Guess what?!

I am very much trained in the art of haircutting. If you or someone you love is in need of a haircut, do call. Actually, tell someone you love to go to a salon. I only want to cut your hair if I know you. Exclusive, I know.

I am also purty good at nails. Which I thought would NEVER happen, since I pretty much used to stank. I wish I could post pictures of some of the artsy creations I've made on nails, but my camera broke in like September. I know, way lame. That's why I haven't posted any tutorials, silly! My dearest mother promised me a new one when I finish my second semester of American History Online. So I'm workin' on it.

In the meantime...

Wanna know the bestest thing since sliced bread?!

Like I said, I'm not much of a nail-painting kinda gal. But that's for these reasons:

A) It takes too freaking long to dry.

B)It looks tacky if it doesn't match with my outfit. I know. Picky.

Problem A is taken care of by Maybelline's Express Finish 60 second nail color.

DISCLAIMER: It doesn't actually take 60 seconds. I counted. It takes like 3 minutes. But that's way faster than other nail polishes. And the color above? I bought that stuff. It's called "Racy Red". And oh my lanta. I like. A lot. It's fire truck red, and it looks good on my phalanges. Ha. I said phalanges. What a freak.

It's also really cheap. I can't remember the exact price, but I'm basically positive I wouldn't have bought it if it cost more than 2 or 3 bones. Yerp. I'm cheap-o.

Also, Problem B is solved because I have been way into the whole clear-nail-polish thing. With nail art on my thumb. Me like. Yesshhh.

The end.

P.S. Sorry for being a little bit more freak-like than usual. I'm ill. It happens.

Hello there, world.

I am not dead.

Just busy. :)

I started cosmetology school on August 9, 2010. I love it.

My teacher is great, the girls in the class are nice, and I am learning lots.

(Here is me and my new friend Janice. I sure do like Janice. Sorry for being a stalker and stealing this off of your Facebook, Janice...)

I have now been trained in:

Perms (I am super good, I got an A+ on the test)

and Relaxers (We only worked on these for a week. I could use more practice before you put yourself in my hands for this one ;) )

Little FYI I have learned in cosmo school:

Got dandruff?

Doubt it.

Turns out, dandruff isn't what we think it is. Do you have a flaky, itchy scalp with white stuff coming off?

It's your lucky day, because all that is is dry scalp. Stop wasting your money on dandruff shampoo, because all it is doing is relieving the itch. Use some moisturizing shampoo or conditioner.

Dandruff is actually really gross. If you go to a salon to get your hair done and you have real dandruff, they have to refuse you and refer you to a doctor.

Dandruff is:

(I was going to put a picture here, but the one I found was pretty grody. So you're welcome...)

Dandruff is actually green stuff that grows on your scalp in patches. It is really gross and does itch, but I assure you that you probably don't have it.

Thats all I have for today. My camera completely died, and I don't really have money for a new one right now, but I'll get one soon and then I can post actual tutorials!

Crossover Braids

This one is one of my favorites for little girls. But if you have medium length hair and think you can pull off the sprouty look, this would definitely be cute on you, too!

We start with a part all the way down the middle.

Put one section into a ponytail. No need to make it smooth or nice, it is temporary.

Put the other section into a nice, neat, smooth ponytail at the nape of the neck.

Braid the smooth ponytail almost all the way down.

Repeat on the other side.

Take the right braid, and cross it over to the left braid, tying it off or pinning it at the base.

Repeat on the other side.

There you have it! A super-cute, sprouty hairstyle that, by the way, works great for wearing helmets and hats, because it doesn't get in the way. That's always good.

P.S. You have GOT to love Miss Boo's strawberry-stained lips. We have been eating them (the strawberries, not the lips) all week long! Spring is finally here!

Playing with her Click-Its

This 'do kinda makes her look like Penny off of The Rescuers. I told her that, and she automatically loved it.

Have a terrific day!

Taking Requests

It's not that I can't think of any tutorials, it's just that I don't know where to start. As of now, I will, and always will be taking requests.

So what hairstyles do YOU want to see?

Please comment.

Sock Bun

I have multiple techniques for messy buns. Some are easier in some ways, and in some ways they are harder. It all depends on who you are. But here is one that I really like to use on Miss Boo's hair. That is because Miss Boo's hair is pretty thin, and this technique makes it look thicker than it actually is. Artificial thickening. It's like my favorite thing ever. :)

First I will show you how to make the "secret ingredient" to this tutorial. All you need is an old sock. If you intend to use this sock on "big girl" hair, use a "big girl" sock. If you intend to use it on "little girl" hair, use a "little girl" sock.

Cut off the toes of the sock.

Roll them up like so.

Keep going until you have a donut shaped thing going on.

These will be key to this hairstyle. And you will love them and use them all the time.

You're welcome. :)

And now for the tutorial...

First we start with a ponytail. You can do it high or low (fast or slow-heehee), to the side or in the middle, whatever you want. I thought I'd make it interesting and do a high ponytail that is off to the side.

Next, put your sock-bun around the ponytail, just like an elastic.

Spread the hair evenly around the sock and tie an elastic around the hair so that it is covering the sock. WARNING: MAKE SURE that the hair is COVERING the sock. How embarrassing to have someone ask you, "What the crap is in your hair?!", and answer "Oh, just a sock." Awkward.

It will look like this ^.

Take the excess ends and wrap them around the bun, using bobby pins to tuck them in.

Like so.

Add a flower or a bow, and hairspray it.

And there you have it! An easy-peasy messy bun that stays all day long.

Basic Materials

So I was going to do a tutorial on one of my favorite little girl hairdo's- a French twist with a looped ponytail- but I decided to do what every good teacher does: start from the bottom and work my way up.

So today, we will start with the most basic of basics: materials.

So here are some of the most trusty hair products and materials that I use all the time:

Ponytail Holders

You may call them elastics. I don't because elastics are a whole different thing in my opinion. But that conversation is saved for another time. The best ponytail holders are just the plain-old stretchy fabric ones. The only things you should avoid here are actual straight-up RUBBER BANDS {the kind you get off the newspaper} and the ponytail holders with the metal clamp- but those are hard to find these days, so you are probably safe.

Oh, how I love my flat iron:

This is the greatest flat iron EVER. I don't even know what it is called. But it's from Conair, and though it's no Chi, it is much cheaper than one, heats up super fast, and works well for me. Get a flat iron.

Curling Iron:

This, again, is no fancy curling iron. It is a ceramic 1 inch barrel curler from Revlon with 30 heat settings, and I use it every time I curl my hair. And for the record, I curl my hair A LOT.





Itty-Bitty Curling Iron:



This isn't actually something I use on myself usually, just because the tiny 1/2 inch barrel would take years to curl all of my hair, but it works wonders when my little sister wants a curly ponytail, or on babies {YES, you can curl babies hair, as long as it's not still the super-fine fuzzy stuff}





3-Barrel Curling Iron/Waver:

Oh how I love thee. This contraption is one of the easiest curling mechanisms to use, and it makes beautiful wavy hair, yet I have found that it is uncommon in many households. Look up "three barrel curling iron" on Google, and I think I got this one from Conair {not sure, it was a Christmas present}. Some companies sell brass ones for EXPENSIVE, like $300 or something, but this ceramic Conair one works like a charm, and I have gotten many compliments when using it!

Blow-dryer I am sure you have heard people say "Don't blow dry your hair everyday, it will kill it!!!" Personally, I am ever so lucky enough to have well-behaved hair that stays exceptionally soft, despite everything I do to it, but I know that for others that is not the case. In this case, use heat protectant spray, or you can buy a blow-dryer that keeps your hair shiny and soft. Mine {the one above} does that very well. It is the Conair Ion Shine 1875. It makes my hair feel super-soft.

Glove. Don't hate.:

One of the best techniques I have for hair-curling requires my hand to get VERY close to the barrel. And I would prefer to not have my hand scorched, thank you very much.

Large clips:

This is not meant to be a fashion statement. It is a temporary fix when you are working with multiple braids, layers of curls, and other hair-doing situations when you just need one extra hand for a few minutes.

Bobby pins:

This isn't a fantastically attractive picture, I apologize. But I wanted to demonstrate two different kinds of bobby pins. The one on top is your basic, average bobby pin. You can find it at Wal-Mart, CVS, Target, wherever. It probably works fine. The bottom one is a tighter, stronger bobby pin. It has unbelievable hold, especially on little girl heads that squirm and wiggle. I love it. This kind of bobby pin can be found at Sally's Beauty Supply Store, which happens to be my favorite place to buy hair stuff.

Headbands and Ribbons and Flowers, Oh MY!:
Sorry the picture is sideways. I just think it's funny to imagine everyones heads turning to the left as they read this. Haha. It's funny. Anyway, this is my giant door-hanger full of all of my ribbons and headbands and flower clips. These things not only dress up your hair and make them that much more colorful, but sometimes they can cover up accidental lumps in the ponytail or sticky-outy layers. Oh, how I love these things.

Tail Comb. Emphasis on the TAIL:

Tail combs help us create a neat, smooth part in the hair, as well as separate sections off. It is a good tool to have. CAUTION: DO NOT SUBSTITUTE PEN FOR TAIL COMB. Personal experience when I was about ten. You want your part to be the color of your scalp, not the ink.

Wide-Tooth Comb:

This is the comb you want to use when you get out of the shower and your hair is wet. NEVER use a brush. You will pull out your hair. And we don't want that. A wide tooth comb is gentle on your hair, which is what you need when your hair is soft and wet.

Pick Comb:

Like the wide tooth comb, this comb is also very good for wet, tender hair. But I especcially like to use it for poufing hair.

Mwahaha... Hairspray!

Hairspray is a hairdresser's best friend. We go through SO MUCH of it in our house {but it's not just me, its the boys and their "fohawks" too :)}


Gel

Also good for boys' "fohawks", gel is good for scrunching curls and smoothing down ponytails. It makes for neat, smooth hair.


Spray gel-like two in one!:

Spray gel is good when you don't want the gloppiness of gel, but you don't want your hair to be as hard as it would be if you used hairspray. I like to use it when I curl hair, but it runs out pretty fast.


Last, but NOT least, the common hairbrush.

We all know what a hairbrush is for, and most of us have one, so I won't say much. Just know that curly hair+hairbrush=frizzy, staticy, unmanageable hair. Thats all. :)

Bristle Brush

This brush is a lifesaver for second-day hair-hair that hasn't been washed since the day before. This brush does a good job at spreading the oils from your scalp all over your head so that you don't have greasy roots. I love it!

Thanks for reading, stay tuned for actual tutorials!

I will take requests and questions, just leave a comment and I will see what I can do! :)

Greetings from Emily

Oh, I am so very excited to be starting this blog! You probably already know the purpose of it at this point, and if not, read the sidebar--->

I will hopefully start posting tutorials soon, as well as things I have learned from other hair bloggers.

The consistency may be slow at first, but once I get into the habit, it will hopefully be at least once a week that I post something hair/cosmetology school related. So follow me and I will be even more willing to get things going!

Toodaloo!