box of dye is enough to colour 4 weeks of roots. That is IT! If you have waited a while, have a ton of hair or want to use a semi all over you need to buy more then one box. It's like painting a house with a can of paint. If all the hair is not saturated, evenly it will will effect the final result. Unevenness, lack of coverage or extreme fadage can result. FYI If you are buying more then 3 boxes...go to the salon, it will cost nearly the same.

5. Remember the colour on the box will not always be the colour you get. Many drugstore brands have websites that can help you chose the right shade you are targeting. Hair colour is NOT opaque. Whatever is on your hair now, will effect the final result. Like kindergarten, Blue and Yellow make green rules.

6. Follow the instructions! Be prepared and organised. Have dark towels, gloves, cleanser (ajax) to remove spills on the sink. Cover yourself up. A timer or watch. Vaseline for your ears and neck ( stain free) Take you time, assemble you tools and did I mention...follow the instructions!

More questions/comments? Ask

www.garnier.ca/kim/en/index.aspx

www.lorealparis.ca/_en/_ca/products/super-category.aspx?code=Haircolor

www.clairol.ca/en_ca/index.php