NY Fashion Week Spring 2011 Hair Trends part 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8

As I previously mentioned, I've been away so I haven't been able to  post so I'm catching up. Here are the last of my NY Fashion week spring 2011 trends!

Spring Trend #4: Sleek finish
Plain and simple. Clean part (if you have one) & no fly aways! What you do with the rest of your hair is up to you! 
Tip: If wearing your hair up or down spray a hard-hold quick-dry hairspray over your fly aways (especially focusing around your part) and use the side of the can to smooth out the fly aways!  Using your fingers or a brush can create static and defeat the purpose. You may spray your hair brush to achieve similar result but I find this method works best. Also finishing with a high shimmer shine spray is a great way to exaggerate the smooth look.

 

Spring Trend #5: Low Ponytails
Also a look seen on the runway in the past, however this trend is a very wearable style. A great trend if you're low maintenance & like your hair off your face. This look is more flattering than all your hair up into a medium to high ponytails and you can keep your parting.
How To:

Spray a liberal amount of working (or lighter hold hair spray) on a boar bristle paddle brush and brush hair into a ponytail. Secure with elastic and finish with hair spay to smooth out the fly aways (trend 4).

 

This next photo is a more advance pony tail but I LOVE how structured it is!

 

Spring trend #6: Low Buns
Also another great style if your like hair off your face.  A sleek bun like this takes quite a bit of practice and product. If your looking for a more wearable bun, secure your hair into a low pony tail (like trend 5), twist your hair around the elastic and secure with bobby pins. Keep the sides and top sleek and shiny (trend 4) however leaving any of the pieces that stick out of the bun alone.  This will have "messy on purpose" finish as opposed to an "I just threw my hair up in a bun" look.

Spring Trend #7: Braids!
I LOVE braids. Fish tails, french, or classic. They turn an otherwise simple (or boring) look into something with texture and style. For How To click here.

Spring Trend #8: Medium - Thick Headbands
This isn't really a hair style, however some designers this season have been pairing medium - thick headbands with messy updos which is great if you just can't seem to create that smooth sleek updo.

 

I love how perfectly everything flows with this model. The model's bun is left messy on purpose to match the relaxed feel of the headband. The orange lipstick and the peach toned blush enhance the vibrant orange headband & the non offensive purple smokey eye add that little bit of cool tone to balance all the warm tones.

 I feel like the hair on this model looks unfinished or there wasn't a firm direction the stylist was going with this. It's got a wet look (like gel normally has, which is great for a smooth finish), curls pinned flat to the crown (which does nothing to enhance volume, and they're unevenly placed) and lastly the random, long, semi wavy, semi straight pieces hanging down really are just awkward.  In my opinion, the hanging pieces would compliment the style better if they were curled to the same size as the curls pinned to the crown so at least everything is cohesive.

Shaved Sides

Sorry for the delay of Spring Trends. I'm out of down and all my photos are at home but heres another post to hold you guys over :)

So you've shaved part (or all) of your hair.  Need ideas for what to do next while keeping them short? Try having patterns or shapes put in. Some hair stylist can shave designs into your hair. The best/ worst part about these "tattoos" are they're temporary. There are stylist that specialise in hair tattooing.  I can only do more basic shapes/ tribal lines etc as I don't have the clientele to practice such intricate work however here are some options if you're interested.  Most of the designs on the internet are of men's hair so I'm adding a photo of my own design of a more feminine style.  I'll add a second when i get home of another tattoo design I've done when i get home.

My own designs:  

 

Model: Kim!

NY Fashion Week Spring 2011 Hair Trends part 3

Spring Trend #3: Extreme Side Parting
The sides partings are appropriate for almost all face shapes. The "extreme" refers to partings part the arch of the eye brows.

NY Fashion Week Spring 2011 Hair Trends part 2

 

 

 

Spring Trend # 2: Messy Waves. 
So hot for spring! So easy and care free! Unlike the huge volume in the last post, this style can be taken right off the runway and put into real every day hair.

How to:
If you have straight hair, use a texturizing spray and wrap random uneven sections around a curling iron. Next, rough up the curls with fingers & spray a stronger hold hair spray or spray wax over your hair.
If you have wavy or curly hair, this style is a breeze! If you're starting from wet hair, add a texturizing cream, scrunch it into your hair, twist small pieces into buns if you want more definition & allow to dry. Add a medium - firm hold hairspray or spray wax all over and scrunch and separate some of your curls.

Tip: (for both straight & wavy hair) The more you rough up with your fingers ad layer with spray, the more

 Celebrities wearing messy waves:

 

Cosmo's 5 Things A Stylist Won't Tell You

I came across an article in Cosmopolitan Magazine and I was shocked and a little offended by the article. This post is my opinion to clarify what cosmo's "hair experts" have said.  I can't speak for all the other stylist out there but I like to think I'm an honest and open professional and have no issue talking/explaining/ recommending anything to the guests in my chair.  This includes products, styling tips, alternative hair cuts that will be more flattering, how often you should be coming in, ways to cut costs etc.


COSMO: 1. You don't need to get highlights every time you get your hair done.
The reality is if your hair has been highlighted every time its been colored, the chances of overlapping and over processing are greater than not. Try breaking your base instead of highlights when it's time for your color touch ups. That way, you'll give your hair a small break while saving money and looking color fresh.
ME: True.  However, this also depends on how often you come into the salon.  If you come once a month for a trim you can skip an appointment or two before you need your highlights touched up.  I personally recommend your highlights should be retouched every 6 - 12 weeks or 1.5 to 3 inches of regrowth to maintain the look.  The main factors that decide how often you need to retouch are how fast your hair grows and how light you are compared to your natural colour.  If your hair grows really fast you need to come in sooner.  If you have naturally dark hair & you get a full head of back light blonde highlights youre going to look rediculous with more than 1.5 - 3 inches of regrowth.  If the reason you're wanting to skip high light appointments is cost, most salons offer 1/2 head & 3/4 head prices. These save you a bit of time & money.  You can start with a full head then 6 - 12 weeks later get a 1/2 head. For the appointment following that, get a 3/4 head. Lastly 6- 8 weeks youre back to a full head.  If you come to the salon for a trim or two in between highlight appointments, you can always have a toner or colour gloss put over your highlights to keep them looking fresh!



 COSMO: 2. Skipping conditioning treatments at the salon is totally fine.
Conditioning treatments aren't bad, especially on damaged hair, however, over conditioning with expensive treatments can sometimes leave you with a big bill at check out time. Try requesting the moisturizing conditioners that are complimentary with your shampoo and ask to be sit under the dryer for 5 to 10 minutes. Compare to see if there's a real difference in the way your hair feels after.
ME: This is only partially true. There are many types of conditioning treatments. Some target damage from heat styling or environmental stressers, others target damage from chemicals. There are treatments designed to soften unruley or age weakened hair.  All treatments add shine to your hair which is always a plus.  Now skipping conditioning treatments at the salon is fine if your hair is in good condition. There is no such thing as "over conditioning."  If your hair is in good condition treat yourself every now and then to an in-salon treatment to add shine and maintain strong healthy hair. Now if your hair isn't in impecable condition, why wouldn't you want to work towards getting there? If cost is an issue, have one done every second or third service. One treatment is better than no treatments & also use a deep conditioning treatment at home once a week can really make a difference in the health of your hair.  As for putting regular conditioner under the dryer, this does nothing.  Technically heat opens the cuticle and the conditioner will go inside, however as regular conditioner is not forumlated to be heat activated so it just comes right out when you rinse.  Instead try a moisture-based heat-activated blow dry lotion.  This will moisturize your hair as it protects from heat styling.


3. It's OK to mix expensive and cheapo products.
Just because you love a high-end shampoo with a double-digit price tag doesn't mean you have to use the same brand of conditioner, hairspray, serum, etc. Your stylist might try to push the whole line on you, saying they work best together, but it's totally fine to save cash by splurging on one haircare item and hitting the drugstore for the rest.

ME: FALSE! Technically yes, you could use a high end salon shampoo and a drug store conditioner. Your hair won't catch fire or anything, but there is basically no point in using the shampoo then.  Products you get from the drugstore contain less concentrated versions of salon products.  They use salt (which swells the product so it takes up more space & dries your hair out) and wax fillers to make up the difference.  If you use drug store conditioner after professional quality shampoo you're basically putting a wax coating on your hair and when you shampoo your hair, the good stuff cant fully or penetrate at all.  Also if you try this method you'll likely be shampooing 2 or 3 times to get a good cleanse just to get some of the wax off. Why bother wasting your good shampoo. If youre really wanting to save money you can use a high end salon brand shampoo and follow with a cheaper salon brand conditioner. Always stick with the same type, so volume with volume, repair with the same type of repair, colour save with colour save etc. My best advice though would be use a cheaper salon brand shampoo and conditioner from the same product line and buy a deep conditioner from a high price point.  The condtioning mask will be used once a week or once every two weeks so you wont go through it as fast but you're still getting the great benefits of your favourite brands product.

**Also, if it says salon quality and you've never seen it in a salon, its not a salon product**



4. Your hair won't grow faster if you trim it.
But the truth is your hair won't look as good as you're growing it out if you let too much time lapse between cuts. So just be sure to tell your stylist you want it to grow longer — that way she can trim only a little bit to keep it healthy, but she'll know to preserve as much of the length as possible.
ME: Ahhh the good old to trim or not to trim. TRUE. It won't make your hair grow faster, but it will keep your hair from breaking.  If your hair is damaged and you're not willing to lose all the length it takes to clean up the ends, get trims regularily.  Get your hair trimmed every 6 weeks and take your hair up to that length you're comfortable with.  Keep trimming it until the breakage/ damage from higher up catch up and are cut off.  Once the healthy catch up, your hair will grown longer & still maintain it's health. No one likes long damaged breaking hairs. Long healthy hair is always great though!
 

5. You don't have to shampoo your hair every day if it's curly or wavy.
The "wash and wear" haircut and the daily shampoo are really only needed if you have really fine hair. If your hair is wavy or curly, it tends to be a little drier, so you really shouldn't shampoo every day.

ME: TRUE! You dont need to wash (shampoo) your hair everyday! Straight, fine, coarse, curly, wavy; you dont need to wash your hair every day!!!! Shampoo, even moisturizing shampoos, gently cleanse the hair by opening the cuticle. By shampooing daily, you open the cuticle so often that some of your hairs' natural moisture is lost.  If you work out alot/ get sweaty, please still shower. Just rinse your hair really well. You can massage your scalp with out shampoo & follow with conditioner on your ends. If you have fine hair & its above the collar bones you likely dont need condtioner (it might be too heavy for your hair) or condtion every other wash (or if you rinse and just need that extra hydration). If your hair is coarse and/ or curly you can leave it longer.  Just rinse & condition to keep the texture feeling soft & hydrated. Dry curls will be frizzy and gross. 

Hopefully this post will help carify Cosmo statements. We, as stylists, are people too sometimes we forget to mention things, so if no one has every told you, we aren't trying to leave you out of the loop! Don't feel like your stylist is lying to you.  If you have a question, ask! If you aren't sure about something, ask!  Also, please keep in mind that Cosmopolitan Magazine's ad space (that is hair related) is bought by drugstore brand products.  From a busiess stand point why would the only promote professional products in their articles? They would lose alot of business.

NY Fashion Week Spring 2011 Hair Trends

So I've decided to spread these trends over a couple post so check back every day for a new trend / tip :)

Spring Trend # 1: Volume. Lots of it.
Yes okay.  I do realise volume is always in. Most people don't like flat hair, if you enjoy little to no body this will be a trend you want to skip.  The first two photos are on the more extreme side of volume however the last photo is a little more realistic for everyday.  Volume adds that fullness & that oomph to your hair that it wouldn't naturally have.  If you have or are wearing your hair wavy you can back comb your hair a little fuller & a little more on the sides to widen it.  If your wearing your hair on the straight I would avoid excessive volume as the hair just hangs straight down & will look mop-like.

Inspiration for straighter hair styles:

Inspiration for wavy hair styles:

 This one is a little much but I LOVE how much body and movement the hair has.

This is more of a realistic everyday look. I like this look because it looks like she's put effort into her hair but hasn't spent hours in the salon to achieve this look.

Celebrities With Great Coloured Hair

Warm tones, cool tones, dark hair or light hair, these celebs look great with the colours they wearing!

 

 

 

 

 

 

How To - Style - (Shaved Sides Ok)

Shaving the sides of your hair is quite trendy these days.  Whether you rock this edgy cut or are more conservative here is a "how to" style that you can recreate at home.  You may need a friend to help you with the back if you aren't able to braid the back of your hair easily.  I personally like the look of the shaved sides with this up do better, as it give a funky, unique twist to a more classic style,  however you alter this to work if you still have hair there.

This photo is from a shoot I had done in hair school. The colour and style aren't perfect but you get the idea.

You'll need:
    A comb or a backcombing brush or natural bristle brush
    Hairspray
    Bobby Pins
    You may need wax or a styling cream to give the hair you braid texture (to help the pieces stay in)
    You will likely need a friend to help you french braid the back
    Shine Spray

1.  I sectioned out the crown area, then did an inverted french braid starting from the nape of the neck to the crown.  I used a shine wax to help hold the shorter pieces in the braid and I secured the ends of the braid by crossing bobby pins.  An inverted French braid is done by adding hair underneath the braid not over top.  I couldn't find a YouTube video where i could really see them doing the braid so please refer to my post about how to do a french braid and you'll see what I mean about crossing under vs over.
2.  Next, section out your fringe and any other face framing pieces you may have as you will be leaving them down.
3.  Back comb your hair starting from the furthest section away from your face.  While leaving the matting in your hair, position the hair with your fingers over top of the braid ends. Holding the hair in place, gently smooth out the top section of the back combing with a comb/ natural bristle brush.  Slide a bobby pin horizontally across the ends of your hair and tuck into the braid. This way you wont see any of the bobby pins.
4.  To finish the look, apply hairspray over all the hair and smooth fly aways with the side of the can. Apply shine spray for extra sparkle.

Request - Permanent/ Semi Permanent Hair Staightening

I had a request to do a post on the different types of hair straightening.  Your basic options are ionic straightening, relexers, and keratin straightening.  You can also straighten your own hair with a flat iron but everyone already know how long that lasts/ maintainence.

Ionic Straightening:
Developed in Japan, this chemical straightening service leaves the hair sleek and straight. Even the unruliest curls are left straight, even with out blowdrying, until it grows out.  Not recommended for very damaged, or hair that has had lots of chemical services (colour, lots of bleach highlights etc).
Maintenance: You need to have your regrowth done every 6 - 8 weeks as your hair that grows in is curly and the rest is very, very straight.  As this service is damaging you want to use a salon-brand hydrating or repairing shampoo and conditioner (and deep conditioner once a week).

Cost: approximately 50 - 600 depending on how much hair you want to straighten & how long/ thick your hair is.
Tip: If you like lots of body in your hair this is not the treatment for you.
       If you like your round brush blow dry your hair (for that victoria secret style) you'll have to use a curling iron for this now.


Relaxers:
Chemical hair relaxers were first developed by accident in 1910.  This straightening service leaves the hair relaxed and not nessassarily straight. Not recommended for very damaged, or hair that has had lots of chemical services (colour, lots of bleach highlights etc).  See photo.

As you can see the hair is "relaxed" /straightened but its doesnt have that silky sleek straight look. It can still has small movement but not fully a curl.
Maintenance: You need to have your regrowth done every 6 - 8 weeks as your hair that grows in is curly and the rest is straight.  As this service is also damaging you want to use a salon-brand hydrating or repairing shampoo and conditioner (and deep conditioner once a week).

  

What regrowth looks like when you have your hair relaxed (this would be even more obvious if you had an ionic straightening as the hair that has been treated would be straighter)

Cost: approximately 200 - 400 depending on how long & thick your hair is.

Brazilian Keratin Treatments:
Ahh the treatments that got bad reps for lying about having formaldahyde in their products...
In the salon I use a product called KeraStraight, which contains absolutely no formaldahyde or other aldahyde porduct in there formula.  Developed in brazil, this service is a temporary straightening treatment that uses a low ph protein and amino acids (which are extracted from vegetables, which mean the amino acids would naturally be aborbed into your body).  The treatment can be used to eliminate frizz, straighten curl and repair damage. Recommended for all hair types however, absorbs best into hair that has been previously chemically treated. Virgin hair will benefit from the treatment but will likely see straighter results after more than one application.  The treatment will cut down the time it takes your hair to dry & styling will be alot easier/ smoother with less effort.
Maintenance: Virtually no maintenance as the treatment gradually fades out of your hair after about 4 months. You may however do the treatment once a month. You can still colour your hair with out affecting the treatment.  There is a specific take-home shampoo & conditioner made by KeraStraight to help the longevity of your treatment.  It contains no sulphates & is very very gentle so you dont wash your treatment down the drain. DO NOT USE A DEEP CLEANSING SHAMPOO IN YOUR HAIR! Doing so will open the cuticle too much and your treatment wont last as long.
Cost: approximately 300 - 600 or so depending on how long/ thick your hair is.

The model shown has nautally very curly hair that has lots of colour history. The picture doesnt do it justice (as it was taken from my phone) but its alot "frizzier" and very dry/ damaged.  She wanted to repair her damage, and smooth out her frizz while maintaning her curl.

 The model's hair is dry with out any product or brush to show its natural texture.

 

 Model's hair diffused after treatment (again sorry for bad quality photo) to show what her hair would be like work airdried.

Model after 1 - 2 passes with a blow dryer & a paddle brush. (before with the model's hair to get a section 1/4 of the size this smooth, it needed lots of tension, product and atleast 4 passes with a round brush. 

If you ask me this treatment is pretty amazing.