My favorite beauty look from fashion week was no contest, Carolina Herrera. I adore everything about this look, and believe me, this is a look I will be emulating. While the smokey eye is perfection paired with nude lips and minimal blush, (it really makes those eyes pop) you may be asking "whats so exciting about this look?"! While the faces were stunning the thing that really caught my attention was the beautiful, braided hairdo's sported by these lovely ladies. I am very safe when it comes to my hair ie: blow dry, tease and go; but I am dying to take this look to my stylist and have her show me how to recreate it! This "do" is a look that would be flattering on any woman, and will effortlessly take you from daytime to evening looking polished, professional or hopelessly romantic. Recently in Hair Category
My favorite beauty look from fashion week was no contest, Carolina Herrera. I adore everything about this look, and believe me, this is a look I will be emulating. While the smokey eye is perfection paired with nude lips and minimal blush, (it really makes those eyes pop) you may be asking "whats so exciting about this look?"! While the faces were stunning the thing that really caught my attention was the beautiful, braided hairdo's sported by these lovely ladies. I am very safe when it comes to my hair ie: blow dry, tease and go; but I am dying to take this look to my stylist and have her show me how to recreate it! This "do" is a look that would be flattering on any woman, and will effortlessly take you from daytime to evening looking polished, professional or hopelessly romantic. 
OMG!! I am so excited I found this!! I have very fine, limp hair that I tease to DEATH whenever I go out for a night of glamor- only to still end up with a deflated do at the end of the night! That was before I found CIBU's PHO Finish ~crush~! This "workable finishing spray" works absolute miracles when sprayed close to the roots for achieving volume. I sprayed it around and under the areas that I tease, and then teased away! I couldn't believe what great results I got :) Yay!! I used to use hairspray to achieve my volume, but, hairspray (now a thing of the past!) makes your hair dry and stiff and as soon as you start teasing it- you comb it right out. I adore the tacky, dry texture of this product and it won't dry your hair like hairspray does! For those of you who don't have a volume problem, use PHO Finish before you straighten- or before blow drying to maintain the shape you want as you dry. Also, since it's made from Bamboo extract, lotus flower and water lily- your hair will be botanically healthy and you will be a happy little snob!
- only $14 for a 10oz bottle!
You learn a lot about versatilty and muli-purposing when traveling. I am on a grueling 3 week, 3 city trip with 2 kids so I HAD to pack light. One thing I certainly did NOT bring was an iron. What is a girl to do with a crinkly wrinkly summer poplin shirt? I didn't pack so light that I did not bring my flat iron with me so in a bind I decided to try it out on my shirt. Amazing! I thought it was going to be a major hassle but it turns out to be so much easier than ironing with a regular iron (well, maybe because I don't actually know how to iron). The small surface actually was easier to negotiate collars and button placket. I couldn't actually do the entire shirt, only the edges but it got me through the day and being that I am on vacation and at the beach, it was definitely good enough. Who would have thought! Now I love my flat iron even more! If you don't already have a flat iron, the T3 is the best. T3 Duality Iron for $160 at Sephora.
Photo credit: Kate Walsh photo on People.com
Talk about a bad hair-day! Humidity is the worst for frizz and I'm dreading the weather I'm going to face in Marrakesh (leaving today!), but I'll be equipped with Ouidad Climate Control ($22, 8 oz), which has just replaced Bumble & Bumble Defrizz ($23, 4 oz), as my go-to defrizzer. Defrizz products are always a tough thing because most are heavy gels meant for thick, curly hair. I have relatively straight and thin hair so most defrizz products I've tried totally weigh-down my hair (even Bumble & Bumble is on the heavy side for me). Ouidad's Climate Control, while still being fairly heavy, works for my hair (just make sure to apply no more than a little drop if your hair is on the thin side). I've been putting it on as a preventative measure when the weather forecast says rain or when I know it's going to be gross and sticky weather out and it's prevented those nest-like frizzies that would otherwise build-up on my hair-part. But, since it's meant for curly hair, I can't stress enough not to put too much if you don't have thick hair or else you will end up a flat, gooey mess -- and that's worse than any amount of frizz! Also I've found that it's best to apply Climate Control when my hair is damp and then locking in the magic by blow-drying:)
Who doesn't count The Hills among their guilty pleasures?? Even my boyfriend watches it (of course he blames it on me...but he loves it...I know it :-)). Lo got a lot of negative heat for that meticulously coiffed up-do she toned last week when her and Lauren went to Spencer's sister Stephanie's birthday bash (From The Cut -- "She looks like a drunken divorcée from Mad Men. The exaggerated swept bangs, the too bright red lipstick ... yuck." - Ouch!). Personally, I loved her hair and thought it went flawlessly with her deep red lipstick. Lo, though she is turning into a little bit of a troublemaker is my new favorite character on the show (OK tied with Whitney...though her stock has gone down somewhat since I heard from a friend that she drunkenly peed in the DJ booth at NYC's GoldBar...and I thought she was the "classy" one...eech!). Lo recently stopped by the John Frieda See for Yourself Salon, where some editorial and celeb stylists were treating lucky ladies to new hairdos. Apparently Lo has flat hair because we're told that she used their Volume line of hair products, which makes sense given her long, thin, straight hair. I've tried John Frieda Luxurious Volume Full Splendor Shampoo and Conditioner
and a few other John Frieda products and I actually think they're great buys (obvi they're no Bumble & Bumble or fresh, but they're so much better than L'Oreal and those other drugstore shampoos and conditioners which are literally like putting detergent in your hair). More after the Jump!
Continue reading Hills Gal Gets Boost from John Frieda.
I know this sounds gross but come on, we've all been there. You are in a hurry to a function where you HAVE TO look your best but you look in the mirror and you see the oil slick that is your hair. What to do? I know there are other "dry shampoo" sprays out there, I've tried them all. This one by Bumble and Bumble was recommended to me by my local beauty shop owner - she said I could bring it back if it doesn't work. I love those risk free guarantees =) This is more of an aerosol spray than a powder, you don't shake it on your head like powdered sugar, it sprays the powder into your roots with pretty powerful bursts. My hair became instantly matte but what I didn't expect was it gave my hair so much volume! All that gunk that goes in there stiffens the hair like Aqua Net (remember those? or maybe some of you still use it). It isn't the best feeling, you definitely don't want your first date to be running his hands through there and remember, your hair IS still dirty, it just looks "matte". When you finally get to that hair wash, you will need to shampoo twice and you will see the color come out. They used to make this in clear but they couldn't get it to come out clear so all of them come in a color now, which adds yet another function to this wonderous product, gray coverage! Even if you don't need the coverage, it is still necessary to keep you from looking like you're wearing a powdered wig. Bumble and Bumble Hair Powder (4.4 oz)
for $41. Also comes in a smaller 2 oz bottle for $22.
I'm leaving for my friend's Marrakesh wedding next week and am already thinking ahead as to what I will be packing! Traveling these days takes way more foresight with all the rules on what you are and aren't allowed to pack and since you can't really take liquids with you on the plane it's a great time to experiment with new products (taping/wrapping/sealing opened products is one of the worst hassles, but the though of spillage in my luggage scares me almost as much as my suitcases being lost!). elizabeth W is a wonderful line I've only recently discovered though from what my perfume expert friend Christine tells me they are very well-known and respected by those in the fragrance industry. They have some wonderful products that come perfectly compact and travel-ready so you can walk the airport with confidence a la Posh Spice, knowing that you'll have everything you need to look glam wherever your destination may be!
I have a weakness for Lavender, so I love the Lavender Eau de Parfum spray, 1/2 fl oz, $20. Though I wouldn't spray this on my body, I love it as a room spritzer (maybe even spritz my area on the airplane...airplane smell makes my stomach turn!). It comes in 10 scents, but as an alternative there's also elizabeth W travel candles, $20. Jump for more Snob finds!
Continue reading Traveling in Style.
My hair color is very similar to Jennifer Aniston's dirty blond color palette and I'm always looking to maintain her same level of shine. One of the best haircare lines for maintaining dry or highlighted color-treated hair is from Kerastase Paris. Their Chroma Rich line (within their Reflection line), is great for my hair (I have dry hair, oily scalp and highlights) -- it restores moisture, while controlling oil and leaves hair with nice suppleness and a hint of shine (like with Bumble & Bumble's haircare products, you'll see results after a single wash!). The line also has a UV filter and Vitamin E to protect your hair from sun damage (this is especailly important for those, who like me, always protect their skin, but expose their hair to the sun for added shine, forgetting that hair needs protection too!) Run-down of the 3-step solution to maintaining color after the jump!
Continue reading Chroma Riche.
The strangest thing happened to me after having 2 kids - my hair became wavy (both kids have curly hair). I used to have stick straight, slick hair, I loved it! It was the highlight of what nature granted me. And now it has a slight wave when wet, which sounds all fine and good but because my hair is coarse and thick, it is left with frizzy ends when dry. Nice, right? So I have become obsessed with flat irons, it is my only salvation to getting my ends to not look like the end of a broom. Thus my search for the perfect flat iron. I started with the ghd IV styler
$240, it was what my stylist used and I thought I was investmenting in the best. I came home and of course did not get the results my professional stylist got, it was a near impossibility to smooth out my ends once my hair was dry. Like I said, I have really thick and coarse hair and the ghd promised it would power through with its high temperature but it didn't, instead I had to slowly and painfully iron small bunches of hair, over and over again. And did I mention I have a TON of hair?
I almost gave up and thought I had to live with frizzy ends until I decided to give the T3 Duality Iron ($160) a try. It turns out, at $80 less, the T3 was the better of the two. I can't tell if it is actually hotter, both are pretty hot, but I was able to get through more hair without a second pass with the T3. Both have rolled barrels so can do curls, but the T3 was so much easier to achieve what I wanted with curling. Even when I let my hair dry and the frizz was seemingly set in stone, the T3 was able to smooth it out, even if I couldn't achieve flips or curls at that point, at least I would have shiny smooth hair. And that is all a girl with altered genetics can hope for in a flat iron! T3 Duality Iron for $160 and ghd IV styler for $240, both available at Sephora.
I almost gave up and thought I had to live with frizzy ends until I decided to give the T3 Duality Iron ($160) a try. It turns out, at $80 less, the T3 was the better of the two. I can't tell if it is actually hotter, both are pretty hot, but I was able to get through more hair without a second pass with the T3. Both have rolled barrels so can do curls, but the T3 was so much easier to achieve what I wanted with curling. Even when I let my hair dry and the frizz was seemingly set in stone, the T3 was able to smooth it out, even if I couldn't achieve flips or curls at that point, at least I would have shiny smooth hair. And that is all a girl with altered genetics can hope for in a flat iron! T3 Duality Iron for $160 and ghd IV styler for $240, both available at Sephora.
Stress is the worst! Not only are things miserable when I'm stressed, stress reeks havok on everything from my skin to my hair! I can always tell if I need to take a chill pill and just take a breather and relax by looking at my scalp. When things get bad, I always have grey hairs sprouting!! Luckily I'm still in my 20s and still have a full head of hair so I can just plug those babies out, but there's something about seeing grey hairs that always gets my head spinning and worrying about the day my hair will look like Mrs. Streep in The Devil Wears Prada! My mom is only in her 50's and she needs to get her hair touched-up every 3 weeks to prevent greys from showing -- I can barely find time to schedule my appointment every 3 months! I have discovered a wonderful product though for my stray greys -- Grey Root Touch-Up from Avon's Advanced Techniques line. I have to say I'm partial to Avon after having worked there for a short stint -- I love their message about empowering women:) Not all of their products are amazing, but there are definitely some hidden gems in their line. Jump for more!
Continue reading Touch of Grey Be Gone!.
