Balayage with Jack Howard

Apologies...this post is a bit 'heavy' on pictures of me...! Not my normal style at all, but wanted to try and do the whole before/after thing - plus get a decent shot, rather than the old 'in mirror reflection' iPhone shot...

Anyway, what this is all about is my recent visit to the absolutely stunning Rossano Ferretti Hairspa, in Mayfair, close to Regents Street and a stones throw from 'Vogue House', the home of Conde Nast publications in the UK (and in my head, the UK version of the Devil Wears Prada).

I was in this lovely salon to re-visit the lovely Jack Howard - who I first saw Jack back in Feb 2011 for my first 'Balayage' experience, when he was based at another salon. Something about the slick and stylish Rossano Feretti salon seems far more his style than the previous venue - it really is the most luxurious salon I've been in (there's a guy on the door who's role is to greet you and show your way in).

Jack's signature technique is 'Balayage' - a free hand painting version of applying colour to hair. Resulting in a gorgeously natural alternative to traditional highlights. This isn't a technique that's only for blondes by the way - it's a way of adding a natural looking dimension to any hair colour.

BEFORE! Blah-tastic.

After...

After...

This was absolutely ideal for the look I wanted - I wanted to go for an overall lighter/brighter blonde effect. But I still wanted dimension and contrast. The finished effect for me can be best seen when I tie by hair back and I can see the lighter sections on the darker sections underneath my hair - I love this effect, it's made my hair feel so much less 'blah' than I was feeling pre-balayage.

After..slightly dazed looking, but you get the idea of the shade a bit better than in previous 'afters'

I had taken a few pictures of images of (mostly celebs) with blonde hair shades that I liked for one reason or another... these really varied but one of my favourites was a shot of one of the Olsens (Ashley I think) with a gorgeous buttery blonde shade - and I feel that this is the colour that Jack has really picked up on and created for me and I'm so happy with it. It's a cooler tone, which I've always been told doesn't suit me - but the contrasting warmer tones balance it out and I feel it's actually really flattering.

I have to also got to give a mention to the wonderful Bruno who cut and styled my hair after Jack worked his magic - he did a wonderful job and left me feeling great (good enough to stand next to Kim Kardashian no less!)

For more information on Jack Howard and Balayage please take a look at his website.

I was a guest of Jack Howard/Rossano Ferretti 

Before and after Clairol Nice-n-easy foam

So I recently too the plunge and dyed my hair with an at home hair dye, something I haven't done for around two years. For a while I had been feeling tempted to go a little darker, which is rare for me as normally all I want to do is go blonder and blonder. Of course when it came to actually making a decision and doing it, it took me weeks to decide, pick s colour and actually do it.

But I did, I settled on shade 8 'medium blonde', a slightly darker shade than I currently am that verges on the cooler/ashy side. I should say here that I got some very helpful advice from the new ambassador for Clairol, Jonathan Long one of the head hair guys at Lockengo - a lovely little salon on King's Road. Jonathan advised me that staying on the warmer side of shades would suit me and advised me to go with a golden blonde. I totally accept that this is undoubtedly the better colour for me based on my natural shade but my gut instinct just didn't want to go with golden and was drawn towards the cooler shades. So I listed to my heart rather than my head and went with the medium blonde.

Before

I think I make it sound like I'm building to some sort of huge mistake confession, I'm not! It all went fine, the mousse was really simple to use (I have a video demo of Jonathan demonstrating with a dramatic colour change that I'll upload and share shortly) but it reall was easier than normal hair dyes. The end result was a subtle change, slightly darker than I was and slightly cooler. I do think the colour slightly washes me out, as predicted, but I'm still happy I followed my heart!

After

At the end of the day, with hair dye I can always dye it back if I don't like it! I'm undecided as to going a little darker, warmer or lighter next... Time will tell! But for now, I'm happy with a little bit of a change. I should also say that I recently had HD brows done (review to come) and the darker tint looks a bit more natural with the slightly darker hair shade.

PR sample.

Rush Hair, Tottenham Court Road: Review

I love getting my hair done. But I'm not very brave. If it ventures out of the long and blonde category then I'm too chicken to do it. So don't be surprised that the before and after pictures don't exactly look like a radical change! I just went for slightly more ashy (rather than golden) toned highlights a trim and a long fringe that I can wear either on a side or centre parting.

Before

Before

I was invited to go along to a Rush salon for a cut and colour to review the services. I chose to go to the relatively new salon on Tottenham Court Road as it's very convenient for where I work, plus it's all shiny and new!

The salon is nice and open, with quite a few seats/stations but not cramped at all. I was looked after by Sam, the top stylist at the branch (he was also head stylist at the last Fashion Week for shows like Pam Hogg and PPQ) he was very busy and in demand as was juggling looking after me and another client at the same time.

I often find that I judge a salon appointment on the consultation at the beginning more than anything else as this is when you get your first impressions of how much your stylist is listening to what you want or how much they have decided what they want to do to your hair, regardless of your view. I took pictures (really recommend doing this, even if you take the same one every time - it's the easiest way to show what you want) and we talked colour. Sam suggested I go for ashy tones for my highlights and include a few darker bits to break the colour up. I was happy to go with that.

I liked that for the majority of the appointment I was left to enjoy catching up on magazines rather than making small talk about holidays. I am a chatty person normally, but when it comes to hair appointments I do like to just enjoy the trashy mags! I felt very looked after in terms of being offered drinks (I could have gone for a few glasses of wine, but tried to be sensible and stuck to juice) plus with each drink came a pair of biscuits which, whilst not a nutritious dinner, did really help as I was quite hungry by the end of the three hour appointment!

After

After

At the point where the colour is washed off I liked how I was asked if I wanted a head massage (yes please, that's the best bit!) and if I wanted a treatment. 

Overall it was a lovely appointment and I am happy with my refreshed, although not dramatically different hair (sometimes that's the best thing though - if you have found something that works then you want to stick with it & not risk it being ruined by a scissor happy stylist!). 

From my experience, I would describe Rush salons as a reliable choice if you want something convenient and affordable where you can rely on getting a good quality cut and colour.

Rush Tottenham Court Road: 020 3468 7354

I was a guest of Rush Hair.

Currently loving: Haircare

I thought that rather than writing review after review of each of these products it would actually be more interesting to talk about them all in a single post. Afterall, I like all of these in combination - so it makes sense to talk about them together.

Pantene Colour Protect & Volume Shampoo & Conditioner*


I love that they have finally combined colour protection and volume, when normally I would have to pick between the two. This does leave my hair soft and nicely conditioned but I am a little cautious of using it on a daily basis in case of silicone build up that can happen. So I alternate it with...


VO5 Give Me Moisture Shampoo & Conditioner


I picked these up because I liked the look of the new bottles and they were half price (about £1.60 each, mega cheap) and really like them. They smell good and keep my dry hair moisturised. Nope, not expensive, high end shampoo/conditioner choices but they clean my hair and leave it feeling good so I don't feel the need to spend more.


Pantene Colour Protect Concentrate*


I've used this on alternate days after having my highlights re-done recently to give it a boost. As I have blonde hair naturally and the highlights are just brighten - but it does mean some pretty hardcore bleach. This can leave my hair pretty frazzled, so this has helped look after it.


Philip Kingsley Scalp Mask* 


I've raved about this one before, it's now an absolute essential in my haircare 'routine'. I've stocked up on these more times than I can count, since trying it for the first time when I was given it in a goody bag. I'll definitely continue to do so. You can read my original review if you click on the product name. I really can't recommend this enough if you ever suffer from a itchy/irritated scalp.


This can now be bought direct from the website.


The Body Shop Guarana Berry Volumising Mousse


This is one of the products I mentioned in my Body Shop Bargains post, where I picked up a few bits with my £30 Groupon voucher. On first impressions this left my hair feeling a bit on the crispy/dry side but that's because I had applied far too much. The texture is actually a foam rather than a mousse, so vanishes into hair faster than mousse textures so first couple of uses it was easy to think I needed to apply more, but this actually only needs a small amount (about half of a palm full) to deliver good volume that lasts. The best thing about this is definitely the smell though - it smells good enough to eat! 


Batiste XXL Volumising Dry Shampoo*


I've been trying to break my daily hair-washing habit and this has really helped. My number one problem with not washing my hair is not that it gets greasy, but that it's really flat and lifeless. This really does deliver though, if you want volume (and I mean MASSIVE volume) then this is your product. It doesn't leave hair feeling clean and fresh, but it definitely leaves it big.


Sebastian Professional Potion 9 Lite Treatment Styler*


This is described as a 'wearable treatment styler' with 'active-oil botanicals that restore hair's natural condition, leaving hair with renewed shine.' For me, this is my heat protector, any time I am going to use my hair dryer or straighteners then I spritz this on beforehand. You can also apply to dry hair for 'texture and definition' but I don't really like how my hair feels when I do this, so I stick to using it as a styling protector.


The next two products basically do the same thing, but one is my 'lazy' version...


Pantene 24 Hour Frizz Fighter* & Chi Silk Infusion


Both of these products offer sleek/frizz free results. I like them both but find the Pantene one easier to use as it doesn't require a hand wash after use to remove the serum/oil coating from hands like the Chi Silk Infusion does. I picked up the Chi product when I was in America recently, but only bought a small one as I couldn't carry it back (luggage was overflowing already...) I do like the Chi a lot, it definitely leaves my hair feeling amazingly soft and silky, but it can be quite easy to go overboard and look a bit greasy rather than silky. 


I would say that I use the Chi if I'm using hair straighteners and the Pantene on a day to day basis to keep frizz at bay.


The Tangle Teezer


Another one I have already raved about, love this! You can read the original review by clicking on the name above for more info - but it really does get rid of knots, smooth hair and gives the scalp a lovely massage all at the same time.


The only thing that I think is missing is a deep conditioning treatment - would love to hear suggestions! What are you loving in your hair care routine at the moment? 


Products marked with a * provided for PR. All others bought by me. 

Guest review: John Frieda Precision Foam

Jen was looking for guest reviewers a couple of months ago (to test and write about the new John Frieda hair dye) and I said I'd use and review one. Why? Because even though I'm naturally blonde (kind of ashy medium blonde) I'd been dying my hair dark red for the last few years. 

I actually stopped colouring it red at the end of last year and decided that I'm going to gradually dye it blonde. Nice (and perhaps a bit of stupid) thinking there! So I used a light brown dye - my hair definitely became lighter. Then I used a medium blonde one (Garnier Nutrisse) - again, it worked. My hair was getting lighter, woo hoo!

So by February this year my hair was sort of strawberry blondish. There were lots of golden tones (from dying it red) and I was desperate, oh so desperate to lighten it even more. I wanted MY natural hair colour back and when I saw Jen's post about John Frieda and that one of the hair dyes was Extra Light Beige Blonde, I immediately thought: get in! this is exactly what I need!

The box itself looks like this (and you can get the idea of what the Extra Light Beige Blonde looks like):

One box was enough for my shoulder length hair (my hair's quite fine though) and it was very easy to apply. Loved the foam and felt it was easy peasy to cover all the roots and ends with it. I left it on for 30 minutes and...

Well, I noticed my hair was looking kind of bright when I had this on my head, but I thought: that's OK, it just LOOKS like it, it won't actually BE like it once I've rinsed my hair. How stupid am I? Alarm bells should've started ringing when I saw the 'yellowness', I should've rinsed my hair there and then but hey, I suppose I had a blonde moment (ahem!)...

Anyways, onto the result... Here's what it should've looked like:

And the reality? I am sorry, I was so horrified I forgot to take a photo but my hair was yellow. Kind of mildly beigey yellow. This hair dye definitely worked but erm, I was after light beige blonde, not light yellowish beige hair!
I sent my boyfriend out to get me a semi permanent dark brown hair dye and re-dyed my hair (bad I know).

My verdict? You may have better results if your hair is medium blonde-light blonde (similar to what you see on the pic above). But be very very careful if you have any golden tones!!! And perhaps using it after dying your hair red for years and years, is not the most sensible thing to do.

Yes, I had lightened my hair but the red was obviously still in there, somewhere.

I love John Frieda's shampoos but as for Precision Foam? Um, I might try it again one day. Either in red or brown or maybe, if I bleach my hair, then I might buy a blonde shade again.

Thank you all for reading!

xoxo


Thank you for your guest review Miss A! You can check out her blog at:


http://www.beautyandmakeupboudoir.co.uk/ 


John Frieda hair dye was provided as PR sample.

Guest reviewers needed: Clairol/John Frieda home hair colours

Guest reviewers needed!

I have three boxes of home hair dye that I would like to pass on to others to do guest reviews - as I won't be using them because the shades aren't right for my hair. The three shades are:

• Clairol Nice'n easy Colour Blend Foam in '6 light brown'.*
• John Frieda Precision Foam Colour in '10B Extra Light Beige Blonde'.* 
• John Frieda Precision Foam Colour in '9N Light Natural Blonde'.

All hair colour products are permanent and of course, if you take these on you must fully follow the instructions if being used (do a patch test to make sure you won't have an allergic reaction to the dye, even if you have used at home or in salon dyes before) etc etc.

I'll be sending these out to the guest reviewers, so afraid the guest reviewers do have to be UK based. Also, you have to be over the age of 16 but other than that, it's open to everyone!

If you are interested in doing a guest review of these products, please leave a comment below - letting me know which colour you would like to try out and a way for me to contact you.


Products marked with a * sent by PR. 
Other product sent as a sample as I am on the JF mailing list.