Better late than never, eh? I had some hellacious adulting to do today, so as a result all my blogging got pushed aside until the kids were asleep and dishes were done.
I’m surprised at the number of free events this weekend, but I think that maybe in part because Halloween was on Thursday, so let’s get started!
I love DIY beauty treatments. Most spa-grade products start with natural ingredients or extracts of natural ingredients. Why not skip the pricy treatments and mix up some fun hair treatments in your kitchen!
Sneaking in a spa getaway before the holidays is easier than you think. Madison Reed wants you to know about these 5 swanky spa treatments for your hair. The best part? These deliciously healthy hair solutions can be found in your own kitchen!
1. Beer is the Silver Bullet for Fine, Limp Hair
Believe it or not, beer is full of protein, which enhances shine, strength, and moisture.
HOW: Just open up a can or bottle and let it sit open for a couple hours to release the carbonation. After you shampoo, gently massage the beer into your hair, let it sit for 5-10 minutes, and then rinse. You can also put the beer in a spray bottle and spritz onto dry hair. The protein residue from the brew will help strengthen your hair.
2. Honey is The Bee’s Knees for Split Ends
Don’t worry, we’re not leading you into a sticky situation, you can safely put honey on your hair! In fact, it can be a miracle worker for damaged hair. Honey is antibacterial, contains vitamins and minerals, and is a humectant, which means that it attracts moisture to improve dry hair.
HOW: Using half a cup of honey, saturate your hair. Put on a shower cap to capture natural heat and put your feet up for half an hour (you deserve it). Rinse out the honey to reveal glowing soft, silky hair. This treatment will help reduce split ends and fly aways.
3. Baking Soda Gets a Rise Out of Your Hair
Time to apply our science class know-how to hair care! Baking soda is an alkaline base (the other end of the spectrum from acids). This is important for hair because excess oils and styling products get trapped in the cuticle of your hair, making it feel greasy and flat. Use baking soda to lift out those unwanted oils and product build up.
HOW: Mix two tablespoons of baking soda with small amounts of water until it forms a thick paste. Work this paste into your hair and let it sit for ten minutes before rinsing. Your hair will gain volume and feel bouncy and clean!
4. Avocado to Bring Down the Frizz
The oils in avocados are very similar to the natural oils in our skin. Combined with its proteins and nutrients, this is one hair-enriching fruit! Use as a smoothing balm to tame frizz and fly aways. In winter months, it can also reduce that annoying seasonal static.
HOW: Mash half an avocado until smooth. Massage into damp hair and leave it on for 20 minutes before rinsing. Your hair will be deeply conditioned. Bonus: if you have curls, this treatment will make them soft and defined.
5. Let the Light in with Yogurt
Yogurt does wonders for dull, lifeless hair. It contains lactic acid, which gently cleans off the environmental film that can build up on our hair, and milk fat, which adds incredible shine.
HOW: Massage a half cup of plain yogurt into damp hair. Put on a shower cap to capture natural heat. After 20 minutes, rinse your hair. Your hair will look like it’s glowing!
Treat yourself to one of these kitchen spa treatments once a week on rotation to relax and get healthy, gorgeous hair. Follow up with Madison Reed Radiant Color Kit that is healthier for your hair for a full beauty routine that leaves you feeling great, inside and out!
It’s still summer here in San Diego for a few more months (does it really ever ends??), and I thought this post from Cheryl Locke at Madison Reed is perfect for those of us who may be spending more time outside, in the water, or just having fun adventures and want to keep our locks looking luxurious.
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may be compensated (it’s a super small amount!) if you make a purchase after clicking through the links. You can read my Disclosure policy here.
Bright and warm days are ahead. Like our favorite season, summer hair should be effortless in theory. In actuality, you’re battling major beauty bummers like frizz, brassiness, dullness, and sunburn.
How to deal? We’ve rounded up the best defenses–some as simple as just adding water. The sun’s out and fun’s in. Here’s how to beat the heat beautifully.
Wet hair. It’s simple and effective. Before taking a dip in the pool, drench hair in fresh water. Like a sponge, your strands will soak up water, preventing chlorine and chemicals from penetrating cuticles.
Lock in moisture. Before you take a swim, work in a hair oil; it seals hair from chlorine and the drying effects of the sun. Plus, oil provides a bit of weight to prevent flyaways and frizzing.
Wear a cap. We’re confident you can pull off this look. If you take frequent dips, you’ll want to embrace a hair cap’s retro charm. The additional barrier does wonders on keeping chlorine out.
Rinse off immediately. After pool-time, prevent chemical build-up (and green hair) with a quick rinse. Brownie points if you use a clarifying shampoo followed by an extra-emollient conditioner to bring hair back to its original shine and bounce.
Deep condition. A shea-butter-rich treatment is your best anti-frizz secret. You know what they say about an ounce of prevention. It keeps hair more manageable and less tangled even in salty-windy beach conditions.
Use an SPF. Most of us dutifully slather sunblock all over our face and body, but we often forget our hair and scalp. Don’t make that newbie blunder. UV rays not only fade hair color, they also dry out hair, cause split ends, and weaken hair’s elasticity. Spritz on a liquid SPF (or DIY by combining 2 teaspoons of SPF lotion with one cup of water). For additional protection, summerize products with UV-fortified formulas. Psst: Madison Reed’s shampoo and conditioner come with UV-shielding lupine flower.
Keep hats on. A floppy brim is not just the it-accessory of the season, it offers protection against the color-fading effects of sun.
Skip the blow dryer. For natural curls and waves, just go with it. Work with, not against curls; straight styles that require flat irons and blow-drying will fry ends, deplete moisture, and end up giving you more pouf than sleekness.
Pull it back. Your best line of defense against the pouf is often a sleek bun or topknot.
Don’t touch your hair. Except for occasional flirty hair flips, excessive handling of your hair only causes frizz.
Post courtesy of Cheryl Locke for Madison Reed.
Madison Reed offers salon-quality, handcrafted hair color delivered to your door on your schedule! Clear instructions, all the extras you may need and fabulous results really set Madison Reed apart from other home hair color options! I love the conditioner– smells great and keeps my hair super soft and shiny!
What I love is that you start with a Hair Profile (kinda like a quiz) and it helps you find a color that you’ll love.
Sephora Insiders- Check your email for this sweet offer, a free sample sized Too Faced Lip Injection lip plumper. Offers of freebie change frequently, so keep your eyes peeled for different deals!
Most Sephora inside JC Penney locations have special events with free sample offers, or if you can’t make one of the events, stop by any time for a free 5-minute or 15-minute minis where you can learn new beauty tips and application tricks!
5-minute minis include:
15-minute minis include:
Another thing I love about Sephora in JCP is select locations offer Color iQ– You can get your skin scanned to reveal the most scientifically precise foundations, concealer, and lip matches FOR FREE!
If you are looking strictly for skincare, take advantage of the free Moisture Meter! This tool gives a free, instant hydration reading- plus skincare picks just for you!
Fine Print: †Receive a trial size, free with any merchandise purchase of $25 or more at Sephora inside JCPenney stores only. Must be a registered Beauty Insider to redeem.
I love checking out Sephora inside JCP. It’s a great way to stay on trend with cosmetics and skincare and check out colors in person. It’s how I learned all about my favorite Primer- Tatcha The Silk Canvas (perfect for us with dry skin).
Last August, I had my hair professionally colored purple and pink, You can read about it here. As awesome as it was, it really damaged my hair. Bleaching your hair sucks.
I’ve been coloring my hair since I was 13. That’s… a long time. My hair has been pretty much any color you can think of- blonde, brown, red (so many shades of red), black, purple, blue, green….
In the resulting 10 months, I’ve been babying my hair. That means washing my hair twice a week with sulfate free, color safe shampoo, deep conditioning mask, including a weekly overnight leave-in mask, buying a new blow dryer that has a cold setting (which is awesome). And coloring my hair at home with very gentle semi-permanent depositing color in addition to the color (7IR Medium Intense Red Blonde) I’ve been using on my hair for the past few years. The red color blends well with purple and the damaged ends take color a little differently, so it’s usually a surprise what color they turn out- Some sort of purple-y pink most of the time.
I’ve cut off most of the damaged ends- Right now the last 2 inches of my hair are all that remains of the bleached hair from last year. My hair grows fast.
August 2018June 2019
I wasn’t interested in something as dramatic as last years transformation, especially since I am trying to get my hair to grow healthy again.
If you’ve never colored your hair before at home or if you have a job where funny colored hair isn’t allowed, I don’t recommend this at all!
If you’re new to hair color, especially funky colors, I do recommend Overtone. It’s a color depositing conditioner, and you can use it on any color hair. It won’t lighten your hair, but if you have dark hair, it will give you a cool colorful shine in the light. If your hair is lighter, The Overtone will give you a more obvious color.
So when I re-did my hair the other day, I didn’t take pics because my gloved hands were all goopy with hair color, but here’s what you need:
Gloves. I buy latex-free gloves by the box.
Hair color. I use this color (7IR Medium Intense Red Blonde).
Any developer that your color needs.
Glass bowl
Plastic spoon (you cannot mix hair color and developer with a metal ANYTHING)
I also use a plastic fork to apply the color (It’s a Dinglehopper!!)
Funky color- I use Splat 30 wash- it’s semi-permanent depositing color No bleach required. It comes in a bottle- there is no mixing.
Plastic shower cap
The Splat needs a longer time to process in your hair, so I apply that first.
I apply it to the ends of my hair and then I pour a little into my palm and rub my hands together and run my hands through my hair like I’m applying mousse. That gives me some highlights through my hair.
Or if I’m feeling crazy, I’ll dip the fork into the color and comb it through in a few places. I channel in inner Ariel.
Put my hair up in a shower cap and dance around the house, embarrassing my kids for 20 minutes.
While it’s processing, I mix together the other hair color and developer. Once the 20 minutes is up, I pull off the shower cap, and apply the dye to the rest of my hair, making sure to blend the areas where the colors touch.
Slap the shower cap back on and hang out until the second color processes (it depends on the color, what color your hair was to start with, etc. The instructions will tell you how long to let the color process (in my case, it was 45 minutes).
Half-dried. It’s very bright under the vanity lights!
The Splat hair color is supposed to last 30 washes, but I find after about 15-20 washes it’s faded enough where I need to reapply. If you use Overtone, you can re-do it in the shower whenever you need to (it’s a lot less messy, but requires more frequent touch-ups. It’s a trade-off).
Other semi-permanent crazy color companies include Arctic Fox, Pravana (it’s kinda messy), Manic Panic (this is also messy).
Most mainstream/drug store box hair color brands make more interesting colors these days, including Garnier, Schwarzkopf, and L’oreal.
Car selfie of my fab hair
It’s all about being you- If having funky colored hair speaks to your soul- DO IT. If having tattoos or piercing is your self-expression, do whatever makes you happy! As long as your happiness doesn’t infringe on someone else- DO IT. The past year has been really hard on me, emotionally, but I’ve been able to express myself more, and in the end, I am a lot happier than I have been in years. I finished college, met new people, and I’ve been able to better care for myself and my kids.
No filter- my camera lens was dirty!
My take away for this post is: Engage in Self-care that speaks to you!
It’s Springtime! Time for renewal, getting outdoors, and fun adventures. Here are a few of the things that have been making life easier for me as of late…
This cute 5×8 Notebook from Shutterfly. Mine says, “Plots, Schemes, & Misc. Shenanigans”. It fits into my purse and It’s big enough to where I can actually write and sketch. It’s got lined paper, which is great since I usually draw patterns for upcoming projects.
And what good is a notebook without a pen? This Click Six Gel Pen from Ooly is my favorite pen, and have been for a while. I scored one at Influential Summit in Carlsbad back in February.
Most of ya’ll know that I’m a frugal dame, and that means using tech until it reaches the end of it’s useful life. For me, that means I’m rocking an Apple iPhone 5S. Yeah, yeah, stop laughing. Anyway, one of the things that happens when smartphones get old is that battery life goes poof. To make up for that, I keep a zipper pouch in my purse with a plug (like this), charging cables (including one that is 6 foot long), and a couple external batteries/chargers. It sounds like a lot, but it’s not.
And the Pouch? It’s one of these cute ZipIt pouches. the best part is that it’s 100% zipper and it unzips into one, long zipper.
Ok, getting out of my purse, and getting back to the house, a few things that I’m digging to help me stay organized at home include:
This rad Meal Planner! It comes in a 5×7 pad, I just peel one off, fill it out, and stick it on the fridge (using one of the many free fridge magnets from Shutterfly- seriously, they have free codes all the time!).
I got it from Wal-mart.com, but Amazon sells it too (and it was cheaper). You choose which chores are appropriate for your kids. I don’t use the little round magnets with stars, I just mark them off with a whiteboard marker.
And personal health-wise, I’ve been digging a few new products:
Diva Cup– Scored it at MommyCon last fall. It is easy to use and clean. I will warn you ladies, it’s not for those of you who are squeamish. But, most moms have seen some shit (literally and figuratively), so it’s no problem.
Hot Sticks– I’ve had these things for YEARS, but only recently have I truly appreciated how awesome they are. I have a lot of very fine hair, so a curling iron doesn’t work- my hair doesn’t stay curly, but hot sticks stay in your hair for 45 minutes to an hour. That amount of time with the heat really locks the curl into my hair. and even without mousse or hairspray, my hair will stay curly for a whole day. I have two sets. I’m wearing them as I type.
Talk Back: So I wanna hear from you… What are some of your favorite things?
Recently, the awesome people at Tryazon and Ritual sent me an incredible box of the most heavenly products to review… The Ritual of Ayurveda-Balancing Ritual.
Ritual recently opened up a store at one our local more upscale malls, and I was entranced by all of the varieties and scents. I was so excited to dig into the box and discover what Rituals products were all about.
The Ritual of Ayurveda-Balancing Ritual, comes with:
The Ritual of Ayurveda-Body scrub 4.4 oz
The Ritual of Ayurveda-Hand Wash 10.1 oz
The Ritual of Ayurveda-Balancing Body Cream 2.3 oz
The Ritual of Ayurveda-Harmonizing Foaming Shower Gel 6.7oz
Each of the products in the set have the most intoxicating aroma: Indian Rose and Sweet Almond Oil. What I love about the scent is that it’s not what you commonly think of as ROSE. You know what I mean.. Heavy, sweet, cloying. Kinda like old lady perfume.
Indian Rose is a light, delicate aroma. It’s a mood booster, and roses have long been the universal symbol of purity and love.
Combined with sweet almond oil, which not only has a light scent, but is also rich in proteins and vitamins. It regulates moisture in the skin- the perfect base for skin and body products.
I started my Ritual in the shower with the Body Scrub. Not only is the smell heavenly, but, the scrub has an amazing feeling. The base is a mixture of rich oils: Sweet almond oil, macadamia nut oil, and jojoba oil. The actual scrubby part is pink salt, which exfoliated gently and left my skin so soft and smooth.
Afterwards I used the Foaming Shower gel, which is unlike anything else I’ve ever used. It goes out as a gel, but quickly lathers up to a rich, creamy foam.
I’ve been keeping the Body Cream next to my bed and applying it right before bed. I wake up with soft, supple skin. It’s a great feeling, especially with all the dry late summer/early fall weather we’ve been having lately.
If you want to check out The Ritual of Ayurveda or any of the other awesome Rituals, Check out their website, or visit one of their stores.
While I received this set for free, all opinions are my own, and I was not financially compensated to write this review. You can learn more about my reviews on my disclosure page.
Better late than never, eh? I had some hellacious adulting to do today, so as a result all my blogging got pushed aside until the kids were asleep and dishes were done.
And what good is a notebook without a pen? This 
And the Pouch? It’s one of these 
And it’s now a lot easier to get the kids to do their chores with 
Hot Sticks
The Ritual of Ayurveda-Balancing Ritual, comes with:
Each of the products in the set have the most intoxicating aroma: Indian Rose and Sweet Almond Oil. What I love about the scent is that it’s not what you commonly think of as ROSE. You know what I mean.. Heavy, sweet, cloying. Kinda like old lady perfume.
Hewes Family Fun 