hair

CROWN OF BRAIDS

photos + post design Kristin Ess

It seems pretty easy, but it’s not. Not everyone has long hair that reaches all the way around the head to make a perfect crown of braids. Girls with short hair need braids TOO! Using this technique, you make small, overlapping intersections of braids to create a full crown. Here’s how:

  1. Start with straight, wavy or curly hair. I personally like this best with a little wave or curl because the crown of braids holds better with texture.
  2. Grab a section of hair above the ear and split it into 2 pieces, like our lovely Nora is doing in this photo.
  3. Braid both pieces. (Gently loosen up the braid for a more natural, romantic texture.)
  4. Cross them over each other as seen above and clip them to hold them in place while you do the same thing on the other side! If your hair is short and won’t reach, do 3 or 4 intersections of hair instead of just 2!
  5. Once you finish the other side, take the two braids that go over the top, cross them over and pin them using small but strong bobby pins.
  6. Take the two pieces that will go backward and tie them together. Add a couple of pins where the braids meet.
  7. Add a few extra bobby pins around the crown of braids to keep them from slipping or moving.

A veil of hairspray isn’t necessary but will help keep things in place if your hair tends to slip.

 

hair

NEW FAVORITE

photos + post by Kristin Ess

By now you know we love pink hair. We do it often around here. But… most people can’t get away with having pink hair at work or school. Well, there’s a new favorite in town. This Davines Alchemic “Red” color conditioner turns medium to light hair into a temporary pale pink dream! READ MORE…

hair

ORGANIZATION STATION: HEADBAND HOLDER


photos and post by Kristin Ess

Tis the season for spring cleaning! Last week we did a DIY on hair jars for the bathroom. This week it’s time to organize those pretty little headbands! This is the easiest project ever and hopefully one that will be as beneficial to you as it was to me and my messy drawers of headbands. Here’s 8 easy steps to making one of these helpful holders…

  1. Get a large roll of paper towels. Test a headband on it to make sure it fits. If not, remove some of the paper towels until they fit properly.
  2. Get a fabric that coordinates well with your bedroom or bathroom. I went with a very thin taupe-y grey cotton voile fabric.
  3. Spray paint a ruler (or something flat that can stablize your paper towel roll) with a complimentary or matching color. I used flat white.
  4. Plug in your hot glue gun and get your scissors out!
  5. Cut a fabric square and leave an extra 6″ on each side of the roll. Hot glue the edge of the fabric to the paper towel roll as seen above.
  6. Wrap it all the way around the paper towel roll, overlapping by an inch or two. Cut and glue that edge into place. I folded my edge under before I glued it to make it cleaner.
  7. Once that’s secure, twist the excess fabric on the sides (like you would with a piece of candy) and tuck them into the paper towel roll hole.
  8. Put hot glue on your ruler or piece of wood and secure it to the base of the headband holder to prevent it from rolling.

Last but not least…

hair

HOW TO: LAUREN’S DIP DYED PONY

photos: Kristin Ess + Lauren Conrad, post designed by Eunice Chun

Did everyone catch a glimpse of Lauren’s pink dip dyed ponytail on her Instagram last night? It was taken just before she arrived at her last stop on the Fame Game book tour at Barnes & Noble in LA. This is a really fun idea for anyone planning to wear ponytails and fishtail braids this summer because it really adds a lil pop to the mundane mane. And though it stays longer than hair chalk, it’s still only temporary! Here are the steps we took to get the look (we literally “dip dyed” it this time):

  1. Put your hair in a ponytail.
  2. We wanted a subtle gradation with the fuchsia so there was no hard line where the blonde ends and the pink begins. Using a semi-permanent pink color + warm water we created 3 different strength pinks in 3 different bowls. (We used Special FX color in Atomic Pink. Put 2 quarter sized dabs of color in each bowl. Add 1/2 a cup of warm water to one bowl, 1 cup of warm water to the second bowl and 1 1/2 cups of warm water to the third bowl.)
  3. We dipped 6″ of Lauren’s ponytail into the lightest pink and squeezed it out over the sink.
  4. Next we went 2 inches lower and dipped the bottom 4 inches in the medium pink, then squeezed it out over the sink.
  5. Last we went 2 more inches below that, dipping the last 2 inches in the darkest pink color and squeezed it out over the sink.

After we finished coloring the hair we shampooed and conditioned the whole head. Beware that this color is not permanent but will definitely stay in light hair for a long time, brunettes for less time. The lighter your hair, the more vibrant. If you’re a brunette or redhead, you would have to have your hairstylist lighten the tips prior to dip dying your ponytail. Otherwise, chalking is another great temporary option.

hair

ORGANIZATION STATION: GET YOUR HAIR STUFF IN CHIC ORDER

photos & post by Kristin Ess

If you’re a girl on the go, you’re probably familiar with the magical mystical “bathroom tornado”. It comes through scattering everything everywhere, leaving no bobbypin unturned. No one knows how it happens, but it’s a huge bummer when you return home from a long day to find this natural disaster has struck your bathroom counter once again. Luckily there’s a way to keep your hair stuff (or makeup brushes) all together in one super chic place. These holders are made from Mason jars which are incredibly cheap and easy to find. Below are instructions for turning these regular old jars into counter top eye candy…

You will need: blue painter’s tape, paper towels, gloves, white flat spray paint, gold metallic spray paint, mason jars in various sizes… (and I used a vintage shot glass for the bobbypin holder, but that’s optional.)

  1. Remove the lids from your mason jars.
  2. Put painter’s tape along the edge of a paper towel or two.
  3. Wrap the jar. For the first color, I wrapped the tape straight across as you can see in photo 3.
  4. Tuck the excess paper towel inside the jar so no spray paint gets inside.
  5. Put your gloves on, go outside, put a piece of newspaper or cardboard down and spray your jar. I applied very thin layers of paint instead of one thick layer. It dries faster, won’t drip and gets better coverage.
  6. Remove the blue tape and paper towel after the first color dries completely.
  7. If you’re sure the first color is dry, wrap the jar with the tape + paper towel again, but this time in another direction. I wanted to do mine diagonal.
  8. Put your gloves back on and go back outside. Spray the second color and wait for it to dry. I LOVE the matte white with the shiny gold combo but you can use any color that you think will look good in your bathroom. Remove the tape when it’s dry and you’re done!