pre-party steps to glam
Have you been invited to a wonderfully exciting event? Follow these simple pre-party steps and we'll have you lookin' and feelin' fabu in no time flat!
Change your hair hue. "The best hair accessory is color," says Joelle, a hairstylist at Avon Centre in NYC. "Besides making hair look and feel thicker, fuller, shinier and healthier, color perks up your complexion." Maintain the results by using a color-enhancing shampoo, which contains low concentrations of the same pigments used in hair dye, twice a week.
Shampoo right. You don't need a thick lather all over everywhere; concentrate efforts at the scalp, where oils build up. Use warm water (which breaks down residue and oils) while sudsing, then cool water (which smooths the cuticle for maximum shine and minimal tangles) to rinse. Also, shampoo less frequently. "When hair is freshly shampooed, it has a tendency to have its own mind," said Don Bewley, president of Eufora International, maker of a line of haircare products sold in salons. Bewley recommends skipping a day between sudsings: "Second-day hair is often more manageable." (The exception: Those with fine, oily hair, which is often noticeably greasy after a day.)
Stay in condition. "Chemically treated hair must be deep-conditioned every week to continue looking healthy," Bewley said. How-to's: Ideally you'd "cook" the conditioner into hair by sitting under a dryer for 20 minutes. If that's not realistic for your lifestyle, leave it on for a half-hour with a plastic bag over your hair to trap in body heat.
Buy the right blow-dryer. Choose one with at least 1,500 watts (anything less powerful just prolongs the drying process) and a cool-shot button. Keep the blast on cool towards the end to lock in the shape, making your style last longer.
We Love: Solano, Supersolano
Boost shine. For more lustrous locks, try these three strategies:
- Aim the airflow from your blow-dryer down the hair shaft (from the roots to the ends) to keep the cuticle flat.
- Apply a silica- or silicone-containing finishing product that coats hair and makes it reflect more light. (Or look for other shine ingredients: those that end with ''cone,'' such as dimethicone and cyclomethicone.)
- Have a professional glossing treatment; it costs about $25 and will seal the cuticle (and thus add gleam) for up to a month.
We Love: Tigi Shine Junkie
Polish your silver. Even a tinge of yellow can dull gray hair and make it look anything but glorious. An easy fix is shampoos and conditioners formulated with blue-violet pigments that neutralize discoloration and make hair look whiter. Want to enhance, but not cover, gray? Consider a semipermanent product, such as L'Oreal Gray Chic, that brightens hair with a wash of translucent color.
We Love: ClayPac Lite Color Shampoo in Violet
Experiment with extensions. For a commitment-free approach to instant fullness and length, take a tip from in-the-know models and celebrities and employ hair extensions. They're inexpensive (a phony ponytail runs about $15) and a breeze to apply (some simply clip on, while others are bobby-pinned in place). Find them in beauty supply or wig stores.
Iron it out. If you're blow-dryer-challenged but want sleek, straight hair, use a flat iron. Beside being easy to operate (you just slide hair through the two heated plates) and much faster than styling with a blow-dryer, says Gary Howse, creative director of Seattle's Gary Manuel Salon, an iron is also an ideal remedy for those with hair that always seems too big or that ''grows'' during the day.
We Love: Solano Sapphire Flat Iron
