Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Best shampoo without Sodium Lauryl Sulfate review. Get healthier skin and scalp.

girl showering
 Do you notice your hair thinning?  Are you suffering from dry, itchy scalp?  Dry dandruff perhaps?  Which is caused by excessive dryness to the scalp.

You probably didn't know that Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) could be the cause of most of your skin irritations, and not just on your scalp but everywhere else on your body.  In fact, the LEADING cause of hair loss in women is SLS - aha! 

To give you a clearer picture of how harsh this chemical really is, this stuff is used in the auto shops to cut the oil from the motor parts.  And the main reason why the companies are using it is that it's cheap to produce and the lovely  bubbles are very pretty.  But  completely unnecessary. 

 Wow, this certainly is starting to sound like a TV commercial, doesnt it lol?   I could discuss this  much further here but then this blog would become endless and I wanted to share what my favorite SLS free shampoo is in the market and not what SLS is......



funny image of a guy with a shampoo bottle
From my personal experience as a hair stylist AND a user of this product, the best Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) FREE shampoo in the market right now, IMHO, is the DermOrganic Sulfate-Free Conditioning Shampoo
LET'S GO OVER WHAT *THEY* CLAIM

Sulfate Free DermOrganic Shampoo BottleGentle sulfate-free formula
Safe for Color Treated Hair
DermOrganic Sulfate-Free Conditioning Shampoo provide a rich, luxurious lather that makes other sulfate-free shampoos jealous!

What makes it so good? Hair and skin rely on important nutrients such as Essential Fatty Lipids (EFAs) and Amino Acids.DermOrganic Sulfate-Free Conditioning Shampoo® is the only shampoo made with a proprietary blend of EFA Lipid and Amino-Acid based skin cleansers. That means it is the only shampoo to moisturize, strengthen and rebuild the hair every time you clean your hair!
Whether your hair is colored, permed, heat styled or sun drenched, DermOrganic Sulfate-Free Conditioning Shampoo® has what it takes to impress stressed tresses.
So gentle, this shampoo is ideal for color treated hair and is superb as an all-over cleanser that leaves skin soft and supple. So healthy for your hair that you’ll never have to switch shampoos again.
Further enriched with Argan Oil with Omega-6 and Linoleic Acid, Vitamin E, Panthenol, Rice Amino Acids, and anti-oxidant plant extracts to preserve the life of hair color. 

Ingredients: Aqua/Eau/D.Water, Disodium Cocoyl Glutamate(1), Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate(2), Decyl Glucoside, Cetearyl Glucoside, Methyl Gluceth-20, Infusion of Argan Oil & Sunflower Seed Extract & Grape Seed Extract & Rice Amino Acid & Sodium PCA & Panthenol & Tocopheral Acetate (Vitamin E), Glycereth-2 Cocoate/Benzoic Acid (natural preservative), Fragrance.
(1) Amino-Acid based, plant derived cleanser
(2) Essential Lipid based, plant derived cleanser



Long Curly hair SLS free
AND HERE IS MY TAKE

 Let me first assure you that,  I've never been so utterly happy with a shampoo product in many a year.

For sure, you can find something that makes your hair feel and look as good as this, but also Sulfate Free?  HELL NO.   Just look at the ingredients there, they're all very good for you  (except for the silicone - but a vinegar rinse twice a month will clear that right up - and without it, your hair will look like a bush).



This is a rave review but nothing is ever perfect. Consequently,  I had 2  3 issues with this product.  JUST three and that's amazing in itself.


1) I didn't find it very color safe on my hair.   However, I must then admit that my clients didn't notice it.
  2) It's advertised as a CONDITIONING shampoo - like it's one of those  2 in 1 deal (Pert Plus anyone?).  Its NOT.  You def need a separate conditioner, folks.  
3) The scent doesnt last! 


 OTHER THINGS YOU MIGHT WANT TO KNOW
Sulfate Free Suds


WHAT DOES IT SMELL LIKE?
Like all the beach oils poured into a jar of goodness.  Coconuts, bananas, etc - it smells like the beach.  Serious.


WILL IT LATHER UP? 

 This is a serious complaint with so many people when it comes to Sulfate Free Shampoos because 90% of the SLS shampoos in the market do not sud. 

 Therefor, I'm happy to report that, YES, it does lather up.  HOWEVER, the suds doesnt look like your average shampoo bubbles.  I spent a good 40 mins merely looking for a photo of what a SLS free suds look like for this  blog. 

  Please look at the photo to the left.  It looks just like that - barely there.  Kinda cute. 


Funnny Harmful Sulfate bubble suds photo
And as a comparison, look at what a normal shampoo suds look like.  Nice fluffy cloud of sulfate there, mister...ahem.

Lots of waves and body from using Sulfate Free Shampoo DermOrganic
FIRST TIME 
 My first comical reaction in the shower, quite butt naked and rambling on:

"What the HELL is this, crap, ugh !@#$!"  -  because it barely lathered up like they claimed.   So I shampooed again and this time it did sud up, and I started noticing the heavenly smell...  

But wait,  the second the water hit my head to rinse, and let me tell you, my hair has never rinsed off so fast in my entire life,  my hair started to squeak, no seriously - it squeaked!! Because it was so effing CLEAN.   UGH!!

This had me entirely worried because usually, for my hair type, which is long, thick, color treated and coarse - very clean hair equals a very dry, brittle hair when its completely dry.  If you have long hair, you know exactly what I mean.

By this time, I'm bitterly mumbling to myself about another crap SLS free shampoo that I wasted money on... but wait... wait

My hair started to dry and I rediscovered Jesus, and fell so deeply in love with DermOrganic Sulfate-Free Conditioning Shampoo that I went and told all my clients and am now blogging about it. 

My hair has never been as fluffy, soft and shiny in my whole life. In addition,   my scalp no longer flakes (unless I wash it twice a day) - this was my sole reason for looking into SLS free shampoos.    This stuff is entirely brilliant!!

This shampoo gets a 4.5 Amazon Stars from me.  

If you've found this review helpful, please sub, add, comment, share, and like my page.   It would mean a lot to me. :)


Finally, I just had to share this cute pic with you haha... Thanks for reading, take care, everyone !! :-)

Hilarious funny image of a dog taking a bath





 

 

 
  






















  






Saturday, June 23, 2012

Cut and Trim Your Bangs: Guide to Cutting Heavy, Blunt Bangs

 Look Great and Sexy, Not Fat - rock Carly Rae Jepsen's bangs! 

Carly Rae Jepsen with cute blunt bangs
So you've been gazing soulfully at the celebrities with the heavy bangs lately, and wondered if it would look as bold and edgy on you.  Because lets face it, nothing screams "high fashion" , "rich bi*ch" and utter "Class" like those bangs, but in real life, they look absolutely horrendous on the people that you personally know AND make them look... fat! *gasp*


This guide will give you some insight and inspiration into how you can costume design the perfect heavy fringe to fit YOU.  These are my own personal rules as a Pro Hair Stylist in New York City, and not set in stone by any means. We all have our own ideas of what Beauty is, therefor, it is logical that not everyone will agree. :)

Read on...





Halle Berr's perfect head




First, if you're one of those people with sickenly a perfect face shape with a small oval head shapes (think Halle Berry), then don't bother with this guide. This guide doesn't apply to you, because you look great no matter what... lucky bi*ch. :)




 But for the rest of us:

  • Know your face shape. 
  • Is your hair on the crown thick enough to create a heavy fringe?
  • Is your hair too curly? Because heavy fringe should lay flat and not look like a brillo pad.  Also, do you have a cowlick in that general are?
  • Finally, what do you wish to cover up with your hair. This is so important. Always keep this in mind, it is what's left behind that impacts your face, and NOT what's been cut off! :-)
Now that we got that out of the way, let me show you what *I* consider beautiful and see if you can find a pattern in these photos.  I'm, of course including the photo of Carly Rae Jepsen's bangs at the very top of this list.  :)


Kate Moss with blonde  blunt bangsLong blonde hairAnne V with long blonde hair
Long sexy hair with DIY heavy bangs















Kate Moss with sexy edgy hair - do it yourself  
It is my firm belief that any type of heavy bangs will automatically make your face appear slightly fuller and the farther you cut away from the center of your face will then make your face wider.   It sounds most dreadful but there is a fix!






 
Katie Holm with short blunt bangs photo - before and after







  Sometimes heavy bangs, when done correctly, will actually make you not only look slimmer but sexier and edgier and younger!  I'm going to use the lovely Katie Holm's photo as an example here, because no words are needed to show my point.

 read on ..





THE rules to rock'in heavy bangs: 

 ( I will be using a mannequin's head for photo's,  understand that their hair lines and the hair density greatly differs from humans).

1. Always consider what's being left behind and not whats being cut off.  Take small cuts, you can always cut more.  Try using a razor instead of shears.

2. Section off , and clip back the hair that you want to keep.  How much to clip back?  Usually all the hair in front of your ears on the crown of your head is drawn forward for bangs, but  this depends on how thick your hair is. If your hair isn't thick enough then you will need to draw more hair from the back.
DIY how to cut blunt bangs

CROWN section -  in a soft, rounded V, you can use your nose as a guide for the highest peak.

DIY how to cut blunt heavy bangs - sectioning


3. NEVER cut your bangs past the outer corners of your eyes. The farther you cut away from the center of your face, the wider your face will appear.  If you look above, all the photos that I've posted follow this rule.
DIY how to cut leavy blunt bangs guide
DIY how to cut leavy blunt bangs guide front
HOWEVER : You CAN cut farther back if  you're creating a graduating effect -  from short to long,  like the KATE MOSS's photo that you will see in the next page.  This is a far more advance way of cutting but it will create a more softer look.

Read more ....






DIY how to cut leavy blunt bangs guide on Kate Moss  4. Very blunt bangs only look great on models with perfect features, on everyone else - it looks like a wig.  Razor cutting the edges will soften, modernize AND make you look thinner.  This is especially important for anyone over 30+...




I'm holding a camera with 1 hand, but this is about where you want to start point-cutting, or razoring your hair - DRY HAIR.  ALWAYS cut tiny bits at a time, so you can cut more if it's too long. =)

DIY how to cut leavy blunt bangs guide with razor

5.  Long shaggy, piecey, heavy bangs that hits "just" on the top of the nose (for clarity - between your eyes, where your nose starts to slope up - Kate Moss's bangs)  is the most flattering on normal human beings. The KEY here is to create soft and shaggy edges for a wearable blunt bangs.

6. Attitude.  Your personality should reflect this bold style.  Just sayin'. =)




Now, here are the "bang tragedy photos". These, IMHO, do not enhance the beauty of the person's face but exaggerate's the negative for the sake of fashion - that is, if small, oval face is your ideal.

You apply make up to enhance what you have, your hair should do the same, since it's your greatest and best the accessory.


DIY ugly bangsMushroom HairHer bangs were cut too blunt for her face shape and age.  Looks like a wig.

Do it yourself beautiful olivia wilde's heavy blunt bangsDIY beautiful olivia wilde's blunt bangs


To show this more clearly, let's take the beauteous Olivia Wilde here, look at the photo's side by side. The one on the left, you can clearly see how far the bangs have been cut ( and far past the outer eyes) and then the one on the right.  The bangs were cut correctly here for her square face (the shortest bangs ending at the outer eye and the edge's kept soft and wispy), this style suits her to perfection.





 Finally, how to style it once you've achieved your perfect fringe.  




  • 1. Use a oil serum or a heat protectant on damp hair.
  • 2. Dry your bangs flat against your forehead, and please, I beg you,  do not use a big round brush or it will give you that mushroom look, unless that's your thing.  A flat paddle brush, the  fingers God gave you or a vent brush works beautifully.
  • 3.  This is optional because not everyone owns a flat iron.  But if you do, I suggest you use it here.
  • 4. Apply some soft wax when your hair is completely dry to give you that shaggy, sexy, piecey look.  Not too heavily, otherwise you'll end up looking like a oily heroine addict - unless that's your thing. :)
I hope this guide was helpful.  Please sub, add, comment for future guides and requests.  

Thanks!!  :)
 



Speaking of hair, try my popular Do It Yourself Ombre Dip Dye Hair Color Tutorial next ...   :)