Root Touch Up Spray

This post goes out to all of the natural dirty blondes. You know who you are. You were born with blonde hair that started out close to white, transformed to golden, and as you got a little older gradually darkened to a dull shade of meh. You’re adult life has been comprised of dropping a couple hundred a few times a year to restore its former luminance with highlights weaving glorious light streaks into the boring dark blonde. Yet, as someone who is already blonde, you tend to stretch out the time in between salon visits because, well, roots just take a while to be noticeable. No? Is that just me?

I happen to also have been gifted with naturally extremely fine (read: extremely prone to snarling) hair that seems to get a little more susceptible to rat’s nests each time I color it. In the interest of cutting down my combing time, and giving my strands a chance to revive in between dye treatments, I tend to stretch the time between root touch ups as much as possible. In this particular month, I’m holding out to get the cut closer to one of my best friend’s weddings. I’m a bridesmaid, and I want my hair to look fab in the pictures.

I know. 2-toned hair is in style right now, giving you more freedom to leave ends not matching the crown. And yet, despite my stellar motivations, I look in the mirror and my roots are crying out to be colored.

Enter the miracle of John Frieda. For $10 a bottle you can blend your color for a couple weeks until you can get an appointment with your favorite stylist. It’s called Sheer Blonde Go Blonder Controlled Lightening Spray. You apply to damp hair only on the sections needing a little touch up, blow dry as normal, and your roots disappear. Genius.

"Sitting in front of a fan" is the NEW "Blow-drying your hair"

With the ridiculous heat waves that have been going on in the North East, it is just too darn hot and too darn humid to blow dry your hair. Even in an air conditioned room, it is nearly impossible to cool down after blasting hot air in your face for the anywhere from 5-20 minutes it takes you to attain the perfect coif.

Now normally, I consider going to work with wet hair unprofessional. You just can't pull off a neat and organized employee (not matter how snappy your outfit) if your hair is sopping wet. It just screams, I didn't manage my time effectively. And I know, it happens to the best of us. Some days our alarm just doesn't go off, or an outfit crisis steals all the time that would have been spent blow drying. It is better to be on time than late for sure.

Yet this summer, I just can't bring myself to use my blow dryer. Hence my new summer hair techniques. My favorite is showering the night before and putting my hair in pin curls or a braid for a curly look that also cuts down on time spent getting ready. But when I don't sufficiently plan ahead, I point a fan directly at my mane and sit for about 5 minutes until the very top layer is dry. Then twist into a bun at the nape of your neck, or pull into a side braid and I'm out the door with no heat styling required. The photo above just gave me the idea of throwing a little fine glitter into the breeze for a fancy do (though this probably wouldn't be work appropriate). As an added bonus, your hair won't stick to your neck on the walk to the subway AND when you take the bun out later before meeting the girls after work you will have lovely waves, no curling iron necessary!

Efficiency and staying cool. Beat that blow dryer.

Roller clips vs. Roller Pins

I recently received a set of hot rollers. It makes me feel a little like a granny owning a set of these, but with long hair and little time to get ready for work in the morning, they really do wondrous things. When I had shorter hair, rollers were not my friends. They left it looking poodley at best, and frizzy at worst. However, now that my hair is longer, they give it a nice curl on the ends, while keeping it smooth and shiny on the top. It essentially looks like I spent some serious time with a curling iron coiling all the ends, but with way less effort.

Granted, there is a special technique to acheive long lasting curl from rollers. You must roll a strip of hair down the center of your head from front to back in 4 rollers then roll the sides in about 2 for each side. You have to wait until they are almost burn your fingers hot, and let them set with the clips in until they cool. Then unroll, replace in their container, flip head over, shake, and you're done. Voila! Natural, bouncy curls that stay longer than with a curling iron (for me at least) and with only one final coat of hair spray at the end rather than spritzing each section before twirling it around an iron.

This is the first set of curlers I've owned since just stealing them from my mom or my sister, and there have been some changes since their sets were made. First of all, there are different clips. The clips mine came with (shown above) are plastic little claws that claim to hold tight without crimping hair. YES, it even said that on the box. Which is one of the reasons I thoguht this was the right set of curlers for me.

Now let's rewind to about 5 minutes before I'm supposed to run out the door this morning. I'm all dressed, teeth brushed, and I start to unroll my hair, ready to shake, spray and run out the door looking fab. I take out 1, 2, 3, ALL of the rollers and my head is peppered with crimps every single place the clip touched my hair. HORROR! DISMAY! I'm going to be late!

After a quick rummage around the apartment for a hair straigtener, and finding none, I had no choice but to pull my ruined hair into a pony tail and dash out the door. I was NOT happy to hide my bouncing curls with a rubberband, but the whole head kinks did not leave me much choice.

I don't know why they don't make curlers anymore that come with the wires shown below. Not only do they pin the curler to your head more securely (so you don't risk hot rollers falling out and flying across the living room while you're ironing your outfit....not that that happened this morning or anything), but they DO NOT and HAVE NOT ever left a kink in my hair.

I know I plan to order some roller wires online to go with my set to avoid this catastrophe in the future. But don't be fooled like me! The box lies, and the clips will crimp your hair.

Side Ponies Make a Comeback!

I have a little theory that I'm in the process of testing. I like to call it the Side Pony Principle: How to Use the Power of Hair to Conquer the World. It all started about four days ago when I was running late to meet a friend and sweating excessively in my humid NYC apartment. Encouraged my my 80's loving and fashion forward room mate, I pulled my hair into a scrunched up side pony. I had parted my hair deep on the left to the right side, and balled up my hair into a loose little nest on the right side of my head, just below my ear. It kind of went with my tropical outfit, picture a hibiscus tucked behind the ear. It also kind of reminded me of my days of neon, stretch pants and side ponies that I loved. I was sold.

So, I had to go to work later that day, side pony intact, and the response was magnificent. Every single table tipped me over 20%. It could be that the nice summer weather had them in a good mood, or that they felt bad for me working with such a severe sunburn, OR it could be that the side pony had worked some magic on my customers.

Now, here comes trial day two. I pulled out the side pony for another run at my next shift. The money was just too good to be shunning anything that could have been involved in my turn of good luck. This time, minus the sunburn, and with much nastier weather, the tips continued! I even tried purposely being a little rude to a couple tables to see if it was just my improved mood making my tips rise. No change. Solid over 20% tips all around! A male co-worker even told me my hair looked sexy, when normally all he does is shrug and say what up.

Could it be? Is the world finally ready for the side pony to be revived? A few years ago before the resurgence of 80's trends we've been enjoying, and the anything goes recession fashion mentality, a side pony tail would have been mocked and just a slightly crooked hair do. Now, however, the side pony is praised and rewarded with extra money!

I think that now the time is just right for this old favorite to make it's comeback!! I, for one, am pretty excited about it.

Manscaping: The Male Stylist Experience

The are a large number of Eastern European male hair stylists in NYC.  I don't know if anyone else has noticed this trend.  You can recognize them by their tight pants, buzz cut, and mysterious accent.  Oh, and also by their overly sexualized demeanor that manages to fit hooking up or the possibility of it into every nuance of every phrase.  

With the Eastern European male stylist, your relationship status somehow makes its way into your initial consultation to the tune of, "Are you married?  Have boyfriend?  Why not?  Such a pretty woman!"  They make comments like "Why so relaxed?  It must be my hands, they work magic on your head."  They are extremely touchy, caressing your cheek while painting a foil, and straddling your legs to get the perfect front blow out.  Then will proclaim that they are married, and thus are not available, as if you are the one making all these advances.  Although I am not totally convinced that this isn't just a farce to make you feel a little less sexually harassed.  

I have always been a little skeptical of the male stylist.  Call me sexist all you want, but I just haven't trusted my hair in their hands unless they have long flowing Fabio style locks that assure me they know how to manage something more complex than a bowl cut.  

Recently, however, I have found myself being styled by three different men--all of European descent.  What can I say?  I'm a desperate girl since my longtime colorist abandoned me and feeling a little spurned since all she wanted to do is to have another baby---at least I can count on these men not to do that!  I haven't bridged the hair cut gap yet, but I've relaxed enough to let them try out their skills on my highlights.  I mean it would be pretty tough to mess up blond hair color anyways, why not take a gamble. 

And in the end, the risk was worthwhile!  All innuendo aside, my most recent salon visit was a very successful, if sensual experience.  I liked my stylist's attitude from the start when he told me how he understands how all blonds just want to be blonder.  Then I received the tiniest most perfect highlights combined with a peppermint shampoo treatment that left my scalp refreshed and tingly along with a fifteen minute head and neck massage.  Then the blow out was top notch.  I walked out of the salon with my fine hair moussed into the bombshell waves that every girl craves.  

So, maybe all the excessive touching and inappropriate comments were worthwhile.  Or maybe I just notice all the touching more since it is a man rather than a woman wielding the combs.  I wonder if this is how men feel every time they go to the salon, a little violated, but happy with the end result?  My stylist's name was Picasso, and he treated my hair like a work of art, and I would most definitely recommend him to a friend.

Chinatown's Hidden Gem

If you're looking for a cheap and WONDERFUL wash, hair cut, and dry, check out D + W Salon in Chinatown.  It's at 107 East Broadway.  In this little beauty wonderland, you get all of the above and a 15 minute head massage during your wash for only 20 bucks!!  

One caveat: unless you speak Mandarin, ask for Eric.  He is just the right combo of chatty, and quiet, and his long flowing locks make you trust him with your hair.  Also, he doubles as a tattoo artist in case you want to get inked up after your blow out.

In short, the whole experience was fabulous, and it's the best cut I've had in a while.  I would recommend him to everyone.