Hair

The Goody Summer Waves Roller Project: Have You Ever Used Foam Curlers Before?

May 17th, 2011 by Karen 41 Comments

Have you used foam curlers before?

The other day I realized that in all my years of experimenting with different hair styling doodads, I’ve never once used foam curlers. No particular reason why. I think I just fell in love with my curling iron at a young age.

But since I’ve been hitting the curling iron a lot lately, now might be a good time to give foam curlers a try.

I can remember my granny rolling foam curlers into her wet hair before going to bed, so I plan to do the same with the Goody Summer Waves Rollers ($10 for 15 rollers) some time this week. They’re designed to build big, loose beachy waves instead of dense, tight curls.

I did a bit of research online and came up with the following steps to hopefully make The Goody Summer Waves Roller Project a curly success. 🙂

1. Work in sections

At the scalp, collect about a 2-inch lock of hair in one of your hands (measured about 2 inches along the scalp, as opposed to the length of the hair shaft).

2. Decide on the size of the curls you want

The volume of hair you wrap around each curler determines how tight or loose the curls are. For tight curls, wrap less hair; for loose curls, wrap more.

3. Coat hair with a styling product (optional)

This seems to be an optional step. I’ll probably use a soft hold hairspray, since my hair usually needs the help of a styling product to keep it under control. I’ve also read that a light application of mousse works well.
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$5 TRESemmÃ© Tres Two Extra Hold Hairspray Brings Back Aqua Net Memories for Me

May 5th, 2011 by Karen 18 Comments

TRESemme Tres Two Hairspray

I was really hoping my run of good luck with drugstore haircare products would continue when I gave TRESemmÃ©’s Tres Two Extra Hold Hairspray a try. It’s supposed to offer excellent hold, frizz control and 24-hour humidity resistance without leaving hair crunchy or stiff. All good things, and I was mostly interested in seeing how well it controlled fly-away hairs.

As soon as I caught my first whiff of the stuff, I knew things weren’t working out. It has that classic old-school hairspray scent — like the way high school bathrooms used to smell during the Aqua Net years.

Ingredients

Alcohol Denat., Hydrofluorocarbon 152A, VA/Crotonates, Vinyl Neodecanoate Copolymer, Octylacrylamide, Acrylates, Butylaminoethyl Methacrylate Copolymer, Aminomethyl Propanol, Dimethyl Stearamine, Fragrance (Parfum), Linalool, Limonene, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Amyl Cinnamal, Hexyl Cinnamal, Citronellol, Geraniol

But if I pinch my nose, I like almost everything else about it — the price ($5 for a big 11-oz. can), how soft and shiny it leaves my hair, how it retains the volume in my style and how it doesn’t flake when I run a brush through it.
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Holy Mother of Pearl! Goody’s New Pearlized Shell Headwrap Delivers a Luxe Look for Less

April 20th, 2011 by Karen 41 Comments

When it comes to hair accessories, I’m a gal of simple tastes. I’ll do black ponytail holders and Spin Pins; sometimes I’ll even rock a scrunchie around the house (hey, they’re comfortable), but Goody’s new slew of spring headgear has me rethinking my minimalist ways.

Their Modern Organica Collection, available now at Target, features a bevy of new barrettes, headbands, headwraps and clips with an earthy theme, some of which would probably be more expensive on the shelves of a department store.

This $7 Pearlized Shell Headwrap has a non-rigid elastic band with braided fabric and shell accents (like mother-of-pearl). It’s available in beige, brown and black.

For what it’s worth, the neutral brown one seems to go well with white, pink, beige, peach, orange and blue shirts… I have a feeling there won’t be an accompanying color it doesn’t like.

Got a khaki or white dress? Pair it with one of these, add pearl earrings and gold bangles, and you’re good(y) to go.
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The $5 Goody Reversible Headband Makes for Goody, Clean Fun

April 18th, 2011 by Karen 26 Comments

Goody Reversible Headband

Maybe I’m just way too easily amused, but I can see myself having a lot of fun with these new Goody Reversible Headbands ($5).

These fabric wrapped headbands are double sided, so when you feel like switching up your look, all you have to do is move the fabric to reveal the other side. It’s like getting two headbands for the price of one.

One minute, I’m sitting in a crowded boardroom. “Pardon me, everyone,” I say, getting up from my seat. “I’ll be right back.” I walk out of the room and around the corner, reverse the headband, and then nonchalantly walk back to my seat. Hehe… Psyche! 🙂

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The Beauty of Baking Soda

April 16th, 2011 by Karen 34 Comments

Written by Sam

Ladies and gentlemen, our next speaker asked if he could bring a pantry out on stage with him. Put your hands together for DIY beauty, and let’s give it up for Sam, as he shares the beauty of baking soda in today’s guest post.

The Beauty of Baking Soda

The girl before me finishes her story, and the applause of the crowd follows her off the stage. I take a breath, hold it. Release. The sound dies down, slowly. Someone just has to get that last clap. I let them do it, then walk up to the podium. I wish they had left some water or something up here.

“Hi, I’m Sam, and I’ve recently discovered the wonders of baking soda.”

They raise their eyes from their phones momentarily, then return to the glow of the screen. I get it. It’s been a long day of…well, the pamphlet called it a “Self-Improvement Seminar.” One kid in the front row rocks back and forth on his folding chair, the old metal creaking faintly. It’s distracting.

“You know,” I begin, “it started relatively tamely. I love to bake. Cookies, cakes, sachertortes… You name it. Anyway. Lots of recipes call for baking soda. It’s a leavening agent. Reacts with acids to release carbon dioxide. Simple stuff.

“But then one day, I spilled a bunch of it all over. My hands were covered in it, like, totally white.” It’s kinda funny how vividly I recall all of this stuff now. I really should have written a script or something, but winging it seemed appropriate in this venue. “So, just like anyone would, I went to the sink, pumped some soap out, and started to wash it off. But something happened. The stuff mixed with the soap, made a paste, ya know? Real bubbly. By the time I was done, my hands were soft. Like, soft soft. I couldn’t stop touching them. I’ve always had a thing for textures and the like. So I did it again.

“Maybe once a day to start, I’d grab a bit of the stuff out the pantry and just make a big bowl of paste with it and some soap, and just scrub. My hands felt so good. After a while, I thought, â€˜What if there’s more?’. But it didn’t come to me until a few days later in the shower. As I was massaging a bit of my regular drugstore exfoliator over my face, I stopped, and it was just like… yeah. I could totally use baking soda for this!”
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Get Soft, Bouncy Volume with $3 Suave Touchable Finish Hairspray

April 5th, 2011 by Karen 63 Comments

Suave Touchable Finish

Can I just say that I’ve been having a serious Suave moment lately? I tried their Dry Shampoo a couple weeks ago and was blown away by how well it worked — and not just because it’s $3.

Turns out their new Touchable Finish Hairspray is another $3 gem. An aerosol hairspray designed to add light hold without weighing hair down, it’s designed to compete with Sebastian Zero Gravity Hairspray, which costs about $10 more.

I’ve never tried Sebastian’s version before, but now that I’ve found this one, I may not have to. 🙂

When I apply Touchable Finish before and after using my curling iron to style my hair, I’m shocked by how soft, bouncy and voluminous my curls look.

I like the light citrus scent and the fact that it dries so quickly (takes about a minute). Suave says the product’s anhydrous formula (which means it doesn’t contain water) accelerates drying time.

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Bumble and Bumble Has a Lock on Tousled Hair with New Texture Hair (Un)dressing Creme

April 1st, 2011 by Karen 18 Comments

Can I give you a lift?

Um, no, I will not drive you to In-N-Out (even though I really want to!).

I’m referring to lifts of the hair care variety, like the kind you get from the new Bumble and Bumble Texture Hair (Un)dressing Creme ($26 for a 5-oz. bottle).

When I popped into the salon for a bang trim last week, Alis, my stylist/miracle worker, introduced me to it. She called it her favorite product from the Bumble and Bumble line.

Designed for all hair types, it’s a thick, flexible hold styling creme for lived-in, tousled, messily undone looks, and this is neat — it dries to a matte finish (kinda different!).

I didn’t think I needed another hair styling product in my life, but I’m glad I found this one. I’ve been using it for about a week to tame my bangs and lift my roots at the crown, and damn — I kindasorta love it.

Right away I liked the light, beachy scent, but I was a little unsure about the texture. It’s thick AND sticky. When it dries, though, it doesn’t feel sticky at all, and it leaves my hair touchably soft with flexible hold.

Now, this isn’t one of those products you can just throw on and go; you do have to jump through a few hoops to help it reach its potential.

Here’s the smaller 2-oz. tube beside an iPhone (and a husky tabby) for scale…

The first hoop, Alis says, is to use it on damp hair. The slippery wet strands help distribute the product more evenly. Alis likes to go a step further by applying a spray-on conditioner first, like Bumble & Bumble Prep or Tonic ($18 each). I prefer Tonic, which is Bumble’s “heavier” spray conditioner, on my thick, course hair.
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I Think I’m Letting Amika Obliphica Sea Buckthorn Berry Hair Oil Slip Through My Fingers

March 28th, 2011 by Karen 15 Comments

Well bathe me in oil and call me grease lightning! Today I’m channeling my inner fry cook with a look at a slick hair styling product called Amika Obliphica Oil.

Now, should I ever find myself longing for more grease in my life, I’ll be able to turn to Amika’s (Sea Buckthorn Berry) Obliphica Pure Oil ($38), a hair oil treatment with a texture so greasy, it rivals KFC!

Amika, makers of great flat irons and curlers, designed Obliphica to hydrate, de-frizz and condition medium weight to thick hair. I’ve used and liked other oil treatments before, so I had pretty high hopes for this.

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