Curls for Daysssss

So as many of you know, I’m lazy about my hair- side note- I’m not lazy about having it done, I hate roots and get my hair done on the dot every 8-10 weeks. What I mean is that I wash it every 4-5 days (I’ll wash it sooner if I need to) and I'm lazy about curling it all the time. For work I wake up between 430-5am so I want to be able to get ready in the shortest amount of time as possible and staying at home with Ellie, my hair is the last of my concerns, but it's nice to have it somewhat cute when people stop by or I get out of the house. Luckily, my curls last and I can scoot by with simply brushing my hair, teasing for some volume, and maybe curling a few pieces around my face. I get asked a lot about my low-maintenance hair and wanted to share with you my “secrets” of how to get your hair to last longer.

As far as washing goes, my hair is not oily or greasy so I lucked out in the gene pool for that. I do believe you can “train” your hair and Veronika has a great post about her washing routine (which is pretty identical to my own) and tips on getting extra days from each wash. Using dry shampoo can definitely give your hair some life and give you an extra day or two whether you’re still training your hair or if you’re like me and don’t have the need to wash it more often.

TRESemme Thermal Creations Heat Tamer Protective Spray // Redken Guts 10 Volume Spray Foam // Suave Professionals Dry Shampoo Spray // Big Sexy Hair Spray & Play // TRESemme Smooth Salon Silk No Frizz Serum // Aqua Net Professional Hair Spray // Herbal Essences Long Term Relationship Leave-In Split End Protector // Conair Curling Iron (I use 1.25 in) //
HANA Air Premiere (see my review here) // Conair Mega Self Holding Rollers

To get the most of your hair and curls, it really starts with the blow dry and your products. If I let my hair air-dry, I only get about 3-4 days without washing it because it falls too flat to get a good look from day 3 on. When I get out of the shower, I put my hair up in my towel for a few minutes to soak up excess water, after taking out my hair- before brushing it- I use these products in my hair before I start blow-drying it; Tressemme Serum, Herbal Essence Leave-in Conditioner, and Redken Guts 10. Then I brush through my hair and use my fingers to rub in the Guts 10. Then I part my hair and blow dry my bang area to get my cowlick under control, I pin down my bangs (that’s part of training my cowlick) and flip my hair upside down to finish drying. I try and brush my hair up and focus on the roots to get the most volume, then I flip back up right and smooth my hair while still brushing the lion’s mane.

Once I’m done with that, I section off my crown to use Velcro rollers to set my hair. I blast the section with heat, put the roller in, and clip it in place. Velcro rollers makes a huge impact on having bouncy, voluminous hair. The products make it last! Right now I’m using 4 rollers, one on each side and 2 at the crown, then I’ll do my makeup while I wait for my hair to set in the rollers.

Once my makeup is done, I use my Spray & Play hairspray to put a light mist on the hair outside of the rollers (the bottom half that's not in a roller at all) and curl that hair section. Then I take out one roller at a time and mist the hair as well before curling it. Be sure to use a "mist" of spray and not a "raincloud" of it, you also want to be sure the spray isn't wet when you use the curling iron- if you use a mist it won't be wet whatsoever. When all of my hair is curled, I let it set for a minute and then run my fingers through it to loosen up the curls. I’ll finish with styling and teasing my hair and another mist of hairspray using my trusted Aqua Net.

This is day 3 of curls, without any touch-up
I do smooth out my bang area with a curling iron, but do not touch the back

Using the Spray & Play makes such a huge difference in how well the curls stay in my hair. I’ve found that when I use it, I can go 2-3 days without touching up my curls at all, they just loosen each day. On day 4-5 I’ll have to either re-curl all of my hair or just a few pieces around my face and on the top of my crown in the back.

On days 2-5 I’ll use my Tressemme Serum to tame down any frizziness and will use Suave Dry Shampoo to add texture on non-washing days when I’ve let my hair air dry. I'll also use it on day 5 and wear my hair up in a pony or half up/down.

So that's my hair secrets folks. I really think it's a combination of my hair texture and products, but the products- mainly the Redken Guts 10 and the Big Sex Hair Spray & Play- make the most difference. Using everything together for me has made a world of difference in how long my curls last. My hair is great without all the products for so many days, but my curls aren't as springy and my volume isn't as much without the whole shebang. Taking the time to really have a good blow out/curl makes the rest of the week a breeze.

Want to see how I curl my hair? Check out these posts here for a video, here for text/pictures, and here for loose curls. 

What are your hair secrets? What helps your hair look its best?

Product Review: HANA Air Premiere Blow Dryer

 I am so excited to share this review with you guys of the best blow dryer ever- the HANA Air Premiere. Misikko contacted me a few months ago about doing a review of the dryer and having such a great experience with their Corioliss Classic Pro Flat Iron (which I still use!) from this review, I was happy to work with them again.

Here is my impression of the dryer:

-Sleek, gorgeous design: The shiny black finish is so pretty and really gives the dryer a professional look.

-Light weight: I have zero upper body strength, when I blow dry my hair, I need something that's not heavy. It just makes life easier.

-Turbo speed (like an airplane jet): The nozzle is pretty narrow and I was initially concerned with how much power it would have, but it has super strength.

-Plenty of options for heat/power: The dryer I've been using has two options for each feature: hot/cold and high/useless so it's nice to have multiple options available that can be used in a number of ways.

-The cold button is an actual button: I never understood why you had to hold down the cold button while multi-tasking so having the button available to stay cold the whole time is pretty awesome.

-Extra long cord: This is one of my favorite features. Our bathroom is kind of small and can get stuffy quickly from all the steam and heat, so I'm grateful to have a cord that lets me step out and cool down for a minute.

-Quicker drying time: My hair is really fine, but I have a lot of it. Drying my hair is something I dread doing because I'm pretty lazy about it so the turbo power the dryer has is a blessing and gets me out of sleeping with wet hair in just a few minutes.

-More volume: I haven't changed a thing in my routine, no new products or drying techniques, but my hair has so much more volume since changing to the nicer dryer. Plus, the volume lasts longer too which is freaking awesome.

The only con I had using the dryer is getting used to the buttons and options available, which is really no big deal. I love having the different heat and power options, much better than my super basic dryer I've been using.

I've never spent a lot of money on blow dryers, I just buy whatever one I can find for $20 and although this is an expensive one, it's totally worth it. The difference in my hair, the quicker drying time, and the amount of volume I get from using this dryer is worth every penny. Plus, this dryer will definitely out last several cheapie dryers so it's worth the investment. Any of the Misikko products would make great gifts, I have an eye on a new curling iron next! Pick up the HANA Air Premiere Blow Dryer here.

FTC disclaimer:Misikko provided the dryer for an honest review, I was not compensated for this post and the opinions above are completely of my own, based on my own experience.