Chemistry 101

What happens when your hair dresser takes you from light to dark? Whether it be all over color or simply low lights...it's actually a chemistry kinda thang! I'm not gonna tell you all the secrets, however pigment in hair consists of red, blue and yellow. When you lighten hair, you are removing the red pigment molecules from the cuticle. Therefore if you put an allover over blonde hair with no red its gonna go green. So, if you look dishwater brown...it's because there wasn't enough red in the color formula. So, for all you followers that live out of state and you decide to go darker for the fall and winter, add some warmth to that brown! I promise we'd rather see red than green! If your hair dresser turns you ugly..well your just gonna have to fly down to see me :)

October 10,2009

My client C.J. is the greatest. We have been friends (well first she was my client) for 6 years. She used to go tanning next to my old salon and watch me cut hair from the window. She sent her co-workers to test me out first! She was very picky with her hair. She watched me for a few weeks and then decided she could trust me. Long story short, I have watched her relationships go from good to bad until she met the love of her life. I mean really, this last year she has had a beautiful glow. I knew he was for her. I told her if she wasn't engaged by the new year she needed to propose to him. Well at 12:00a.m. sure enough I received a text saying.. "I said YES, I'm engaged!" I was sooo excited for her. She was graduating college in April and this was her year! She set the date for October 10, 2009 and has been planning ever since. Last Friday she called me and begged to get in for high lights... she had major regrowth for her bachelorette party. I for sure said come on in... but you have to bring wedding plans so I can see the bridesmaid dresses etc. She did...everything was perfect, until the night of her Bachelorette party. She received a call that would crush her dream, her perfect year. her fiance Jimmy was at a stop light on a motorcycle and skid in the rain. He got up to get his bike, he told his buddies he was fine and then a truck couldn't see thru the rain and hit and killed him. A co-worker and client of mine called me this evening to tell me this devastating news. C.J. 's life that she had planned was no longer going to happen. The prenatal prescription she showed me on Friday doesn't need to be filled. Please know this blog post is in memory of Jimmy. I love you C.J. you are in our family prayers. My clients aren't just my clients, they are my friends She promised to bring him in to meet me after the honeymoon...Until we meet again. You are a strong woman C.J.!!

ROUND BRUSHES EXPIRE TOO!

Round brushes......they are great. I dont own a curling iron due to round brushes at work. In fact, they act as my curling iron, all different sizes. It's important to choose a good one. It's not true..the more expensive the better. Some of my cheap ones from Sally's beauty supply I love! I tend to lean towards the hard bristle nylon brushes. Yes they take longer to break in, but they act as my heating tool. They might cause a client to bleed..lol kidding. I hate the boar hair bristles. They do nothing for me or the client. Ceramic ionic round brushes...ROCK IN FLORIDA. They help remove static and help with the humidity and the frizz aka FRO! My fav are the CHI turbo ceramic brushes, they come in all sizes and will last a long time. BUT, I said yes there is a BUT....brushes expire. If your bristles are bent really bad or burned time for a new one, they will cause breakage and damage the hair. AND please clean them for sanitary reasons, nothing like creating your own hair piece out of the hair in your brush. YES I knew a lady in hair school that was a client that did such a thing. SICK, yes it was gross and it smelled. She bobby pinned it in her bun to create an illusion for thicker hair. those days were something to write home about, thats for sure! I like to have all sizes based on how I am styling the clients or my hair for that matter. They are great for volume, and even bre has a hard time round brushing her own hair. not to mention I would have 80's hair. That would be fun!

GROCERY STORE BOX HAIR COLOR= A NO NO!

I get asked this question a lot lately (must be the crappy economy).. What hair color from the grocery store is the best to buy? "I know it's not the best Bre, but can you tell me if you had to which one you would use?" ANSWER....NONE I wouldn't freaken color my hair. The color in the BOX contains a metallic dye that continues to process in the hair everytime you add heat...like a blow dryer or the sun.. and never leaves the hair unless it is cut out. Once again it suffocates the hair as well, however the color in a box is a one size fits most kinda deal...well guess what ? There is not one color I do besides bleach ...I always mix 2-5 different colors to make one. So, please for the love of everything that is holy....don't ask me which one is the best..they all suck! And if you wanna know why your hair turns green after you put brown on top of blonde...that's another blog post. BOX COLOR=HELL IN A BOX for a hair dresser. it can chemically react with the proper color I use! I saw it in hair school when I foiled a girls hair with bleach and the color from the box she used bubbled and fizzed up in the foil...it was creepy, needless to say we stopped coloring her hair and she had what I like to call.... Chemical Bangs, they weren't cut she didn't want bangs, but she got em!

DRY SHAMPOO...thx Michelle

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQhZhUu58NQ

This is the dry shampoo that all of you want to know about!!! My client Michelle told me about this product, she found it in Ulta... here in Florida. She liked it so I tried it. It has it's pro's and con's. It smells great, like a florida citrus smell, it has natural oats that absord the hair oil. However I still don't feel clean, it masks it. But really thats what I need. Watch the you tube link I posted on here to see how it works! It's pretty cool stuff. There are many of these dry shampoo's on the market, I liked this one the best soo far. I have the aerosol can... I think it works better and it's not as messy.

Brand:
Oscar Blandi
Product Benefits:
Solves the dilemma of dirty hair and product build up in between washing
Refreshes, revives, and recharges hair and scalp
Absorbs excess oil and product build up without weighing hair down and without stripping the precious oils from the scalp
Increases volume at the roots
Strengthens hair and nourishes scalp
Available in nozzle to enable application directly onto the roots or aerosol for ease of application
Perfect for use between washings, in a rush, as a midday hair pick-me-up or when you overdose on styling product
Key Ingredients:
Natural Rice, Oat Starches and Tapioca Starches - Absorbs oil, dirt, and product to effectively cleanse hair and scalp
Tea Tree Oil - Treats the scalp to reduce occurrence of dandruff
Lemon Verbana - Provides a fresh, clean fragrance
Directions:
Apply Pronto to dry hair on the days you don't shampoo. Using the point of the cap to separate sections of hair, tilt bottle and lightly squeeze to release product onto the root of each section throughout entire head. Massage into scalp using fingertips. Follow with a natural bristle brush. Restyle hair as desired.
Oscar's Tip:
"For a quick fix, pour Pronto into the palm of your hands, let it travel to the fingertips and massage

Sunscreen???

OK, I know its the end of the summer, but its still freaken hot as He** here, however some people need a little help with what not to do when you are in the sun!! My client, no names decided she didn't want her hair to fade in the sun,(I color it a copper-red) Well on her boat she decided to load it up with Sunscreen. Yes the type you put on your body NOT YOUR HAIR! Needless to say, she tried washing it out, which she couldn't and then the color faded.. REALLY? huh. Well, I'm no chemist people, but I do know sunscreen contains Zinc. It's not for the hair. Your hair is a living thing people, it needs to breath. How would you feel if I put your head in a pillow case and told you to breath for an hour? Got me? Zinc does not allow your hair to breath. So to top it off, she didn't tell me what she did until after I put the color in. SO, yes you got it right, the color stayed on the surface of the hair and it never penetrated the cuticle. It didn't even come close to looking red. It didn't even color her gray. I had to redo the color and shampoo with a clarifying shampoo. The moral to this story is.... They make special hair sunscreen products to use when you wanna have fun in the sun. Keep body sunscreen on your body...not your freaken hair. Thanks for listening. p.s. you could always use a hat? Never thought I'd have to blog about this one!

Sweaty dirty girls=sweaty dirty hair

Hi Bre,
So, as if you haven't covered the dirty hair topic enough! I have another question about it. What if someone exercises everyday? Does sweaty hair make dirty hair dirtier, quicker? And when you shower on the in-between days can you get it wet if you are not washing it or does that mess it up? I have heard the concept about dirty hair before, it does make sense to me, but I have never been able to figure out the logistics.
Another question, similar topic. If you go a few days in between washings, and you are styling everyday, is there an order that works best in styles. Like straight hair, curly hair, etc? Does that make any sense? Just something I have always been curious about!
I love your hair blog, it's fun to read and full of great info!
Lianne Barr

Dear Lianne,

This seems to be a topic that will never end and it's ok to ask more and more. The truth about hair is .. "Shoot, if I could style my hair once a week like an old lady and sleep sitting up, it would be allll good. " Well, no thanks cause old woman that do that stink!! I don't care what anyone says. I don't do that once a week they come in for a shampoo style! I did that in hair school and pretty much vomited everyday cause I couldn't get that stinky smell off my hands! P.S. wanna know why the old ladies have purple hair?? Tell ya later. As for your question, sorry I tend to veer of topic, this dirty hair talk is one reason why I never liked working out! When you sweat it makes it oily. The heat that is released from your head (my fat head) is alot and boy is it HOT. They do make a dry shampoo spray that is talc based that when sprayed it absorbs the oil. That can get you in between your shampoo's, (if u want to know the best one let me know, I'll blog about it) . As for me Lianne. I tend to go longer between my washings when I wear my hair curly.. dunno the scientific reasoning behind it, just know thats me. BUT...once again the silk pillow case comes in handy... when I wear it curly the pillow case at night keeps it from having a mind if its own and keeps the curl in enough to where I only have to do touchups.... try it.. Patrice did.. she said she loves her new silk pillow case!