Let's be pretty...

I love this saying.  While I really love to do hair and braids, I hope most of all that I am instilling in my girls the importance of being these types of "pretty".  My goal for my business is not only to do the best that I can on people's hair, but to make my clients feel cared for and valued.  I am so lucky that I get to talk and grow alongside my clients.  I love when I get to be part of their weddings and special events, when they bring new babies to my salon, and when they get to special milestones.  My hope during my interaction is that people walk away not only happy with their hair, but valued and heard. 

And that is what I hope to instill in my girls! That while it is nice to have your hair done, that it is only a fragment of what makes them beautiful.  I hope that their inward beauty will shine further then their outward. With the kids in school now we have been talking about including the new kids, or asking someone to play, or sitting by someone different at lunch.  My hope is that no matter what, they are always "pretty kind".

A big thing we talk about in our house is "dirty cup/clean cup".  A cup can look "clean" from the outside, but when you get closer, if it is dirty on the inside, no one wants to drink out of it.  If your inside is clean, that is what truly matters and people will want to have that cup.  

I hope all your kiddos are having a great time going back to school!

Chinese Ladder Braid

This braid is called a Chinese Ladder "braid". I do not know why it has that name. It really should be called a slip knot braid because that is all you are doing. It looks much harder then it really is. If you can make a slip not in a rope you can in hair also!

It is hard to type out how this braid is done, but in the video it is easy to see and hear how I am doing that.

For this style you do need to have longer hair to make it easier and to make it look like it is intended.

Summer Hair Refresh!

Summer can be hard on your hair, even if you don't color or highlight it.  Between swimming in the pool or lake, or being in the sun, summer can take its toll on your hair. While I do love a good coconut oil mask, I found a few others masks that I think work really well.

First, make sure you trim those dead ends off. Sometimes just doing that can make a world of difference.

One that you can pick up right at Meijer or Target is Neutrogena Triple Moisture Hair Mask. This is a gentle mask, but very hydrating. You can find this one for $6

For my curly haired friends that want a drug store find, try Dove Advanced Hair Intense Restoration Mask.  While I would not be able to use this on my hair because I wouldn't be able to curl my hair for days because it is so hydrating,  it would be great for dry curly hair. Even if your hair is not super curly and more corse this would be a mask for you.  It helps bring moisture to your hair, define those curls, and help control frizz due to dryness. This one runs about $6.

If you are looking for more salon grade ones theses are a few that I would recommend.

Redken Diamond Oil helps add moisture to your hair to help get that shine back. Your hair will not be shiny if you aren't conditioning it.   Redken makes solid products. Very rarely have I come across a Redken product that didn't work well.  You can purchase this for $20.

The other one I like to recommend is Moroccanoil Intense Hydarating Mask.  I like most of Moroccanoil products. They make some good hydrating treatments and oils to help smooth down those cuticles.  This product is going to replenish the moisture, help with shine, and improve your overall texture.  You can find this product for $28.

Keep in mind, when you are using a mask, follow the recommendations that come with it.  Masks are not intended to be every day type things. Use once a week at the most.  Also, remember that your hair will be extremely soft afterwards. Don't do it near a time when you want to curl your hair. Those curls won't stay well.

Hair Bow

Hair bows are cute and girly looking, plus they are so easy.  I like to throw a few videos in that are easy and not braids just in case you don't like to braid.  If you can make a bubble out of your pony tail and wraps some hair around, you can easily do a hair bow.  The nice thing about hair bows is that all lengths and textures work well because you can change the size of the bow. If you have a child with really thick hair, just make your bow smaller so that the hair can all wrap around. If your child has thin hair, get as much hair as possible in that bow to plump it up.

What I also love about this style is that it doesn't take that long to do, so this is something that you can do before school on those busy mornings.

All you need for this style is a hair tie and about six bobby pins.

The video shows how exactly to do this style.

Q &A

I asked you all to send me your questions and I received a bunch, so I am going to cover a few in this post. Some of them, I will just be touching on briefly, and later will dedicate a full post to it.

1. I got a lot of questions about my hair.  How do I keep it so blonde?  What colors do I use on it?  How can I get my hair like that?  Etc.

My hair is naturally a dirty blonde color. It has gotten darker after each of my kids, which is really normal. Don't panic if it is happening to you! I am lucky because my mom does hair also, so not only was I able to grow up around it, she is an excellent stylist, does great color, and is always willing to do my hair. That being said, I like my hair really light. It works well with my skin tone, so I keep it light all year long. We do heavy highlights in my hair, with lots of them and close together.  We are very careful that we are just retouching my roots at this time, so that the integrity of my hair stays healthy and strong.  Once the highlights lift, we rinse out all the bleach really well and then towel dry my hair so that the bulk of the moisture is out.  At this point it is called toning. So for you blondes out there ask your stylist for this part.  It is what will make the blondes that pretty blonde color.  For the roots we did a 7 ash color with a 10 volume. This helps my dark hair blend well with the blonde.  For the bang portion of my hair and along with the rest of the hair, we used a level 10 with ash and violet.  This is what helps keep my blonde not brassy.  Leave that all on for about 10 mins and then wash out.  Why did I tell you all that if you don't do hair?  Well, if you are wanting that light hair and your stylist isn't getting it just how you want, you can bring this to them and they will have an even more clear picture of what you are hoping for!

That is how my blonde is achieved, but to keep it blonde, I use a few other products.  For shampoo, I bounce between two.  I love Bed Heads Dumb Blonde. It makes my hair feel great after processing it so much. I also love Biolage Color treated shampoo.  Joico also makes a shampoo just for blondes called Color Balanced Purple Shampoo.  It will not turn your hair purple, but it does have purple pigments that gets rid of the yellow that blondes can have.

My hair is cut in a long bob or a "lob" style.  I have very minimal layers because they thin my hair out.  I have a very simple easy-to-maintain cut.  Even though I do hair, I sometimes go longer than I should between my cuts!!

2. What is a good natural deep conditioner?

I love coconut oil. If you go back a few post I have a whole section on why I love it.  But I also have a post coming out with a list of deep conditioners that I like.  While coconut oil does a good job, sometimes you need a little something more.

3.  What is a good natural products for coloring hair?

I am biased on this one. I don't use all natural products on my hair.  The color is on your head for such a short period of time and so infrequently that I like to use color that I know is going to work really well for my clients.  The closest thing to natural hair color would be Aveda color.  They claim to be all natural, but I know that stylist have a love/hate relationship with these colors because of how they work.

If you are wondering about a natural shampoo that is going to help keep your color in after you color it, I always recommend Purology Hydrate Shampoo.  Purology is a little pricey, but it works well, and it is a more natural product.

4.What are super quick hair styles for people who have never done anything with their hair before?

This is a great question and I feel like it deserves a whole post by itself.  I have one coming soon!

5. What are a few hair styles for baby fine toddler/ baby hair?

The stage of that wispy hair is difficult. There isn't much to be done but you want it to look halfway decent and at least out of their eyes.  I totally get this! If you have you seen my Haddie's hair, most of the time girlfirend's hair looks like a hot mess.  One of my go-to's is a pony in the bangs to keep it off her face. We called it the Poppy pony (she thinks she looks like Poppy for Trolls).  Another method I use is we have lots of little clips that are small enough that they don't pull her hair.  I will link the ones I like on the bottom.  Also Ii the hair has little length on it, you can put a tiny French braid up there.  You also can't go wrong with headbands. I like the ones that are a bit thicker and have a knot in them.  They are soft on their head and they stay in all day. I linked some below, but if you are local, Mother & Earth Baby Boutique has some really cute ones in their store.

I love the questions you all asked.  I have a few more to answer but will save those for another time!

More Updo Inspiration!

This past weekend I was able to do a wedding.  I love being able to do weddings. There is something so fun about being involved in someone's special day.  I thought I would share a few of the ones I did this past weekend.  Maybe you have a wedding or event you can tuck these ideas away for.


This one was fun! She really wanted a fishtail braid and to keep her hair looking long; she basically had mermaid hair!

The half up half down is such an elegant, classic look.  If you have hair that will stay pretty down all day, I think this is a great option. 

She wanted to have a lot of texture her in hair, so leaving the sides curly like that creates a lot of movement.  This style is fun to have and fun for me to do!

  

If you follow me on Pinterest at Mallorie Lounds, you will be able to find this post and pin these styles. 

My disclaimer to these styles is that these girls all had hair that had color or highlights in it, which is a huge help in getting hair to stay in place and curled.  Keep your texture in mind when you are choosing an updo!

Links and Love: Back to School Edition

I know, I know you hate me.  I said the dreaded "S" word - school that is.  While I hate that summer

is closing in, I thought I would share a few of our favorite school items with you all.

Here are our essentials for school:

I love Lands' End Backpack and lunch boxes.  The quality is incredible; they are indestructible. Nolan is going on year three for his and it is still in perfect condition.  I clean it, so it still looks new.  There is not a frayed seam or edge on the whole bag even with how rough boys are. Both the kids have these and I hope they are able to use them for many years to come.  The backpacks run in price from $40 to $50, however Lands' End is always running a 40% off coupon and every once a in a while they will do a 50% off backpacks which makes the price extremely reasonable for such a high quality product.  The lunch bags run about $25. While up front it may be a bit more then other bags, your kids are going to be able to use them for quite a few years.  Plus, Lands Ends' has cute prints for their bags!

Lands End Backpack 

Lands End Lunchbags

My kids take cold lunch about 95 % of the time, so I have liked finding nice lunch containers for them.  So far our favorite have been Yumboxes. They are a hard shell plastic container with dividers on the inside.  I like these the best because I can pack wet food like yogurt or applesauce next to dry food and the dividers are so tight that nothing leaks through. They come in multiple sizes and even have a snack size. It also comes in so many fun color and graphics on the inside.   Yumboxes fit perfectly in Lands' End lunch bags.

Another lunch container that my kids really like are kids' size thermos.  While the kids school does have a microwave, they like the thermos for days that they want soup, or even leftover spaghetti.  I usually just heat up the food in the morning and then pour it in to the thermos.  The kids say that the food is a perfect temperature by lunch.

The kids also like to bring a water bottle with them for lunch. We have found that the Contigo ones work great for school.  They keep the water cold and they are easy to clean. They also don't leak any water.

Since the kids take cold lunch and usually there is something in it that needs to stay cold, I found these fun thin ice packs.  I put 2 in their lunch bag and they are generally still cool by the time they get home in the afternoon.

I included links on Amazon for the kid thermos, the water bottle, and the ice packs, but I have seen all these things are either at  Meijer or Target. So that is all the general school supplies that I love. Here are the hair supplies that I think are needed for school:

My number one is always Fairy Tales Lice Repel.  My kids go from their summer line to the lice line once school starts.  It is a must for kids in elementary school or even day care.  Here is a link from my post all about lice prevention.

Next, I would say that a wet brush is a must for little girls.  Help fight those morning tangles with the Wet Brush and now the Wet Brush for Thick Hair.  These I think are must also. They go through the hair so much nicer then a regular brush.

A good idea for the beginning of the year is to restock your hair ties.  These always seem to disappear somehow, so I like to buy fresh at the beginning of the school year!

I hope you all enjoy your last few weeks before school starts and that back to school shopping goes well!!