Salon Experience

Beautiful Hair Comes with Being Yourself

We get asked a lot about the secrets to hair care, and for many questions, there’s almost always an answer. For taming frizz, use smoothing serums or deep conditioning treatments. For repairing hair, use a restorative shampoo. For flawless skin, be sure to cleanse, tone, and moisturize every day. These are some of the easy questions to answer, but from time to time, we also get questions like this one:

How do I get beautiful hair?

As we all know, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and in the case of your hair, we can’t exactly say what does and doesn’t make your locks look their best. Yes, it’s important to be healthy an dyes, it’s important to choose a flattering style, but in our experience, the best beauty comes from being natural. If you want beautiful hair, just be yourself!

Think about it this way: When you go on a first date, job interview, or to any other special occasion, you usually have your hair coiffed to perfection – but that’s not when you really look your best. It’s when you’re smiling, laughing, and really enjoying what you’re doing. When doing your hair, the same philosophy should apply. Keep things a bit looser and free. Be yourself. Make your hair the style that shares the spotlight with your smile.

It’s our best advice for looking beautiful and feeling your best.

Like we described last post, everyone is different when it comes to hair care. We all have different needs when it comes to cleansing and conditioning, so what should be the rule when it comes to using conditioner? Is there a set amount of times to condition in a week? Can you condition too much or too little? Well, to make things easy, we’re here to offer our advice.

When it comes to conditioning, it’s best for most people to condition between 1 and 3 times per week, depending on your hair’s moisture level. If you find that your hair is greasy or oily, you may only want to go for once a week in terms of conditioning. If your hair is dry or brittle, 3 times per week is probably best. And as always, if you have severely damaged hair, a deep conditioning treatment once per month is usually a good idea.

How often do you condition your hair?

At SalonExperience.com, it’s not uncommon for us to get a customer question that pertains to regular hair care. One of the most frequently asked questions we get is, “How often should I be washing and conditioning my hair?” Luckily, this question has a pretty easy answer.

The short answer is that you should wash your hair whenever it feels dirty or oily. For some people, this means every day. For others, it’s only 2 or 3 times a week. The long answer is that depending on your hair type and texture, you may need to wash more or less frequently than you do now.

When we’re little, we’re taught to wash our hair every day, but as you age, that isn’t always the case. Oily hair types may still require washing every day, but other hair types, like dry or chemically treated hair may only need to be washed every other day. The answer is really in moisture. Washing your hair too much can leave it feeling brittle and dried out, even if you do use moisturizing shampoo and conditioner.

Want our advice? Try washing your hair every other day if you think you have pretty normal hair. If it’s dry, go 2-3 times per week. If it’s oily, stick with daily washing. In our next post, we’ll go into how often you should be conditioning your mane.

How often do you wash your hair?

OPI Nail Polish

Springtime is almost here and you know what that means: it’s time to break out the peep toes and sandals and let your nails shine! OK, maybe not shine, but at least look adorable with all of your latest spring acccessories.

If you want to be on top of all of the latest trends this spring when it comes to nails, be sure to watch these looks. Trust us – we’ve seen them pop up on some of the world’s hottest runways and we know they’re going to be big when it comes time to bare your fingers and toes in time for spring.

Something Blue: From baby blue to navy blue, blue is the total color of the moment and will be huge this coming season. Don’t worry about matching though, as matchy-matchy polish is totally out of style. One of our favorites? OPI’s Dating a Royal Polish.

Shattered Polish: Texture nail polish is becoming popular, especially if it has a cracked look. Seriously – cracked polish is becoming a favorite amongst celebs, namely Katy Perry who has sported the look before. To get the look, you’ll need a special “shattered” polish to apply over any base coat of OPI nail polish. From there, it’ll crack as it dries, letting the underlying color peek through.

Purely Pastel: Pastels and neutrals are also a big hit this spring, especially if you love romantic or ethereal looks. Pale gray and nude shades are perfect for making your nails look elegant and stylish.

What looks are you looking forward to trying this spring?

TIGI Chocolate Lip Gloss

Vitamin C, juice, prescription in hand – what else do you need to make it through the winter flu and cold season? A moisturizing lip balm!

More than drinking fluids, proper hydration also means protecting the outside. While you’re sick and sneezy, your lips are more vulnerable to the elements and will very likely become all even more dry – stuffy noses prevent many from breathing properly decreasing moisture around the mouth.

As if being sick wasn’t enough, you’ve got chapped lips to deal with. It’s enough to make a girl bit her lip in annoyance!

One sure way to cheer up on a sick day is by energizing your lips with a refreshing lip gloss, like a Murad Vitalic Pomegranate Lip Gloss Protector. Not only will your lips feel better, but by staying up with your beauty regime will help pick up your attitude overall!

Remember that tasty lip balms aren’t for snacking! If you’re snacking on your sick day, try not to lick those lips. One of the complaints most often heard in winter months is how hard it is not to lick your luscious lips – especially when they’re covered in a tasty balm like Bed Head TIGI Chocolate Lip Gloss.

In these cold winter months your hair can only ‘weather’ so much!

Wind, snow, flurries, all are threats to the care and cuteness of your hair!

One tried and true winter hair style is half up-half down do. This versatile hair style tames half of your hair – keeping your style safe from winter winds – and can be done in a variety of different ways for dressier and causal occasions. Prep time in the morning is easy with this simple do, which you can try in a variety of ways.

• Using a flat iron smooth the bottom half of your hair for a business casual or simple and sleek look.
• You can fancy up a half up- half down hair style by making waves with your curling iron. In a half-up do, you can curl in half the time –  or even just the ends
• Frame your face – Choosing pieces of hair to pull down from the top layer for a carefree and relaxed look. TIP: Take the curling iron to those pieces for a little carefree curl.

Nail Tek Crystal File

If you’re tired of digging for emery boards in your purse, then this accessory is EXACTLY what you’ve been searching for to keep those nails looking perfect on the go. The Nail Tek Crystal File offers a patented filing surface that prevents splitting and peeling by sealing the nail’s free edge. Plus, it offers a design with a pointed tip for easy under nail cleaning.

The Nail Tek Crystal File is washable, sanitizable, and sterilizable, so you never have to worry about keeping it sanitary. It’s unique design keeps the file durable, which means the abrasive surface will not wear down. Will. Not. Wear. Down.

Why we love it? Well, it’s performance of course, but also it’s super cute companion case in Fuchsia. That means no more digging to find the file in the bottom of your bag. This is a great accessory to give to you or your best girlfriend because let’s face it: this file is soon to become a favorite grooming tool on the go!

Get the Nail Tek Crystal File with companion case at SalonExperience.com. Oh, and did we mention that it comes with a LIFETIME REPLACEMENT GUARANTEE? Call the company for details.

Manicured Nails

Your nails say a lot about you. They can show off your personality, as well as give you insight about your overall health. So how can you best take care of them? Well, for starters, try out these 10 tips to care for your nails both inside and out:

1. Eat a diet rich in a fruits and vegetables, as they supply essential nutrients to keep your nails healthy.
2. If you can, up your intake of foods rich in sulfur and silicon, like broccoli, fish, and onions.
3. You should also look to up your intake of foods that contain biotin, which can help nails stay strong and grow. Foods that have biotin include soy, brewer’s yeast, and whole grains.
4. Drink plenty of water to stay hydrated.
5. Supplement your diet with things like royal jelly, spirulina, or kelp, which contain silica, zinc, and B vitamins for added nail strength.
6. Try drinking fresh carrot juice daily for additional calcium and phosphorus that can keep nails strong.
7. Keep your nails well manicured and polished. Play with fun colors of polish to add some personality. We recommend OPI nail polish for a professional look.
8. Don’t bite your nails! This is a nasty habit that can do a lot of damage to your nails.
9. Always keep your nails neatly trimmed and filed so there’s less risk of breakage or damage.
10. Care for your cuticles by keeping them moisturized with a cuticle cream or lotion. In a pinch, you can also moisturize with a bit of olive oil.

Sip on water for healthy skin!

You’ve heard it a million times before: water is good for you. But when it comes to your skin, did you know that water can give you a healthy glow from the inside out? It’s true – water is absolutely essential for maintaining vibrant, clear skin that makes you look and feel your best. Sure, we love our coffee, tea, and soda, but trust us when we say that water is the best choice.

Plus, when you drink more water, you’re giving the skin the nourishment that expensive skin care products just can’t! Water keeps your cells hydrated so they can function properly while also eliminating toxins that can make your skin look dull.

Also, did you know that your body is more than 70 percent water? To stay healthy, your body needs water for digestion, healthy skin, blood circulation, temperature control and lots of other reasons, so drink up! It’ll keep you looking and feeling you best

Murad Vitalic Pomegranate Balm

Brrrr! It is cold out there and if you’re in a particularly frigid location, it’s important to remember that your lips need just as much care as your skin and hair. No matter what the weather, your lips should be protected from the elements. After all, they should be kissable year round!

So, to keep your lips in pucker up shape, we have a few tips on how to care for them properly during harsh winter weather.

1. Don’t lick your chapped lips. This can only make them even dryer in the long run. Instead, apply a balm to keep them moist.
2. Never leave the house without chap stick, particularly with SPF protection. Even during the winter, your lips can be sunburned. SPF protection is a must!
3. Try using a lip exfoliator. Made up primarily of sugar, these edible buffers get the dead skin off your lips so that it’s easier for them to absorb moisture.
4. After exfoliation, apply a hydrating balm that can soothe and moisturize. Look for ingredients like beeswax, shea butter, sweet almond oil, or vitamins. One of our faves is the Murad Vitalic Pomegranate Lip Therapy balm.

That’s it! See, it’s super simple to keep your lips hydrated and beautiful all winter long. Now just remember to bring the balm the next time you go out in the cold!