Showing posts with label hairtools. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hairtools. Show all posts

Wednesday, 2 July 2014

Cute Brushing: Rock & Ruddle Hairbrush

Puppies, Kittens & Great Hair !!!


Ok, I'm not summing up the most googled items by women: I'm just describing my new Rock & Ruddle hairbrush.
(R&R vs the Maison Pearson boar/plastic childrens size):
First, the hairs are similar as the elite Maison Pearson Hairbrush composed of polishing boar bristles with plastic for detangling:
I really like my new brush. It's a good, polishing brush in a cute design other than black, but the same effect as my beloved Maison Pearson. 

Also they retail from € 32,50 whereas the childsize Maison Pearson starts off at €50. Find more of their designs at their site or find them at Skins.nl

Sunday, 5 January 2014

Birkinbagbeauty's Best of 2013: Body

I have featured a lot of body-products, hair-related products and other potionalities in 2013. So here is the list of my favourites [also with some newbies]:

Nails:
I became familiar with Ciate thanks to UK Fashion magazines' GWP. Ciate nailpolishes stand out for: 1. fab coverage even after 1 coat 2. dries fast 3. superb colours 4. longevity. I got the Ciate Advent-set and found some favourites: Pillow Talk is the more-than-just-a-neutral Mauve that suits both warmer & cooler oufits. Cutie Pie for that creamy basic that looks luxe without being too fuzzy.

Perfume
In autumn I regretted not been able to find my yearly fragance-infatuation. Then I remembered testing Caligna in the exquisite Parisian l'Artisan Parfumeur shop during summery 30°C weather and liking it. Testing it this winter in colder weather made me even love it more.
I know, showing a paper sample doesn't show that much enthousiasm...But Caligna only comes for the hefty pricetag of 120, which needs some more sampling before I will resist that #nobuy.

Body Moisturizers:
Darphin Nourishing Satin Oil with Ginger and delightful vanilla fragance has been one of those 'special occasion' luxuries that moisturizes as a dream and fragances you so softly. Yes, I'm getting poetic about this and it needs a better review. 
This Works Really Rich Firming Lotion is one of the few (nicely) fraganced products that work when I'm supersensitive: with the added bonus of putting tons of moisture on the dry parts. I have a partial fondness of jasmine so that makes it wonderful for hydrating the body.

Hair:
Oh dear, I've been completely obsessed by reconstructing my hair (see here). Conclusion beginning '14: I have some hair again...!  It's not perfect yet, but it is a major improvement on the sad 'do I used to have.
I've started Phylia [de M] Connect mid '12 and the result is that my the hairgrowth from that time, an estimated 25/30 cm, is full and thick. It's literary 'gettin' it to your roots': the vitamins and the minerals. I haven't been using it since spring but I think it has been the key to my healthier hair.

Hair Styling:
Healthier hair needs some direction, aka styling. I'm still a sensitive person and not everything on my head agrees with my picky scalp. I consider Rene Furtherer Volumea a gorgeous natural alternative on volumizing my 'do, adding some wonderful gloss as a bonus.

Tools:

Since my new hairstyle my priorities switched from 'smoothing out damaged hairs' into 'extra volumising the fresh hairs': that needed a fabulous blowdryer! Reviews gave such positive marks on both T3 (superexpensive) & Parlux 385 (under €100) that I went for the last: also for the cute array of colours!
This latest version is both lightweighted and has a industrial motor inside (techie story here). In my non-techie terms: I love the various settings, heats-'n-coolnesses, and with the right techniques & styling products I'm able to experiment more with hairstyles.

These have been my 2013 body favourites and I could probably list a ton more, but I'll keep it relatively simple with "the excellent of class '13".

Sunday, 12 May 2013

L'oreal SuperDust: Cool Girl Hair in-a-Can

"Is it a bird('snest), is it a bee('s hive)
No,
It's SuperDust Hair!"


 L'oreal Professional has a funky-looking version of a volumiser powder in Superhero colours and matchingly called SUPERDUST

If you haven't used any volumizer powder in your hair before, it feels like that Angel's hair you put in your Christmas tree:
It basically looks pretty but it feels like a role of superglue that almost hardened but not yet: and feel your fingertips afterwards.

L'oreal is better than an earlier one I have tried. I cannot remember the name anymore because I steered away from these dusting powders for years as the feel of it felt like the equivalent of someone scratching nails on a blackboard, Brrr:
[POW] Superdust
I caved into having this version for vanity reasons:
wanting good volume in my hair, some grip, coolness:
neither a language that I can understand, nor English
 The list of ingredients is rather simple:

When you shake out some powder, it slightly reminds me of something:

So yeh, I finally figured out what that mystery white powder is of Cara Devigne that had lots of rumours going on...It's just a sample of the Superdust to keep her hair coolgirl grungy:
Yeh right...

How I disgress this time? So how did it perform?
  • quick!: shake some in hair-little bit of tease: POOF, volume
  • Either a Cool(er) girl look or that Haughty Madame when paired with a beehive
  • feels ok: not like angel's hair but still grip-py
  • When it slightly collapes: just crunch with your hands and the height returns
  • It's a hassle to wash it out so use deep-cleansing shampoo, good conditioner otherwise you have weird (irregular) hair afterwards.
Availability:  On Lookfantastic.com

Saturday, 4 May 2013

The Pretty Straight: L'Oreal & Rowenta Steampod

*The Steampod has become my official Neat-hair tool* 
Yes girls [and the men that likes it [hair] straight],
I've tested this one and I finally could say:

 "it's pretty straight!" (or straight 'n pretty, like you have it)
It's not that I've haven't tried the others:
IKEA Micke Drawer for hairtools is loaded: beachcurler anyone?
 But the key has been the stream and that little (or rather big) tube of cream that got it straight-'n-sleek.
Funny, I have the GHB at home and could never get it all sorted straight with this one. It took me too long and I felt my hair was frying, even when people suggest it's not that damaging for hair.
Steampod, as its name suggest, is based on straightening the hair with steam. It is not only steam that does the work: it collaborates with a dual heated blade as well. However, the steam makes it much easier to attain a sleeker appearance, goes faster, and you can work with a lower temperature for longer results. 

It basically sounds I'm repeating everything on the box with my own words. But the best thing is that I finally can

However, it's not the most travel-easy:
Steampod comes with a lot of bulk, and their specified hairstyling cream/serum
So, let's take a look up close:
The key element of this tool-of-sleekness is steam: for that they have a special department that you can put your water in. To know if your water is suitable, they will provide a testing-paper to see if your water is soft enough for it. 

Mine is ok, so then goes the next step:
  • shuff the top half of the steaming reservoir
There you go!

And fill it with your filter-approved water.

Don't worry about the water-holder moving around, the knobs (?) adher to almost any normal surface:
adher to any surface like a clingy girlfriend to her boyfriend
When you start up the Steampod, you have to press the <ON> button for a while. I slightly panicked at first for mine not working: it did, but after 10 seconds of pressing.
  • set your desired temperature. Note: You can go lower now than your previous straighteners as the steam will take care of a lot of frizz/curls/etc. 
Try and experiment with temperature
  • For the steam to come out, wait approximately 2 minutes. And afterwards, clutch the plates together to activate the steam (takes 15 seconds)
The arrows show the way the steamer has to go down!
That is necessary for the combination of steam/Steampod cream & heated plates to work!


If you use straighteners oftenly, you know to carefully comb your hair beforehand.
  • the steampod has little combs embedded so if you forgot a tangle, it will show [feel] up
Ok, I haven't figured out all of it myself: there's a booklet included:


There are always some instructions that are quite clear to the normal minded, but they've included it for Dummies, such as "Do not hang straightener on the steamcord"
"Gee, I always hang my straighteners on the cord...that's just what I do, right?"

Did I forget anything...oh, the Steampod cream that you have to use to get even better results 
(it collaborates with the stream)
  • apply the right amount for your hairlenght or volume when hair is towel-dry
I often apply it the night before after washing my hair.
The next morning this cream alone left my hair quite straight and frizzfree.
Nevertheless,
with the steampod I can get even sleeker results
Bonus!

Recap:

PROS:
  • FINALLY, I can optically have straight and frizzfree hair
  • not as damaging as heated plates alone
  • fast: or faster than the regular straighteners
  • effective Steampod cream that works even without Steampodding
  • so, RESULTS are SUCCESFUL

CONS:
  • expensive
  • bulky, not travel friendly
  • have to buy accompaning styling cream (& serum, I don't have yet )
  • not for steam-phobics
Availability:
I bought mine at a Dutch webshop haar-producten.nl 
for the international crowd it's available at lookfantastic.com and other webshops