New Year, New Hair

Happy New Year!

With a new year comes many different things, one of them being new hair! Or rather, a new hairdo. I gone done it. I had my hair chopped. It's so bouncy and really curl now and although it's quite a bit shorter than i had originally thought, I actually quite like it now. It's taken no time to get used to although i really should try to style it better, perhaps with the tongs to get more beachy waves. That's if I can be bothered.

the self: glasses by Celine

I'd been wanting to have my hair cut for ages and with each passing day Pinterest and Instagram were throwing at me so much fodder in the 'hair' sections I just had to book the appointment and go for it. I really wish I could get the hairdresser to cut my hair when it's dry though. Can anyone tell me why they won't cut curly hair dry? It's so much better to see the way it sits naturally than when wet. Hence the reason i now have corkscrew curls at the nape of my neck! Also, why do they suggest that curly haired girls style their hair by applying a cream then twisting sections and either blow drying or leaving to dry naturally. When I've had that done (twice) it looked a mess and left me feeling like I'd just walked out of a bush. It isn't nice at all. No, I just apply product and leave to dry naturally.

I finally got the last few bits of that out of date ombre colour cut off the back but it's left me my colour a bit flat so I'll be looking to get a few bits added back in in the near future.

side view: curls my own, glasses by Ray-Ban and yes I was deciding between two pairs

Now, if any fellow curly girls know of good styling products that don't give you that crunchy wet look do let me know. I'm using a curl cream and some Oribe Surfcomber mousse at the moment which is good but really expensive.

Angela

That Perfect Ombre Hair: the search goes on...

So, I got my hair done again last week after a little over 5 months. I went back to the same place, and frankly I'm a little disappointed with it. So much so that i spent the past few days researching THE perfect hair colour for me on different websites based in places as far reached as LA to Miami to London. Argh, does anyone else have this much angst when you're getting your hair done? I swear I'm more scared of the hairdressers than the dentist. Serious.

Anyone, you might wonder what went wrong this time. Well, I don't really know except the colour is totally wrong for me. My much desired perfect ombre looks like grown out highlights with a hint of the dreaded stripey look on the sides. Serious. I don't like it that much. I mean, it's passable for summer. You could say the base colour (which I wanted just like my natural colour), looks like the 'sun-in' look from the 1990's. Oh yes people. I used to spray that stuff on my hair hoping for that sun-kissed look, but what you actually ended up with was, well, not exactly that.

That's my current base colour. With blonder bits at the end, which i did ask for. I just expected it to be nice and blended. Which is sort of is and in the salon it did look very nice. But on closer micro inspection in my 5x optical mirror, I can see the edges of where the blonde starts and ends. And I can definitely see a ginger tinge in the base colour. OMG.

Crap. I'll have to let it grow for a month or so and see what evolves. It usually ends up okay once the colour starts to fade a little bit. Fingers crossed.

Anyway, I've decided that the only person I'd trust now to do my hair in Mr Johnny Ramirez. Unfortunately there's about 5000 miles and a big wide ocean that separates us. (You don't know how many fingers and toes I had crossed on Friday night to win that EuroMillions lottery so that I could visit his LA salon. Serious). Anyway, I absolutely adore his work. I follow his website, Box No 216, 'Like' his Facebook page, found RamirezTran on Tumblr, and Instagram.com/ramireztransalon and I'm always excited when they post a new 'in the salon with..' story every couple of days. Yes, I'm obsessed in that 'I love your work' way, not in a stalkery way!

He seems like a genius with hair colour. And his partner in crime, Anh Co Tran, seems like a genius with a pair of scissors. Reading the stories, they often spend up to 8-10 hours in the salon with a client to get the colour just right. Just right! Wouldn't that be great! How many times have we been whisked in and out in 2 hours in our salons here in the UK, whilst in-between your colour and cut your stylist heads of the cut Jessie's hair who has popped in on the off chance of a last minute appointment. Not exactly customer care. I know they have to make money but it does feel like a bit of a conveyor belt instead of good customer care, at times.

Anyway, to say I would DO ANYTHING for a chance to have Ramirez Tran let loose on my hair would be an understatement. If I had the money I'd be out there in a flash. With each photo that's posted I am so jealous of those women who have their colour perfected by the man himself. He's famous for his well blended, faded even, ombre look. Ombre incase you didn't know is like really grown out highlights (darker roots and lighter ends) here in the UK. In Johnny's chair you get baby-like hair. You know when you were a kid and it was those long hot summers (I know, we're in the UK but humour me)? anyway your hair was sun-lightened around the face and the ends were lighter too because your mum always tied your hair in a ponytail. Well, you know that hair? That's what he's famous for.

Hair that I would absolutely LOVE.

I mean, the only other haircut and colour that has been pretty much perfect for me was when I visited London salon Jones and Payne and Charlotte coloured my hair. She pretty much gave me my own hair colour as a base and then lightened my ends a little bit. I loved that hair too. (Oh and the reason I need my base colour done is that since I'm mid-twenties (ahem, okay I mean thirties!), there is a little bit of silver slivers showing through now. It happens to us all. Otherwise I would never get my base colour done. Sadly I need to. But when Charlotte coloured me, she pretty much nailed my colour. That was 2 years ago and I've been striving for that ever since.

The reason I'm bothered so much is that my hair is pretty much my favourite thing about me. Apart from my flat stomach - wink. No, but seriously, some people don't mind using packet dyes but I'd be too nervous to do that myself. Plus I don't want to damage my hair further. The ends are now a bit dry due to the bleach that was used to lighten them. No, I'll wait a month or two and try to get it corrected or coloured with a flat, non ginger-tinged natural looking base colour. I wonder if that's possible?

Until then I'll try not to let it dent my confidence and I'll leave you with a few pictures of what my ideal hair colour would be. You can also find more examples of my favourite hair on my 'Hair I Love' Pinterest board.



This is pretty much what I'd ideally like...




OR this...



Or this...



You get the idea. Lovely, natural looking faded ombre hair colour.

Please someone in the universe, make this happen?!
Love, Angela X

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New hair-do, and I like it!

It's fair to say that my hair is really important to me. I'd say my curly hair is one of my distinguishable features. I love my curly hair, and if you've read here before you'll know the anguish I've gone through trying to find a hairdresser that i can go to regularly. My last attempt was a disaster that left me feeling rather rubbish. Mane Street: read about that here.

Anyway, *let the angelic choir sing* I think I've found the one.

I went back to Rainbow Room in Stirling and got the salon director Will to give my hair a much needed seeing to. After my last hair-don't, I said that I wanted ombre again but not the harsh dark at the top and really light at the ends. I wanted a more blended ombre. My consultation lasted a good 15-20 minutes. He asked me loads of questions about how I like to wear my hair, what exactly did I want and what did i not want. He suggested colours, told me which way he'd be doing it, told me how he was going to cut it and then style it. It sounded great. 

The assistant put a conditioning treatment on first and gave me a head and shoulder massage. He then washed off the treatment and then Will set about cutting it. Afterwards he rough dried and started on the colour. At the very ends I had a conditioning treatment applied, mid section was a blonde colour and then any remaining hair had the main colour applied. This was all left on for about 40 minutes with regular checks in between times. Then it was time to have the colour washed out. Afterwards I got another treatment applied and a second head massage - bliss. Then it was time to style it. 

He applied a leave in conditioner, a hair oil and a curl cream. He applied it to the ends first and then ran it  through the roots. Next he took sections and twisted them around his finger. Once my full head had these twisted sections he started drying it with the hairdryer and diffuser. I'd had this done before and was sceptical but actually, this time it turned out really lovely. When he was done he showed me the back with a mirror. Wow I was surprised. The curls were great and the colour was just right. 

Since we're still in winter my main colour is a mid brown that is my own natural colour but more shiny and a bit 'brighter'. There's a few golden blonde strands through the mid length and underneath there are lighter blonde-ish sections. This gives the effect of grown out sun-kissed ombred hair. I like it. It's gotten rid of that harsh dark brown and harsh bleach blonde ombre effect that I had. The cut is great too. He cut a few inches off the length, cit long layers into the back and sides and then twisted sections and cut downwards with the scissors. This gives the curls some extra bounce as well as making them thin out towards the ends. I really do love the way it sits now.

Lighter, more delicate ombre ends

I was really pleased with the experience in the hairdressers. I was glad I went back to Rainbow room and paid that wee bit extra to have Will do my hair. He gave me ideas for my next colour appointment too, a few extra blonde strands through the back in the springtime! Can't wait. 

I skipped out of there with a smile on my face and hot footed it to H&M where they have all around mirrors so I could capture it on my phone. These pictures make the hair look a bit 'redder' than in real life as I was under their artificial lights. Now, a few days later and after one wash I can say that i absolutely love the cut and the colour is great too.

I'm so pleased with it. It's good when you feel you're hair is sitting great.

Angela x 

Fishtail braid and curls

Last weekend i decided i was going to try curling my hair with my new curling wand. It's an Enrapture Totem styler (currently on sale in certain places). I bought mine half price from Next online - good deal.

Anyway, yes i do have very nice naturally curly hair but it's the kind of curls that are really tight at the sides and front and falls into big waves at the back. And although I really do love my curly hair, I wanted to try that uniform big blow dry type of loose curl that sort of just hangs there and you can swoosh around. We all love a bit of swooshing don't we girls.

I washed my hair and let it air dry overnight. Sunday morning I straightened the hair (I have to do this first or it ends up a pure frizz ball). An hour later I set about it with the curling wand. It sort of worked - there are no pics. By the end of the day my own little tight curls started to appear around my hairline, well it was a drizzly day here in central Scotland.

On Monday i curled it some more and this time it was better. There's still no pics though. Duh! It sat well and i think i got the hang of this curling malarky.

On Tuesday I decided to try a fishtail braid what with my hair now becoming a little bit less clean than it had been the previous days. I managed to do it pretty quickly and so glad I tried it. It sat perfectly and managed to get me a few compliments - result!

first time fishtail braid - result!

This time i did manage to take a few snaps. They're a bit grainy due to the front facing iPhone camera less than perfect picture quality. (what a mouthful that was).

I also snapped this cute little curl that my hair managed to find its way to hang in during the day. love it.

Angela x

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Mane Street - an ode to my hair

This, dear readers, is a bit of a girly post, about my hair. If you follow me on Twitter or know me in real life, you'll know that my hair is really really important to me. It kinda defines me. perhaps my most distinguishable feature even. (or not). But anyway i love my curly hair. From an early age I've had long hair. Except that time in primary 6 for god knows whatever wild reason i decided to let the hairdresser who came to our house shave it off. When i say shave, i don't mean a buzz cut like Demi Moore in GI Jane, but rather a short cropped do. So short mum used to buy me 99p green jelly gel from the chemist so i could spike it. Yes, it was that short!

Anyway, through primary 6 and primary 7 i began to grow it out again for starting high school. I managed to do just that (with the aid of lots of kirby grips and clasps and various bobbles and scrunchies. I had so much i used to keep them in a tall sweetie jar.

Fast forward to today and i sit here typing with dark roots and blonde ends. Two weeks ago i decided it was time for my bi-annual visit to the hairdresser. So fussy am i, I've been searching for the perfect hairdresser for years. I did find one, in London town, Jones and Payne but unfortunately i can't just jump on a plane to get my hair done so i have to make do with some up here.

This time last year i went to (what i thought was) a pretty decent salon in Edinburgh. I don't mind paying more for my haircuts and colour because i generally only get it done twice a year these days. Anyway long story short, that hairdresser did not do what i wanted and I was left with hair the colour of Cheryl Cole's circa her XFactor appearances a few years ago. I kinda wrote about it here. It was dark. It was erring on the side of mahogany. I wanted my natural hair colour. I didn't get it. So I let that grow out. Until February this year.

Then i decided to stick to my local area and went to the Rainbow Rooms in Stirling. I was pleased with the colour. So pleased with it. It was almost perfect. I'd have preferred the very ends to be a bit lighter but hey we can't have everything. What i wasn't so pleased about was that after a pretty thorough consultation where the salon director even came across to make sure the stylist was doing the right colours and method of colouring, she must've been running late for her next appointment and got another junior member of staff to do the right hand side of my hair (without even going over method and colour to put on where). I didn't really like this. I could see that the girl wasn't doing what the stylist had done on my left side. Turns out you couldn't really tell after i was done but still, i knew what had happened. This kinda made me look elsewhere when the time came around.

Which took me to a salon in Glasgow, in the Merchant City area. I'd researched for while and this salon used the products that i use on my hair. On their website they promise much. I can tell you that's not what was delivered. Not to me anyway.

I asked for basically the same colours i already had but a tidy up. Brightening the ends. I go for the ombre look incase you didn't know. Anyway, when she brought the colours out i mentioned that the brown seemed a bit dark. Oh no it won't come out that dark on you, she said. I trusted her. Who am i to question. First warning bell was she started to colour the roots with the brown dye first. This is normally always the last bit they do. Next she was doing some balayage method with the blonde colours, there were two colours here. That was fine, I've had this done before. This took about 35 minutes. Now when she'd finished that the brown had been on that long. Then she left me to 'develop' for another good 45 minutes, meaning the brown had been on for way longer than normal. Ding ding ding. Eventually she got a junior to wash my hair. There appeared to be some concern about my hair at this point. They were scrubbing at my scalp and then seemed more interested in wiping the sink before anyone saw. I can only imagine the colour was dark it was staining the sink. I was trying not to panic. The salon was pretty darkly furnished with some down lights above each station. When i went back to the seat i thought it looked pretty dark on my head and tried to convince myself that when it was dry it'd lighten down a bit. Anyway, she cut my hair and then asked how I'd like it styled. I'm so over straightening of my hair. In fact i haven't done that for over a year. I told her i usually just add products then diffuse it dry. So she did that. Except i had to lean back on a chair myself and nearly get a crick in my neck because of it. I had to tell her and sit up straight it was so sore. She as nearly done anyway. I didn't like the style. I've found that most hairdressers cannot style curly hair. FACT.

Anyway, she asked what i thought. I said i thought it was a good cut but the colour was a bit dark. She said oh no it's just the lighting in here. Wow. Anyway, i got out of there as fast as i could. Luckily as i was a new customer it was half price. I paid £55 and i'm glad i didn't pay more. Needless to say i didn't say anything when i was there. Does anyone ever complain to hairdressers? I'd be really interested to know.

All the way home I couldn't help but think about it. I avoided catching sight of myself in shop mirrors. When i got home i fully inspected it. Urgh. Devastated. The colour on top is way too dark for my natural hair colour and the ends. OMG. It really doesn't blend well and looks like really grown out roots. Argh. That night i Googled hair colour corrections all night. But decided to sit it out and wait. I should've gone back to Rainbow Rooms who got the perfect colour, but it's quite expensive. I suppose you only get what you pay for, or do you? I'm torn. Since i only go to a hairdresser twice per year then surely it's worth spending a few extra pennies to get hair that I'm happy with. I will go back there but I'll get the salon director this time i think.

Anyway, two weeks on the colour has calmed down. It's still darker than I'd like on top but the back isn't so bad and the cut, well the cut is great. My curls sit nicely in a v shape down my back in that beachy style i love. That's a huge relief. I've already pencilled in a date in my calendar to book another hair appointment though. I just don't want to do it too soon and damage my hair further.

Whilst browsing for colour correction methods, I came across my new favourite website. Box No 216. It's a hair blog/site by Johnny Ramirez and i have been pinning away pictures like nobody's business on Pinterest. I adore the colours used. It's my dream colour. And apparently my dream colourist. It's a pity he's in USA and appears to do celebs so would probably cost a small fortune. But me oh my, the hair he creates sure is pretty. You can see some of my favourites here on my Pinterest Hair I Like board. I think this would be my ideal hair colour. Drool.

Source: boxno216.com via Angela on Pinterest

What I've learnt is the grass isn't always greener on the other side. I'll stick to what i know. And my hair means more to me than i ever thought. It gives me confidence when i love my hairstyle. I don't want any more hair disasters, please.

Angela x

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