The Big Chop

At this point in time it’s no secret, I chopped off all my hair!  It happened last Wednesday at Adelaide Salon here in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.  It’s not that often I make a drastic hair length change like this, so to commemorate the event, photographer Joel Stigliano tagged along to document it.

My long time stylist Casey (who also did my dip-dye) did the honors.  I wanted to donate the hair to Locks of Love, and I had so much hair it resulted in two ponytails we chopped off.  All in all I think it was about 10 inches we took off.

The style I wanted was an inverted bob, which is longer in the front than it is in the back.  Casey took her time really perfecting the shape and when it was done, it was perfect!  Very flattering to my jaw line.

Also, for anyone wondering, the best way to cut curly hair is when it’s dry so you can see the natural curl pattern.  That’s why Casey’s cutting my hair prior to us washing it.

During my entire appointment, we had this adorable guy watching us.  Can you believe he’s just a puppy?!  Probably the most well-behaved puppy I’ve ever encountered.

Once my bob was pretty well-shaped, it was then time for color.  I decided I wanted to dye my hair back to my natural brunette.  While I loved the red, it was too high maintenance for me.  Adelaide Salon carries Organic Color Systems which is a vegan line, so I was all set!

After the dye set it was then time to wash, set and dry the curls.

I often get a lot of questions from readers on how I style my hair, so stay tuned next week as Casey walks us through a curly hair styling tutorial!

PHOTOGRAPHY  BY // Joel Stigliano

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Pinning / Curly Bobs

It seems just about every single year once it gets nice out, I have this urge to chop off all of my hair. By the end of winter, I’m totally over having to blow-dry my hair for close to 30 minutes because I have so much of it. While I love my current really long length, it’s now becoming impracticable for me to keep up with. I also think it’s kind of boring. I usually like a little edge to my haircuts and the current one just isn’t doing it for me anymore. Walking the streets of NYC there are tons of girls with long loose curls like mine.

When I did my last big chop back in 2009, the shorter curls were ridiculously easy for me to manage. It was literally wash and go. I’d like to get back to that for this summer considering how active I’ve been lately.

Last year at this time I was totally macking on Keri Hilson’s bob below, but as of recent I also love the soft, inverted bob that Marion Cotillard wears.  So I’m kind of undecided what version I want to do, or how short I want to go yet (at or below the chin).  I also haven’t decided yet if I want to stay a red head, dye it back to my natural brunette, or even maybe an ombre brunette.  All I know is I want all my hair gone and for my hair routine to only take 10 minutes again.

Here’s some of my favorite inspiration images I’ve been pinning lately to try to come up with some ideas of what to do.  My next hair appointment is in less than two weeks, so I better hurry up and make up my mind!

So what do you think?  Should I cut it all off?  Dye it?  Both?  I’d love to hear your suggestions!

Vegan Versions / Veg Friendly Hair Dye

This post originally appeared last week on my column Vegan Vogue I write for I Eat Grass. If you haven’t stopped by I Eat Grass yet, be sure to do so!

The results of my recent dip dye

I have this thing where around every three months I feel compelled to change my hair in some manner. Usually it’s as simple as getting bangs, or growing the bangs out and styling them differently. Other times it’s chopping it all off into a drastically different style.

This time around, I was really happy with my overall hair cut and length, but was still wanting a change. For years I’ve wanted to dip dye my ends, so I figured now was as good a time as ever. Hair dye is a great way to freshen up your look and make people take notice.  So I made an appointment with my long time stylist and rolled with it!
Luckily my local salon’s color was vegan friendly.  If you are in the market for a new hair color, check out these salon and at home hair color brands that are all cruelty-free.

Organics Color Systems

Organic Color Systems is the brand used to do my dip dye (see photo above), which is only available in salons.  It’s 100% ammonia free, and also certified vegan and cruelty free by PETA.  Organic Color Systems also boasts their products cover 100% of greys and their ingredients used are organic.

When going to the salon to get my dip dye done, I was expecting my stylist to have to bleach my hair, and then color over the bleached areas since my hair is so dark.  To my surprise, the Organic Color Systems color worked straight on my dark hair and still produced intense results.  To find a salon that carries Organics Color Systems near you, click here.

Aloxxi

Aloxxi is another salon only hair dye brand who I had the pleasure of attending an event for during New York Fashion week this past September.  They’re listed on PETA’s list of companies that do not test on animals, and all their products boast the bunny logo.

Aloxxi generously gifted me with their suite of color safe, hair styling products which I’ve been using since I had my color done and they work very well.  In particular their color rich treatment masque makes my curls super soft and intensely conditions in only 3 minutes.

To find a salon that uses Aloxxi color by you, you can click here.

Manic Panic

If mainstream hair color isn’t your thing, try at home color with Manic Panic.  Manic Panic has been known for their crazy, bright, intense colors since the 1970’s, and  guarantees all their products are vegan.  Their colors are also semi-permanent, which makes it really easy to try a new look without being stressed about it being a long-term commitment.

Herbatint

Looking for a veg- friendly alternative to your standard “box” color, check out Herbatint.  Herbatint offers ammonia and paraben free permanent hair color products that are easy to apply at home.  They’re also certified vegan and cruelty-free.

Do you like to change-up your hair color and use a brand I didn’t mention here?  Please share what dye you use in the comments!

Dip Dye Diva

Here’s the result of my hair appointment on Friday. I decided to go with the dip-dye in red. I’m honestly kind of shocked I actually went as bright as I did, and love it! I can’t believe I waited this long to finally do it.

Now I’m all excited to clean out my closet and do some shopping for some new clothes to compliment the new ‘do.

Stay tuned tomorrow for some more photos from this shoot.

Edit: For anyone interested, the dye used for my hair was Organic Color Systems and is 100% vegan and cruelty free.  Believe it or not, the color is that bright without bleaching.  It’s only available in salons.  I highly recommend their brand, and no I’m not being paid to say that.  I had my color done by my long time stylist Casey, at Adelaide Salon in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Pinning \ Hair Change Ideas

Happy Friday! This past week has been another whirlwind one for me. I had a big year and a half long project finish up at work that launched Tuesday, and I had to put in extra hours to work out all the kinks. Yuck.  I also started Crossfit, as well as celebrated my 4th wedding anniversary with Jim.  I’m looking forward to the weekend and getting to kick back a bit and slow down.

I have a haircut appointment tonight, so I’ve been pinning some ideas on how to change it up. I know I’m keeping it long, but love the idea of adding even more curly layers, and maybe even dip-dying the ends (which I’ve been thinking about doing forever). Whatever I decide, it’ll be a surprise!

Are you on Pinterest? I’m an addict. Check out my pins and follow me here.

Time for a Change

I want this haircut!  Source: shorthairstylescuts.com

Man, I’ve been BUSY lately.  Though work has finally calmed down for me a bit, my weekends have been filled with social obligations and lots of necessary chores around the house.  What little free time I’ve had has been spent either with Jim or at the gym.

Been so crunched for time lately, one thing that’s been really annoying me is my hair.  While I love my curls, at this point in time they’ve gotten so long my hair takes absolutely forever to dry.  I’m spending close to 30 minutes drying it again, which I hate.  Plus my curls aren’t keeping as frizz free as they used to when they were shorter.  I’m also kind of over my bangs, which is good timing being blunt cut bangs over the summer in NYC spells disaster so now’s a good time as any to start growing them out again.

Krystal from This Time Tomorrow

Kelly the Glamourai

Lately I’ve been loving the soft, curly bobs on a lot of the style bloggers I follow.  Especially Krystal’s new haircut from This Time Tomorrow as well as Kelly the Glamorai‘s bob.  Seeing these styles made me want to start doing some internet searching for inspiration, and I came across Keri Hilson’s crazy cool curly bob that when styled naturally is super edgy, but could also be blown out for a slightly softer look.  I’m loving the versatility of it.

So I think I’ve pretty much made up my mind that come April (which is my next haircut appointment) my hair will be chopped off.  Now it’s just finalizing the style.  While I’m pretty much sold on the Hilson style, I’m still open for suggestions so send them my way!  I’m also debating maybe coloring my hair as well.  I’m super excited to make this change because in April I’m finally going on a much-needed vacation to Mexico and it’ll be fun to rock a new look while there.

Checking In

Hola! Just checking in quick. It’s been a busy week or so for me with work and whatevs. So here’s the update.

• I just got back from a business trip to Denver.  It was a really productive trip, but I’m glad to be back.  Denver’s beautiful but I always get horrible altitude sickness while there as well as homesick for NYC.  I have to go back again in December for another meeting, as well as to Vegas in January for CES so it looks like I’m back on the road a bit again the next few months.
• I don’t think I mentioned it, but I changed my hair again.  I love it!  I went ahead and got bangs again and have been wearing my hair more wavy than curly.  I really love the change.  Here I am with the new hair and a pair of non-prescription nerdy hipster glasses I picked up while shopping recently just for kicks.

• I was totes pissed my business trip required me to travel on Halloween. The only thing that made me more pissed off was this past Saturday (the unofficial Halloween party day) it snowed in NYC! We never get snow this early! I was so excited for Halloween this year and even got my costume early, which I never do. At least I opted to create my own costume from regular clothing this year so I can re-wear all the stuff, plus I have the costume issue solved for next year.

How’s everyone else’s week been going?  Any big plans for the weekend?  Besides sleeping and probably  having to work, I’m planning on attending the Intermix Fur Protest on Saturday, so if you’re going to be there be sure to say hi!

Dip Dye

I’ve been wanting to refresh my hairstyle lately every time I get my hair cut, which is usually every three months or so. I have a haircut appointment coming up the end of August, and have been racking my brain on how to change things up a bit. I really like my current length and overall cut, so I’m thinking I’ll go with a color change.

I love the ombré I had done for this summer, though I don’t think it’s fall/winter appropriate. This past weekend I came across some images of dip dying on Pintrest and love it! Since high school I’ve always wanted to dye my hair bright red ala Rhianna, but never had the guts to do it.  So instead I’m seriously debating doing some bright red dip dye to my already ombréd ends.  Best part is it’s semi-permanent so even if I hate it, it will only last a few weeks anyway.

What are your thoughts on dip dye? Do you love it or hate it?