Protect your hair

The majority of my clients are off to Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, FL or some other oasis this week! Man oh man am I jealous. 

They all had the same question at the end of their visit though.... 

"What should I use on my hair?!"

There is only so much our hair can handle! It is important to take care of it even on days you do nothing to it! 

Summer months are the hardest on our luscious locks from swimming pools, beaches, to UV rays! 

There are multiple products you can use to ensure the integrity of your hair long after the vaca. 

This is by far the best kit to kick off summer with! 

It's the new Schwarzkopf sun protect line! We just started selling these travel kits at my salon that contain the shampoo , leave in conditioner & shimmer oil! 

The shimmer oil is by far the best in this package. It's water proof and is recommended to use before and during pool & ocean time to help reduce sun damage! And it gives a golden shimmer to the hair all day ! 

There is also a hair repair treatment that isn't pictured for this line that's great! 

This pointer is going to upset a lot of you! Steer clear of pony tails! After a long day in the sun, salt water & barley brushing your hair the last thing you want to do is through it up in a pony tail that can potentially cause breakage. 

If you can't live without one, then I recommend using these new hair ties called "knotties" that are not as harmful and actually don't leave that "pony tail crease" in your hair once you let it down. 

Before heading to the beach or the pool indulge your damp hair in it's a 10 leave in treatment. It's full of sun screen and moistureizer that help to coat your hair strands and repel salt water and chlorine off it! 

Another option is the Moroccan oil treatment! You can apply it to damp or dry hair and it helps to repel water as well. The oil penetrates into the hair follicle and swells it allowing little room for other products or substances to enter. 

But once the damage is already done and you need to remove all the icky build up here are the 2 best options! 

First and foremost is the Malibu line- swimmers treatment. You can buy it all together or your stylist can perform the treatment for you by it self! 

If you are a regular pool rat then you want to make sure you have this at home for daily use. Especially the shampoo and conditioner ! 

If this is an occasional, cleanse from vaca need them by all means see your stylist for this little gem 

It's added to water to perform miracles! You won't believe the results. Removes all the build up and leaves the hair silky smooth! 

The Malibu line has tons more treatments for all types of issues including blondes, well water & more! Check it out! 

Another great clarifying option is the Kenra clarifying shampoo! Not only does it smell amazing, it gets the job done! 

In most cases you will have to shampoo the hair more than once. When there is a lot of build up it takes a couple shampoos to break the barrier and really begin to lather up!

Summer or not everyone should own one, or four of these brushes! My mom has one for her car, home & work and I don't blame her! It's called a "wet brush"

They are amazing! The detangle without pain in seconds! The glide right through the hair and are so gentle on it!

Unlike combs or other brushes than tear and pull and damage our hair even more! 

The wet brush line even makes round brushes that make styling at home so much easier! 

Waterfall braid tutorial

So If you are half addicted to Pinterest as I am you have seen a waterfall braid, or hundreds.

Here is a quick tutorial on how to do it step by step! 

I used a client/co-worker of mine today as the model! 

Here is her before. 

The cut & color is by yours truly! 

Sam had a natural ombré, since she was growing her hair out and and hadn't gotten it colored in 6 months. 

So her roots were dark, and the ends were left over highlights. 

I went through and did a high light low light to blend it all in. Then styled her with her the Beauty and the Beehives beachy wave technique you can reference here 

Your hair does not that have to be curled in order to complete a waterfall braid. Personal preference, it just looks better and shows of color more! 

But you must know how to do a French braid in order to complete it!

Incase you don't know how to French braid, think back to the days of making friendship braclets when you were younger. 

French braiding it just like a single braid the only difference is when you go to put your outside pieces over or under the middle piece, you grab more hair to add to your pile.

Whew. Now that we got that out of the way... Here are the 7 simple steps to having a show stopping waterfall braid!

Step 1: you want to pick the side you want to start on. In most cases it is the opposite side of your part or your "weaker" side where you have less hair. Either is fine! You then want to grab a triangular section of hair to begin your braid with in the next step 

Step 2: all you need to do for step two is begin a single braid by splitting your triangular section into three pieces and criss crossing them over one another

Step 3: next you want to move into French braiding by only adding from the top when taking your left section back over the middle. 

Be sure to grab all the hair from the top of the crown to your braid. The size of your section determines the size of your waterfall braid. The more hair you take, the bigger the section, the bigger the braid! Or vise versa. 

Step 4 : you want to run your fingers through the hair that is dangling down to untangle and make sure it is prepped for the next step. 

Step 5: you don't want to grab all the hair from the right and bring it over the middle section like you did on top. This is the most important step to creating that waterfall affect.

You are going to skip the hair that is dangling down that you just had in your hand (that probably feels more natural to add hair to and cross back over the middle but resist the urge!!!!)

Instead you are going to pick up a smaller section of hair directly behind it and cross it over the middle. 

Step 6: gather all the hair from the top again and pull over middle section to continue around the head .... Now repeat steps 5 & 6 until you have made your way to the other side 

Step 7: makes or breaks your waterfall braid! My favorite way to finish them is by taking your left over sections and doing a single braid all the way down and securing it in a rubber band. This achieves a very boho chic look. 

You can also secure the pieces together by a bobby pin. You can even add a flower or hair accessories to make it a little more formal & stylish. 

Front view.

Side view.

Back view !

How easy was that!!!!! 

Braid on, 

Xoxo

Molly