Beauty is skin deep they say but honestly it is so much more! Here on the Beauty DISH we will share tips for great skin, hair, make-up, nails... you name it, we DISH on it!

 

Entries in hair (5)

DON’T LET SUMMER KILL YOUR HAIR

By DISH Contributor Nick Brines, Owner, Azur Salon and Azur West

All of the elements that make for a perfect summer day — saltwater, chlorine, surf-side breezes and the warming rays of the sun — will reek havoc on your tresses.  Follow these tips from our stylists to maintain your gorgeous hair all summer long:

1. Use Hair Moisturizing Products! The heat of the sun along with salt, chlorine or sand will open up your hair cuticle, stripping it of natural oils. (And, use a good conditioner every time you shampoo, too.)

2.  Shield your Hair Color! Just like you wouldn’t go out in the sun without SPF, don’t let your hair be exposed without a UV protection for your hair. Wrap your hair with scarf, use a hat, or try a UV protectant specially formulated for your hair.

3.  Keep your Hair Saturated!  Before you dive into a pool or the sea, drench your hair with clean water first. Your hair will soak that in instead of absorbing damaging chlorine or salt.

4.  Use the Sun to Your Advantage! Try coating your hair with a deep conditioning masque before lying out in the sun. All of the “good for you” ingredients will soak into your hair as the heat helps the products to penetrate deeper into the cortex of the hair fibers than they normally would.

5.  Put Down the Heating Tools!  With all the sun exposure you are getting, minimize your use of dryers and irons. You know your hair won’t hold up in Houston’s humidity anyway, so use a great styling product and let your hair dry naturally. How about a great curl-enhancing spray for a sexy beachy look. Or, some great accessories for a casual summer ‘do.

6.  Humidity-Proof Your Hair! Try a demi-permanent treatment, such as the Brazilian Blowout or a Keratin treatment, to keep your hair from getting frizzy or unmanageable in the humidity or when you sweat. There are also great shampoos, conditioners and styling products that have anti-humectant properties to get you through those swampy days. 

Going on a great beach vacation? Planning on spending a lot of time at the pool? Need help keeping your hair healthy looking as the weather heats up? Come see us at Azur Salon or Azur West! We'll show you the correct products for your hair type, and help you find the perfect color, shape and style to keep you cool and looking fantastic.

Ready for Volume? You can Pump it UP!!

By DISH Contributor Greg Decker, Azur West Creative Director

At Azur West, we are in L-O-V-E with Shu Uemura Art of Hair’s latest product. It’s called “Volume Maker” and it’s the first precision hair powder brush that gives instant root lift, texture and body. It also helps to refresh any blow-dry for long lasting hairstyles. Since it is an invisible powder, it works on all hair colors.

It comes out as a clear powder with no scent. It’s a sleekly packaged product in a very easy-to-use canister. The red and black design is ultra-cool, and it is the perfect size for your purse! The product gives your hair instant volume, just like its name suggests.

The product is also a fantastic dry shampoo; it works wonders on second (and even third!) day hair, absorbing oil on the scalp while making it feel cleaner.

Stop by the salon and let us demonstrate it for you! We know you will want one, and you’ll be the envy of all your friends.

 

 

Ombré Color at it's Best

by Jennifer Stepp, Senior Colorist, Azur West

Flipping through fashion magazines, you can’t help but notice that Ombré is a popular color trend.  Ombré is French, meaning to shade or graduate in tone. Hair stylists use Ombré to describe the hair that begins dark at the scalp and changes tone through the ends of the hair.

As we enter into Spring and move into the warmer Summer months, Ombré can provide you with that “just back from a beach vacation” look.  Much like the perfect hair color achieved by a younger person who spends their days playing in the sun, the hair farther away from the scalp will be lighter than that which is closer to the head. Since this effect is more natural, it also requires much less maintenance than other color techniques.  You can use Ombré to be as strong or as subtle as you wish.

You have probably seen Ombré primarily on blondes, made popular by celebrities such as Sarah Jessica Parker, Kristin Cavallari and Drew Barrymore. In the photo below is an example of a blonde Ombré I performed on our salon's client, AshLee. But for the more daring, Ombré can be used in a variety of colors. Just check out this beautiful Ombré featuring reds and pinks on our client, Michelle.   

Call us at Azur West at 713.400.2987 for a complimentary consultation for any of our popular color services. Whether you want to try Ombré or achieve a palette of rich tones by using the Balayage technique or traditional foils, we can find the perfect color for your hair.

 

Need Volume or Length? Think Extensions!

by Katie Sullivan, Stylist, Azur West

Want a quick, easy and beautiful way to add tons of beautiful volume to your head of hair? Looking to add instant length? Have you considered hair extensions?

 

 

I personally avoided hair extensions for a long time. And probably for the same reason you and many of our salon's clients had. The application process can be very damaging to your existing hair, and the hair quality was chemically over processed or unrealistic. My salon, Azur West, did tons of trials and research over several years and made a conscious decision to not offer this service until they found a solution that matched the luxury and high performance of the other services and products for which our salon is known. I am very happy to report that we have now found the perfect hair extensions!  Ron King Invisi-Tab hair extensions are a new brand on the market, with the very best in hair quality and application system. Don't believe me? Come by my salon and let me show you myself.

Austin, Texas-based hair guru Ron King is a national educator for hair color and cutting with several celebrity clients on his roster. He developed these extensions after sourcing a fantastic collection and resource for 100% European hair. The hair is virgin, unprocessed hair that most closely matches the majority of our clients' hair texture. It is incredibly soft and is heat-friendly for styling tools such as flat irons, blow dryers or curling rods. The hair can be styled, highlighted or colored just like your own hair.

Ron King was able to secure an exclusive arrangement, so this type of hair is hard to come by, and distribution is extremely limited. Because of this, he has hand selected just a few salons across the country to partner that will have access to this hair. I'm very excited that my salon, Azur West, was chosen to be the first (and only!) hair salon in Houston to feature these extensions.  

Other than the hair itself, the application process is revolutionary. Ron King worked with a friend in the medical industry to create the "Invisi-Tab" system, using medical grade adhesive that appears seamless, offers great flexibility and does not require excessive amounts of care. You won't even feel them in your head. Trust me, I wear them myself.

I personally have found clients who are growing their hair out love these extensions to help with that awkward “in between” stage as their hair is growing. Even better, I prefer to use them to add tons of body and volume for a gorgeous head of hair.  Even just adding as few as two to four extensions makes a big difference in the volume of your hair, and makes the cost affordable compared to other solutions on the market. I have even used the extensions to add highlights or lowlights to a client's current hair so they could avoid doing a chemical process to their own "real" hair. There are so many great ways to use these extensions.

Call Azur West at 713.400.2987 for a complimentary hair extensions consultation. I would love to show you how these extensions can make you look like the supermodel you deserve to be!

Posted on Monday, November 26, 2012 at 11:51AM by Registered CommenterDISHhouston in , , , , , , , , , | CommentsPost a Comment

A Healthy Scalp Leads to Healthy Hair

BY Tony Sanchez, Azur West Artistic Director
 

A healthy scalp is key to a beautiful head of hair. Maintaining the right balance of oils ensures the hair root can take hold and remain in place.  Nourishing the scalp through vitamins, exfoliating dead cells to unclog pores and increasing blood flow provides the optimal nutrition and conditions for hair growth. Your scalp is filled with capillaries, and unless the blood is delivering the right nutrients to the scalp (and the skin is not clogged to receive the good stuff), the root of the hair will die. Most of the time, thinning hair and hair loss can be corrected by balancing nutrition and exfoliation.

You need the right nutritional supplements and products designed to keep your scalp its healthiest, to reduce hair loss, increase texture and density of hair, and to avoid thinning hair.  The popular Kérastase line of products has developed specific blends of nutritional supplements designed to ensure your scalp and hair have the nourishment they need to take root, hold strong and grow beautifully. From the Densitive blend of nutrients for men or women experiencing thinning to the Age Premium vitamins created for women’s hair loss due to aging and hormonal changes, there is something perfect for everyone. Paired with the proper shampoo for scalp health, it helps to deliver a healthier head of hair.

Shu Uemura Art of Hair, another popular brand, used their research on healthy scalps to create Essential Drops. A dropper of carefully selected oils to help balance and maintain the health of the scalp while providing inner balance.  From the purifying and invigorating peppermint oil to the combination of lemon and catnip for a calming effect, enriched with ginger stimulierndem, embedded in the non-greasy oil of tamanu nut, rich in vitamin E and essential fatty acids. Plus, combined with the steam of your shower, it turns your daily routine into a luxurious spa-like experience.

At my salon, Azur West, we carry both of those product lines and a variety of nutrients and exfoliation options for every head of hair. Stop by to visit me and my fellow stylists! We would love to help you find the right products to balance your scalp and ensure a perfect environment to grow a healthy (and beautiful!) head of hair.