Halloween Hair Tips & Guide Lines

Considering coloring your hair this Halloween? Read through these tips and guide lines as a precaution so you your hair won’t be scaring you after the spooky night is dead and gone.

Tons of spray dyes line the shelves of Halloween Super Stores calling out your name as a quick answer to colored hair. The temporary hair sprays come in an array of natural and neon shades. They are fun to use to make your hair look wacky but don’t expect smooth shiny hair with consistent coverage. Stick with lighter colors that will wash out like they claim but stay away from dark colors like brown, black, sometime even dark blue and purple. If you’re hair is naturally light or blonde you are more at risk for dye pigments to stick around in your hair even after you get out of the shower, so take precautions and opt for lighter colors to spray. These sprays are the easiest to wash out but if you are really concerned, try spraying a small test strand in the back of your head to see how it washes out before committing to your entire head on Halloween.

You may also be haunted by the shelves of semi-permanent hair color that claim to come out after several washes. A lot of time this is true but there are scary times when this is not always the case. Hair color even in semi-permanent dyes contain pigments that enter through the cuticle of the hair shaft. They do not penetrate much deeper making them easier to fade and wash out but if you have fine hair or damaged hair, the color molecules can “cling on” longer to your hair making it much more difficult to wash out. So be extremely careful when opting for dark colors or simply be prepared for not all of it to wash out in the time claimed.

If you are planning on using more of a permanent color for the night of Halloween know that your color will be just that – permanent. If you are fine with being a Lucille Ball redhead even after you’ve eaten your last piece of candy then that’s fine. Be prepared to live with whatever color you’ve chosen. The worst mistake you could make is dying your hair black to be Morticia and wake up the next day wanting to color your hair back blonde or even brown. It takes more than a magic wand to reverse the effects of permanent dyes in the hair. Bleaching, color stripping, and several sessions of lightening services will be required to lift dark pigments out of the hair. These services are most times damaging and very time consuming. Moral of the story for wanting black hair on Halloween - opt for a wig instead!

More Spooky Tips:
♣    If you’re a blonde stay away from dark colored hair dyes of any kind.
♣    Use the old-fashioned “flour-in-your-hair trick” for looking like a sweet old grandma or a young ugly zombie on Halloween.
♣    Try a wig! Even if you can’t find the perfect cut for your wig, take the scissors to it yourself to custom make your look or take it into your stylist for a makeover.
♣    Look for a costume that your natural colored hair can pull off so you won’t have to worry about coloring it at all.
♣    Attempt to stay away from the color black at all costs.

Did I scare you yet? Enjoy your Halloween but just keep in mind it is just one night of fun and you don’t want to be haunted by the ghost of bad hair days to come.
Love, The Happy Hair Stylist

Read again at http://www.latest-hairstyles.com/blog/halloween-hair-color-tips-and-guidelines.html

Fine Hair - Amp it Up!

If you suffer from limp hair that won’t hold volume or body, here are some ideas to help you break the flat hair mold.

Use a volumizing shampoo and conditioner. Setting the foundation in the shower is the way to go for fine haired clients. The shampoo helps add grit and texture to your hair for your blow-dry. Volumizing conditioners are usually light and milky, so fine hair is not weighed down by heavy conditioning creams.

Preferred Products:
Redken – Body Full Line
Privé – Amplifying Shampoo and Daily Conditioner Combo
Kerastase – Volumactive Line

Products! Don’t be afraid of products! The days of heavy mousses and gels are over. Instead opt for lightweight foams and volumizing sprays. Layering these products can amp up the volume, too. Apply products to damp hair before blow-drying and focus the application on the crown for ultimate lift in that area. Try to blow-dry most of the moisture out of your hair while upside down and then stand back up to finish with a round brush, again paying special attention to the crown area.

Plumped Up Tips:
Hot Rollers – on day two, try popping some hot rollers in at the crown to refresh limp hair.
Back-coming and Teasing – take small sections at the crown, start with a section near the back, lift it up and comb hair down to the scalp to create a cushion. Continue this step with each section as you move forward, spray with hairspray, then smooth with a brush lightly. Hairspray again!
Hairspray! – fine haired girls best friend.

Ask your stylist for products they would recommend for your hair type to get you on the right path for body and volume. You’re sure to look like a bombshelled, big-haired Texan in no time.
Love, The Happy Hair Stylist

The Ponytail

You’ve put your hair up into a ponytail a million times without even thinking about it. But read some fun ideas below to consider taking your look to whole new level.

Low: looks best with a pompadour or some teasing to add some spice. Otherwise it can look a little too simple. If you don’t feel comfortable teasing or twisting hair back into a low ponytail you can also add fun accessories. Add a glitzy headband or clip in a cute flower near the base of the ponytail.

High: is the classic ponytail position that made Barbie famous. Make it retro with cute short bangs or look like a super model by positioning your ponytail on top of your head.

Side: ponytails are not just for little girls anymore. Placing the pony on either lower side of your head makes a fun flirty statement and looks very chic. So easy to do and also looks cute with headbands or other accessories.

Extra Ponytail Tips:

• Get inspired and leave a perimeter of hair out of the ponytail then twist or braid pieces you left out towards the ponytail and secure to hair tie with a bobby pin.
• Put up all of your hair in a ponytail. Take a piece of hair from under the ponytail and wrap it around your hair tie to hide it. Spray with hairspray and secure piece with a bobby pin into the base of the ponytail.
• Consider purchasing a hairpiece to clip over your ponytail to add length and/or volume to your pony. The celebrities do it all the time!

• Leave your pony straight and sleek or curl it for a fun bouncy look.
• Tease the top of your head before smoothing and pulling hair back into a ponytail. Adding this volume adds height, interest, and softness to the look.

So get that hair up and off your shoulders because it's gonna be one hot summer!
Love, The Happy Hair Stylist

The Truth about Deep Conditioning Treatments

Pamper yourself the next time you step into the salon and reap the rewards. Treatments are surprisingly affordable and do more for your hair than you probably thought.

Treatment Benefits:

• Add Protein. Split ends happen when the hair shaft is dry and brittle, lacking moisture and protein. Blondes are extremely susceptible for lacking protein after lightening services. Treatments help add this protein back into the hair follicle to make it silky and strong.
• Add Moisture. Hair can be over proteinized so help balance out that problem by adding moisture. Dry damaged hair doesn’t look pretty. Infuse hydrating ingredients into the hair shaft for soft supple tresses.
• Balance the PH level of your hair. Coloring and highlighting your hair can change the PH levels in your hair, so does flat ironing, curling, and blow-drying. Chemical and mechanical damage to the hair cuticle is a real issue and deep conditioning treatments help address the damage as well as restore hair’s natural PH level.
• Banish Frizz. Dry hair can look straggly and unkempt. Hydrated hair will lay smoother and help with coarseness. Less frizz means easier styling for you.
• Experience Longer Lasting Color. Healthy hair holds onto color longer. Crack and damaged hair washes your beautiful color down the drain faster. So make sure to invest in monthly or bi-monthly treatments to keep your color looking vibrant longer.
• Enjoy Softness & Shine. Who doesn’t love touchably soft and visibly shiny hair? Treatments include nourishing ingredients with oil depositing minerals your hair will love to show off.

The deep conditioning treatments can be mixed and matched to help address and focus on the main problem areas your hair may be experiencing. All of the treatments help with each and every issue listed above in different concentrations. Ask your stylist what prescription you need and start taking care of your hair when you visit the salon by adding on a treatment service. You’ll notice the difference and be glad you did.

Love, The Happy Hair Stylist

Hair Partings

Get inspired and switch up where you draw the line…

The Middle Part
This part has a seventies flare that is fun and groovy. I love this look because it adds a fun retro vibe in a second. Works best on medium to longer hair with long to no bangs. This middle part looks classic and sleek when ironed straight or soft and flirty when you add waves or curls.

The Side Part
The beauty school rule about side parting is to match up the part with the center of your pupil. Try the classic rule or try a deep side part for a sophisticated vintage look. Side parts compliment most face shapes and work great for side swept bangs. If you can, try changing the side you normally part your hair on for an instant volumizing lift!

  
The Zig Zag Part
This was huge in the nineties and reminds me of Dixie Chicks music videos. Not such a hot trend right now to have a perfect zig zag but sometimes a looser/messy part can help shake up your routine. This part is great for adding volume because your hair will be parted and lay where it usually doesn’t. This zig zag part melts my hair styling heart when I see it on little girls so be inspired the next time you do your daughter’s hair.

World’s Apart
Sometimes cowlicks affect and unfortunately limit where you’re able to part your hair. Play around the next time you get out of the shower or ask your stylist after she washes to see where your potential problem areas are and find a part where your hair naturally falls. When you find the spot your hair cooperates the best you have found your spot. This way you are not fighting with your hair. I have helped many a client just by switching the side they part their hair. Sometimes it’s that easy!

Have fun with your hair today.
Love, The Happy Hair Stylist

How to Wash Your Hair

Ready? Set? Rinse and Repeat!

1. Shampoo your hair

Before you set foot in the shower to wash you’ll need the right products. Think about what’s important to you and what your hair needs. Moisture? Protein? Volume? Curl enhancement? Clarifying? Get the most out of your time in the shower by using the proper strategy. Different shampoos offer different benefits so read the bottle carefully before you buy. You may be surprised at what a difference the right shampoo makes. (Ask your own happy hair stylist what they would recommend for you if you get stuck.)

I personally prefer to encourage clients to wash their hair every other day. If you over wash your hair, your scalp will try to compensate and produce more oil. Natural oils are good for you so every other day is a good balance.

Once in the shower shampoo with about a quarter-sized amount of product. Maybe more or less depending on how much hair you have. If your hair doesn’t lather, rinse and repeat until it does so you know your hair is clean. Always make sure you rinse out the shampoo completely before moving onto conditioner.

Using moisturizing shampoos everyday can sometimes cause build up on your hair so use a Clarifying shampoo about once a month to break up oils and deep clean your cuticles.

2. Condition your hair

After a thorough rinse try to squeeze as much water out of your hair as possible. It’s amazing if you leave a towel over the shower and dry it a little, too. Apply conditioner to midshaft and ends of hair. Comb through with your fingers to disperse the conditioner through all of your hair. Keeping a wide toothed comb in your shower is great too for an even more thorough saturation. 

Warning! Don’t just slap a lump of conditioner right to your head. This can cause your scalp to become oily. The ends of your hair have been with you the longest and are what need the moisture the most.

Leave the conditioner in your hair while you shave, wash your face, and/or loofah it up. This gives your strands a couple of minutes to soak up the nutrients in the conditioner. Once you’re ready to rinse, turn down the water temperature a little to help seal your cuticles. (A refreshing way to wake ya up in the morning!) Make sure you rinse hair well so it is not weighed down when you get out of the shower.

Follow these conditioning steps for daily washes or weekly mask applications.

Remember, your hair is an extension of you, so take care of it.
You deserve to look and feel beautiful inside and out.
Love, The Happy Hair Stylist

Hydrate Your Hair

Tips to Add Moisture IN the Shower: 

• Use a deep conditioning mask on your hair once a week. If you have extremely dry and damaged hair use the mask every time you’re in the shower. Using a conditioner that has both hydrating and proteinizing properties helps heal and build up hair from the inside out. 
• Squeeze out as much moisture as you can before applying any type of conditioner. Hair will absorb more of the nutrients without being diluted by the water. Always leave in for a few minutes before rinsing.
• Moisturizing shampoos and conditioners may build up over time so make sure you use a clarifying shampoo once a month to break up any weight and clear the way for the moisturizing properties of your daily products to penetrate the hair shaft easier. 

Tips to Add Moisture OUT of the Shower:

• Sleep in a mask or put a deep conditioner in your hair while you clean around the house so the moisture can really soak into your strands. Then rinse with lukewarm water to seal the cuticles. 
• Use a creamy leave-in conditioner to really lay on the hydration even after you get out of the shower. I like to apply one after using a light detangler. Towel blot your hair, spray in the detangler, brush with a wide tooth comb, and then apply your leave-in. 
• If you have fine hair a light hydrating detangler will be enough. A creamy leave-in conditioner may weigh hair down so skip it altogether or only apply on ends since they need the most TLC.
• I see many brittle and dry bangs. Spot treat your hair in those areas by applying a moisturizing mask while you sleep and shower as usual in the morning. 
• Take a break if you can from any hot tools or blow dryers that may damage your strands. Even if it's just for the weekend, a little vacation for your hair never did any harm.

Take these tips to heart and you'll on be way your way to silky soft hair in no time.
Your hair will thank you!
Love, The Happy Hair Stylist

Is Your Hair Too Long?

Many people really have the strong belief that hair stylists do not like long hair. They are convinced that our profession is full of scissor happy barbers that can’t wait to butcher your hair into a short bob or pixie. This is absolutely NOT true! We embrace all types of styles and lengths into our chairs with open arms.

As a hair stylist I want your hair to be as healthy and good-looking as possible. The longer you grow your hair out, the harder it is to keep hair looking free of split ends and vivacious. It is also harder to offer any sort of style to long hair. Not even the best of blow-drying, curling, or teasing can give super long hair volume until gravity robs it away. It’s just a scientific fact! So please hear me out with a few simple suggestions for those clients who have so long you can’t remember your last cut.

You don’t have to be Repunzal to have long hair. Consider taking off two to three inches at your next appointment instead of that half inch and see the amazing difference. You’re hair will actually be happier! Also consider adding in some layering to add shape and texture to long drab tresses. This can help add volume to the top of your hair. And most importantly, if you want to have long hair take care of it! Use good products to help keep it looking and feeling it’s best.

You Repunzals who have reached this point in the blog – I thank you for taking the time to consider what I had to say from someone who cuts hair off for a living. And who knows? You may be asking for a sassy textured bob in just a few visits!

Swimming Hair

Summer is a wonderful time of year to jump in the pool and get some exercise. Swimming laps is great for your body but can take a terrible toll on your hair. I wish I had known these tips and tricks when I was a swimmer back in the day. Take a look at these sweet swimming tips and your hair won't feel so bad when fall comes around:

-Before putting on your swim cap dampen tresses and put in a light conditioner. Hair won’t absorb as much chlorine this way and will also help with removal after your workout.

-After your workout go underwater to take your cap off instead of when you get out of the pool. Cap can slip off easier while still in the pool & reduce breakage. Then go rinse in the shower!

- Use a wide toothed comb on hair after getting out of the pool. Hair will be easier to detangle and also will be more gentle.

-Hair and skin can dry out easily during swim meets and after long workouts. Make sure you stay hydrated with moisturizing conditioners and lotions. Throw a moisturizing detangler in your workout bag and spritz onto your locks in between events or after your shower.

-Always hop into the shower after getting out of the pool to rinse the chlorine out. If you let the chlorine dry into your hair it can cause brittleness and sometimes a greenish hue. Use moisturizing shampoo and conditioners to add nutrients back into your hair.

You'll be swimming to healthy hair in no time!
Love, The Happy Hair Stylist