Monday, February 21, 2011

Feb 21 - Sally's Haul :)

No hair pics or anything for today... been busy cleaning and working on our kitchen (off work for Prez day) so my hair has not been a priority. BUT a box of goodies from Sally's came today! Yay! Last Monday they had a 25% off coupon for Valentine's day and the Product Junkie in me couldn't resist any longer... so be on the lookout for new posts as I try out my new goodies. :)

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From left to right:
Ion Color Brilliance Semi Permanent Hair Color - Medium Warm Brown. I did a Demi-Permanent color a while ago and it hasn't all washed out so this is basically going back to my natural color for a while. Since I don't use sulfate shampoos, I expect it will last a while. The ingredients look great too - silk, jojoba oil, aloe, and of course no sulfates, silicones, mineral oil, etc.
Nutress Stop Break Healthy Hair Enhancer Leave-In Spray - has protein and aloe so I expect my hair will love it.
Ion Spray Gel - Sometimes I think regular gel is too heavy... or I need too much of it to get a decent hold and then it weighs my hair down. Hair sprays tend to have drying alcohol in them and many also have silicones. This is the best of both worlds and I can't wait to try it!
Ion Moisturizing Treatment - Lots of nice ingredients for curls here - aloe, jojoba oil, avocado oil, mag sulfate (I know some are sensitive to it but mine seem to like it), wheat protein... smells nice too. I'm thinking of using it as a leave-in if it's not too heavy.
Biotera Gel - Seems to be popular with curlies, and I already have the Curl Creme and leave-in - thought they might work well together. The curl creme doesn't have nearly enough hold for me on its own.
Neutral Protein Filler - I'm always looking to try new protein treatments. I don't have any plans to use it prior to coloring my hair.
Lustrasilk Shea Butter Cholesterol - We've still got a bit of winter and low-dews left before spring. My hair does really well in low dews with the Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition which has shea butter, so I thought I'd try this too.
Ecostyler Argan Oil Gel - I wanted to try the Ecostyle Olive Oil gel, and then I saw this! Plus it was on sale. Smells awesome (kind of like apples). A curly girl can't have too many gels, am I right?
Salon Care Clips - going to try clipping my roots. I tend to get the "flat-top" more often than not and I'm hoping that clipping (if I can do it right) will help.

Feb 17 - Playing with Mag Sulfate part 2

Today's weather:
High: 61
Low: 43
Humidity (avg): 48%
Dewpoint (avg): 31.3

Today's products:
Suave Daily Clarifying Conditioner (co-wash)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, lactic acid, potassium chloride, fragrance, disodium EDTA, PEG-150 distearate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1, 3-diol, tocopheryl acetate, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone
Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Conditioner (rinse-out)
Ingredients: Water, Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Caprylic Acid (Capric Triglyceride), Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Fragrance (Parfum), Lauryl Lysine, Caprylyl Glycol, Brassica Campestris (Rapeseed)/Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Aspartic Acid, Distearyldimonium Chloride, Persea Gratissima (Avacado) Oil (Organic), Citric Acid, Alcohol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Leaf Juice (Organic)
SalonCare Sparkling Apples and Pears Conditioner (leave-in)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearalkonium chloride, hydrolyzed keratin, pyrus malus (apple) fruit extract, pyrus communis (pear) fruit extract, propylene glycol, dicetyldimonium chloride, fragrance, citric acid, dmdm hydantoin, blue 1, yellow 5.
Ecostyler Krystal Gel
Ingredients: Water, carbomer, hydrolyzed wheat protein, PVP, glycerin, triethanolamine, sodium hydrxymethylglycinate, polysorbate 20, tetrasodium EDTA, fragrance.
Current spray bottle concoction: ~1tsp magnesium sulfate (epsom salt), ~1Tbsp Aloe Vera Gel, 8oz water.

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Styling method: Same as yesterday, just trying the Ecostyler since the dews were significantly higher and I've seen some ladies on NC.com say that they liked the Ecostyler in higher dews. I don't think it's very noticeable in the pics, but I do think my hair was a bit curlier this day. So here are the photos:

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Feb 16 - Playing with Mag Sulfate

Today's weather:
High: 49
Low: 24
Humidity (avg): 46%
Dewpoint (avg): 16.6

Today's products:
Suave Daily Clarifying Conditioner (co-wash)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, lactic acid, potassium chloride, fragrance, disodium EDTA, PEG-150 distearate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1, 3-diol, tocopheryl acetate, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone
Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Conditioner (rinse-out)
Ingredients: Water, Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Caprylic Acid (Capric Triglyceride), Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Fragrance (Parfum), Lauryl Lysine, Caprylyl Glycol, Brassica Campestris (Rapeseed)/Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Aspartic Acid, Distearyldimonium Chloride, Persea Gratissima (Avacado) Oil (Organic), Citric Acid, Alcohol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Leaf Juice (Organic)
SalonCare Sparkling Apples and Pears Conditioner (leave-in)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearalkonium chloride, hydrolyzed keratin, pyrus malus (apple) fruit extract, pyrus communis (pear) fruit extract, propylene glycol, dicetyldimonium chloride, fragrance, citric acid, dmdm hydantoin, blue 1, yellow 5.
LA Looks Sport Gel
Ingredients: Water, PVP, sorbitol, carbomer, keratin amino acids, panthenyl ethyl ether, palmitoyl oligopeptide, glyceryl polymethacrylate, propylene glycol, glycerin, oleth-20, rahnella/soy protein ferment, aminomethyl propanol, PEG-8, tetrasodium EDTA, benzophenone-4, methylparaben, diazolidinyl urea, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, fragrance, butylphenyl methylpropional, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde, limonene, hexyl cinnamal, linalool, benzyl salicylate, citronellol, violet 2, blue 1
Current spray bottle concoction: ~1tsp magnesium sulfate (epsom salt), ~1Tbsp Aloe Vera Gel, 8oz water.

Styling method: Same as usual, plus spraying my mag sulfate concoction all over. I just made up the recipe, not sure if those amounts are really enough to do anything but I figured it was a starting point! I do think my hair was "springier" and some of the curls had a smaller diameter than usual. I'm more interested in springier than smaller. I am open to suggestions for modifying my concoction. :) Here are the photos:

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Feb 15

Today's weather:
High: 33
Low: 23
Humidity (avg): 49%
Dewpoint (avg): 10.7

Today's products:
Suave Daily Clarifying Conditioner (co-wash)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, lactic acid, potassium chloride, fragrance, disodium EDTA, PEG-150 distearate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1, 3-diol, tocopheryl acetate, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone
Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Conditioner (rinse-out)
Ingredients: Water, Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Caprylic Acid (Capric Triglyceride), Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Fragrance (Parfum), Lauryl Lysine, Caprylyl Glycol, Brassica Campestris (Rapeseed)/Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Aspartic Acid, Distearyldimonium Chloride, Persea Gratissima (Avacado) Oil (Organic), Citric Acid, Alcohol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Leaf Juice (Organic)
SalonCare Sparkling Apples and Pears Conditioner (leave-in)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearalkonium chloride, hydrolyzed keratin, pyrus malus (apple) fruit extract, pyrus communis (pear) fruit extract, propylene glycol, dicetyldimonium chloride, fragrance, citric acid, dmdm hydantoin, blue 1, yellow 5.
LA Looks Sport Gel
Ingredients: Water, PVP, sorbitol, carbomer, keratin amino acids, panthenyl ethyl ether, palmitoyl oligopeptide, glyceryl polymethacrylate, propylene glycol, glycerin, oleth-20, rahnella/soy protein ferment, aminomethyl propanol, PEG-8, tetrasodium EDTA, benzophenone-4, methylparaben, diazolidinyl urea, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, fragrance, butylphenyl methylpropional, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde, limonene, hexyl cinnamal, linalool, benzyl salicylate, citronellol, violet 2, blue 1

Styling method: Just a different style today. I used to wear my hair like this pretty much every day because it a) looked decent consistently, b) kept my hair out of my face and c) was a common/popular style (I realize I am dating myself a little here).

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Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Feb 10

Today's weather:
High: 26
Low: 17
Humidity (avg): 40
Dewpoint (avg): 1

Today's products:
Suave Daily Clarifying Conditioner (co-wash)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, lactic acid, potassium chloride, fragrance, disodium EDTA, PEG-150 distearate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1, 3-diol, tocopheryl acetate, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone
Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Conditioner (rinse-out)
Ingredients: Water, Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Caprylic Acid (Capric Triglyceride), Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Fragrance (Parfum), Lauryl Lysine, Caprylyl Glycol, Brassica Campestris (Rapeseed)/Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Aspartic Acid, Distearyldimonium Chloride, Persea Gratissima (Avacado) Oil (Organic), Citric Acid, Alcohol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Leaf Juice (Organic)
Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Conditioner (leave-in)
Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Cetearyl Alcohol, Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil (Palm Oil), Behentrimonium Chloride, Pyrus Malus Extract (Apply Fruit Extract), Glycerin, Parfum (Fragrance), Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Niacinamide, Pyridoxine HCI, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) (Shea Butter), Citric Acid, Olea Europaea Oil (Olive Fruit Oil), Saccharum Officinarum (Sugar Cane) Extract (Sugar Cane Extract), Benzyl Alcohol, Chlorhexidine Dihydrochloride, Persea Gratissima Oil (Avocado Oil), Ribes Nigrum Oil (Black Currant Seed Oil), Linalool, Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Fruit Extract (Lemon Peel Extract), FD&C Yellow 5 Aluminum Lake (Yellow 5), FD&C Yellow 6 Aluminum Lake (Yellow 6)
LA Looks Sport Gel
Ingredients: Water, PVP, sorbitol, carbomer, keratin amino acids, panthenyl ethyl ether, palmitoyl oligopeptide, glyceryl polymethacrylate, propylene glycol, glycerin, oleth-20, rahnella/soy protein ferment, aminomethyl propanol, PEG-8, tetrasodium EDTA, benzophenone-4, methylparaben, diazolidinyl urea, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, fragrance, butylphenyl methylpropional, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde, limonene, hexyl cinnamal, linalool, benzyl salicylate, citronellol, violet 2, blue 1

Styling method: It was really cold and dry so I thought the GFTN would be good as a leave-in with all those oils. Turns out I was right :) I did my usual rake leave-in, scrunch gel, squeeze out excess with microfiber towel deal. Here are the pics:
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Not sure about this combo with higher dews, but wow, I was really happy with my hair and even got pretty nice second-day hair too after I scrunched in some Biotera Curl Creme to tame the few flyaways I had in the morning. Unfortunately I didn't get a pic of the second day hair because I taught a 45 min Zumba class and then went to a 2.5 hour Valentine's Day Zumba party after work -- my hair was no more good after all that!

Friday, February 4, 2011

Feb 1 - Salon Grafix Mousse

Today's weather:
High: 35
Low: 24
Humidity (avg): 89%
Dewpoint (avg): 27

Today's products:
Suave Daily Clarifying Conditioner (co-wash)

Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, lactic acid, potassium chloride, fragrance, disodium EDTA, PEG-150 distearate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1, 3-diol, tocopheryl acetate, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone
Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Conditioner (rinse-out)
Ingredients: Water, Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Caprylic Acid (Capric Triglyceride), Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Fragrance (Parfum), Lauryl Lysine, Caprylyl Glycol, Brassica Campestris (Rapeseed)/Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Aspartic Acid, Distearyldimonium Chloride, Persea Gratissima (Avacado) Oil (Organic), Citric Acid, Alcohol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Leaf Juice (Organic)
Salon Grafix Professional Shaping Mousse (Super Hold, 8 out of 10)
Ingredients: Water, polyquaternium-11, isobutane, propane, stearyl alcohol, cetrimonium bromide, cetyl alcohol, polysorbate 20, sodium hydroxymethylglycinate, oleth-20, cocamidopropyl betaine, propylene glycol, panthenol, citric acid, wheatgermamidopropyl dimethylamine hydrolized wheat protein, keratin amino acids, lawsonia inermis (henna) extract, linum usitatissimum (linseed) seed extract, hedychium coronarium root extract, aloe barbadensis leave juice, simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed oil, glycerin.

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Styling method/notes: I haven't used a mousse in months, so I was a little nervous about trying this. But looking at the ingredients, I had pretty high hopes. Lots of things my hair likes - proteins, aloe, and jojoba oil specifically. When I try new things, I like to try them alone to see what they do without other products interacting with it. While the hold was a little too soft, I got nice volume and curl pattern/definition. I did have a little bit of frizz, but it wasn't terrible and my hair felt very light all day. It's been a few days so I'm a little foggy on exactly what I did to style my hair, but with mousse I generally apply it in sections - top, sides, back and then scrunch. Not all that different from how I use my gels and leave-ins. I probably used my Denman prior to scrunching to help detangle and distribute the product. And now for the photos!

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Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Jan 30 - Protein Treatment

Today's weather:
High: 33
Low: 21
Humidity (avg): 76%
Dewpoint (avg): 20.7

Today's products:
Low-poo: Giovanni Tea Tree Triple Treat Shampoo
Ingredients: Aqua (Purified Water), Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Juice, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Lauryl Glucoside, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Sodium Lauryl Glucose Carboxylate, Decyl Glucoside, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Menthol, Panthenol, Potassium Sorbate, Citric Acid, Polysorbate 20, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Leaf Oil, Eucalyptus Globulus (Eucalyptus) Oil, Thymus Vulgaris (Thyme) Extract, Urtica Dioica (Nettle) Extract, Tussilago Farfara (Coltsfoot) Flower Extract, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Leaf Extract, Equisetum Arvense Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Achillea Millefolium Extract, Phenoxyethanol, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil.
Protein Treatment: Ion Reconstructor Treatment Keratin Protein Rebuilder
Ingredients: Water, propylene glycol, disodium cocoamphodipropinate, lecithin, polyquaternium-10, polysorbate 20, magnesium sulfate, hydrolyzed keratin, panthenol, manganese chloride, sinc chloride, cocamidopropyl betaine, glycol stearate, citric acid, triclosan, methylparaben, imidazolidinyl urea, fragrance, amyl cinnamal, coumarin, eugenol, limonene, linalool, hexyl cinnamal, yellow 5, caramel

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Biotera Moisturizing Leave-In Conditioner
Ingredients: Water, PEG-8, panthenol, keratin amino acids, achillea millefolium extract, calendula officinalis flower extract, hydroxyethylcellulose, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, cetrimonium chloride, citric acid, polyquaternium-4, propylene glycol, sodium chloride, tetrasodium EDTA, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothaizonlinone, DMDM hydantoin alpha-isomethyl ionone, amyl cinnamal, butylphenyl methylpropionol, cinnamyl alcohol, coumarin, geraniol, hexyl cinnamal, hydroxycitronellal, limonene, linalool, fragrance
LA Looks Sport Gel
Ingredients: Water, PVP, sorbitol, carbomer, keratin amino acids, panthenyl ethyl ether, palmitoyl oligopeptide, glyceryl polymethacrylate, propylene glycol, glycerin, oleth-20, rahnella/soy protein ferment, aminomethyl propanol, PEG-8, tetrasodium EDTA, benzophenone-4, methylparaben, diazolidinyl urea, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, fragrance, butylphenyl methylpropional, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde, limonene, hexyl cinnamal, linalool, benzyl salicylate, citronellol, violet 2, blue 1

Styling method: Today I decided to try a protein treatment. Specifically the Ion Reconstructor Treatment which I got in a sample size from Sally's. I did it according to the package directions - shampoo (I did a low-poo), towel dry (I used my microfiber towel), apply treatment and wait 10 mins, then rinse. I followed that with another microfiber towel dry, the Biotera Leave-In, and then instead of raking the LA Looks Gel, I scrunched it in. I was VERY happy with the results, and I think the protein treatment really made a difference. I got a lot more curl - spirally curls like I want, and they are really shiny. With these pics, I started using the flash on my camera, so the shine looks like more than it was, but it definitely did add some shine that was not there before the PT. I got second day hair and might have been able to get away with 3rd day hair, but I had an intense workout on the 2nd day and really needed a co-wash! Anyway, here are the pics:

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Spirals!

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Jan 28

Today's weather:
High: 30
Low: 24
Humidity (avg): 94%
Dewpoint (avg): 23.6

Today's products:
Suave Daily Clarifying Conditioner (co-wash)
Ingredients: Water, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, lactic acid, potassium chloride, fragrance, disodium EDTA, PEG-150 distearate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1, 3-diol, tocopheryl acetate, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone
Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Conditioner (rinse-out)
Ingredients: Water, Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Caprylic Acid (Capric Triglyceride), Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Fragrance (Parfum), Lauryl Lysine, Caprylyl Glycol, Brassica Campestris (Rapeseed)/Aleurites Fordi Oil Copolymer, Aspartic Acid, Distearyldimonium Chloride, Persea Gratissima (Avacado) Oil (Organic), Citric Acid, Alcohol, Isopropyl Alcohol, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Leaf Juice (Organic)
Biotera Moisturizing Leave-In Conditioner
Ingredients: Water, PEG-8, panthenol, keratin amino acids, achillea millefolium extract, calendula officinalis flower extract, hydroxyethylcellulose, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, cetrimonium chloride, citric acid, polyquaternium-4, propylene glycol, sodium chloride, tetrasodium EDTA, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothaizonlinone, DMDM hydantoin alpha-isomethyl ionone, amyl cinnamal, butylphenyl methylpropionol, cinnamyl alcohol, coumarin, geraniol, hexyl cinnamal, hydroxycitronellal, limonene, linalool, fragrance
LA Looks Sport Gel
Ingredients: Water, PVP, sorbitol, carbomer, keratin amino acids, panthenyl ethyl ether, palmitoyl oligopeptide, glyceryl polymethacrylate, propylene glycol, glycerin, oleth-20, rahnella/soy protein ferment, aminomethyl propanol, PEG-8, tetrasodium EDTA, benzophenone-4, methylparaben, diazolidinyl urea, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, fragrance, butylphenyl methylpropional, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde, limonene, hexyl cinnamal, linalool, benzyl salicylate, citronellol, violet 2, blue 1

Styling method:
Today I tried the LA Looks Sport Gel with the lighter Biotera Leave-In conditioner. Happy with the results, nice curl formation. Same styling method as previous posts - rake leave-in and gel through, scrunch with microfiber towel. I'll let the pics do the talking :)

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