To Dallas and Back Again

I made a quick trip up to Frisco this weekend.  It was to meet Karen, a fellow LHC member and an all around nice gal. Her hubby, Smooch, and she flew down from Chicago and since she was in Texas I couldn't help but take advantage of the opportunity to meet her.   Teacherbear also came too.  She's a fun person as well, it always makes me smile to be in her company.  We would have drove together but I had to come back earlier than usual.  It made for a long drive without a friend to chat with.    For more on this trip, go to the LHC thread.
 
It was a fun time. I so wished I could have stayed longer, but I had to think of my kids and get back to them. I was so happy I drove there by myself and didn't need to call Teacherbear for directions. I warned her that I would if I got lost. I think the last time I went with LongHairedRennie we were talking too much and I missed seeing the tollway exit.
 
When I arrived at Bill's (who by the way is looking svelte!) Karen was sitting pretty in wax paper and pink heat cap. We smiled instantly and hugged each other a few times. I couldn't believe Karen's beautiful blue eyes! Her skin is soft and pale and her hair is so dark and lucious the combination makes her look like a china doll. She's precious!
 
I got Bill to measure me and trim my hair. Before was 42" and after was 39.5" It's now back to tailbone (he called it classic btw, weird huh?) and in the shape of a rounded square, if that makes sense.
 
We chatted a lot before Teacherbear arrived and before Bill had to work on her hair and put her under the dryer. I got a bunch of pics, but most are face shots, so I'll be sending them to Karen for her editing and posting if she pleases. After the comb out, we tried to take a shot of her flipping her hair back, but I was either too slow or too fast.  darn
 
After the GM treatment, we headed to Blue Mesa and their kooky sweet potato chips. I took an instant distaste for them, but in my grazing fashion I continued to munch on them and decided they indeed were good, but it has to grow on you. I left after meeting Smooch, who is a nice guy and sweet too. Karen's gift of the Lush stuff was a surprise and I'm going to use them soon. They smell so good!
 
I forgot about taking a group shot! Darn it all. But still it was a pleasure to meet Karen and of course Teacherbear too.
 
I came home to find my dog has had an encounter with a skunk! It was too late for a bath, so I had smelly dog in the house (I finally put him outside) and wound up with a headache. Bad smells make me sick.

The Great Conditioner Only Experiment

So many people have told me about this CO washing and how it has really set their hair on fire with softness and body. My hair needs body, but it doesn't need greasy. Ever since I was a young girl and learning to wash on my own mom told me that the conditioner coated my hair and attracted dirt which caused my hair to get dirty faster. And ever since then I've been using Apple Cider Vinegar as a rinse to close the cuticle and add shine and slip to my hair. Plus it works as a fantastic clarifer for the hard water that I've got at home.

So the CO thing was very adverse to me. Just didn't make sense. Still doesn't, but I'm finally going to give it a try. I've been battling flakes around my hairline for ages. Nothing helps except Nizoral. I've been using it for 3 weeks and have seen a real difference. Now that I've got a big gun in my arsenal, I'm willing to experiment a bit and see if the CO routine is good for me and my hair.

So, tonight, Thursday May 20th, I did a CO wash. I used Suave Daily Clarifying Conditioner and I used loads of it. Almost half the bottle. I don't know if that is good, but it didn't feel saturated on my head. The back part of my hair especially felt dry and left out. After washing with the CO, I put some on all the length and coiled it up and shaved my legs. Then I rinsed the conditioner out of my hair and combed it smooth. It took quite a long time for the water to run clear. At least I think it ran clear. Then I rinsed with ACV as usual and wrapped that up while I showered. I always leave the actual body cleansing for last so that I wash off the shampoo and ACV on my body. I wanted to even more so tonight with all the conditioner dripping.

I still have my hair in the turbie drying. I'll see how it feels and looks in the morning. Stay Tuned.

Monday, 24 May 2003 Update: I washed again last night after 3 days between the last wash. I might have gotten away with one more day, but I didn't feel like risking looking like a greaseball at work. I did the same routine as before: CO wash, rinse and repeat, leave on while showering, rinse well, ACV rinse and comb out.

I'm not so sure what to expect about this just yet. My flakes have gone for now. My hair feels clean, go figure. I don't know about body, I think it's got a bit more body. And the ends? hmmmm, well I haven't noticed, but they look good now. So, for now, my hair likes CO washes.


Sunday, 20 June 2003 Update:  I'm ending the experiment.  I've used the entire bottle of conditioner (it was a huge bottle too, bigger than their normal size)  My hair isn't that different and I've got to wash more often.  I think the flakes have disappeared because of the season so I'm not convinced the CO washing does anything for me at all.   I'll go back to my usual routine and see if the ends are better/worse and decide.

LHC Party of Five

Went to Dallas this past weekend for a longhair gathering of sorts. It was fun meeting two new ladies along with Teacherbear and Dulci. For all the details, check out the post at LHC. There are pictures too.

I learned some new things.

• Euphraysne showed us how to do the french twist on our long hair. Looks good and with some practice I'm hoping to master it.
• Kate said she's sold on CO washing. Her hair is soft soft soft. She's the latest of the bandwagon and I'm gonna try it too.
• Kate also told about her Split Ender and how she likes it. I've been thinking about this one, and might just go buy it and give it a try.
• I still don't like wine. I got really sick after drinking wine with our dinner. no.more.wine.

A question of length

I'm approaching classic length (that's when your hair reaches just past your butt) and am thinking this will be it. I like my length, it's still easy to care for - I can manage to get the brush all the way through in a sweep - and it is longer than the average person. I like being just a little different, but not overly so. So classic will be my home.

And with that decision, it will require trimming more often than once or twice a year. Besides I'd like to see if by staying at this length whether or not my ends will be any healthier and thicker than what they are now. They look pretty good as is, but can it be better? ah, the constant quest for better, stronger, prettier. sigh.

Hair Toy Storage idea

My hair toys are taking over my bedroom. I've got the following:

• wire basket of scrunchies
• wire basket of hair bands
• wire basket of jaw clips
• wire basket of hair barrettes, Ficcares, and Scandanavian Delights
• plastic circle containing bunjiis
• plastic circle containing elastics (hair friendly ones of course)
• small glass container of plastic elastics (used for braid ends, one time use)
• container of hair pins
• cup full of hair sticks (Mei Fas anyone?)
• drawer full of various other stuff that won't fit in the above

Varbalow posted her solution - a hanging basket! I've got one in the kitchen that's usually empty. Her idea is perfect for me. I've got to buy a hangar and try it ASAP.

ACV rinsing update

The new method of ACV rinsing is working well. I'm sticking with it for a while. I'm almost out of shampoo. I've got a few bottles of various Suave stuff already when it was on sale (how can a .99 bottle of shampoo be any cheaper?) so I'll use one of those. When you wash once or twice a week a bottle of shampoo can last forever. I'll have to mark the bottle, ask my daughter not to use any of it and see how long it actually takes.

I'm not using shea butter anymore either. It's not that I don't like it, it's more that I'm lazy and forget to do it. With a hit and miss regimen I can't ever get a good idea of whether it's of any good for my hair. I still use it religiously on my legs and face. I love my perfumed shea butter

Hair Toys - Bunjiis and Ficcares

Brad the bunjiidude has some pretty lampwork beads on his bunjiis and of course I bought some. I think I bought a total of five, mostly greens and blues but there is an orange one too. I like wearing them, they are pretty and unique enough without being weird. I wish they had silver side hubs, but the normal black hubs are good too.

I also got a pair of Ficcare hair sticks. They are about 6" iirc (if I remember correctly) and the tips are dipped in what appears to be a dark tortoise color. The sticks are square shaped too. I can't wait to wear them. I think they will be awesome and might even be the set I keep in my purse.

Topsy Ponytail

At LHC (see link to the right) we are doing a HairStyle of the Week. I thought it was a neat idea to capture a different style each week and see how everyone does that style. It's come aoubt pretty well and there are some great and easy looks. Some I hadn't thought about. This week it was ponytails and I snapped this photo of my topsy tail ponytail. I'm in love with topsytails, I like the flipped parts so much. I wish I could get a bigger flip all around a la Gibson Girl.

Cinnamon Buns, Fragrant EOs, and Shampoo Update

I'm not very good at doing cinnamon buns - the kind that lay flat against your head. Mine tend to go vertical on me and then become a bee butt. So I've been trying to make an attempt at cinnamon bun whenever I put my hair up. It ain't easy, I think I'm winding too tightly. This morning, however, I had just washed my hair and so it was wet. I combed it out and decided to put it up anyways. I got a good looking bun in two attempts. I used hair pins to hold it up and then a hairstick with a connecting dangle for decoration. I just got this stick (I can't remember where though!) and wasn't so sure about how to wear it. But I've got it in and the dangle is hanging below the bun. It looks nice I think. I'll keep playing with it in the hopes of finding a great look.

Sorry, but I don't have any pictures today.

This past weekend I bought my favorite perfumes, Ombre Rose and Cool Water, from the International House of Fragrance and it came to me that I could use the fragrances in my hair! It is a waste for me to wear normal perfumes and colognes because the scent disappears so quickly. My dad found this guy (retired from Fabrege) who made reproductions and I've been a loyal customer ever since -- and this was back in '80 waaaay before repro fragrances were popular. Anyways, I added 10 drops of Ombre Rose to my daily shea butter jar and it smells awesome! I use the shea butter on my freshly shaved legs, on my dry face and elbows and now I'm smelling great too.

And I've been trying something new in rinsing too. Usually I shampoo standing up with my hair down my back. Then I'd rinse bent over with my hair in front. I always felt I was ignoring the front part of my hair even though I made a determined effort to rinse well. So I've decided to rinse in the same position as I do the shampoo. That will ensure the front is rinsed well which is the problem area. I did it today and I haven't seen a flake yet! I'm holding my breath though. I sure hope this is a solution.

Wrapped and Snapped and Go

I liked the curls so much I'm attempting this again. I bought another set of the curlers, so now I have 24 to use. I used 21 this time, and will probably use them all the next time I attempt this. I might buy another set so the curls will dry faster. It didn't take much time to wrap, maybe 20 minutes. I'll sleep on them and in the morning use the low setting on my blow dryer to ensure they are dried thoroughly before I go to work. I hope I can find my blow dryer! I haven't used it in years.
	I didn't have to blow dry this morning because my hair was dry! That's good news. Taking out the curlers was easy and simple. I was happy the curls shortened my hair so much. I did notice a place or two that didn't curl as well.
Combing it out was more difficut than I had remembered from just last week. I tried my comb - no good. Then a wider spaced comb - no good. Finally I resorted to my wide wide shower comb and that helped. I also tried a pick and that was okay, but it really didn't comb much. Now I know why so many curly people just finger comb their hair. After combing I did notice one or two spots that didn't curl as much, probably because I had too much hair on the curler. But still I'm very happy. I gave up on really combing out all the hair and settled on just getting the curls to look natural and not like they just came off a curler. I don't know if I achieved my goal, but I pulled it back into my Arizona barette. I call it that because I got the barette in Arizona at an Indian gift shop. I'm sure it can be bought elsewhere.

Everyone at work loved the new curls. Many thought I had gotten a perm; I was so happy to say it was just curls from curlers. The curls lasted longer than I had expected. When I got home I was still very curly but I could tell it wouldn't last much longer. At the end of the day, I tried to comb my hair and instantly knew this was going to be a task from hell. It didn't help that I was extremely tired and just wanted to go to bed. But I knew if I didn't comb now, it would be hell in the morning. And since I'm NOT a morning person, I'll do anything to make my mornings easier.

I laid out my arsenal of combs and sat down in front of the television to numb my mind. Just seperating the hair into two parts was a mess. I was a head of tangles. Using my fingers, I divided my hair and worked on one tiny section at a time. First one comb, then the other, then back again and stopping to work a tangle with my fingers. This was like surgery to me. After the better part of an hour I was done. So I went to bed exhausted and having a grander respect for all the curly and wavy long hair people.

Curls!

>

I've thought about curling my hair for a while now and wasn't sure how I was going to attempt this. I'm hair-implement challenged and have used curlers rarely. I bought some of those wrap snap and go curlers long ago at Claire's to use in my daughter's hair. We never used them. I dusted them off and decided to give it a try. They are more of a spongy stick than a curler. There were only 12 sticks and I knew this was going to be a problem. But I put them in, slept on them overnight and through most of the day. And voila! I like them. I need more of the curlers though, there are some flat spots and my hair would dry faster with more curlers.

Shea Butter and Vinegar

A long while back I read so many great things about shea butter for the hair. I bought a 1lb jar and tried it. It was a mess. I didn't use too much, but it left my hair in clumpy sticks. Not at all soft and lovely. End of shea butter for the hair odessy. But all is not lost. My skin loves shea butter. I practically could dip myself in a vat of the melted stuff and my skin would begin sucking it in.

Anyways, there has been some chatter about shea butter on LHC again (great hair site, go visit it if you haven't had a chance yet.) So I decided to try it again but in a different manner. I put it on while my hair was still damp, nearly wet. And my hair liked it! I'm going to continue doing it and see what the affects are. Stay tuned

The other hair routine chane is that I'm going back to vinegar rinses. My hairline is so flaky it is driving me nuts. Instead of using conditioner after shampooing, I'm pouring a quart of warm water with 4-8 oz of vinegar over my hair and then combing while wet. It's doing great so far.

GM: It's Been Fun, But I'm Bored With You

Somehow, I feel like I should be in a confessional, but I'm not Catholic so I don't do that.


As some of you might remember on my first GM trip back in February this year I decided to give GM products a try. Since then I've been faithful and haven't used anything else - not even my usual ACV rinse.


I like the GM products and they like my hair. No problems at all.


But


I'm bored! I'm tired of using them all the time. I've tried to think why I'm so bored. The products are simple to use and that's a plus for me. They give me great feeling hair afterwards. I do love the creme rinse.


I want to smell something different! That's what it is.


So I'm going back to Suave Humectress. It smells like coconut.


Sorry GM, but I'm moving on and leaving you. I might take you back into my shower one of these days, but for now I'll be taking someone else.

My Second GM TreatmentandHow I Got to Speak with Dr George Michael!

I'm back from a trip to Dallas for a GM treatment! It was a lot of fun and I'm sure I'll miss something I wanted to tell y'all about it but I'll do my best.

First off I picked up LongHairRennie at her place Saturday morning and we chatted all the way to Dallas! She's a sweet lady with fine looooong red hair. I have never seen such red! I kept my sunglasses on in her presence! 8) hehe.

Our appointment was at 2pm and we made it despite taking the wrong I-35. (tbear, you need to give me a lesson on Dallas highways) We gave up trying to figure it out and took the speedy tollway and arrived without more delays. Bill was as sweet as ever, he gave us hugs and welcomed us. He knew we liked pictures and reminded us that he needed to take before shots. What a thoughtful guy!

Then he got to work on us: Rennie was first. He did the usual wash, sectioned off hair and slathered on lots of the 1hour treatment stuff and then wrapped the hair around on top of her head. Then she was in the beautiful pink heat cap for an hour. I was next. After Rennie's timer went off, he rinsed her well, applied the cream rinse and then combed her, put in the rollers and put her under the dryer (106° = ten degrees above body temp) for another hour. Then it was my turn. I think this shot is after I'd been under the dryer, but look at them rollers! :shock:

During all this we chatted and pounded Bill with questions. Rennie was very good and remembered all the questions about GM theories and opinions; I listened a lot :)



While we were under the dryers, Bill took a break and made a few phone calls. I didn't hear anything cause I can't hear with the dryer noise and besides I had just bought the new Harry Potter book to keep me busy ;) But at one point I did hear him say "Dr Michael this is Bill" and I wondered who he was talking to? Darn those loud dryers. Then after a bit he gave the phone to Rennie and she talked on his phone. Strange, I thought. Then Bill bent closer to me and said "Dr Michael wants to talk to you next. He's 85 and has a Russian accent" I was astounded so I said "get outta here" and he told me indeed it was him on the phone! I was so excited! After Rennie talked for a bit, I got to talk to Dr Michaes!!!!! What would I say? I didn't have to worry a bit, cause he's a charmer and loves to talk. He already knew a bit about me and my hair (I guess Bill told him while we were drying) but he asked a few more questions about it and he said he was so happy I liked the system and that my hair was beautiful according to Bill. He told me that he wanted me to take pictures and send them to him. He said to do it soon cause his birthday was coming up and it would be a nice present for him! Can you believe it? :D Then .... this was wild..... he said to be sure to add my phone number and address, because he will call and thank me for the pictures. And he said to give him a time that is good to call, because he hates to talk to machines. I can't remember what else we chatted about, but I know I did tell him how happy I was with the GM products and Bill's work. When he closed he told me how he couldn't wait to see my hair and it's beauty. Then he said "Well it was a great treat to speak with you lovely Carol, now let me talk to Billy" I nearly laughed at the Billy remark!!!!



After all that, I HAD to tell someone. So I left a message on Tbear's phone, but that wasn't enough. Dulci couldn't believe it when I told her! I was freaked too, it was very weird to speak to the man himself!

Whew! Back to the treatments.... he unrolled Rennie and did a split end trim on her hair. He didn't do that at the last visit I had so this was new for me to watch. He took little sections (about 8 or so total) and twisted the hair. Then he spotted and clipped selected hairs that stuck out. It didn't take long, Rennie must be doing a good job by not using rubberband and ponytail holders.

Then he combed her out fully and trimmed her ends. It's beautiful don't you think?

Then it was my turn. He unrolled me, combed it out then dusted the ends! I got a dusting! He also said I was tailbone length! I didn't think I was but wasn't too sure if I knew where tailbone was exactly (yes I do know my anatomy, but you know how terminology gets sometimes). He took longer than usual on the dusting - Rennie said my hair flipped weird and Bill was trying to sort it out. I think he did a great job - here's a pic of the GM flip on my hair.

And this is my after shot! I'm at 37 inches now! The pic looks shorter than tailbone, I'm going to have to disagree with Bill. I'm not at tailbone - yet.

We loved our 'new' hair! It was past 6pm by then and we were starved. Rennie knew a great little rolled sandwich shop there that was delicious (Rolly Polly I think it's called) We didn't have time to shop so we skipped that part, but that's okay, cause we'll do that at the Austin meet next month! Rennie had a game to attend so I dropped her off to play and have fun. I went to see 'Alex and Emma' - good love story ;) After all that, we headed back home to Austin. It was a looooooong day, but very worthwile.

Some lovely hair quotes

She knows her man, and when you rant and swear,

Can draw you to her with a single hair.

--- John Dryden, Persius.

Give me a look, give me a face,

That makes simplicity a grace;

Robes loosely flowing, hair as free, -

Such sweet neglect more taketh me

Than all the adulteries of art:

They strike mine eyes, but not my heart.

---Ben Jonson, Epicoene Or the Silent Woman.

Those curious locks so aptly twin'd,

Whose every hair a soul doth bind.

---Thomas Carew

Tying her bonnet under her chin,

She tied her raven ringlets in;

But not alone in the silken snare

Did she catch her lovely floating hair,

For, tying her bonnet under her chin,

She tied a young man's heart within.

--- Nora Perry, The Love-knot.

French Twist

I can't do a French Twist for the life of me. I don't know if it is because I have too much hair or that I don't have the skill. I was able to get something like a French Twist by first wrapping my hair around a long hairstick and then laying the hairstick vertically on the back of my head. Then I grasped the hair and took out the hairstick. I tucked it a little more and inserted a Ficcare clip. Not bad for my first tries.

A Plastic Banana Clip

I think this clip is called a banana clip, they used to be very popular back in the 80's. The clip is hinged at the bottom with the teeth on each half of the clip. I put this clip on my hair by bending over, flipping my hair over and placing the open clip on the back of my head where I'd like it to be. Then I stand upright, flipping my hair back and into the combs of the clip. Then bring the top of the clip together and secure. Problem is -- the clip slides out of my hair pretty easily, resulting in a fix up two or three times a day. But I like the look, a sort of long ponytail that looks almost Roman to me.

An Interval PonyTail

I bought a bunch of small brown wraps (it seems we lose a lot of these, I'm always buying some) and thought I'd use the wraps at intervals down the length of my ponytail. I think it looks great, and keeps the hair together well.

Evita Peroni

	With the great success of the Ficcare's, I decided to throw some more money and buy toys from EP. EPs are less expensive than Ficcares. I bought a gold Mimi Stick which is a great stick to have. It really feels good and is the perfect length. I bought a maximus look-alike in dark brushed silver. I also bought a millenium clip in bright gold. Both work well. The EP toys don't have the extremely smooth edges as the Ficcares, but that can be taken care of easily.
I also got a Julia stick in gold dust, which is the center stick in the picture. I'm not as thrilled with this toy; it's made of plastic and the ends are blunt which make it difficult for me to get it into my hair. I think it will work best for loose hair styles rather than the tighter buns that I can do.
	This is the equivalent to a large Ficcare Maximus, Evita Peroni calls it a Patsy Pelican. I had already bought a dark matte silver clip (which looks like pewter to me), so I got a shiny gold one recently.

Ficcares

I bought my first Ficcare (Fi-care-ray) on the Great GM Experience in Feb 2003 (see trip report below.) I had been reading a lot of great experiences from other long hairs, so I decided to give it a try. My first one is a large brushed silver maximus clip. It's very strong, yet all the edges are smooth. I twisted my hair up in the usual fast messy style and slid the maximus in. The top part of the clip lays on top of the hair, and it stays all day! I'm very impressed. They are expensive ($25) but very pretty. The Ficcare catalog has some great colors and styles. I then was given a couple of Ficcare beak-type clips. They are pretty and would probably hold a French Twist pretty well, but I can't do a French twist.