The Chop: Hair Inspiration

I've got that urge again, that one that comes upon you once every few months to chop away some of your mane. As much as I love long hair, I often feel like it just doesn't work for me. Because of the texture of my hair and the shape of my face, I think a chop will suit me. I'm literally itching to go to my hairdresser. He'll probably grab my hair and sob, 'but it is so thick'. Nah, I am just imagining that. 

I think I'm leaning more towards the Olivia Palermo cut. So incredibly chic. Should I or shouldn't I?

The Messy Sixties Ponytail

 

Since I decided that my hair now has the perfect length I've been doing more things with it. Besides the occasional curl and twirl of my recently dyed locks, I've also been changing the way I put it up. My favorite way of putting it up is the messy sixties ponytail. The small beehive works perfectly with my bangs when they are swept to the side.

This hairstyle is super easy, once you get the hang of it. Before I knew how to do it I followed the steps explained perfectly and beautifully by the lovely Yara from This Chick's Got Style, I recreated her lovely tutorial below. Her simple steps are easy to follow and leave you with a super cute interesting hairstyle that is sure to receive a compliment or two,

  

 1. Add texture to your hair with your favorite product. This can be a powder, a spray or a dry shampoo. The product I used is Lee Stafford's Sea Salt Spray.

2.  Run your fingers through your hair to create volume.

3. Part your hair to the side. A sixties ponytail definitely requires a side part.

4. Seperate the top quarter part of your hair and tease, tease, tease. Smooth over the top after you have teased enough. You don't want a huge mess of frizz on top of your head. 

5. Secure the teased part with bobby pins. 

6. Spray with hairspray to make sure the style stays. I use L'Oreal Elnett Hairspray.

7. Curl the ends of your hair. This makes the pony more voluminous and chic.

8. Gather your hair the at the nape of your neck and secure it with a hair tie. Tug at the ends to lift the pony tail to your desired heigth.

9. Grab a small section of hair from the base of your pony tail and wrap it around the hair tie, effectively hiding it and providing a nice finishing touch. Finish with a light spritz of hairspray et voila! A messy sixties ponytail. 

And always remember...

Embrace messy hair.

How to: Fishtail Braid

Want to know how to do this super easy yet stylish fishtail braid? It's one of my go to hairstyles. It looks so chic and put together, without any effort at all. I explain the technique in my first ever hair tutorial video up top. This hairstyle is easiest to do with hair that is passed shoulder length and has little to no layers. If you want to make your hair easier to work with, spray a little texturizing spray into your locks before you braid. This will make sure that your braid has less 'slip' and will hold better.

Thanks for watching and if you like these videos, please let me know. Maybe I'll do more of them. : )

L'Oreal Extraordinary Oil Review

L’Oreal has come out with a new hair care product, their Elvive Extraordinary Oil. Hair oils are super happening right now, so of course one of the leading drugstore brands could not stay behind. According to the brand this product is a ‘miracle hair perfector’, and it should make your hair healthy and beautiful. L’Oreal has made two different types of extraordinary oil for regular hair and for colored hair with added UV protection. I tried and tested the regular kind and my opinion is below.

The oil contains six different oils that can benefit your hair in a lot of ways. A few of the options are

As a high intensity mask before you wash your hair

As a heat protectant before blow-drying or heat-styling your hair

As a serum to combat frizz

To add extra shine and softness to your hair

The bottle is glass, which makes it feel and look pretty luxurious. It contains 100 ml of product for €10,16. That’s some pretty good value considering you use about two pumps every time on average. I’ve been using this product for a little less than a month and it has only gone down a little bit.

Looking at the list of ingredients we can immediately conclude that it isn’t 100% pure oil. It’s mostly silicone. Silicones provide a kind of film around your hair which makes it feel soft and look shiny, this can provide a buildup of product which can be removed with a clarifying (sulphate rich) shampoo. I don’t particularly like using silicones on my hair, because I use Dr. Organic organic shampoos, which contains no sulphates, silicones, parabens, etc..

But for the sake of the review I kept using the product, mostly because I wanted to see if it would improve the look of  my ombre hair. Besides sillicones the oil also has numerous caring ingredients, like:

Chamomile extract

Coconut oil

Lotus extract

Flax seed extract

Gardenia extract

Dog rose extract

Soy bean oil

What catches my eye in this list of ingredients is that most of the nurturing, caring ingredients in this product are extracts. Again, not pure oils. That kind of goes against what L’Oreal is claiming, doesn’t it?

But how does the product actually feel? It feels really smooth on my hair, probably the silicones. It also adds a nice shine, but be careful not to use too much, because it can make your hair look a bit greasy. I don’t use it too often on dry hair. I’m currently using it as my heat protectant, just rubbing about two pumps of it on towel dry hair before blow-drying my locks.

If you really want a high-intensity deep nurturing care for your hair I would go for something that’s more pure. So, less silicones, less extracts. Just oil. As a serum or heat protectant this product works really well. The L’Oreal Elvive Extraoridinary oil is available in drugstores all across the world. It retails for €10,16 in the Netherlands. 

Going Ombre + How I did it

I have played with the thought of going ombre for so long, but never had the guts to do it. My regular hair stylist pretty much refused to do it and other salons were going to charge me ridiculous amounts of money. So I finally bit the bullet and bought a box of super plus blonde hair dye. After buying the dye I put it in my beauty cupboard and avoided looking at it for a few weeks. Safe to say the incredibly blonde lady on the front was scaring me shitless.

But yesterday evening, when I really should be doing schoolwork I decided that I did not have to wait any longer. The ombre had to go in right at that moment.

I used a drugstore bought blonde hair dye pack. I have been told that using a highlighting formula works better and faster. But that was just too scary.

Schwarzkopf Blonde Super Plus Intensive Blonde is what I used to achieve my ombre effect. My hair has been dyed before, but never bleached. (Beside the average hightlight here and there). And the only part of my hair that still had old faded hair dye in it were my lenghts.

I followed the directions on the pack to mix the dye. I wore the gloves that came with the dye and made sure I had a pair extra because I was pretty sure that I was going to have to bleach twice.

The first time I bleached it I only applied it to 2 inches from the bottom, making sure each strand was properly covered in the dye. I wrapped tin foil around my locks and let that sit for a good 50 minutes. The pack said 45 but after periodically checking the process I though it needed a little more.

After that I rinsed out the dye but didn't use any product in it. I blowdried my hair and reapplied the dye. Only now I coated the bottom 6 inches. I let that session sit for another 45 minutes. And boy was I scared. I was pretty sure that my ends would NOT be able to handle the second bleach. Imagine my relief when I took off the foil and rinsed it out and treated it with a deep conditioner.

The result is a subtle but nice ombre. At the moment I don't think I should take it up higher or go any lighter. This was just what I needed, because I was so bored with my hair.

What I am wearing on my face

L'Oreal Linda Evangelista eyeshadow kit, darkest shade in my brows

Garnier BB cream for oily/combination skin

Collistar Sun Effet bronzer in 08 Champagne

YSL Effet Faux Cils in Black

Catrice absolute color lipstick in Tell Me A Berry Tale (mattified by a loose powder)

The battle of the texturizing sprays

Everybody wants gorgeous flowing locks of mermaid 'fresh from the ocean' hair. There are many products on the field that claim to give you just this type of hairstyle. For this battle of the texturizing sprays I tested two different sprays available in drugstores, and under fifteen euros.

So they are comparable in availability and price. But for the rest? Both these sprays can be used on both towel dry or completely dry hair. They're supposed to give your hair texture and light hold to provide gorgeous locks that are slightly wavy.

The sprays are a mixture of water, sea salt and a few other ingredients that are supposed to give the hair a little hold. The salt gives your hair more texture and strive to provide that effortless beach babe look. 

I had initially only bought the Lee Stafford Texturing spray to give my foxylocks extensions a little more grip when I styled them in braids. But since I no longer wear those extensions I started using the spray for more things. Namely to provide loose casual waves that give you that Kate Moss heroin-chic look. I like big hair with lots of texture, and this spray provided it. 

The downside of the LS spray is that it makes your hair feel kind of dirty. I only use this on days that I know I'm going to wash my hair, because I can't bear the thought of walking around with this in my hair for more than one day. 

However, like most LS products, this just smells divine. The scent is really strong, but I really enjoy it. 

The Toni & Guy spray on the other hand has a much lighter fresh kind of smell. It's more of a beach-like scent, I think. When I wore this in my hair my boyfriend and other people complimented me on the scent of my locks. 

T&G gives more hold than the LS. Plus it also doesn't make my hair feel as dirty. It gives texture and hold without leaving the residue that LS leaves. The waves that it creates are slightly less impressive than the LS spray. But the feel of it definitely wins. 

Winning the texturizing spray battle is then, of course, the Toni & Guy Casual Sea Salt Texturizing Spray.

Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor

I have been pretty obsessed with my hair lately. It has to look, feel and be super healthy. Mainly because I am trying to grow it out and I want to add an ombre effect to my usually dark mane. But.. putting bleach on your hair is a pretty harsh thing to do. So before dumping the buckets of bleach on my head, it needs to be super healthy and strong so that the damage the bleach does doesn't completely ruin it and makes it fall out. Oh, the horror that would be. 

Helping me in maintaining a healthy mane are the Aussie 3 minute miracles. I love these bottles and I take them into my shower every time I wash my hair. In this review I'm focusing on the Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor. Aussie is a brand that was created in 1979 by the American Tom Redmond. Mr. Redmond payed a visit to Australia and was inspired by the different kinds of fruit and herbs and the aromas that they create. After being so fascinated by all the wonderful ingredients that Australia provides he thought that they would be fantastic to use in your hair. And Aussie was born. The 3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor being the first product to be released under the now super popular brand. 

When I first used the 3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor I was a little surprised by its scent. It smelled vaguely familiar, but I couldn't name it. After standing dazzled under the shower spray for a minute or so it dawned on me. BUBBLEGUM! It smells exactly like the pink roll up bubblegum you used to get as a kid. Lord, am I craving that gum now after smelling the product.

The packaging of the 3MMs is super handy! The bottle has an opening in the bottom, so that you always store it upside down and there is no squeezing and shaking the bottle trying to get the product out. Yet there is a little seal preventing the product from dripping out when you have it stored away.

The product itself is a little more liquid than you would expect from a deep conditioner. You spread it out over your hair. I like concentrating on my ends, seeing those need the most reconstructing and putting too much conditioner near your roots can easily make them greasy. You leave the product in for 1-3 minutes, depending on how much love your hair needs and then rinse it out with luke warm water. (Tip: never use hot water on your hair, it can dry out your locks)

The Reconstructor gives your hair a boost and leaves it feeling smooth, smelling like bubblegum and looking super shiny and healthy. However, make sure you don't use too much product in your hair as it can weigh it down quite a bit. A coin sized amount should be enough, a little more if your hair is way past your shoulder
If you're looking for an affordable deep conditioner that leaves your hair smooth and shiny, the Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor is the product for you. The ingeniously designed bottle holds 250 ml, quite a generous amount. The Aussie 3MMs are sold in drugstores all over the world. The Dutch recommended retail price is €8,99 for 250 ml.

Lee Stafford Hair Growth Treatment Review

What the Lee Stafford website says:

"This gorgeous, thick intensive treatment with Pro-Growth™ complex gives your hair strength from within by fertilising your follicles, creating a healthy environment on your scalp to help hair grow faster and reach its maximum potential length. Its soothing formulation reduces irritation and moisturises the scalp, helping to keep it healthy and improving the volume and feel of your hair.

Remember if the earths not nourished you’ll never grow beautiful flowers."

A mask that is supposed to make your hair grow faster and healthier. Sounds like heaven in a jar, doesn't it? Well let me tell you, it comes pretty close. I've been using this treatment every time I wash my hair for about four weeks and my hair has never looked this good. My shoulder-length tresses are beautifully nourished and moisturized and they shine like never before.

And the smell of this product. Oh my god, this is what divine smells like. The scent is noticeable but not overpowering, it's quite girly and sultry but it doesn't make you smell like you dipped your hair in a tub of perfume.

My hair feels soft and bouncy and the product doesn't weigh my hair down at all. I am using it in a slightly different way than recommended. It's recommended to use it in between your shampoo and conditioner. But since my hair is quite heavy and thick already I felt like using both the treatment and the conditioner would weigh it down way too much.

If it makes my hair grow faster I am not sure. But it sure makes my hair look and feel much nicer and healthier. I'll keep purchasing this product as long as it makes my hair feel like this. And there seems to be truth in Lee Stafford's quote. You can't make flowers grow if the earth is not nourished.

Lee Stafford Hair Growth Treatment for hair that never grows past a certain length is available at drugstores. I got it on offer for 50% off. It normally retails for €9,99

time for a change

The picture pretty much says it all. I'm ready for a change, I want something completely different.