Collaborative / Partnered Post - Ways To Restore Your Hair To Its Crowning Glory*

Even though I'm not the biggest fan of having my photograph taken, I grew with a dad, who was a very passionate amateur photographer, so needless to say there are hundreds and hundreds of photos of little Louise! I often look through those photos, and the one positive thing that I always end up focusing on is my beautiful hair. It was long, just a tiny bit wavy, and super healthy! so what happened?

Well illness, and no doubt colouring, perming, and heat styling have all played their part, and whilst it can look okay sometimes, I still lose way more strands than I would like, and more often than not, it looks like a wavy, tangly hedge!

Sadly it’s not that uncommon for people to feel negative about their hair and how it looks, and feels. If you're having more bad hair days than good hair days, then it's probably down to the strength and overall health of your hair. Don't despair though if you're dealing with strands that just don't do what you want, or look the way you want, then there are some things that you can do to get your hair back in shape, and to make it healthy as it can be.

Don’t Expose Your Hair to Too Much Heat

This first one is pretty obvious, I don't know many people (both guys and girls!) that don't own at least a hairdryer and maybe a set of straighteners, or curlers! Whilst appliances now are way less damaging than they used to be (sticking your tongs in the fire anyone!), and there are now numerous products out there to protect your hair from heat styling, exposing your hair to too much heat can severely damage it and prevent you from being able to keep it healthy and looking how you want it to look going forward. You see those little flyaways that you get in the mid lengths and around your hairline? Breakage because of an obsession with hair straighteners!

I'm not telling you to give up your hair styling products completely, but do what I do now and try to use them a bit more sparingly, you really don't need to straighten your hair everyday, try have a few days off a week, let your hair dry naturally every now and then, and if you must use heat tools, try turning the temperature down a bit. Oh and whilst we're talking about heat, don't wash your hair in really hot water as that too can damage your hair, I'm not saying you have to end your shower with a cold rinse, just turn that heat down a bit for your hair wash at least!

Eat a More Balanced Diet

Another obvious one but you are what you eat and if you eat a healthy diet, then you should feel the benefits in all kinds of ways. Your body and your hair will certainly thank you and you’ll get the nutrients you require into your system as well. It’s as simple as that. So make sure that you’re always doing what you can to keep your diet as healthy and balanced as it can be with all of the major food groups, vitamins and nutrients covered. I'm not saying count calories, or deny yourself the food or drink that you love, just try to cover your food groups, and make sure your getting all your vitamins, and don't forget there are loads of specialised hair vitamins out there and multivitamins out there if you fancy giving them a try.

Leave Time for Hair Masks

I've reviewed a lot of hair products over the years, and as well as finishing products, shampoos and conditioners, I've also talked about and loved a lot of hair masks and deep conditioning treatments.

Washing and conditioning your hair is obviously something that’s very important but if your hair needs a bit of extra help then trying to integrate an intensive treatment or hair mask into your routine. Hair masks and the like can really help to repair and moisturise your hair in a way that regular shampooing and conditioning can't. There are loads of products out there that address all different types of concerns so have a little look at my Beauty Product Directory and all of my Trimming My Stash posts to find out more about some of my favourites, and some of the products that I've tried x

Explore the Benefits of Hair Transplants

I must admit I do tend to neglect the boys a bit on this blog, but this tip is especially for you. I think now more than ever, probably with the emergence of social media, and reality tv, men are now under the same pressure as women to look good, and they have their own set of insecurities, be that abs, or that perfectly natural thing, hair loss. If you’re a man who’s experienced male pattern balding there isn't a quick fix - obviously you can embrace it, there are loads of hot male celebs with little are no hair so there are some amazing role models out there but if you want to do something about it then that's fine too. and there are several things out there that you can look into . Hair transplants are more successful than ever before and the results can be very impressive. Be sure to check out these before and after pictures of hair transplants if it’s something you’re interested in and what to learn more about

Shield it From the Sun

Over the last couple of years, or so, most of us have probably haven't seen the sun that much, but with things hopefully getting back to 'normal', we can now start dreaming again of sunny beaches, and city breaks. Yes we probably all need that Vitamin D again but the sun can cause serious damage to your hair, especially if it's already coloured or over processed The more steps you take to keep your hair covered when the sun is out the better, so grab yourself a funky bandana, or a big straw hat, and a UV hair protector spray before you hit that beach or even that beer garden. It might not seem as important as protecting your skin, but your hair can get damaged as well over time if it’s exposed to UV rays so if you really want your hair to be your crowning glory then you should keep your sun exposure to minimum.

Hopefully putting some of these tips into practise will help bring back those good hair days, but if you're still struggling than maybe have a word with your GP, as some illnesses can lead to problems with your hair, and of course have a chat with your hairdresser, sometimes all you might need is a good cut and a pamper session to get you back on track x Wishing you many Happy Hair Days ! Now where's my Elasticizer...

*Collaborative / Partnered Post

Goods + Bads

Hey my lovely peeps time for another Goods + Bads but before I start I just thought I'd let you know what's coming up this week on my blog :) the answer is reviews and lots of them I am hoping to get at least 3 sets of reviews up by the end of this week so keep checking back to see what I've been testing for you xx Anyways onto the goods and bads not too many bads this week thank goodness but still..

Goods

* I've lost another 3lbs this week I am so pleased I can now get my fat jeans on and off without unzipping them :)
* Less than 5 weeks to my holiday I desperately need sunshine this summer has been a washout :(
* I had a row with my mum last night which isn't in itself good but everyone on twitter was so nice to me last night - thankfully me and my mum had a long chat last night and got a few things out in the open which was good - she brought me a nice cup of tea in bed this morning too so all is good x
* My Naked palette - nuff said I love this palette and Money eye colour from the new Book of Shadows, and Sob cream blush by Illamasqua :)
* It's my mums birthday a week tomorrow and I am getting all Nigella and planning what I'm going to cook :)
* Posts from two lovely ladies Michelle from Lipstick Rules and Alice In A New Wonderland that made me cry a little - 2 lovely ladies whom I never would have known without blogging xx

Bads

* I stood on the plug of my hair straighteners yesterday and the front prong has pierced the ball of my foot - it looked horrible at the time squirting blood and all sorts -it's cleared up now but it still hurts when I put pressure on it :(
* ME / Fibro Pains - I had an awful pain in my neck last night :(
* The roof - roof guy still hasn't come thankfully we have had no prolonged periods of rain so it's stayed pretty dry inside

Hope your all having a lovely bank holiday xx

Clynol Hair Product Review

A few months ago I was lucky enough to be sent a bunch of hair products by top salon brand Clynol to try and review for you. I must admit I have used this product in the past mainly the Dream Hair leave in conditioner and I have to say although I repurchased it and some other items the products were OK but nothing special- so I was interested to see if any of their new formulations were any more impressive.
Clynol have recently revamped the ingredients, product design and packaging of their hair care range and I was lucky enough to be sent 4 products a shampoo and a conditioner and 2 styling products from their new Care and Style ranges - I have tried these products for over two months now to give you a through review.

Clynol Revive Repair Shampoo

First of all I was sent this shampoo from the Repair range. This shampoo is for dry, damaged and brittle hair and contains Clynols exclusive Pro.Repair.Complex with amino acids and wheat protein. The shampoo came in a sleek, white 300ml bottle with a flip top cap. It's a slightly, runny, pearlised white liquid with a fresh smell.

Despite the presence of the foaming agent Sodium Laureth Sulfate, I did find you needed quite a bit of the product to produce a decent lather. Having said that though it produced sufficient lather to make my hair feel clean and it rinsed out easily, and I didn't feel as though I needed to shampoo it twice. All in all it was a pretty good shampoo but I didn't think it was anything spectacular. This retails for around £8.45

Clynol Recovery Repair Conditioner

Alongside the shampoo I was also sent the matching conditioner from the Repair range.
This product again comes in a sleek white bottle, which this time is 250ml in size. It has a pump action dispenser which personally I love - its much easier to use when you are in the shower and so on and you get exactly the right amount of product. It dispensed easily and was of a good, not too thick not too runny consistency, and was white in colour - again it has the same fresh scent as the shampoo

I felt it massaged easily into my washed, towel dried hair but again I felt I needed to use a lot of product to cover my just below shoulder length hair. After leaving for a few minutes the product washed out easily and left me hair without too many tangles. According to Clynol this conditioner "Protects the hair surface, gives strength and shine. Gently restructures hair by repairing damaged areas." These are big claims as I have said on several occasions I don't believe products can repair split ends or damaged hair but to be fair this product left my hair, soft, and tangle free which was no mean feet considering I had it coloured (yes OK bleached!) during this trial. Obviously in its current condition I think my hair needs a little bit more help than this product but it's a pretty decent everyday conditioner. This product retails for around £9.45

Clynol Smooth Flatter Iron Spray

As I said I was also sent two of the styling products from the Smooth range. The first one I was sent was the Flatter Iron Spray. Been a compulsive (although hopefully less in 2010 :))hair straightener and user of flat irons I already currently use a heat protector spray so I was interested to try this one out. The product comes in a silver /blue tone pump action bottle which is 300ml in size. This product contains Clynol's exclusive Pro Protect Complex with moisturising silk protein, which supposedly protects the hair during styling and moisturises and smooths hair. Nothing new here I suppose most heat protector sprays on the market make similar claims. Since I don't blow dry my hair I used the product on my dry hair before using straightening irons. The product dispensed easily in a fine mist. The spray though didn't smell that great there was no nice scent like my usual product instead it had a quite chemically and not that pleasant smell. There was no problem whilst I was using no scary hissing or any increased dryness of my hair but I did find that it made it quite stiff with product, a bit tangled and not as smooth as I would have liked. Would I buy this particular product again - no definitely not - this item retails for around £9.50 and my preferred flat iron spray costs only a third of that, gives just as good results and smells lovely :)

Clynol Smooth Silky Frizz-Free Serum

The final product I was sent was a hair serum from the smooth range.It comes in 150ml bottle with a pump action dispenser.Containing the exclusive Pro Sleek Complex with Macadamia Nut Oil this serum according to Clynol gives you "long lasting, frizz free manageable hair with a silky shine and a glossy finish ". After drying and straightening I dispensed some of this fresh, fruity clear serum onto my hands and smoothed it over my hair. I loved the smell of this product which lingered on your hair - the serum was non greasy or sticky and was easily applied to my hair although as you can see in this picture it is a little bit runny

It left the hair with a noticeable shine, and no stickiness, and without knots

I have to say though as much as I liked this serum I don't think the effects really lasted that well - I must admit the current snowy, cold weather probably isn't the best test for this serum but the smooth finish lasted no more than a couple of hours on my hair. Despite that as I say I was pretty impressed with the product I especially loved the smell and the glossy (not greasy!) finish it gave. This retails at around £9.50

I hope you have found this review of some of the new Clynol hair products to be useful - if you would like any more information such as stockists, or to find out what products would be suitable for your hair type please check out the Clynol website If you have any questions on these products please don't hesitate to leave a comment below

Remington Wet 2 Straight Review

Like many other bloggers I was recently sent a pair of the Remington Wet 2 Straight hair irons to try, so If you have had enough of reading reviews on these I suggest you look away now (I've always wanted to say this like when they show the football results on the tv lol.)

I was super excited to try these as my and my bestie had been discussing the possible merits and pitfalls about this product since it first launched. The idea in theory sounds fabulous a set of hair straighteners which you can use on wet hair to dry as you straighten, and on dry hair as a normal straightening iron. I must admit I have real problems blow drying my own hair due to CFS related pains and thick hair so I was hoping that these would be a good solution (I normally dry my hair naturally and then straighten it)

I have to admit before I start the review that I am a GHD addict I am on my second pair and I love them, other straighteners I have used in the past just dont compare and have usually ended up in the charity bag so I was interested to see how these performed in comparison.

Design and Features
They are an ergonomically designed straightner with a slight curve to fit in the hand and to the scalp more easily. They also have longer and slightly thinner ceramic plates than my GHD's.

Unlike GHD's they also have an adjustable temperature control which is something I like this means you can adjust the temperature of the stylers depending on your hair thickness or type, e.g. higher temperatures for thicker hair etc. Like GHD's they also have dual voltage which means you can use them throughout Europe too.

The big difference though with the Remington Wet To Straights though is that they can be used on wet (realistically though damp hair) and dry hair. The straighteners features an easy 4 button control panel and an LCD display and you can easily switch between wet and dry at the touch of a button. The top set of plates feature a set of steam vents (in my pic they are upside down). According to Remington these vents draw the water away from your hair and create steam which helps the condition of the hair.

These straightners also come with a heat proof silver pouch which is very handy because they can get very hot!!


The Test - Wet Hair
Before

As I said before wet to straight is probably a bit misleading - the straightners must be used on damp, towel dried hair, that has been combed through and sectionned out. I put the straightners on the wet mode and put it up to the highest heat setting of 230 degrees as recommended - obviously they take a little bit longer to heat up the higher the tempertaure you set them at but it still wasn't any more than a few minutes and they let you know with an indicator beep. I am in no doubt that these do indeed straighten and dry very well but I do have a few issues. First of all the biggie are they damaging the condition of you hair? Remington claim not - the production of the steam and the frizz resistant conditioners built into the plates prevent damage and actually aid the conditioning process -I have no reason not to believe this my hair certainly didn't feel any drier although I will say that I found the sizzling noise quite off putting!. Perhaps my biggest problem with wet to straight when used in wet mode was that it was incredibly difficult to get close enough to the scalp to dry the roots -the straighteners got very hot and it was very hard to hold them in a way to get to the roots without burning my fingers, and I found the same with my fringe. I also found it quite time consuming to dry all of my hair especially the underneath section -it seemed to take quite a while and you kept having to go over sections to make sure they were completely dry. Having said that it was for me personally easier than blow drying my own hair and I have to say I was quite pleased with the results - my hair was pretty straight, dry and not frizzy at all, and this seemed to last till the next morning
After


The Test - Dry Hair
Before

The is the most familiar way to most of us of using hair straighteners - as I say I normally leave my hair to dry naturally and then straighten it when it's dry. As you can see naturally it's quite wavy, I sometimes leave it but more often than not I wear it straight. All you do with these is set the straightener to the dry setting with the touch of a button and adjust the temperature accordingly (I set it to about 190-200 degrees which is the GHD temperature). As before I applied a heat protector spray all over my hair sectionned it out and started straightening. The straighteners were pretty effective although I did find I had to go over certain sections a few times to achieve maximum straightness. Again though I found them a little hot to hold at times and again it was quite hard to straighten my fringe due to the design and shape of the irons. I was pretty pleased with the finish that they gave my hair but Remington claim that your hair should be left without frizz for up to 8 hours - I don't actually believe this -although all hair types are different, weather conditions can vary and so on mine only stayed really frizz free for a couple of hours or so
After

What Do I Think
Well as I said I'd always been interested in trying these straighteners- anything that can make my life easier I'm all for! I have to say on the whole I was quite impressed they did what they promised all be it with a few issues that I have mentionned. I do query a few of Remington's claims about this product though. I don't particulary understand the concept of how they protect the hair rather than damaging it maybe that is something you would only see over time, I also don't quite believe they banish frizz for up to 8 hours it certainly didn't in my case. I also don't think this product would be suitable for anyone with any thicker or longer hair than mine, I think the drying process would just take to long to complete. Would I buy this erm if I had GHD's already probably not I personally get just as good a result from drying my hair naturally and straightening it afterwards but if I wanted a set of straighteners and I didn't want to spend GHD money - yeah I think they are worth a try especially with the added drying feature. I get the impression that these are like Marmite a love / hate product -this is just my opinion and what I thought about them after a few weeks of use yours may be very different.

Where Can I Get Them
The Remington Style Therapy Wet 2 Straight Slim Straighteners RRP is £79.99 but there are loads of special offers around at the moment where you can get them for up to half price. You can get them from all good electrical retailers including Boots, Superdrug, and Argos

If you have any queries or questions please don't hesitate to ask me or check out Remington's own site for more information :)

Time For A Rest!

Well my course is finished at long last - I am just waiting for my final grades (bites finger nails!) - I have really enjoyed it and it has given me something to do - I am just thinking what to do next, maybe a counselling course or something. That is something I think I would be quite good at, I have some good life experience and keep being told that I am a good listener -hmm I need to think positive that I will eventually get over my ME and that I will be able to rejoin 'normal' life and get a job again and some money!!!!

I need the money too, I got my new GHD's despite the fact I have no money- they are amazing though lovely straight hair!

A Funny Few Weeks In Lou Lou Land!

I have some funny weeks in my life and the past few have certainly been right up there!
New bathroom fittings, ridiculous neighbours, aches and pains, psychology assignments, starting a diet, and then yesterday my hair straighteners caught fire!
I can't live without them and can I afford some more good ones can I hell!
All in all not a good week so far!!!!