Review: Dyson Airwrap for Short Hair.

As I mentioned recently, I managed to get my paws on a secondhand Dyson Airwrap styler which I was dying to try even though it's not really meant for my hair. I was pretty sure, in fact, that it would make me cry. My hair is legitimately short*, straight and fine and I don't generally do much to it aside from a quick blow-dry and some flat ironing of the ends. But, I recently got a haircut I didn't like, so I decided the Airwrap couldn't make things worse. I was right! 

The Dyson Airwrap seems advanced, but it's surprisingly easy and fun to use. Trust me, if I can use it without ending up having to cut it out of my hair, you can totally handle it. For hair as short as mine curls/waves aren't yet a thing (I'm growing it out because I'd love to achieve this look) but I can get crazy volume with it, something I was never able to achieve with a regular round brush/hair dryer. 

The set comes in an enormous fancy box with a handle and a bunch of attachments: a pre-styling dryer, a volumizing round brush, firm smoothing brush, soft smoothing brush, and two sets of curl barrels. 

If I'm in a rush I'll just dry it a bit and use the round brush attachment which gives me very good results. But, when I have a bit more time I pull out the barrels to get crazy volume and shine. Here's my process (please note that it's impossible to do mirror selfies without getting crazy eyes):

First, I spray a little B&B Tonic on my wet hair and then some product - lately I've been loving R&Co Rodeo Star mousse. I use the pre-styling dryer to get my hair mostly-but-not-quite dry. The dryer attachment is pretty powerful, though if you have a lot of hair, it probably isn't going to replace a regular hair dryer. (In my case it does because my beloved Super Solano finally died on me last week. RIP, Super Solano.)

Then I hit my bangs with the firm brush because they dry quickly and I want to avoid bang wonkiness.

Then I section off the bottom layer of my hair and and use the large barrel on it, section by section. The styler kind of sucks your hair onto the barrel which is scary at first and then it's fun. Also, hello crazy eyes.

Please note the insane curl action on the bottom! I then use the barrel on the top in sections and then repeat this process on the other side. I use the round brush attachment on the back because it's too short for the barrels. All of this seems complicated, but it takes less than 15 minutes. After the barrel action, I'm left with this:

This is...not great. I know. I KNOW. But please take a moment to notice how freaking shiny my hair is:

Still, that bubble bob is not it so I give my hair a few minutes to relax and then as a final step I use my flat iron and straighten the ends. Here's the final style in much more flattering light:

So good! So much more volume than I ever though I could achieve on my own. Here's the other side: 

I still have some growing out to do (all those stupid little layers!) before I can achieve some bouncy waves, but overall I'm really impressed with the Dyson Airwrap. It's fun and not hard to use. I honestly didn't think I'd keep it but now I don't know how I managed without it? This is dangerous. Anyway, if you have really short hair I am not saying you should go out and drop this kind of money on a styler but if you've been thinking about it for a while, maybe treat yo self. It's well-made and fancy af. (Plus, I don't know about you but I could use a little fun these days, even if it's from a weird hair tool.)

From what I can tell it's backordered (to ship in Feb) or sold out pretty much everywhere but I have seen them pop back up for sale a few times, so keep your eye out! Or, don't give in to this nonsense and keep doing what you're doing. You look great. 

*The Internet needs to understand what short hair is. Please, I beg you, stop calling your hair "short" if it's long enough to put in a ponytail. THAT IS NOT SHORT HAIR. What you have is MEDIUM LENGTH HAIR. I can't tell you how annoying it is to go looking for short hair Dyson Airwrap tutorials and finding folks with hair below their shoulders calling their hair "short." IT IS NOT. 

Stuff I Like: Hair Edition (Plus: sunscreen bonus!)

My makeup game has been pretty lame lately but I have been using some new hair products because I a) got a new stylist and b) ran out of everything all at the same time. Love it when that happens. Boo. Now, my hair is at an in-between point (am I growing it out? Who knows? Not me.) but my new stylist introduced me to the following:

I historically love Davines products (that link will get you $20 off your first order! Full disclosure: I also get $20 credit) but she told me the Oi shampoo/conditioner are too heavy for fine hair and gave me samples of the Replumping shampoo and conditioner. I loved it so much I bought a set - FULL SIZED EVEN. I never do that but this set doesn't come in travel size so I just went for it. I love that it gives my hair a some lift and oomph and, like all Davines products, it smells fantastic in a non-floral way. My friend Kate said it smells a little like cola bottle gummi candy and I think she's right, which makes sense because I love cola bottle gummies. (Trolli if you can find them but Haribo is also nice.) 

Just a note: I still use Hairstory New Wash Deep when my color is fresh because reds fade so fast. Once it's past the point of mattering, I use my Davines shampoo/conditioner once or twice a week. I also use my beloved scalp massager thing with all of it because there's no going back! 

When I got my first haircut from my new stylist she used Cult + King Jelly for styling and though I was a bit dubious about a salt product, y'all. I was IMPRESSED. I've got a small bottle of the Cult + King Set Spray and like it but I LOVE the Jelly. It's kind of a gel, not a spray, and it does magical things to my fine hair. I try not to use it every single day because I know salt can be drying but so far I've only had good experiences with this product. It just somehow gives me just the right amount of volume and hold without being sticky. Plus, their packaging is beautiful, it smells good, you can get refills, and they have mini sizes! I love everything about this company.

Finally, I got a travel size of this Oribe Flash Form Finishing Wax Spray and I love it for a bit of piecey separation. I do not love how fragrant it is but it dissipates pretty quickly. You just spray it on and then get in there with your fingers to create a bit of separation. It's way less heavy than a traditional wax pomade and I am enjoying it. 

Non-hair bonus: I've been searching for an easy way to touch up my sunscreen and I bought this little brush-on mineral sunscreen (with HSA money!) and also the Marianne-recommended Super Goop Defense Refresh mist (check out this kit which includes a mini!) Between the two, I always have a quick way to make sure my face, shoulders and scalp are protected. I don't know how cost effective the power brush will be but I love how compact it is and it's refillable! 

Monday Mood: Hair Stuff!

I haven't talked obsessively about my hair for a while and I'm using some new products, so lucky you, I'm gonna talk about them! 

So, I obviously just got my color done and my goal with shampoo is to keep my color as long as possible. I use Hairstory Deep a few times a week and it's really good:

Yes, it's expensive, but it replaces shampoo and conditioner so that's how I justify it. Also, if you're ordering for the first time, get the kit with the head scrubber thingy! Hairstory is non-foaming so you really have to scrub your scalp when you use it (plus it feels great.) I'm cheap and bought my scrubber separately - I'm pretty sure I've talked about it more than once. 

More recently I started using the Hairstory Undressed Texturizing Spray which is great - not sticky or salty but gives that kind of awesome tousled look and it can be layered. I use this on super casual days when I need a little hold. I just use 4-5 sprays on damp hair and style as usual. It's light but still gives my hair a bit of heft. 

NOW, this is what I use when I'm planning on really doing my hair (for blog photos, wild trips to the grocery store, etc.) I bought a travel size of the R + Co Rodeo Star mousse on a whim (an expensive whim) and I LOVE IT SO MUCH. It gives my fine hair a ton of oomph and I always wake up the next morning with a giant sleep-pompador. It's not an everyday use product for me right now, but I super love it and I'm going to buy a full-sized version when it runs out.

Finally, I want to give a shout-out to a really great product I started using again (after finding a dusty bottle of it in my beauty closet): Bumble and bumble Tonic. What's it for? What does it do, exactly? I HAVE NO IDEA but I do know that when I spray it on my damp hair before adding styling products it just makes everything better. I also love how it smells kind of minty, like tea tree oil. PS. I looked it up and it's a detangler/primer. Is it necessary for life? No. Is it nice to have? Absolutely yes. Should I replace my dusty bottle? Probably but let's not tell Marianne. 

Adrien: My Hair Care Routine.

By request! I haven't blathered on about my hair for a while so maybe now is the time.

My hair is both easy and a huge pain in the ass. It's very straight and nearly impossible to grow out so I keep things short, which suits me fine. However, short hair is not really easy. I can't just throw it up in a ponytail and it absolutely does NOT look better if I don't wash it for a few days. I can never, ever just get up and go because my bedhead is... astounding. So, here are the products and techniques I use to keep my bob looking sharp:

First, I should mention that I get regular cuts/trims and I also get my hair professionally colored. I love my hair stylist and this is really my main beauty luxury - I rarely get facials or other spa treatments and never get manicures, so this is kind of my one big thing on which I spend many dollars. I really like having a nice hair cut!

Products:

I am on a Davines binge right now because they make SUCH nice products. They smell good, the packaging is cute and, most importantly, they work.

I love the Minu Shampoo and conditioner for colored hair - a little goes a long way and it doesn't strip my color. I've also tried the OI shampoo and conditioner and they're lovely as well.

Before styling I spritz OI All In One Milk all over. It softens, detangles, and protects from frizz but mostly I love how it smells and it also gives my hair a bit of heft and shine. Apparently the OI Oil is also magical but I cannot put oil on my hair, no way, so I will never know.

I also use a small dollop of the Davines Volume Boosting Mousse for some hold. It's very nice but not super special like the OI Milk.

One other thing I use to cleanse is the dpHue ACV Rinse which I think I mentioned a while back. It's meant to be used as a shampoo alternative for colored hair so I use it instead of shampoo a few times a week to keep my color fresh. It's quite good! Apple cider vinegar must be the new argan oil because R+Co has a rinse as well. Has anyone tried it?

Tools: 

I am a strong believer in good tools. Good tools in your tool box, in your kitchen, for your craft projects and definitely for your hair. Here's what I swear by:

How did I ever live without a Wet Brush? (And how did I not know it came in a leopard print version?) This brush is a tiny miracle and has really cut down on breakage for my fine hair. The Wet Brush is cheap and eventually all the bristles start to retreat into the pad but still worth it's weight in gold. Get one! Hair-life-changing.

After I brush through with my wet brush I use my Daily Concepts hair wrap thingy.  Even though I don't have long hair I still wrap it up in this microfiber turban every single time after washing. It sucks most of the water out without the damage from towel drying and cuts my dry time way down. Listen, I don't have a ton of hair so I have to do everything I can to keep breakage and damage at a minimum. They come in fancy versions but mine is pretty basic and I adore it. Get one! Hair-life-changing, part two.

My Hair Dryer. I've talked about my beloved Super Solano a few times on the blog (my review is here) and I am still very deeply in love with my fancy hair dryer four years later. It's not, like, Dyson dryer fancy but it was an investment and a very good one. So, after I get my hair damp-dry I finish with my hair dryer and just a regular vented brush. It takes all of two minutes.

My flat iron is a BaBylissPRO Nano Titanium Ionic and its been a solid purchase! I bought it three years ago and it's still going strong. It was the flat iron that my stylist was using on me (same with my hair dryer) so I pretty much trust her judgement. You might be wondering what the hell a straight-haired person like me even needs with a flat iron but I have a few weird cowlicks and curves and I like to use this after drying to get everything lying flat and correctly and also to get my edges sharp.

Now! I can't believe this but I also have a great travel set that I've never reviewed! I bought this Amika Mighty Mini set a few years back and it's really, really good. The dryer is teeny tiny but still way more powerful than your average shitty hotel dryer. The flat iron is also ridiculously small but gets very hot and is good for tweaks and bangs. If you have thick/long hair and need to flat iron your whole head, it won't be what you need, but for my purposes it's a great travel option.

That's it! I'm hoping I can convince Marianne to post about her hair to give the curly-hair people something about which to commiserate because we never get so many comments as when we talk about curly hair. Y'all are a little scary tbh. (In a good way.) And since we're talking about comments, please feel free to tell me what product or tool you swear by!

Adrien: Short Hairs Report!

I haven't whined about my hair in a while, have I? Surely not. I'm not really sure what I'm doing with it, to be honest. I recently got it cut back to my shorter bob but I'm kind of over the upkeep on the flapper bangs so I'm maybe growing out my bangs. Maybe. I don't know. I mean, it looks okay:

And this is what I'm working the bangs towards:

Also, maybe also working towards that face because damn. (Pro tip: Do not post your photo right above the photo of a professionally made up celebrity. You will cry.)

ANYWAY.  My tools are still good - I'm still very much in love with my SuperSolano hair dryer (review here) and my BaBylissPro Nano Titanium Flat Iron despite regularly burning the crap out of myself with it. Love hurts.

For products, I'm just using whatever old stuff I have around which is the following:

This Aveda Thickening Tonic does amazing things when my stylist uses is and not much of anything when I use it. I don't know, maybe I'm not using enough but it feels gross and stiff if I overdo it. I can't win.

I use Bumble & bumble Repair from mid-shaft down to the ends and it's pretty good stuff. I also like the Straight version. Sometimes I'll finish with B&B Let It Shine spray but it's been discontinued so I can't really recommend it. The Brilliantine is pretty nice for a finishing touch and I love the Tonic spray though I have no real idea what it does. Bumble & bumble is amazing at creating products that you love but don't actually need. Moving on:

Every so often I'll use Living Proof Perfect Hair Day which sometimes gives me perfect hair but if I use it more than two days in a row my hair gets really flat and lank. I don't even know how else to describe it? It's such odd stuff but I bought a travel size last year and I'm determined to use it up.

Finally, because the weather changed my hair has gotten really flyaway and staticky which is just one more reason to hate winter. So, I will ask my fellow fine/straight hair readers:

What products do you currently like and use? Is there anything life-changing I should try?

Adrien: Does This Work?

I had this outfit in mind and was pretty confident that it would work out well. But...I'm not sold. I think it's fine but I'm not sure it's quite...me? Maybe it's my hair, which has finally gotten long enough to put up, just barely. I was feeling rushed so it was nice to have a low-maintenance option:

I'm wearing my old Ann Taylor white jeans (though this is the pair I want next) with a Holding Horses blouse that Marianne gave me. It's so lightweight that it's easy to wear in the dead of summer. Holding Horses is an Anthro brand and this particular blouse has some nice little details! This HH chambray blouse is really cute and this little Anthro top has a similar pattern.

A view of my hair from the back. I used spin pins which are pretty secure if my hair isn't too clean, but in this case the whole thing fell apart by the time I got to the car. Suggestions? I still have a lot of little short pieces at the nape of my neck, so any kind of updo is a challenge.

Hey little buddy! I tried tucking the blouse in but nope. Not a fan. Here's a jewelry close-up:

I'm wearing J.Crew earrings (they do such good crazy earrings), a Banana Republic necklace (very similar to this adorable Minkoff version) and a charm bracelet from Anthro (I do love a fun charm bracelet), all purchased a while ago. 

My best bag, a vintage LV epi leather speedy. If you're looking to invest in a classic bag, go for the epi leather - it's bulletproof! (Tip: Look on eBay for LV epi bags from Japan.) If you just want a great red satchel, this Vince Camuto bag is beautiful. If you're on a very tight budget, check out this one by Kensie! So cute. My sandals are an old pair from Ann Taylor but I still love them. Gold sandals are my favorite. It's not hard to find something similar, but I'll be sad when this pair dies.

That's the outfit! It feels slightly out of character, but maybe that's just me. (And seriously, help with putting up short hair?)

Adrien: Banged.

A little while ago I asked you guys if you thought I could pull off blunt bangs and the encouragement was positive, so I just went and did it. (Or rather, my stylist did it. Otherwise things would be Real Bad.) I was more worried about changing my part than I was about the bangs, but my hair seems mostly okay with it:

not at all filtered. 

That photo makes my hair look pretty flat but hey, BANGS. This is what it looked like this morning:

tooootally not filtered.

I'm still (obviously) learning how to dry it and make things lay correctly, but overall I'm happy with the cut. I needed a CHANGE, y'all. I needed something different. If you have that urge, I highly recommend just going with it. 

Now, do you straight-hairs have any good product recommendations for me? I'm currently using Aveda Phomollient (eh, no longer love it) and will probably buy the Bumble & bumble Straight Blow Dry (why did I stop using this?) or a tube of the Repair Blow Dry. What else do I need?

Review: Bumble & bumble Repair Blow Dry and All Style Blow Dry

Oh Bumble & bumble. Every time I think I'm out you manage to pull me back in. I've been using BB products on and off for a long time. When I had really short hair I swore by their Styling Creme and Sumotech. When I grew my hair out I tried the Styling Lotion (too sticky) and Grooming Creme (too heavy) but never really found anything I loved.

I did really like the Straight Blow Dry balm but the smell didn't thrill me and it was expensive for what it was. Nice, but not a perfect product and maybe a little drying. I get my hair colored and last year when I grew it to my shoulders the ends got super-fried. (I'm not saying this product dried my hair out, it just didn't help protect it from further damage.) I needed something better.

And then, they made it. Something better! With my last Sephora order I got nice-sized sample tubes of the new Bumble & bumble styling products:

All-Style Blow Dry

I tried the All-Style Blow Dry first and it was...fine. It has "microfine oil-absorbing powders" in it to extend the life of your blow dry which is great and all, but I am not one of those people who can make my blow dry last more than a day. My hair is short-ish and fine and every morning I wake up with stupendous bedhead. This product actually contributes to that.

Not to say it doesn't work. It works fine - gives some hold and protects against heat damage - but it didn't really do anything amazing for me and I don't generally need microfine oil-absorbing powders in my hair stuff since I have to blow dry daily. I think this might be wonderful for the long-hairs who don't shampoo every day so please take this review with a short-hair grain of salt.

Repair Blow Dry

Ah...but the Repair Blow Dry. NOW WE ARE TALKING. This stuff is fucking great. It's GREAT. It's described as a "serum-in-creme elixir for dry or damaged hair" and I use it from my roots down, layered under Phomollient (just on my roots for some lift.) It gives my hair smoothness and swing and protects from humidity and static like a boss without weighing my hair down at all. I've been using it for the past week and I will be so sad when my tiny sample tube is empty. This is definitely one I'd consider spending money on. Between this and my awesome fancy hair dryer my hair has been looking a lot healthier than it ever has before.

Have you tried the Repair Blow Dry or All-Style Blow Dry? What did you think?

Adrien: A Cry For (Hair) Help.

So, I haven't done a State of My Hair post in a while, but that's because it's pretty much grown out. By that I mean the shorter bits on the "long" side have finally caught up, though the ends are looking a bit frizzled. My hair doesn't really do long so I think it's just a matter of figuring out where to go from here.

bleh.

Next week I'm getting a much-needed cut (and color refresh) and I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do. Right now it's just a tiny bit longer than shoulder-length which is a super-annoying length, so I was thinking about getting enough taken off so it's barely above my shoulders, something like this:

 BUT, then I saw this:

more photos of the cut here.

OR, I could go a tiny bit shorter and do a Carey Mulligan bob:

HMMM. (Just so you guys know, I collect haircut photos like it's some kind of pathetisad hobby.)

Both of these cuts will require me to grow out my bangs which I'm okay with. They're pretty long right now anyway. One thing I won't be doing is going super-short again, at least not right now. I love having really short hair but it requires cutting every 6 weeks and I just can't afford that kind of maintenance. So, long bob or short bob?

And now, this is where I beg and plead for short, straight hair product recommendations. I've been using this Aveda stuff:

Phomollient

I like the way it smells and it gives decent light hold, but it also makes my hair really tangly, which is annoying. I also need some kind of thermal protectant spray or balm because my ends are getting SUPER SAD. I've had good luck with Bumble and bumble Straight Blow Dry (which isn't really a protectant, like, at all), but I've run out and I'm hoping there's something cheaper and more effective out there. I will say, I'm still getting excellent results from the crazy cheap L'Oreal Total Repair 5 Balm but it's too heavy to use every day.

SO, if you have fine, straight hair, what styling products do you love? I am out of ideas.

Adrien: A Cry For Shampoo Help.

Okay, you guys. I need help. I've finally given up on Living Proof products and I'm down to the dregs of my travel size shampoo and conditioner bottles. I need to just hike up my jeggings and march into Ulta or Sephora and buy some shampoo/conditioner like a goddamn adult person. The problem is, I start reading reviews online and for every, "THIS IS MY HOLY GRAIL SHINY AWESOME BEST" review there's two, "MY HAIR IS RUINED THIS CRAP IS THE WORST" reviews and then I fall down the rabbit hole of reviews and still don't know what to buy. I am considering the following:

Alterna Bamboo Anti-Frizz

Alterna Caviar

I've used the shine and volume Alterna products and liked them just fine. The Caviar line is very, very expensive and is either the BEST EVER or the BIGGEST RIPOFF depending on who you believe. I've also read good things about Pureology:

Pureology Hydrate

Pureology Super Smooth

Also very very expensive but if it's amazzzzzing, I don't mind. If it's not amazing I will very much mind. There's also the L'Oreal Total Repair shampoo and conditioner that goes with the balm I like, but I am never convinced that drugstore products are going to give me the same results. Have I been brainwashed by Sephora? Perhaps. So, now it's your turn. I have fine, straight, color-treated hair with slightly damaged ends. Charming, right? What do you suggest? What should I avoid?

Also! If you know of a great styling product I should be using, I'd like to hear about that too. Thank you in advance.