Wow. This has been a great week, y’all. My recipe arsenal is stacked. Many of you made the decision to use non-toxic cleaners, which makes me SO VERY HAPPY. I designed a banner for blog royalty. (Isn’t it purty?)

Best of all? Satisifed Hair Thursday customers! Hell yes.

Gretchen’s before photo:

Gretchen’s after photos:

Awwww, yeah. Rocking the ponytail bangs. Looking good, Gretchen!

Miguelina before:

Miguelina after:

Hot hot hot! And when I say “hot”, I literally mean HOT. Earlier this week, I received an email from Miguelina. She told me that while attempting her newly-acquired Hair Thursday skills, her hair dryer burst into flames! Black smoke filled the bathroom!

Please familiarize yourself with the newly-revised Hair Thursday disclaimer.

Whoorl is not a hair professional, although she plays one on the internet. Please consult with your stylist before making any of the suggested changes. If your hair stylist sucks and does a horrible job, please do not hunt Whoorl down and hurt her. It is not Whoorl’s fault, as she is only trying to spread the hair love. Any other issues may be directed to Whoorl’s customer service department.

Additionally, Whoorl is not responsible for house fires caused by practicing her tutorials.

This week is all about showcasing and working with your specific hair strengths. Admit it, we all have those times when we look into the mirror and want the exact opposite of what is staring back at us. The grass is always greener, right? Some days, I imagine myself traipsing around the beach with a platinum blond Patricia Arquette-style bob. However, I know better. Chasing after a style that doesn’t suit your hair type, skin tone or face will get you nowhere in the long run.

Let’s celebrate our strengths! What say you?

Our first participant is Taylor.

The first step in my Hair Thursday process is looking long and hard at the photo(s). Lately, I’ve been envisioning a specific style right away and it becomes hard to imagine anything else.

Unfortunately, what seems to be happening is I then read the person’s questionnaire and their requests don’t match up with the kind of hairstyle I envision for them. I always end up choosing to find a hairstyle that suits their wishes, but it’s not really what I WANT for them. (Isn’t that what matters?! WHAT I WANT?!)

What’s a girl to do?

With Taylor, I am going to post two lovely options. My initial “poof-moment” hairstyle and one that would better suit her needs. And what are those needs, you ask?

Taylor’s Hair:

Naturally dark brown, colors to hide grays
Good condition, a little oily (has to wash everyday)
Very straight
Finely textured
Growing it out from chin-length because “she can’t deal with it in her face” – (DAMN YOU, TAYLOR.)

Taylor’s strengths are her fine texture and super-straight, shiny hair. She has the type of hair that looks fantastic from chin-length to shoulder-length. Anything past the shoulders might end up looking a little flat, though. My initial thought was to take her length up to the chin and add fringed, sideswept bangs like option #1. That way, she could showcase her hair’s shine and fine texture with a fun, yet sleek, style. Plus, her bangs would never look slept-on or oily since she washes every day.

THEN, I read her questionnaire with the part about hating hair in her face. WHY, Taylor, WHYYYY?

Option #2 would be very easy for her to achieve right now and takes her wishes into account. Take a look at her side profile photo. Notice the front layers in her hair? She would want to keep those front layers as long as she could, while taking the back up to create a very slight inverted bob with textured ends. That way the longest hair will be in the front, allowing her to put behind her ears or keep out of her face, but still possessing a hip style with the textured ends that elongates her neck as well. Come to think of it, I’m starting to like this idea more as I write about it.

Regardless, both would look great on Taylor. What do you think?

Our second participant is Bryanna.

Continuing with the theme of working with your strengths, look at Bryanna’s gorgeous ringlets! Whoah!

Bryanna’s Hair:

Brown with recently added golden highlights
Good condition
Curly, curly, CURLY

Bryanna wants to keep her hair long, but is “desperate for a change”.

First off, I think her recently-added golden highlights are beautiful. The way the light reflects off of the curls is really warm and pretty, plus gives the ringlets definition. Since Bryanna wants to keep her hair long, I hate to say that I don’t have any big changes in store for her. Like I said, embrace your strengths!

I think Bryanna should cut 2-3 inches off the bottom to remove a bit of the heaviness, but should consider other options for a “change”. How about changing her part? Side parts and center parts give off totally different vibes. Also, I definitely think she should break out the flat iron and do a sleek, straight look once in awhile.

All in all, I love her curls and would hate to see them hacked off, resulting from a “grass is greener” moment.

The following photos are of the same person. I like the length and how she wears her hair with the natural curl (#1), but also softens the curl for a different look (#2).

Both of these styles would look beautiful on Bryanna. Add a flat-ironed style once in awhile, and she’s got 3 styles to choose from.

Even though these photos aren’t technically an either/or situation, you all want to vote don’t you? Well, have at it.

Speaking of flat irons, this one is my very favorite. And you are NOT getting a video tutorial, thank you very much. Just be sure to apply a thermal protectant (like this one) before using the iron. Clip you hair up and starting from the bottom layers, work with 1-2 inch sections, careful not to clamp one section for too long. Keep the flat iron moving at all times, working slowly down the sections until you have completed all of the sections. Work a small amount of FF glossing cream through the hair from the middle to the ends. Voila! Straight, shiny hair.