Messy Curls - Day and Night

I love hair that's in messy curls. There's so much you can do with them and they give your hair a lot of body and bounce.

The best way to get that messy disheveled look, is to either curl your hair with a curling wand or a flat iron; curling irons give more of a defined, tight curl.

You can purchase a curling wand pretty much everywhere now. This Conair Infiniti Wand is from Ulta and costs $39.99.

If you're unsure how exactly to curl your hair with a flat iron, here's how:

Step 1: Start with a 1-inch section of hair. Place your flat iron about half way down.

Step 2: Turn the flat iron down and around, completing a full circle.

Halfway

Full Circle

Step 3: Pull the flat iron down. The faster you pull, the looser the curl will be. If you want a tighter curl, just pull down slowly.

When you're finished your whole head, you MUST run your fingers through your hair and rough it up a bit.

Daytime:

Look #1

All down and teased with a little hair spray.

You can also add a headband if you want a little something extra. 

Knotted head-wrap - Forever 21

Look #2

It's so easy to just throw your hair in a knit beanie. This is also perfect if your hair is from the night before.

Loose Knit Beanie - Forever 21

Night:

Look #1

Pinning your hair up literally takes no more than 5 minutes, and is perfect if you're going out and don't want your hair in the way.

Adding a few jeweled hair pins would be perfect if you want this for a more formal occasion.

Anthropologie

If you're unsure how to do it, here's my way:

Step 1: Starting in the middle, grab a section of hair and twist around once.

Step 2: Push all of the hair up and into a ball in the palm of your hand. Put 2 or 3 bobby pins in the middle of the ball. 

Step 3: Grab all of the hair from both sides that you want pinned back. and just pin them into the foundation you just created.

Sorry, I know that wasn't the best way to describe it, but try it out! There really is no wrong way of doing it.

Look #2

Adding a braid on each side of your head is an easy and quick way to do something a little different! Just bobby pin them back, hiding the bobby pins by pinning them under curls.

Thank you to Heather for being my model for the day! :) You're the best!

How-to: Full Volume Hair

When it comes to hair, nothing is worse than having it lay flat against your face. It's always nice to have volume and I'll show you a quick, easy way to achieve it!

Here's the finished result:

My sister has an average amount of hair, so it doesn't really matter if your hair is thick or thin.

(Sorry about my sister; she's incapable of making a serious face and was laughing.)

What you'll need:

1. Double Prong Curl Clips (you can get these at Sally's Beauty Supply for $2.19, but bobby-pins would also work.)

2. Boar Bristle Round Brush (I got mine at a professional beauty supply store, but you can find these at Sally's Beauty Supply or in most stores that sell beauty products.)

3. Blow-dryer

4. Hairspray

5. Any clip to clip hair out of the way

6 (Optional). Volumizing Mousse (You can use any brand you'd like, but I used Beyond The Zone Thick Enuff Mousse - $5.99 - Sally's Beauty Supply)

Step 1: Brush your hair to remove all tangles and knots.

Step 2: Part your hair according to where you like to wear it.

Step 3 (Optional): Apply volumizing mousse to your roots and comb down through ends.

Step 4: Section the front off from the back.

Step 5: Start taking sections and blow dry them using your round brush.

Step 6: Wrap the ends of the hair around your fingers and start rolling it up about halfway.

Step 7: Clip the hair using a double prong clip.

Step 8: Do this until you have the top section left on each side. 

Step 9: Take the two remaining top sections from each side, and blow dry and clip them back.

Step 10: In the back, take a small section and clip up the remaining hair.

Step 11: Start taking sections and roll them up.

Step 12: Continue until all of your hair is rolled up. It's okay if there are loose strands of hair and it looks messy. 

Step 13: Spray your whole head using a light hairspray.

Step 14: Let sit for a few minutes.

Step 15: Remove all clips.

Step 16: Run your fingers through your hair and tousle it up a bit.

Ombré Hair Color

If you're tired of your all over color or plain highlights, ombré could be exactly what you need. For those of you who aren't familiar with this hair trend, it's a french term meaning "shaded". The roots are normally colored a darker color, while the mid-shaft/ends fade into a lighter color.

Ombré is also a good idea for those who don't like to keep up with their hair as often. It doesn't need to be touched up as often as highlights, so you don't need to worry about your roots as much.

It can be achieved with all hair colors, and each can look beautiful if done the right way.

Here's an example of ombré gone wrong:

The contrast of the dark to the light is just too dramatic and doesn't blend well.

If you're interested in getting the ombré technique done to your hair, make sure your stylist knows that you want it blended and only 3-4 shades lighter (they should know this anyway, but just to make sure:)).

Blondes

Brunettes

Redheads

If you want to try something fun and different, ombré can also be done with different colors!

Other colors

Fall '11 Hair Trend - Messy Chignon

Since I just recently graduated from beauty school, I thought I'd make my first post a hair related one!

The runways this season were not only full of amazing fall fashions, but also a few trendy and effortless hair styles that are perfect for the girl on the go and are super easy.

This is one of my favorite hair styles. It's simple, can be spruced up with hair accessories and braids, and is perfect when you only have a few minutes to do your hair.

Step 1: Brush through your hair removing all of the tangles and knots.

Step 2: In the back, part your hair down the middle as you would if you were doing pigtails. (You can do this with your finger, it's not supposed to be perfect.)

Step 3: Take each section and back-comb (tease) the top portions of each section, leaving out the ends.

Step 4: Begin wrapping each section around the other until you have a twisty pony tail. Then, gently twist the hair until it rolls onto itself, giving you a bun shape.

Step 5: Start pinning the loose ends into and underneath the bun with bobby pins, crossing them so they stay secure.

Step 6:  Spray your hair with a light hair spray.

Step 7 (Optional): If your chignon is not as messy as you'd like, you can pull out small, random pieces of hair and back comb them slightly.

Step 8 (Optional): If you have the time, and want to add something more to dress it up, this style looks perfect with a jeweled headband or an over-sized hair pin!

 

Embellished Headband / $5.80 / Forever 21

Over-sized Leaf Hair Comb / $12.00 / Urban Outfitters