S-braid

This braid is one of the easiest but looks the most complicated when it is done, which is one reason to love it.  People will be so impressed with your hair braiding skills!
I like to add the s-braid to simple styles like when I am just doing a pony tail on my self or on Kinsley.  This is also a fun braid I like to add into updos.  It just breaks up what would be a more plain or simple style. If you can do a regular braid, then anyone can do an s-braid.  The s-braid is harder to explain how to achieve so I will let the video do the explaining, and then you are see how get this braid.

I show how to do the actual braid on Kinsley's hair, and then I show how I style it for her and for myself!

Beachy Waves!

One of the biggest trends in hairstyles for all types of hair and lengths is that beachy wave look.  The hair isn't super curled but there is a little bend in the hair, giving the look of that effortless wave. ;-) The best part of this hair style is that it doesn't take very long to do your hair because you can take bigger sections and you aren't holding the hair on the wand for that long.

I showed how to use a curling wand a few months back and for this style you use the same technique, but as I show in the video, you hold the hair and wand in a different spot.

The wave look can be used on all lengths of hair.  I like to see this style for shorter hair.  Sometimes for shorter hair they feel like there isn't much they can do differently with their  style.  Putting a little wave in gives it a different look but doesn't give it tight curls.  The nice part about this style is that is doesn't have to be exact. Even when you practice it doesn't have to be perfect!

In the video you will be able to see exactly what I do and how I hold the curling wand to achieve this look!

Happy Curling! People have been sending me pictures of their hairstyle that they are trying on themselves and on their daughters and I love to see them.  Keep up the good work! If you ever have a question or would like to see something on the blog send me a message. 

  

All about Rock The Locks!

*This is a sponsored post. I was given these products as a sample to write a review. All of the opinions are my own.*


Rock The Locks is a new company developed by the maker of Piggy Paints nail polish.  They care about having products for kids that are safe, natural, and tested by professionals.  They have no parabens or phthalates in them and are infused with essential oils and fruit extracts.  You can really tell that they are as all of the products smell amazing!

We will start with the shampoo and conditioner.  I am sometimes leery of shampoo/conditioner combos. I have noticed that they sometimes don't seem to to do a good job of conditioning; however, Rock the Locks So Fresh & So Clean proved me wrong. I was so pleased with how the kids' hair felt after this.  Kinsley's hair tends to get the most ratty and I was impressed that just with the shampoo/conditioner and a couple sprays of the detangler, she was able to brush out her hair by her self. The scent is Blueberry Blast and it was not overpowering at all. I noticed that the smell does linger, so even by the end of the day her hair still smells clean.

Not So Knotty is their conditioning detangler spray.  This scent is Pineapple-Banana, which is probably our least favorite smell, but that would be the only negative on this product.  It has a different shape nozzle then a regular pump spray.  I liked this because it distributed the product so much better.  We only need a few sprays before Kinsley's hair was well saturated and easy to brush through. If your daughter has snarly hair try this product. We used it right after showers and then in the morning on dry hair just when that back would get ratty.  Each and every time it allowed us to comb through it with ease.  Not only did it help get through the tangles, but also her hair felts so conditioned after we use this.

Curls Want To Have Fun is their spray-on curl boosting product.  I was most impressed with how well this product worked.  If you have a curly haired girl in your family, this is a must.  I don't have any curly hair curls in my family, however I asked a few little girls while we were at a play date if I could try some product on their hair.  They graciously allowed me too, and I could not believe how curly it made their hair.  Their moms later commented that while it didn't hold super well, it was the softest and the nicest their curls had looked in a long time.  I think for next time or for your own curly haired girl, I would spray that on and then finish with a hair spray to get those curls to stay. The scent is orange creamsicle and smelled amazing!

Stylin' & Profilin' flex style gel is Nolan's go to gel now.  We like that it does not leave the hair heavy or get flaky after being in all day like some gels can do.  It has a nice hold and when it dries it does not look wet. It smells like green apples, which Nolan liked because it wasn't super flowery.

Don't Messy With Me texture paste is a paste product, so it isn't wet like a gel, but it is not fully solid.  It has almost a bounce to it when you touch it.  Don't Messy With Me is perfect for getting that messy texturized look to hair.  I used it on Nolan with and without the gel.  On days he used the gel, we would add the paste to it to separate the hair a little.  We also used it a lone, and that is how I preferred to use it.  I love the separated "piecey" look it gave to his hair.  Even those these products are developed for kids, I used this one frequently when I would curl my hair and wanted to get my curls separated but not weighed down.

Lock It & Rock It hairspray is described as a smell that is fruit fresh and that is exactly what it is. it smells light and fresh even after all day at school.  The hold is fantastic for a kids' hair spray.  It is a pump hair spray which sometimes can be a little wet, but Lock It & Rock It dries so quickly that the little bit of wetness was not an issue.

Overall I was so impressed with these products.  I love how kid friendly the bottles are, that they are safe, and that they have proven to work so well.  Another bonus is that the price point is great. Not one of them cost more then $10.  I love that they are making safe-for-kids products that are affordable.  If you would like to try these products out you can purchase them at Wal-Mart or Walmart.com and right on Rockthelocks.com. Give them a try. I think you will be pleased!!

Don't forget to head over to my Facebook or Instagram page where I will be giving away this bundle of products.  All 6 will go to a lucky winner!!

Not a Hair Post!

This is not a normal post for me, but Kinsley has been wanting to pick a idea for a post, so I let her. She wanted to do one about her favorite cookies.  Since she is so patient with me and such a good little model and lets me try all these braids on her, I indulged her and let her bake and I took pictures.
Today we are sharing our favorite cookies: Monster Cookies.   If you have known me for any length of time you have probably ate some of these! They are my go-to cookies to make because they are so delicious. Monster cookies are fool-proof. They always turn out and they are so easy to make. Filled with oats, peanut butter and chocolate, who wouldn't love these?

Dumping all the ingredients in.  A little trick that I use is to lessen the butter by about 1 TBSP, and then they don't seem to flatten.

All ready for the oven. The dough is almost better then the cookies!

All done! A tip for oatmeal is that it does cook a little after it comes out of the oven, so be careful to take it out before it is too done.

Taste Testers!

--Monster Cookies--

1/2 Cup butter

1 1/2 Cups Peanut Butter

1 Cup Brown Sugar

1 Cup White Sugar

3 Eggs

1/2 TBSP Karo Syrup

5 Cups Oatmeal

Mix all together then add

1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips

1/2 Cup M&M

Bake @350 degrees for 8-10 mins

We hope you enjoy these cookies as much as we do.  Happy Baking!!

More Than a Messy Bun

I came across this picture on Pinterest and knew I had to try it on my self.  I like having styles that ups my messy bun game and this style does that.

The video does a great job showing how to achieve this style. I started with having my hair curled because I need it for the texture and body.  I started with the braid further back on my head. I used the inside out braid, but it would also look good with a French braid.  Once the first braid is secure, I did the braid in the front and secured it right behind my ear.  After the braids, you can pull it back in to a messy bun or just a pony tail.

Everyone does their messy buns differently.  Since my hair isn't super long I do have to use a few bobby pins to keep the hair in place.

I think this will be my go to hairstyle as the weather starts to warm up and I don't want my hair down.

When I was doing the video I mentioned that it would be a style that you could turn into a more formal up-do.  You could do the two braids and then go back a few post and combine the chignon look that I showed you!  If you have a wedding in the summer, give it a try!

Faux Mohawk Braid

I am always trying to find or come up with styles that look good, are functional, and have a little variation that works for most ages.  In today's post I demonstrate how to do the style on Kinsley and then I show how it looks on me also.

I show in the video, start to finish, what I do on Kinsleys hair.  I believe it was well under 10 minutes for me to completely style her hair, which is huge when you have an impatient little girl.  I like to do this style on myself as well when I want my hair out of my eyes, but still want my hair down for the day.

You can do this style on curled or straight hair. I like to section off the braided portion and then clip the rest of the hair back so it is out of the way.  Take your top section and divide the front section in to three parts just like you would for any braid.  You can do a regular French braid or a Dutch braid.  Braid until the top of your head.  Once braided, I always like to fatten my braid up and then secure it in a top knot. For Kinsley's I do hers right on the top of her head and for mine I pull it down a little more.

The video shows just how fast this cute new style is!

Favorite products!

One of the most frequent questions I get is about the products I like and would recommend.  I try to be budget conscious and give one salon grade product and then one you could find at a drug store.  In this post I will try my best to do that.  Below I posted all the links for the products, but you can also find them at your local Ulta.  If you ever are curious about a product send me and email or message. I have tried tons of different products and I hope to find something you like and that works best for you!

I will work my way through a few shampoos for different hair types and then put in a few styling products that I love.

Dry Hair: I recommend Matrix Biolage Ultra Hydration shampoo and conditioner. It has capuacu butter and apricot kernal oil in it. It is extremely hydrating and should only be used if your hair is extremely dry. Even then this shampoo and conditioner is not something I would recommend you use every day. You would use 2-3 times a week at the most.

Blondes:  I love Dumb Blonde by Bed Head. It comes with a shampoo and a Dumb Blonde recontrustor conditioner.  This is perfect for people with very blonde hair. Bleach can be taxing on the hair and Dumb Blonde helps rebuild those strands to help make them as strong as possible. If you have thinner or very fine hair, I would not recommend Dumb Blonde.  It will be too heavy and too much conditioning for your hair. My second favorite for blonde hair is Matrix Biolage Colorlast shampoo and Conditioner.  This is generally my go-to shampoo and conditioner. It makes my hair feel so healthy even with how much I do to my hair.  The conditioner isn't super heavy like some color safe conditioners can be. A bonus is both these products smell great!

Colored Hair: I would recommend the Bed Head Colour Goddess. It really does help lock in your color.  It is not a very heavy conditioner, so it is great for all types of hair. I also recommend Matrix Biolage Colorlast shampoo again, as it works great for blondes and colored hair.

Thin Hair: I like Biolage Volume Bloom.  While it is not going to make your hair crazy full, it does help give it a little more life.  This is also a great shampoo for just normal hair and would be a recommendation for someone looking for a middle of the line shampoo.

Curly Hair: It is hard for me to recommend a product for curly hair because I do not have curly hair, but I do have a several clients that do. They have been gracious to try products out and let me know what they think and how it worked for them.  Deva Curl is my first recommendation.  They have a whole kit that you can buy that includes a diffuser. Their products claim to fame is their No-Poo line.  The shampoo will not be very sudsy which does not dry out the hair. This does take people some getting use to as they feel like it isn't getting clean. (If you are a curly hair person stop washing your hair every day anyways. You will thank me later!)

Now on to styling products.

Pre Blow Drying:  I like to use either a mousse or a root lifter before I blow dry.  I have been very happy with Matrix Volume Builder for Mousse.  It has a 3 out of 5 on their hold scale, so it is very middle of the ground.  It is not super heavy or sticky and I have noticed when I am using it on my clients I can use it on most of them.  For a root lifter I recommend Guts by Redken. This product has been around forever and they have not done any tweaking to it. It is still is a top seller and works so well. If you have curly hair and you don't fully blow dry your hair, I would suggest Deva Curl mouse to help define your curls or Rusk Plumping mousse. If you have curly or frizzy hair or thick hair I recommend putting some oil in before you blow dry. Not only will this help your cuticle lay down, but it helps with drying time. On my clients I like to use Matrix Exquisite oil protective treatment before I blow dry. It smoothes the hair very well.

After Blow Drying: As I have mentioned in my video I like Rusk Working Hair spray. I use that before I curl hair.  It gives it some hold but then still allows you to have some play with it.  For a finishing spray I like Bed Head Masterpiece. It smells great, holds well, and does not leave your hair feeling sticky. Also, if you feel your hair needs it you can use a heat protectant spray. Two I would recommend are Biolage Thermal Spray and Not Your Mothers Beat the Heat spray.
If you do have frizzy ends or need a little oil to your hair at the end of your style I like to use the Matrix oil I mentioned above. ( If your hair is thin to not use this.)

Dry Shampoo: Dry shampoo is so popular these days. It is great for those days you don't wash your hair or if you do wash your hair and just need some extra volume.  My favorite is Living Proof Perfect Hair Day. It is a tad more expensive, but if you are picky with your dry shampoo this is a must. Another great one, that is more budget friendly but still gets great results, is Dove Hair Therapy Refresh!

This is a long post and a lot of information, but I hope that it answered some of your questions or can help you get the right product! Happy shopping!