Leslie's Must Haves

I know, I have reviewed a couple of these products already. But that isn't exactly the point of this post. The point is that I won't go ANYWHERE without these products.Not even a quick over-night trip to my parents house. Here is why...I am vain, I feel better about life when I have gotten ready for the day and they work!
I TRULY believe you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. You never know who you will meet and what opportunities might present themselves. You might think its okay to run to the grocery store looking like crap, which is fine! I don't look super great sometimes either. But I can't count how many times I've given my business card out at the super market or the mall or even the movies because someone complemented my hair or boots or something else that can start a conversation.
The part I said about 'feeling better when I've gotten ready for the day', its true! About almost any situation. When I was growing up, if I ever felt sick or blah or even just in a bad mood, my mom would tell me, "Go take a shower. You'll feel better." And I swear, I always did (and still do)! Something about a bar of soap clears my mind, I guess. So the point I'm trying to make is, BE PREPARED.
Wow. This post just took off in a unforeseen direction. But that's okay! On to the stuff I love...

Starting from the left...
Stone Crop Hydrating Mist by Eminence.
This stuff is great. I just spray it on my face and my skin instantly feels calmer. Its awesome after you've been on a plane or a long car ride and your skin feels gross. It also smells nice, which doesn't hurt. Stone Crop is related to the Aloe Vera plant and so it feels amazing sprayed on a sunburn! Or even a flat iron burn. Not that I have done that.

Spray and Play by Sexy Hair
You have probably noticed I use this stuff a lot. I have used A LOT of other hairsprays but I just keep coming back to this one. It gives me the right amount of hold, its not too sticky. It just works!

Shampoo and conditioner by Pureology
This particular kind is called Perfect4Platinum. I am also addicted to the Hydrating shampoo and conditioner. Along with anyone else who tries it. The Platinum is great but the Hydrating just smells good and tingles and works for all hair types. Even fine/thin. Its pricey but worth it. I have never found a shampoo that helps keep your color from washing out better than this stuff!

Blonde Glam Color Enhancer by Redken
I like my blond to be super pale without looking yellow or brassy. So, I use this conditioning treatment once a week (okay, twice a week. At the most!). Its purple! Because violet cancels out yellow. I leave it on for 5 minutes in the shower and then rinse it out. Don't use it too much or your hair will start to have a pale purple-ish tinge to it. Which I'm assuming most people don't want.

Soy Renewal by Sexy Hair
Another product I use a lot. I also like Moroccan Oil but that stuff is a little too rich for my blood. Especially when this is cheaper and also works pretty dang good! Put it on before you blow dry to cut your drying time down. It also softens your hair and gets rid of some frizz and fly-aways. After your hair is dry you can put a little through your hair for shine. Don't go overboard though! Grease-ball is not a good look for you, my dude!!

Texture Twist by Pureology
I dedicated a whole post to this stuff. I love it. 'Nuff said.

Perfume
Specifically Bright Crystal by Versace. I love perfume. I just think is feminine and fun and makes your whole hair/makeup/outfit complete. That being said, I'm extremely picky. Fruity and sweet? What am I, 8? Too Flowery? Now I smell like a grandma. You get the idea. The smell has to be just right. I used to wear CK IN2U by Calvin Klein, but they stopped making it. Which pissed me off. I considered writing a stern letter. Until I found this stuff. I don't usually trust others to pick out a scent for me, but my mom brought this back from a trip she and my dad took and I love it. People are always complementing me on it. Before you go being impressed by the fact that I wear Versace, its really not that expensive. Like, $30 at Nordstrom Rack!
Now you might be thinking I because I like perfume that I use a lot of scented lotions and body washes. WRONG. I refuse to wear scented lotion. I feel like that stuffs intended demographic is pre-teen girls. Its sticky, smells gross and messes with the smell of my perfume. I don't feel like body wash actually cleans your skin and most of it makes my skin dry and itchy, so I use a bar of Dial soap. After I get out of the shower, I use baby lotion. End of story.

Wow. Thanks for making it through all that with me! I'm sorry I was having rage over scented lotion.
In the words of my friend Jenna... SEEEEEEE-YA!
Les


This Post was brought to you by:
-Bath and Body Works and Victoria's Secret
-The massage Kara gave me at work (She is a licenced Massage Therapist. Not that creepy co-worker everyone has that thinks its appropriate to come up behind ANYONE and massage them. You know what I'm talkin' about)
-Cherry JuJu Hearts

Pretty!

I love this! Sometimes I wish I had long hair. Except mine is the big NC when its long. I'm not sure what to call this little 'do yet. If you think of something good, let me know!
To begin, Jacie's hair was just down and straight. This would still look really pretty if your hair was curly/wavy! I took a small section of hair just behind her bangs and split it in two. I then crossed one section over the other and, pulling from the bottom, added hair to the bottom section....



I kept twisting and adding more hair in between each twist. I did this until had I gone roughly half way around. I then twisted the two strands down so I had a twisted pigtail...

I put a ponytail at the end just to hold it in. If your hair model isn't busy doing 'homework', she could probably just hold onto it for you. Now repeat with the other side...

I wrapped the pigtails around one another and then coiled them into a bun at the nape of Jacie's neck. I pinned it in place, tucking any loose ends away (it only took about 4 pins!).

I hair sprayed the whole thing with some Spray and Play by Big and Sexy and I was done! Swanky lookin' huh?!

This could totally be a bridal up do with a little tweaking! Me and Jace did a few styles today so there is a lot more where that came from!

Tomorrow IS another day, ( Get it, Aunt Lynnie?!)
Les

This Post was brought to you by:
-Leftovers
-An episode of SNL
-Raking my backyard in February (WHAT?!)

Lexie's Flight Attendant 'do

I colored my friend, Lexie's hair today! Its been a very very long time since we have had a chance to do it and her hair was looking sad. Being a flight attendant and us living in two separate cities creates a scheduling problem. Lexie has been my friend for a long time and has been my client since I was in school. She is my little guinea pig! One time I gave her an accidental rat tail, I've given her hot-roots( big NC), and some traumatic bangs. Lex is the best! Whenever we do her hair, whether its at the salon or my moms kitchen, we always bicker. About everything. Her hair, men, our mutual friends, you name it. Its funny and I wish we saw more of each other!
As I said, she is a flight attendant so she always needs hairstyles she can do herself that are "compliant" with the rules (p.s.-if you've ever seen the rule of compliance for a flight attendant, you'd shit. Its a ca-razy stack of papers about 3 inches thick). So after some meditation, I came up with this. Sorry for the bad photography, the lighting was bad and dark hair doesn't show detail as well as light hair.

The products I used...

After we rinsed out her color I sprayed her hair with Soy Tri-wheat leave in conditioner and some Soy Renewal by Sexy Hair. Then I blow dried it with a round brush. I teased her hair at the crown a little. I don't tease it too much, especially because Lexie doesn't her hair too big. One of the many things we bicker about. I took her hair in LARGE sections, sprayed them with a little Spray and Play by Big and Sexy, then curled them. Lexie has fine hair so I did her whole head in a about 8 curls. You might need to do it in more if your hair is any thicker than hers.

Next I sectioned her hair off into three sections. I parted the hair from the top of the ear on both sides like so...

Then I put the back section in a loose ponytail and push my fingers into the space between the ponytail holder and her head, as seen here:

Grab the hair in the ponytail and pull it through with your fingers. Congrats, you've just created a topsy-tail! Take small sections of the pony tail and put them in a bobby pin...

Push this in above the ponytail, allowing the curly ends to hang out.

Your probably wondering what the pieces in the front are doing and now I will tell you! You can do lots of things here, a braid, loops or (what I did) a twist! Grab one section and split in in two, twist them together, and pin the end in with the rest of the curls. Now repeat on the other side. Set it with some hairspray and you are now ready to deal with rude air-travelers!

I have no picture of the front because Lexie wouldn't sign my waiver. Something about no makeup. Boo.

Thank you for choosing The Daily 'do! Have a safe flight!
Les

Hair do's

• This would be a great style the day after you wore your hair curly.


• Try different things with the front sections!

Hair Don'ts

• Don't forget to tame stray pieces with some pomade or Texture Twist
  

This Post was brought to you by:

-Some pizza I made with random things I had in my pantry and fridge

-Simply Orange

-Down by Blink 182

I know, I'm kind of awesome...

I totally just made this little hair do up! Unless you're reading this thinking, "I've seen this before. Your stupid." In which case, cram it and let me have my moment.
So, I was working at my Aunt's salon in Coalville today and Brooke came in to have her hair colored. I talked her into letting me do something fun with her style! After I rinsed the color out I put some Soy Renewal by Big and Sexy in her hair and blow dried it with a paddle brush.

This is the spot where you usually find a picture of the products I used. I forgot to take one and now I'm too lazy to do it! Incase you are losing sleep over it, here is a list of what I used:

• One small ponytail




• a few bobbypins to tuck in stray hairs




• Big and Sexy Spray and Play hairspray

I started by teasing her hair at the crown just a little bit. Then, on the side she parts her hair, I grabbed the hair in front of her ear and created a vertical section and split it in half...

and then crossed those (like you're tying your shoes),

and pull down to tighten. Then grab another section behind that, added the hair together and repeat!

Keep going around the head, pulling from the bottom, adding the sections, and tying. When you get to the other ear, smooth the front back and put it all in a ponytail.

Here's a little trick I've mentioned but never really explained...when you put your hair in a ponytail (or secured it with a bobby pin) and you feel like you pulled too hard, grab a comb with a tail! Take the tail(I used the pick end of my round brush), insert it and GENTLY slide the comb up a little. It just gives it some fluff and smooths out your 'do a little.

I decided to leave her ponytail down so I took a small section of hair, wrapped it around the ponytail and and secured the ends with a bobby pin. I gave the hair in the ponytail a little tease so I wasn't just hanging there like a dead thing. Hairspray and your good to go!

Until Tomorrow!

Les

Hair Do's

• This style would look very cool with wavy/curly hair!

Hair Don'ts

• If you try my little trick, DON'T push too hard. You'll mess your hair up!

This Post was brought to you by:

-The bowl of clam chowder I'm about to eat, made by my Momma.

-ZiZi laying on my feet, warming them up.

-My lovely photographer, Kelsey (Brooke's little sister)

Whats a curling rod?

I'm glad you asked! This is a curling rod...

The one I have is made by Enzo Milano. They make lots of sizes, this one is about an inch. I'm going to show you the pretty curls it makes today! If your thinking, "Leslie, I don't have a curling rod! How will I ever be as awesome as you?!", the answer is you won't be. Ever. BUT you can use a regular curling iron in any size to recreate these curls! Just don't use the clampy part.

These are the products I'm using today...

My lovely assistant, Jacie was SO kind as to allow me to curl her sweaty, post workout hair. What a peach! We are going to start the usual way, by sectioning off her hair. The sections should be no thicker than your curling rod(or curling iron) and each piece I picked up to curl was no wider than my rod.

If you want looser curls, do wider sections. But I will warn you, Its harder for the heat to penetrate through the hair and curl it evenly if you do thick pieces. Don't forget to put your heat protectant or light hold hairspray on each section before you curl!

Wrap the section, starting closer to the scalp and winding down. Wrap the curls AWAY from your face. Because I said so. And because it looks prettier, trust me. Don't burn your fingers! This particular curling rod came with a heat resistant glove, but I'm too cool for school (aka, I left it at work) and didn't use it.

(She looks like she is in pain in this picture, but don't worry. That's just the way her face goes)

Now pull down your next section, give it a tease at the root with your trusty ratting comb, and repeat! When you get to your last section, which should be at the crown area, spray some hairspray at the root, tease it, drop it, and smooth it out so you don't have any visible "rats".( I have a very rude term for when you can see the nasty, uneven teased spots in a girls hair, which I will not share on here. But for those of you who have heard/used this term, take a moment to laugh with me...now back to our regularly scheduled program) NOW curl this section.

Her bangs were already straightened so I just used a little Soy Renewal by Big and Sexy (Argan Oil) I had on my fingers to set them the way I wanted. Speaking of Soy Renewal, you should now have some sort of product similar to this on your hands so you can run your fingers through your hair and break up the curls a little. Give it some hairspray and then mist a little shine spray over it!

Here is the final product...

Doesn't she look pretty?! Even if she does keep pulling cray-cray faces at me. Try different sizes of rods/irons and see which you like best. My cousin, Lexi, has long, thick Samoan hair and she does her whole head with a curling rod that is about half and inch(or smaller) in diameter. It is so pretty but takes her like, 2 hours.

See ya tomorrow!

-Les

Hair Do's

• If you decide to try the beachy waves but want just a little bit more curl, try this! After you're done creating your beachy waves, take a large section, wrap it around the rod and QUICKLY release. It will just give them that 'umph' they need. Scrunch again and finish with hairspray!

Hair Don'ts

• Once again, don't burn your fingers. Don't say you weren't warned.


• Don't do too big of sections and then wonder why it didn't curl. Take time and do smaller sections.