FAVORITES FRIDAY: HAIR

It has been a minute since I have done a “Favorites Friday” post. This photo is from when we got back from Hawaii and I am so missing that tan right now! I have been getting a lot of requests to do a hair post so I’m linking some of my favorites and I will answer some of the questions I’ve been getting. I haven’t been posting on here much lately because we have had so much going on and then my laptop was having issues and trying to switch to a new phone which is taking forever with my 45,000 photos and two sick kids but I’m looking forward to finally getting back into my routine for 2020 and getting all of my travel posts up from the past few months.

The question I get most is about extensions. I have always had my natural hair with no extensions but recently bought these a few weeks ago to add some thickness and I love them! I have been wanting to try some for a while but my hair is so long it’s usually longer than most of the extensions. These are perfect though. I got the classic set and they are really good quality and an exact match to my hair color (they have just about every color imaginable) so I highly recommend them if you are looking for really good quality extensions that are easy to put in. I have been playing around with them this week and they are really comfortable on and blend really well and I feel like they will be really easy to style. I would only recommend clip in extensions because the other ones can be really damaging to your hair plus you can have a lot more styling options with the clip in ones and I love that you can wear them when you feel like it but you don’t have to wear them everyday since they are not permanently attached to you head so you can give your scalp a break.

I’m sure you are looking at the Fairy Tales Rosemary Repel Shampoo and wondering why on earth I have that listed at one of my favorites. It’s lice prevention shampoo for kids and I have never had lice and neither have my boys (SO thankful for that…maybe it really works) but I buy this for my boys in hopes that it does work (worth a shot right?) and I ran out of my regular shampoo so I used this and my hair never looked better! If you look at the ingredients it contains rosemary, cinnamon, and tea tree oil plus a ton of other good stuff that are all amazing for your scalp and hair growth (it also smells amazing). It’s formulated for kids so it’s gentle on color treated hair and it seems to remove product build up better than anything else I have tried and gives my hair body and restores shine. It’s free of all the bad stuff including sulfates and parabens and it’s gluten, soy, dairy, and nut free! So while this is something you probably would not expect to be on my list and you might think I’m crazy, it is one of my holy grail hair products right now especially when I feel like I have a lot of product build up.

A lot of these products are kind of self explanatory but I will try to go into more detail on the ones I think you might have questions about. The conditioner packets are one of my favorites for travel especially when I’m going on a beach vacation and I know I will be in the sun and water a lot (or if I’m traveling to a really dry climate). I put half of the packet on dry hair with a cap like this and leave it on for about 10 minutes and then shampoo and use the other half to condition as usual. All four of them are really good and under $3.

If you are blonde then you know the struggles of trying to keep the brassiness away. When I get my highlights done (I will get to that process later) I don’t have her use a toner because I feel like it makes my blonde look dull instead of bright but every other time I wash my hair I use the L’oreal Ever Pure Sulfate Free Blonde Shampoo (the conditioner is great too). This is the best purple shampoo I have found and it’s under $8. The It’s a 10 Miracle Clay Mask for Blondes is really good too.

My favorite everyday Shampoo and Conditioner are the Raw Sugar Living Moisture Smoothie shampoo and conditioner and I follow the shampoo with the Raw Sugar Living Healing Power Mask if I need some extra hydration.

Olaplex has really saved my hair. I have been using it for at least two years now and it makes a HUGE difference. It has also cut way back on the styling products that I need to use daily. I use the Olaplex No 3 once a week. It’s not a conditioner like most people think. You actually put it on before you shampoo and condition your hair and you need to shampoo your hair after using it. I have used it on dry and slightly damp hair but for me I feel like it works best on slightly damp hair and I put one of these caps on and let it sit for 30 minutes before washing and conditioning as usual. I follow my shampoo (usually the Fairy Tales when I use this) and follow with the Olaplex No 5 (which IS a conditioner). Olaplex also makes a shampoo that I have been wanting to try that I’m sure is amazing too! I highly recommend going to a salon that offers Olaplex. I have my stylist mix it in with the bleach when she does my highlights and it really helps keep it from getting damaged. I also have her follow my highlights with the Olaplex No 2 treatment which can only be done in a salon.

I also have a lot of questions about how I get my hair color and my general hair routine. I get highlights about every 6-8 weeks (depending on how fast my hair is growing but I usually try to wait closer to 8 weeks). My stylist does the top portion and a few underneath by my hairline in case I wear it up but I rarely do a full head of highlights….usually only once a year close to summer to have it a little lighter in the summer. Like I mentioned earlier I don’t have her use a toner since I feel like it makes my blonde dull but my natural hair color is more of a strawberry blonde so I use the purple shampoo I mentioned when I feel like its getting too brassy.

I have been cutting my own hair for about the past 6 years and I will try to do a tutorial soon for how I do that. It’s easy if you have long hair but probably wouldn’t work as well on shorter hair. My hair is naturally very straight and the only curling iron I have found that gives me curls that last a few days is this one. I try to avoid brushing my hair when it’s wet since that can lead to breakage and instead use this wide tooth comb when my hair is wet to detangle. The only products I really use after I wash my hair (I usually wash it every 4-5 days) are this Olaplex Bonding Oil and Olaplex Bond Smoother. If my hair needs some extra help detangling or if I’m planning to do anything with heat then is also use this. Before I use a curling iron or flat iron I always use this Kenra spray which is a hairspray and heat protector in 1. I rarely blow dry my hair and I try not to heat style it more than once a week and less if I can. If I want to get some waves without using heat, I braid it when it’s slightly damp and then take it out when I want the waves. I usually sleep with the braid (or braids depending on how tight I want the curls) and then take it out in the morning or after I work out.

I’m sure you are probably wondering about the caster oil too and what I use that for. I know a lot of people use it in their hair but it’s way too heavy for me personally but I have heard it does wonders if you can get it to work for you. I use the smaller bottle that comes with the little applicator for lashes (and you can also use it on your brows but again it’s just too thick for me to use it there). I put a drop on the applicator at night and apply to my lashes and it seems to work as well as the Rodan and Field’s Lash Boost which I decided to stop using after reading about some possible side effects. I have never tried Latisse on my lashes because I was afraid of eye discoloration since I have blue eyes but I have tried it on my brows and it did not seem to do much (and it’s REALLY expensive).

My hair has fortunately always grown really fast but I have suffered hair loss at different times in my life so I will share what has helped to stop the hair loss for me and some possible causes. I am not a doctor and I have no medical background but these are all just things that I have personally dealt with and what has helped me. Please always check with you primary care doctor before taking any supplements since they could interfere with other medication that you are taking or they might not be right for your body.

First, I would recommend seeing your doctor and having some blood work done to rule out anything there if you are experiencing any hair loss. Your doctor can do some general blood tests to see if you are in need of any supplements or if there is anything else wrong that could be the cause. If you just had a baby hair loss is totally normal and will usually start to taper off after about 6 months or so but if it doesn’t you might want to have your thyroid and iron levels checked. B-12 and vitamin D deficiency can also cause hair loss. Stress and autoimmune diseases can contribute to hair loss too. Even if your iron levels are normal but on the low end of normal you might want to talk to your doctor about taking an iron supplement. My iron levels were normal but I still needed to take a supplement to raise them on the higher end to start seeing hair growth. Everyone’s body is different. You should only take iron after having your iron levels checked and if it is recommended by your doctor since too much can be harmful.

I have been taking these hair vitamins and this biotin supplement (all approved by my doctor) for about 2 years and they have really seemed to help too. Talk to your doctor before taking anything especially if you are taking other medication or if you are pregnant, thinking of becoming pregnant, or nursing. I just wanted to share what has helped me personally in case any of you are at a loss and trying to find some answers (believe me I have been there). Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

Bikini is sold out but linking similar here ($10) and here ($11)