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Thursday, 26 June 2008 05:01 |
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I remember clearly the day that I had my ultrasound, and the
technician informed my husband and I that we had a baby girl on
her way to join us in this world. That very day, my husband made
clear that our daughter would not get a haircut until she was at
least five years old.
Now, this was one of many many discussions we had that day,
about our future as parents of a little girl. And it was based
on the fact that his sister didn"t get her haircut for the first
five years of her life either. And, he simply has a love of long
hair.
Time flies when you"re having fun, and our little girl turns six
in a few short months. She has decided it"s time to cut her
hair. She takes after her daddy with her personality -
strong-willed and stubborn as an ox, very independent. She will
be the one to set fashion trends in her later years, as she will
look how she wants to, and doesn"t care what anyone else likes
or dislikes. And SHE dislikes her hair. Or, at least, the daily
ritual of sitting still while the tangles are being combed out.
Her hair is beautiful, down to her waist and pretty straight,
light brown or dark blonde (whichever you prefer). She has never
had more than the ends trimmed so far. I thought I was ready to
let her get it cut, but as we browsed through the books at the
hair salon together, I became very sentimental. She is
beautiful, of course, and would look just as nice with any of
the hairstyles she pointed to in the pictures. But both my
husband and I agree - we don"t think she really grasps the idea
that once she gets it cut, she can"t change her mind. She has
asked to get her bangs cut... What if she hates having bangs? It
would take years for her to grow it back. And we truly think she
dislikes the inconvenience, not the hair itself.
So, our dilemma... when is she old enough to make this decision
on her own? If she really insists that she dislikes her hair as
it is, are we being awful parents if we stall or try to bribe
her out of it? Do we have a right to just tell her no, that she
can"t get it cut? Or should I just take her to the salon and
close my eyes, hoping for the best?
And what will be next? Will she come home from first grade next
fall wanting to pierce an eyebrow? A tattoo in second grade? I
know I"m exaggerating a bit here, but we did not expect our
daughter, who loves all that"s girly and pink, to want to get
her hair cut off!
Realistically, I know that this is a small worry. Our children
will continue to blindside us with surprises many times through
the years, and each one will seem like a small catastrophe at
the time. But looking back, many years from now, I"m sure I"ll
be laughing about how we made such a big deal over her first
"real haircut".
I think what makes it hardest for me is the real-life idea that
it represents in my mind. If she cuts her hair, it won"t grow
back tomorrow. And just as she can"t get back her long tresses,
we can"t get back today after we tuck our children into bed.
It"s just another step towards tomorrow, another milestone to
cherish forever.
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Friday, 03 August 2007 01:01 |
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Hair extensions - a few hours in the salon and you have long
hair that looks like a dream. But is there a downside?
Professionally made hair extensions can completely transform
your appearance without affecting the health of your hair, but
if they are done wrongly extensions can seriously damage your
hair. You should know what to expect before going to the salon.
Would hair extensions cost a fortune?
Yes, extensions done by a professional hair extension artist and
made from high quality hair would cost you several hundred
dollars. The price really depends on the quality of the hair
used - Asian hair is cheaper, while European hair costs 2-3
times more. If you want good looking hair - especially blond
hair - you will have to pay for European material.
Online you might find hair extension ‘starter kits’ with
complete instructions, which aren’t difficult to apply. So if
you feel adventurous, you can buy a do-it-yourself kit and save
significantly. If done correctly, this type of hair extension
looks as good as any salon made one. If you decide to follow
this route, though, make sure that you order high quality hair.
What types of hair extension are available?
The two major types of hair extension are individual strands and
wefts.
Individual strands, as the name implies, are attached one piece
at a time to your own hair, usually using glue, or with waxes
and polymers. The problem here is that most of the attachment
methods require coating your natural hair with rather unfriendly
chemicals. Attaching these extensions isn’t a problem, but
removing this type of extension can seriously damage your hair.
Wefts, on the other hand, are braided into your hair, so no
chemicals are needed. A weft looks like a curtain of hair held
together at the top and hanging freely toward the bottom. It is
braided into your hair around the midline of your head - about
ear level. It is safer for your hair but, on the downside, as
you own hair grows wefts have to be rebraided - about once every
two months.
See pictures of different types of hair
extensions
What materials are used for hair extensions?
First, hair for extensions can be either synthetic or real human
hair. Synthetic extensions are cheaper, of course, but you get
what you pay for - they look like artificial strands attached to
your hair. They’re not very pleasant to the touch, either.
Human hair used for extensions gives better results. Human
extension hair differs by origin. The most common are hair from
India and Asian countries. They are great, if you are an Asian
woman yourself. Unfortunately this type of hair has a noticeably
different texture from a Caucasian’s natural hair, so on
Caucasian women they just don’t look right.
European hair is of better quality, usually originating from
Spain and Italy, is of better quality but costs more. The only
problem is that its natural color is usually coal black. To make
a blond extensions out of them, Italian or Spanish hair needs to
be heavily bleached. See comparison of
human hair extensions made from different types of hair.
There are also so-called ‘raw’ or ‘virgin’ hair. This is
European hair coming from Central and Eastern European
countries, like Russia and Poland. The advantage of this hair
that it is naturally light and of a very high quality. However,
this type of hair is difficult to find and costs an arm and a
leg.
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Wednesday, 25 April 2007 08:00 |
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Yes, it"s agony! Which new hairstyle is right? Should you be
going for short hair styles? Long hair styles? Medium hair
styles? Or are celebrity, prom, black or wedding hair styles
more appropriate starting points for you?
One practical tip is to try to work with your hair"s natural
type - curly, straight, wavy, etc. Whatever the occasion (or
humdrum routine), one major consideration in selecting your hair
style is the shape of your face. Your new hairstyle needs to
complement the shape of your face. After all, it"s much easier
to change your hairstyle than to change the shape of your face!
Use your hair style to accentuate your best facial features.
If you"re not sure of your face shape, stand in front of a
mirror and trace around your face"s reflection in the mirror
with something like lipstick. Which is it closest to - heart,
oval, round or square?
The secret to using that knowledge to select your ideal
hairstyle is to emphasize the smaller parts, and de-emphasize
the dominant parts of your face.
For example, if you have a square block on your shoulders, you
may want to soften the outlines and send others" eyes to your
eyes. Curly or wavy hair softens the edges and wispy layers
and/or long bangs swept to the side can radically enhance this
facial shape.
Likewise, a heart-shaped face responds well to a chin length bob
hairstyle, or side-parted hair brushed off the forehead. Both of
these make the face appear longer and in turn emphasize your
eyes.
What usually works best for a round face is a style that lifts
the hair at the crown and leaves hair hanging close to the face.
Oval-shaped faces look great with just about any style, so if
that"s you, count your lucky stars! Start your experiments by
brushing your hair away from your face, and work from there.
Once you"ve narrowed down the hair style type that would best
suit you - or if you"re still not sure - it"s time to explore
the individual possibilities. Magazines - from style to
celebrity - often include vast ranges of hair styles to choose
from, and you can spend hours leafing through them. Your local
library probably has plenty to browse.
Hair
Styles Cuts, for instance, has almost 4000 different hair
styles you can "try on". A year"s membership costs a fraction of
one disastrous haircut, and you can have a ball trying on hair
styles you"d never dream of experimenting with in real life!
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