As August begins, the thunderstorms and extreme heat will follow. Most of us have started noticing our hair acting out. Frizziness and dehydration usually being to make an appearance around this time of year and here are the products we suggest to revamp your summer hair.

First of all, let’s make sure your hair is clean. The humidity, chlorine and late nights all provide us lots of enjoyment during the summer. But exposure to these elements causes lots of build up on your hair that your shampoo may not be removing. Try adding a clarifying shampoo, or detoxifying if you notice scalp issues, to your hair care routine, use once a week or whenever you need that squeaky clean feel. We recommend SOLU by Davines and the Detoxifying Scrub Shampoo from the Natural Tech Davines Line. 

Make sure your conditioner addresses your issue. If you spend time outside or in the pool this summer, your hair is most likely become dehydrated from the environmental elements.  We recommend the Momo Condition for Dehydration. If your hair is frizzy from the humidity, but too fine for a heavy conditioner, we recommend the Love Smooth by Davines to tame those little frizzies. The ideal product for bleached hair, with highlights, perm or relaxed is a nourishing conditioner for damaged or very dry hair. NouNou by Davines is designed to untangle treated hair, it also makes it soft and silky, giving it body. It does not weigh down the hair. 

When styling your hair, add a little extra moisture. Serums and oils are great and probably more effective than the traditional leave in conditioners. They add a smooth finish to any style or if you’d like to let it hair dry naturally, they add shine and softness. If you’d like a good serum product, we recommend the Relaxing Moisturizing Fluid by Davines. If you are worried about a product being too heavy on the hair, we recommend the Oil Non-Oil by Davines. Lastly, our favorite hair oil OI by Davines is perfect for any hair type and adds a beautiful shine too. 

Have you ever felt like chopping all of your hair off during a stressful day? Have you ever decided to change your hair color after a break up? Or both? Whatever the tragedy, we have all been there. Break up hair. Divorce hair. Mid-life Crisis hair. I just lost my job hair. So the question is: Why do we feel the need to change our hair when we are being consumed by emotional turmoil?

Is it control? A majority of things in life are completely our of our control. It would be a shorter list to write, the things we can control. The hair on our heads is something we entirely control. It effects no one but ourselves and you can do almost anything with it. Maybe the appeal is being behind the wheel of the whole process, even if it is just a hair cut. I mean think about it, Britney Spears and the 2007 incident, Jennifer Lawrence, that bob you had last summer. All made major chops made, some much better than others (Britney), when life was getting stressful.

Is it the need for change? Maybe its ceremonial. We shed the skin from the past and we start with a new beginning. Reawakening ourselves to the world around us. “New hair, new woman, new world.” Maybe we feel like we haven’t been a strong version of ourselves or maybe its about time people take us seriously. Think Taylor Swift, Robin Wright. Both incredibly beautiful women who rebranded themselves to be seen as serious artists by rocking short hair. Shorter hair also simplifies things and allows you to disconnect from a person you may not have been happy with.  
  

The week prior to our renovation, I had the pleasure of meeting Angela Whitamore. Angela is a nurse at the family practice where our beloved Richard Peterson belongs. Several weeks ago Richard went to the doctor for his annual check up and to his surprise was in awe of Angela. In the past six months Angela has lost over 60 pounds. Can you imagine that? Richard claims he almost did not recognize her when she walked in the room. Upon returning to work, Richard felt inspired. In our profession, we understand the power of feeling beautiful and we have skills to cultivate an individuals beauty, it calls to us. Richard expressed to me how he felt Angela needed to see herself through new eyes. She needed to see how beautiful she truly is, and she needed to celebrate her accomplishments. 

So we brought Angela in for an extreme make over! Naturally of course we started with the hair. Angela is a low maintenance gal, she wanted a hair cut that did not require a lot  of styling and that she could wear up at work. We decided to take over six inches off the length and added some longer layers to give her curls some pretty movement when she wears it naturally. Small balayage highlights were added to give her hair a little dimension and some glow. While her color processed we started the make up application. Again, Angela did not want to commit to a large routine, so we kept it simple. We used the Glo Minerals Lux concealer under the eyes and to cover any redness, then applied Glo Minerals’ light mineral powder foundation, a dash of the rosebud blush by Glo minerals paired with the Glo Minerals’ orchid eyeshadow and some mascara. 

Lastly, Nina from Boho Blu came to help Angela find something that showed off her new figure. We looked through several different outfit choices however, the decision was finally made  by Angela’s loving husband. While we waited for Angela to come out and model the final outfit, her husband thanked Nina, Richard and myself for all we had done that day for his wife. He went on to say how proud he was for how much healthier she was after losing the weight, and of course how beautiful she was. He could tell that she didn't see herself as any different, he said he felt she looked in the mirror and still saw her self with no progress. 

When Angela came out she was glowing. Every person in the room was teary eyed. As she looked in the mirror we watched the disbelief dissolved and we watched Angela see herself for the first time in a year. We decided to gift Angela all of her services and Boho Blu also surprised Angela by gifting her all of the pieces of her favorite outfit. Her husband, with his eyes full of tears, offered to buy the rest of the clothing Boho Blu had brought for her to try. Going home with a new wardrobe and a new look, Angela took my hand and thanked me at the end. She felt beautiful, strong and confident. That is why we are in this industry. Helping her view herself as the rest of the world does, helping her understand her beauty, that is what we do at Orrell Design.