Recently in Styling Products Category

Sure I love the 80s trends but crazy ass big hair is not one that I want to see return!  The scariest is probably Samantha's hair, White Snake anyone???  Sex and the City 2 movie will be coming out next May--but you can get the casts' bigger than Texas hair now with Terax Finishing Spray. The on set stylists used the fast drying spray to help create the wild looks from the 80's in flashback scenes, but it can be used to hold a range of styles from soft waves to more voluminous looks.  Me, I'm going for the soft waves.  Get Terax products here.

I don't watch much tv and had never head of Bumpits until I saw it at Target a couple of weeks ago.  I picked it up out of curiosity so I could review and I am now secretly obsessed with it!  Of course all my girlfriends knew about it from the cheesy commercials and made fun of me but what did they all do the next morning after we went out?  They all ran to Target to get their own Bumpits!  It always takes the adventurous one (me) to convince all the other girls that it's okay to be a dork.  I use the medium size (the large is so ridiculous I gave it to my son to use as a weapon for his Transformers) at the crown of my hair and it gives it a nice but subtle lift!  Very sexy and Brigitte Bardot-ish.  The little one is good for days I pull the top of my hair back or for my ponytails.  Have you tried this?  Tell me what you think! Bumpits Hair Volumizing Leave-In Inserts at drugstore.com for $9.99.

Thakoon's spring collection is described as "warrior-surf" and reflects a hard/soft, natural/artificial dichotomy with organic construction or armoring of the body, contrasting with patterns cut around the body as a canvas with soft draping. To achieve this "sumo wrestler meets surfer" inspired look, Thakoon Panichgul, Eugene Souleiman, and Eva Scrivo collaborated for a finished style that demonstrates the contrast between tight and loose elements, which the collection encapsulates.  A sleek, tight-to-the-head "seventh samurai" ponytail is sculpted on the top half, while leaving out loose, textured ends in a knot.  This is a very cool look for day or evening, jump for instructions! 
 

Have you seen "Julie & Julie" yet?  It's about a food blogger who basically stalks Julia Childs (who was said to be annoyed before her passing) and decides to try every 524 recipes in Julia's cookbook "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" in 365 days!  The fabulous Amy Adams plays the food obsessed Julie (with Meryl Streep as Julia Child).  We asked Matrix celebrity hairdresser, Mark Townsend, how he created Amy's looks from coast to coast on the red carpet!  He tells us he wanted Amy's hair to be modern and glamorous to match her Carolina Herrera gown for the New York premiere. (Jump to read how he achieved this look!)

I like her hair at the LA premiere better.  The smooth and chic style is very flattering for her gorgeous read hair and she looks 10 years younger. "For the Los Angeles screening of 'Julie & Julia,' I was inspired by beauty shots from the 80s that I've collected over the years, very Carol Alt," Townsend comments.  Strangely, she does kinda resemble Carol Alt with this hair.

(Jump to read his instructions for red carpet worthy hair!)

If you are too lazy to follow my routine for wavy hair, there is an even faster solution (albeit an expensive one) that won't damage your hair.  T3's latest addition to its line of luxury hair styling products is the Evertwirl, a curling iron that claims to curl even the straightest of strands. Made of the same Tourmaline and Silver blend as its Flat iron, the barrel infusion gives quick, long-lasting curls while leaving hair shiny, smooth, frizz-free and totally healthy-looking. I only use T3 hairdryers and flat irons and plan to add this to my arsenal of hair beautifying products. There are two sizes, 1" or 1.25" depending on your hair length, both are $89-- Get the T3 Evertwirl here!

If you are looking for a bit of luxury for under $50-- try the 24K Gold Pomade (okay, so it's not a Cartier necklace but it's helluva a lot cheaper!) an innovative styling product that delivers such sparkle and rich gold glossy sheen, it could be called makeup for your hair (make up for the hair!  what will they think of next?).

This decadent hair treatment moisturizes, softens and protects hair while delivering an intense, metallic gold finish.  It promises to be lightweight and I hope it delivers, nothing worse than a head full of heavy "make up" in the dead heat of summer.  Price: $49.00 at Oribe.com

I bought this recently at my salon and I am telling you, I don't need to style my hair anymore. Well, of course I have a great cut so it can air dry to perfection but my issues have always been with fly away and frizzing. The Kenra Smoothing Creme takes care of all that. I love summer for all kinds of reasons but when it comes to hair, I love that it is hot enough to dry my hair in the car with the windows down! Mess you say? Yeah, normally, it would be untamable after all that fun but the other day, I did just that with a couple of pumps of this stuff in my hair beforehand. And when I got to my destination (very important meeting with Estee Lauder people) I had the windblown look but perfectly coifed. My ends were smooth and there were no ratty tangles. This also helps to protect the hair from harmful UV rays, great for the summer! It is very lightweight, it is not a gloppy gloss but a nice fluffy cream. It does not hold though, it is just for shine and smoothing. It is only sold at salon so go to the Kenra site to find the nearest retailer near you for purchase, $19.

Having straight hair does not mean you can not add some curls in your life when you feel like it. I have stick straight stubborn hair and after spending an hour styling it, I want it to last and hold and stay curly. I have tried different curl definers but the Paul Mitchell Round Trip has worked the best. You can put it on dry or wet hair and it really enhances the curls - as in, makes your hair curlier than without using it. It also adds a shiny sheen by sealing the cuticles for perfect ends. It works with blow dryer and round brush, hot air brush or hot rollers. It still works on dry hair but obviously not as well. At Beauty.com for $11.96.

Last week we announced Part I of our fabulous Esencia by Samy giveaway and here comes the second part! In honor of Earth Day we will be giving away another four sets of three of Esencia by Samy's latest products! We will pick the winners of both giveaways via random drawing on Earth Day, April 22!

Four winners will be picked by telling us, in the comments, whose celebrity hair is pictured above. US residents only please!

The Esencia by Samy line is 100% vegan, natural and organic and each set we are giving away will include their White Lotus Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner - both formulated with Barley and Nettle - and their Vanilla Styling Crème which is formulated with Macadamia and Sunflower. The products are free of sulfates, parabens and phthalates - that can strip hair's natural protective layers and fade color - resulting in shiny, healthy hair! Plus how fab is the packaging with the ball-shaped cap (the caps are actually pop up caps as well - the pop button blends in with the cap)!!?

A big thank you to our lovely sponsor Esencia by Samy!

I have a frizzy hair problem so I've tried a lot of different palmades and gels and cremes to calm it down. The trick is to find one that doesn't weight it down. Or make it look greasy. The TRESemme 24 Hour Body Weightless Creme does the trick. It goes on super light, it is not at all greasy and does not leave a residue. I put this on after blow drying and it keeps the body I've tried so hard to achieve while styling. It gives it a slight shine, nothing like the shine I get with the palmade but the trade off is that my hair won't start looking greasy the next day. You can't use too much though, of course. I use a tiny size dot because I only put it on my ends and I don't recommend putting this on the roots because it will start to weigh down the hair and force you to prematurely wash your hair. This Frugal Snob friendly creme is only $5.