What? It’s Thursday again?!
The next two participants couldn’t come at a better time, as they will help me illustrate a few Hair Thursday rules.
1. I will not suggest a dramatically different cut and style in an attempt to spice things up. Nothing bothers me more than watching hair stylists on certain makeover-type shows lop off and mutilate perfectly lovely hair. If you have lovely hair, I’m not going to tell you to hack it off and color it purple. Sometimes, my advice might seem boring or extremely subtle, but sometimes your hair IS JUST THAT GREAT ON ITS OWN. FIND A WAY TO DEAL WITH THIS FACT.
2. I can’t help you find a new style, if you’re not willing to STYLE it. Hair Thursday is not a magic wand – if you want happy hair, you are going to need to put forth a little effort. (And by effort, I mean 10 minutes+.)
Wow, I’m crabby! My son currently has six (YES! SIX!) teeth coming in simultaneously. Excuse me while I chug this wine over here.
Ah, better.
Today’s first parrtithipant is Ellie.
Ellie’s hair:
Natural medium brown color
Thick
Wavy
Prefers shoulder-length or longer
Does not use styling tools
Spends 3-5 minutes styling her hair
Ellie, Ellie, Ellie. (I really like saying your name, Ellie.) (Ellie.) Ellie has lovely hair. It’s thick, shiny, and has great wave and body. I know a lot of people who would kill for their hair to look like this with only 120 seconds of effort. But, c’mon Ellie, can you give me like 10 minutes? 20 tops? For then, you could be the SUPER YOU. Tempting, isn’t it…
Looking though her photos, the major thing that jumped at me was hair color. With her skin tone, she could rock an auburn-brown or a deeper golden chestnut. Nothing too dramatic, though. In fact, a semi-permanent rinse would be perfect – low maintenance, washes out, etc. (Email me – we’ll find the perfect shade.) That and some long layers framing the face and VOILA! Perfection!
Both of these photos exhibit a similar hairstyle, but I like the subtle differences in the color.
Styling-wise, grab a round brush and blow dryer to achieve the look in the first photo. (Oh, and of course, my FAVE, Frederic Fekkai Glossing Cream, but only a teensy bit!) As for the second photo, bust out your ceramic curling iron and get ready for the SUPER YOU. What do you all think of the options?
Voting is closed.
Gretchen! Coooome on down!
Gretchen’s Hair:
Naturally dark brown, but dyes it a touch darker
Very thick
Natural wave, but not enough to wear wavy
Doesn’t want short hair
Uses a blow dryer and round brush
Open to products, but not sure which ones to use
Is “tempted by long, swoopy bangs”
Gretchen’s hair length is in that in-between stage. You know the one, when it naturally flips out from brushing against your shoulders all day? My advice is to take it up a couple of inches or let it grow- and since SOMEONE does not like shorter hair *cough cough MR. GRETCHEN cough cough*, maybe you only have one available option.
Looking at Gretchen’s beautiful and fair complexion, I do think the current hair color is a little dark. Maybe she could take it one shade lighter? I think a chocolate brown would be just lovely. As for the swoopy bangs, it looks like she has a cowlick that is in line with her part, so she could definitely pull it off.
These options would be very easy to achieve. The cut would sit just past the shoulders, with some layers to achieve a textured finish while still adding movement to the style. The long bangs falling to the side would help to conceal her high hairline. Wash and dry, a quick once-over with a ceramic flat iron and FF glossing cream. Gretchen, do you feel the need to wash your hair every morning while showering? If not, this haircut would be great because you could wear it for two days, thus cutting down on the styling tools. Regardless, you don’t NEED to use to flat iron every day. I’m all for keeping the flat iron in the bathroom drawer when possible.
Both colors are pretty- I love Option #2 for the upcoming fall season. Gretchen did mention previously coloring her hair a reddish-brown before moving very dark. What do you think? Let Gretchen know!
Voting is closed.
Quick blowdrying tip – To reduce blowdrying in half and protect from the heat, use Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum. I wrote about it here.
JennH
September 13, 2007 at 12:35 pmIs it just my pregnancy brain or did you change your header to Whoorl? I love it if you did. If not, I guess I’ve just loved it all along.
Oh yea, and hair Thursdays rock. Fun times.
angie
September 13, 2007 at 12:45 pmYeah! Hair Thursday! You go, girl. I found myself leaning towards the darker styles today. Keep the choices coming.
Allison
September 13, 2007 at 1:59 pmI. LOVE. HAIR. THURSDAY. For that very reason, I scheduled my appointment for a Thursday so I could keep my Hair Thursdays running 2 weeks in a row! Super-short-inverted-bob-with-rockin-highlights here I come! I shall email the amaizing Whoorl my “after” pics tomorrow so you can all see the first effects of this amazing trend (or is it affects? I can NEVER remember!) :-)
Kaili
September 13, 2007 at 2:36 pmThese are fun, I love voting.
I really think that model #2 needs bangs, so I couldn’t vote for either option. Plus she needs to go lighter with the colour like you said.
Keep rockin’ the Thursdays!
erika
September 13, 2007 at 6:31 pmwhy is it that i never update my page so i can see the new banner until someone mentions it in the comments? ay caramba, i was missing some good banner!
very cayoot and i love thursdays even more because of you!
Angella
September 13, 2007 at 8:03 pmSweet work, you guru of all things hair :)
Angella
September 13, 2007 at 8:04 pmAlso…LOVE THE BANNER.
gorillabuns
September 13, 2007 at 9:17 pmyou should think about contacting bravo because dude, you are the next perez of hair. without the mulit-color rainbow of goodness.
too bad i can’t wait until february 2009 for a consult on my david cassidy ‘do. my shit will be cut off come hell or high water on saturday.
wanna do an intervention?
MO
September 14, 2007 at 4:01 amThis is fun! The new banner is pretty too:)
sunny
September 14, 2007 at 4:13 amGretchen’s vote is close! Nail biter! I think the bangs are a must must must. Either look would be fantastico on you, Gretchen.
I don’t want to be a “bend the rules betty” here, but I think Ellie should go long. Like Denise Richards long. Then some layers. She has the hair to pull it off!
Chris
September 14, 2007 at 7:19 amLove reading these- great suggestions.
We need a video for the hairdryer challenged. I CANNOT (and I’ve tried for years) dry with one hand and use a brush in my other hand. It doesn’t work for me. My arms get all twisted up, I’ve burnt the hand with the brush and even burnt hair.
Is this normal or are there other hair-impaired souls out there like me?
One Smart Cookie
September 14, 2007 at 9:22 amChris – I have the same problem. I cannot make it happen, no matter how hard I try. My solution has been to just dry with no brushing and then use a big-ass curling iron (the biggest one you can buy) to tuck the ends under to achieve that “I totally used a dryer and a round brush” look without the cursing and scars. It works pretty well for me, but I think it depends on your hair type…
erin rae
September 14, 2007 at 1:56 pmReplying to your comment on my comment…. how does your love for the Paul Mitchell Shine stuff compare with the Frederick Fekkai cream?
I tend to use that after towel drying, allow to air dry and then do some speed straightening with my newish Sedu iron-
Gracias hot mama!
I only use PM when I’m blow-drying my hair (which isn’t often). It cuts down on drying time, whereas the FF doesn’t. That’s the big difference, I think. Otherwise, they both give good shine. :)
Gretchen
September 14, 2007 at 4:52 pmOOOH! This is great! I can’t wait. I have a hair appointment in a couple weeks. The poll is awfully close, but it’s okay either way. The important thing is bangs, a slighty longer cut, and a lighter color, HERE I COME! I will keep the reddish highlights idea in mind, but we recently purchased our first house and so I don’t have as much “hair money” to throw around maintaining highlights as I wish I did. Now if I can just tame this hair of mine to look as sleek as those pictures…
I know I’m kinda cheating by asking for a second round of advice, but what if I DID want to wear my hair curly/wavy some days? Shall I just shop through Whoorl’s product raves for answers? My big question is when my ends are all curly, what do I do with the hair at the crown? Can I do something to keep it sleek and not poofy up there? It seems like I always have to wear it “half up” if I want to air dry, but does it have to be this way?!?!? I’m so hair stupid, have pity on me…
Landon Davis
September 15, 2007 at 10:05 amHmmmm
For Ellie, I suggest bangs!
Like this!