Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Yes! There are certain ways to take care of your hair

Most of us grew up knowing one thing:  Wash your hair and rinse it well. And really what else was there to know? Seems simple right? Wrong. There really is a correct way to take care of your hair as well as an incorrect way. I'll go through some of them below. Perhaps you'll change your ways after this tid bit of information.

First of all, your hair is not a garment that needs to be scrubbed. So ladies with long locks, if you are scrubbing your ends in your hands and making a nice mound of knots, Stop!!  The proper way to shampoo hair is to massage the scalp to remove any dirt, oil or dandruff. A nice gentle scrub with finger tips is sufficient. You may even need to do it twice and that's ok. But there is no need to scrub the ends like you are starting a fire. This creates nothing but knots and has no benefit at all. Truth is that the chemicals in the shampoo are designed to remove and take away any dirt and oils. They essentially have a head and a tail. The head grabs it and the tail takes it away.  More than 99% of the hair products and air borne odors are water soluble which means that a stringent shampoo nor a good scrubbing is necessary these days. By using your fingers as a large comb, run your fingers with the lather down through the ends. Voila, clean hair with out additional knots or issues of breakage.

Secondly, you'll likely condition after a shampoo.  Most of us need to and choose to do immediately after the shampoo and in before our other Shower time chores. If you have shampooed as mentioned above, you'll be ready to condition your ends. I like to say, "From the pony tail down".  Why? Because it's likely that your first few inches of hair from your scalp are fairly healthy and haven't been subject to as much damage, if any at all, from any chemical services or sun/chlorine.
After putting the conditioner directly to your ends down, you can then apply the residual conditioner from your hands on to the scalp area if needed.  Wait the duration of time recommended and there you have it. So that's it then? No not at all. On to the next steps.

After you ready to towel dry your hair, you may want to take heed and remember, Your hair is not a sponge nor are you drying off a pooch!  You want to gently pat your hair dry, but again don't rub it like you're trying to put out a fire.  So many do this and now is probably the worst time to do that. Hair can stretch up to 75% or more of it's length at this time. Pulling and twist and yanking is about the worst thing you can do, especially to more fragile hair types. Gently pat your hair dry but leave it in it's state.

Most think, ok, I know what to do now. Grab my brush or comb and get any tangles out, right ? Nope, not yet!  What you do at this step will greatly improve your hairs luster and shine and its manageability.  I highly recommend some type of Moroccan oil, serum or other natural oil to the ends; the pony tail down.  These products restore and protect the hair from damage caused by hot tools and natural elements. If you have not tried this step, I recommend you try 2-4 pumps or drops of oil each time. I have med-fine hair and med-light density and I put 4 pumps of Moroccan oil daily. You will experiment to find your balance.
Moroccan Oil Products

Ok, now you're good! You grab that comb and start combing.  Seems logical. Yes, intuitive actually. But there is a proper way to comb medium to long hair. Hold the hair as if a pony tail and start combing from the ends up. Yes, from the ends up. If you have a knot, it will come out easier if you start from the bottom. Plus, by holding the hair in a pony tail, securely, you can comb well without much pain at the scalp. This is especially helpful if you are combing someone else's hair.

I bet now with each shampoo and conditioner, towel dry and comb through, you'll notice a difference as well as get a chuckle. I have heard, "I never knew this information" more times than I can tell you. But one thing I know:  It does make a huge difference.

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Find your beautiful you

It has been said, When you look good You feel good. And if you think about it long enough, you can agree. Remember when you bought that knock down gorgeous dress? You smirked, twirled, checked yourself out again and happily went up to the counter with your dress ready to pay whatever they say. Why? Because when you look good you feel good.  And forget about it when you find that perfect right shade of lipstick or the color hair you just know is for you. Maybe you graduated a program or made a milestone and think, Man! I really did it. I feel so good in which they may be your inner glow and pride being the looking good part.  What if you adopted a healthy eating plan and exercise routine that gave you confidence to strut your stuff?

Well, let's take this thought process up a notch. You have your favorite dress, your favorite lipstick, your favorite hairstyle; what can you do to capture that feeling? Have a photo shoot of course.
We all see the gorgeous lovelies in our favorite magazines, catalogs, tv shows and movie stars. Maybe you don't want to be those gals but maybe you think, "hey, I'd like to try that". And maybe you just don't know where to start or how it works.  Maybe you think you look great but not quite sure about having pictures made. I'd like to share a little bit about how it works and mostly why I think it's a good idea to try.

In my opinion, no one shall love you more than you can love yourself.  Beauty is merely only skin deep but it does add to how we feel about ourselves. Outside appearance is only one portion of who we are. But we are made up of so many other parts; spiritual, mental, emotional and intellectual.  When you love yourself, you tend to be open to vulnerability and open to embracing yourself; warts and all. After all, not many women are perfect however we are all beautiful. You can always find something about yourself to embrace and cherish.

So, if your hair is rocking, be proud and feel good. If you've got great lips, great eyelashes, toned biceps  feel proud, love it, own it. As a hairstylist, makeup artist, photographer, designer, crafter and other things geared toward empowering women, I encourage you to find your beautiful you. Not only do I encourage you, I will support you  as you discover your beautiful you.

Here's a story to share:
I met a young lady when she was 18. We cut and colored her hair, applied makeup, dressed her up and had a photo shoot. She was beautiful inside and out. About 5-6 years later, we did the same thing.  All dressed up, hairstyled, makeup applied, beautiful garments and accessories to enhance. After the shoot I edited the photos.  After I revealed the photos to her, I asked her " How did you enjoy the shoot? Are you happy with the photos you received?"  Her response was, "More than I thought possible!  I've been told so many times that I'm so pretty but I have literally never believed it until today. You have single-handedly changed the perception I had of myself."
Wow!! I never in a million years would have guessed this. She is young gorgeous, full of life, open, happy, sweet and honest. I can't imagine that she would be so unaware.

My goal in all I do is to help women find their beautiful. As a hairdresser, I take pride in giving good service that includes hair color, hair cut, etc. As a makeup artist, I am so incredibly close to your face that I get to objectively look at you AND enhance your beauty. As a photographer, I'm looking to pose you and guide your expression and encourage your own personality to shine through to the final edits.
If your looking to Feel Good Because You Look Good moment, contact PamPerry for a phone or skype consultation. Go to www.pamperrystudio.com to find 2 windows you can choose to enter photography site or hair site.
We are located in Cary, NC.