How I Keep My Hair Tame In The Winter

Living in the Midwest has it's ups and it's downs. Unfortunately the climate change in the winter is definitely a huge down side; It gets cold, dry, and windy. Trying to stay warm, yet fashionable is quite difficult during these months; you put a hat on and you get frizzy hat hair from the static, or you leave your hair down and gets whipped around from the wind.. not to mention your ears will get nipped at.

To solve this problem, I use 3 products during my morning routine to tame my dry frizzy hair, and keeping it soft and healthy.

First, I wash my hair with Toni & Guy shampoo and conditioner for damaged hair.

Then, once I am out of the shower I gently towel dry my hair and throw it up in that towel while I dry off, get dressed, brush my teeth, and apply my makeup. After that I take my hair down and apply a leave-in conditioner. The one I use is from my local barber shop and is part of the "olive oil" line. I use about 2-3 pumps of the product and apply it to my hair, starting at the tips and working my way up to the roots.

Once the leave-in conditioner is applied, I either blow-dry my hair if I'm in a hurry then apply a restoring oil, or if I'm staying in, I'll apply the oil and leave my hair to air-dry. Again, I use an 'olive oil' product, however I use a very tiny amount (I'm talking a pea size amount). A little bit goes a long way. Before applying it to my hair, I rub the product between the tips of my fingers and the top of my palm. I focus more on the bottom half of my hair than my roots, since I don't want my scalp to become oily right after getting out of the shower.

And that's it. I wash my hair every other day, and this method keeps my hair tame the entire time. I also made a video over on my youtube channel, if you'd like to check it out. It might be easier to see it visually than trying to decipher my descriptions and instructions.

Here are a couple additional tips that may or may not help tame your hair throughout these cold dreadful months.

Tip #1: Drink plenty of water. You want to stay hydrated all around the year, but it's important that everything is balanced so your body is awake and healthy. I must admit I'm not 100% sure that this will make a big difference, but every little bit helps, and you should be drinking around 60 oz of water each day anyway.

Tip #2: Along with keeping your body hydrated, make sure you're getting all of the nutrients you need. Eat full course meals and take vitamins daily. Another bit of advice is look into taking coconut oil supplements; something about it makes your hair soft and healthy.

Tip #3: Turn on a humidifier. If you don't already own one, I recommend you purchase a humidifier. You don't have to spend a lot of money on a big heavy duty one, but a cheap tiny one should suffice; although it depends on how big your living space is. The humidifier will put some moisture back into the air, relieving your dry skin and hair.

I hope this helps!

Much Love! Xx

Product Review: OGX® Shampoo & Condioner

When it comes to shampoos I tend to stick with just one brand and trying numerous varieties. Growing up I stuck with the cheaper shampoos such as Suave and Garnier Fructis; which wasn't the best idea. Cheaper shampoos tend to contain mostly alcohol, which strips your hair of it's natural oils and thus, making your hair look dull & frizzy and feeling dry. It wasn't until a couple years ago that I decided to switch it up and give other shampoos a try. Venturing down the shampoo/conditioner aisle might be scary and never-ending. There are SO MANY different kinds to choose from and the prices can be a bit intimidating.

When I bought my first OGX shampoo & conditioner I was hoping that this was my holy grail, or at least a step up; which it definitely was! It left my hair feeling soft and clean not dry and frizzy. It even gave my hair a bit of life. I want to add that the smell is also very nice. The Brazilian Keratin Therapy Shampoo (pictured above), has a lovely calming scent to it. It smells of a rich cocoa butter and a hint of tropical coconut.

I personally think that OGX is a great brand to use if you don't want to spend too much money but also have healthier feeling/looking hair. One bottle costs $7.99, which is a bit pricey when you realize that you need to buy both the shampoo and conditioner at that price - equaling about $16 just on hair product. BUT I think it is well worth the money and I can frequently find Buy one, Get one 50% off deals. So, if you stick to these kinds of sales it isn't as bad. In addition, they will last you a good five or so months, depending on how frequently you wash your hair. I wash my hair about every other day or every two days, and I have had this shampoo and conditioner since spring. 

I definitely recommend this shampoo/conditioner if you are looking to transition your hair back into a healthy status. I must stress that it doesn't happen over night but within the first few washes you will notice your hair feeling and looking much better

Overall I will give this shampoo & conditioner a 8.7/10. The price is very reasonable, and it leaves my hair healthy and soft, but there are other shampoos out there that I have yet to try out.

Let me know in the comments if you have any recommendations! 

Much Love! Xx

New Beginnings

I never liked the idea of change; It's a scary thought. Stepping outside of my comfort zone is intimidating and having anxiety doesn't help my cause. When a lot of things are going right I never want things to change. But how can you move forward when you're holding onto the past? I've unfortunately had a lot of hardships in my 19 years of living and I knew that college was the perfect opportunity to start over. My first year of college wasn't what I expected. During my senior year of high school I made the mistake of applying to only one college. I waited my entire senior year to find out that I was put on a wait list. Determined to go to college that fall I had no choice but to attend a local UW college. Long story short, I hated it; it didn't feel like college, it still felt like high school. I got extremely depressed and my anxiety flared up. For the first time in my life I failed classes. I knew I needed to change something with my life. It was a scary thought but I needed to take that leap of faith. So in a short couple of months I applied to Madison Area Technical College - got accepted, transferred jobs, and got an apartment 5 minutes from the UW campus and my brothers house.



A year ago a never would have imagined me being where I am today. I've had a lot of thoughts about backing out and going home but that would be too easy. I'm proud of myself for sticking with it and I am so blessed for everything I have in my life. In the past year I have gone from a college that held me back rather than going forward, to a place that has motivated me to do better and become a better person each and everyday. I always told myself that technical colleges were for those who slacked in high school and that I wouldn't fall down to that level. Boy was I wrong; MATC  is one of the best decisions of my life. Every thought that I put into my head about a technical college was false and I can't believe how ignorant I was being. Any thing that you choose to do in life is better than doing nothing at all. The first month of the semester has flown by so quickly and each time I exit those doors I pat myself on the back and smile because I am a step closer to where I want to be in life.


In the past year I have grown up so much, all thanks to those who I surround myself with. I am so blessed to have such amazing coworkers that support me and push me to do better. Without them I don't know where i'd be. My parents were also such a huge part in pushing me to do what is best for myself & my future. Each and every day I find out more about myself and how capable I am to complete goals if I set my mind to them. Moving on to another college was one step, but taking the leap of faith and moving to a whole new city, two hours away from my parents, and living on my own was a giant leap. But I don't regret it; It's life and we are here to live it. Owning my own place is extremely exciting but also a wake-up call. I've had to prioritize my time and money to keep up with the bills and the dishes. One thing I do regret is not taking the opportunities to cook with my mom in the kitchen. I quickly found out how much I know about preparing a meal: almost nothing. I literally thought it was a good idea to put bread in the microwave to make 'toast' (because I didn't have a toaster), you can probably guess what happened... Yeah, not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Regardless, I am ecstatic with how far I've come in the past couple of months; from living with my parents to living on my own. A giant step anyone and everyone should be proud of.



Recently I made the decision to change it up quite a bit; I decided to dye my hair. I looked at it as a new beginning, a way to close a chapter of my life in order to start a new one. A new life, a new look, a new me. A healthier me, with ambition to achieve, and motivation to keep moving forward. It was a big decision, but it was something I wanted to do for over a year now and I thought now was the best time to do it. I went from a medium brown that faded out at the ends from highlights, to a dark rich chocolate brown that is warm and has depth. I was so scared for this change since i've never done anything so drastic. I also got it cut just below my shoulders in order to get rid of all of my dead ends I accumulated over the years (A trip to the barber was a rare occasion for me). I did some research before getting my hair done because this was a big deal for me and I wanted to have complete trust in the person who would be doing it. I ended up in the hands of Ric, an amazing beautician who was professional but personable. I couldn't be more happy over my decision to wait and get my hair done at this salon. It was a much needed change and it turned out just how I imagined/hoped. They say that when you go through a big change in your life you tend to change your appearance. And when I say appearance, I mainly mean your hair.

After

Before

All in all I'm not exactly where I want to be, but I am where I need to be and that's all that matters. I'm a step in the right direction and each day I am getting closer; this is just the beginning.