We’ve noticed some serious hair trends lately and with all of the buzz with colored tips, we’re wondering what you think of this hot new look. With the fun neon colors that are in style for this upcoming spring, it’s only suitable to sport tipped out hair with vibrant colors as well.

The buzz began when Lauren Conrad wore tipped hair and posted all about it on The Beauty Department blog. Since that point, as well as seeing this daring look on several other celebs, it’s become a hot trend that’s fun and gorgeous.

There are however pros and cons to this look, so we thought we’d mention them and then have you decide whether this look is for you.

Pro: If you have long locks tipping your hair is a quick and easy style to implement. If you grow tired of your tipped locks, longer hair doesn’t have to pay the price. Simply trim off the 2-3″ that have color and start fresh without tipped hair!

Con: If you have short locks it is quite risky to give this trend a shot. If you don’t like the look after it’s already in your hair, you risk losing more length, especially if you are currently trying to grow your hair back. So we suggest that you make sure your hair is at least several inches past your collar bone in order to try this trend. Otherwise you risk cutting of 3-4″ inches of your hair when the colors fade out.

Pro: This is a fun and fresh new look for the spring and summer time. With both of these seasons underway, it’s really hard to say no to tipped hair. Why? It’s gorgeous for vacations and goes with a number of outfits – especially florals and bold colors like corals and pinks. Gorgeous!

Con: If you work for a company and have to go to an office every day, your boss and company may not support any type of color (besides the natural colors) in your hair. Before you try this out be sure to check with your HR department to double check if this is alright or not.

Pro: If you are into the fashion industry, are a freelancer, or are on the hunt for a new look, this certainly will provide a touch of color to your locks! Go bold and enjoy a fun hair style that has great color and fits in with the current trends as well.

So what do you think –

to tip or not to tip?

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a note on Facebook or Twitter and let us know!

 

Keeping your hair healthy means having a good diet with the proper vitamins. Vitamins play a huge part in how shiny, durable, and long-lasting your hair is. Some of the main vitamins that help hair look beautiful are vitamins A, B, and C. If you’re wondering how each vitamin specifically helps your hair maintain it’s natural luster, then read on.

Vitamin A

This vitamin helps produce natural oil for your hair and the oil keeps your scalp from becoming overly dry. It also prevents more than a just a dry scalp, for example, it prevents dandruff and other scalp problems that come up from time to time. What food items do you find vitamin A in? You’ll find it in food such as spinach, carrots, milk, and meat. You should have at least a few servings of food that have this vitamin every day to keep your scalp is excellent condition. No one likes dealing with a dry and flaky scalp!

Vitamin B3

Let’s talk about vitamin B3. You can feed your body with this vitamin by eating wheat, meat, nuts, and more. For a complete list for this vitamin and other vitamins, Google it or use another favorite search engine or browser. As well as providing a positive oil circulation on your scalp, this vitamin, as well as B5, B6, and B12 all help with your scalp maintaining a good amount of hair among other positive hair attributes. To much hair loss happens not only because of scary health situations, but it also can happen if you’re not implementing enough vitamins into your diet.

If you are wondering how you incorporate other B vitamins into your diet,  B5 is found in grains, egg yolks, and yeast. B6  is found in whole grains, brewer’s yeast and organ meats. If you haven’t been eating enough of your B vitamins we’d suggest heading to a healthy store and stocking up!

Vitamin C

Vitamin C works mainly to keep your skin (ie complexion) beautiful and bright. In addition your skin though, in the same way it also brings out your hair’s healthy shine and makes it look beautiful. Find vitamin C in citrus fruits, strawberries, tomatoes and potatoes.

So there you have it…the scoop on some of your vital vitamins that should be incorporated into your diet. So what do you think – have you been implementing enough vitamins into your diet? There’s always room for improvement and the outcome from taking these vitamins or eating them through healthy foods is nothing but positive. Beautiful and shiny locks are always the way to go!

 

 

In follow up to our post last month, Coloring Your Perfect Locks Hair at Home, we’re back to give you more specific instructions on how to color your hair at home on your own!

As a refresher here are the supplies you will need for dying  your hair:

Here’s a brief list:

• Plastic gloves – this usually comes in the kit
• Old button-down shirt or old tee-shirt
• Vaseline
• Damp rag for any potential messes
• Hair clip
• Wide tooth comb
• Old towel
• Big safety pin

If you check out the instructions on the color box, you’ll probably notice that it says to test the color out on a few strands of hair first. You can go ahead and do this if this is the first time you are coloring your hair, but if you think you are familiar enough with coloring your hair you can go ahead and skip this step. Of course it’s important to make sure this is the color that you like, so testing it on a strand of hair is better than coloring all of your hair strands the wrong shade!

Do not wash your hair the day that you decide to color your hair. You won’t have enough oil in your hair to absorb the color. Hair professionals recommend waiting at least 24-48 hours before coloring your hair.

After you’ve made sure this is the color you want to dye your hair with, it’s time to put vaseline all around your hairline to protect it from the hair dye.

Now it’s time to mix those colors up! Follow the directions on the box and use a comb to separate your hair into 4 sections. Start on one of the sections and pull out a smaller section from the larger section. Color the small section and make sure it’s put into your hair thoroughly. As you start applying the color, begin with your roots and work your way to the ends of your hair. As soon as you reach the end, pin the colored section of hair on the top of your head.

Next look at the box again and read how much time you need to wait. If you have a lot of grey or white hair you need to wait the entire length of time. If you don’t have white or grey hair you may not have to wait the entire length of time. You will be able to tell if the color is being processed.

After rinsing out the color, apply the conditioner that comes with your color kit. But keep the conditioner in your hair up to 48 hours before you wash it out. This way the dye will fully penetrate your locks or hair extensions and the result is that you’ll have the color you desire! Your hair should look beautiful with the new color that you desire! If you want to touch up your hair wait an adequate 4-8 weeks.

Want simple highlights?

Go out and find a second box of hair color that comes in a shade or two lighter. You can now create highlights around your face or on top of your hair. Using the paint brush, paint the sections of your hair where you want the highlights. Paint it either thick or thin depending on the look you’re trying to achieve.

So what you think? Easy, right? We hope you have fun coloring your hair at home and if you aren’t sure how it’s going to turn out (it should turn out great!) stick with semi-permanent dye. That way if you make a mistake it won’t be as difficult to get out. But never fear, that hair salon is always near.

 

Thandie Newton, born November 6th, 1972, is an English actress that has starred in many films that you’re most likely familiar with. These films include The Pursuit of Happyness, Mission: Impossible II, W., Crash, and more. She made her film debut in the film named Flirting where she became friends with Nicole Kidman, whom she is still friends with today.

Newton has gone through hardships but has excelled despite them. These hardships include her suffering from bulemia in the past and going through a trying relationship that did not work out with a director. She was with the director for 16 years who was 23 years her senior.

Today Thandie is excelling in films and gracing the world with her beauty. Her style is very classy, elegant, and modest. Her most recent films include Retreat and an upcoming film titled Good Deads. Today Thandie is happily married and has two daughters with her husband Ol Parker.

Thandie also desires to make a change in the world and her grace and beauty is show through other ways besides her fashionable style.

According to Wikipedia, she contributed a foreword to We Wish: Hopes and Dreams of Cornwall’s Children. This is a book that consists of children’s writing published in aid of the NSPCC. In the forward Newton writes honestly about her childhood memories of growing up in Cornwall and the way the county’s vibrant cultural heritage made it easy for her to “enrich every situation with layers of magic and meaning.” She’s also has contributed to causes and visited foreign countries desiring to make a change in suffering people’s lives.

What can we take from her style?

She loves to dress in beautiful yet simple clothing. Find her in a frilly and girlie top that looks simple yet stunning paired against her beautiful skin tone and minimal makeup. Thandie’s skin just glows with radiance and her simple eye makeup is minimal because she already has plenty of natural beauty! She also sticks to neutral colors and light pinks. Her curls in this picture to the left look gorgeous paired against a ruffle top and neutral makeup on her face.

Whether Thandie has worn hair extensions has yet to be made known, but we think with her subtle layers and thick locks that she might have incorporated a half lace wig. What do you think?

We hope you’ve learned a little bit more about this stunning actress. Not only does she exemplify beauty in her life – but her locks, makeup, and style are beautiful too!

 

We’re about to talk about…chemistry?? Yes, we are, but we promise we have a point. Read on to find out what chemistry has to do with your locks!

Explaining the pH Scale

The pH scale, which is the same scale for chemistry, is basically a way to  measure how acidic or alkaline a substance is. The scale begins at a zero and ends at 14. Zero is the most acidic and14 is the most alkaline. The middle ground, approximately seven, is neutral. If a substance falls above or below seven, the acidic or alkaline level increases quite a bit. For instance, if something  ranks as a 5 on the pH scale this would mean that this substance would be 10 times more acidic than something that ranks a 6.

pH and What Amount is Found in Hair Care Products

Did you know that your hair has a pH level of anywhere from 4.5 to 5.5? Since water ranges from anywhere between a 5-7 this means that occasionally hair can be even more acidic than water is.

This means that hair care products that are made more acidic than water work fantastic at cleansing your hair. They’ll cleanse your locks of all of its impurities such as dirt, oil, and more. If you have sensitive skin or fine hair though, acidic products aren’t for you. That’s why Baby Shampoo and similar hair care products are recommended for babies so that their hair and scalp does not get damaged. Plus, products with a high pH is not recommended for curly hair types. Read on to find out why…

How a High pH Damages Your Hair

If you have curly locks you don’t want to go with products that have a lot of alkaline. High acidic products include ingredients such as ammonia, bleach, and peroxide. Hair dyes, perms and other products also are included in this group. This means it’s important to keep your Curly Virgin Indian Hair Weave away from products that have a high pH. Acidic products lead to dry locks with lots of frizz. No one likes frizz now do they?

How to Tell if a Product has a High or Low pH Level

Occasionally you’ll find the pH listed on a hair product bottle, but not all of the time. If you do come across the pH it’s hard to figure out if it’s accurate or not. Really the only way to determine the pH of a hair product is to perform a litmus test. Don’t be surprised if a hair care product ranks way too high for your locks.

If you find out your products  have way too much acid, replace them with some low pH products stat. You may be drying out your locks without even knowing it! Go on a hunt for some good conditioners asap and make sure the pH isn’t that high! Try looking for a product that’s made especially for curly locks so that it’s designed to help prevent frizz and not cause it.

Remove the pH on Your Own

If you can’t afford to replace all of your hair products (who can?!) try adding something acidic (such as lemon juice) to tone the pH down. Baking soda will also do the trick at neutralizing your products.

Now it’s time to figure out if the pH in your hair products is too high or too low. It’s essential to find this out so that you know whether your hair is getting the proper treatment or not. Good luck!