The time-poor girl's guide to Curly Girl Method hair in Australia.

I know it's been a really long time coming. I've been out of the blogosphere for a couple of years, completely jaded by the whole YouTube debacle, and didn't really have much to share.

But here goes, a complete re-launch. I'm not a late 20's person, like I was when I started all of this, I'm now a late 30's woman, with a whole new appreciation for beauty and what it means to take care of yourself, your hair and your skin.

I've begun by embracing my natural curly hair (Thank the spaghetti monster it's FINALLY fashionable!!!!) and trying the curly girl method.

I'd like to start by stating that the curly hair community is quite nasty. I've seen so many people on the internet get into fights about what -type- of curly hair somebody said they have...which is completely ridiculous and a waste of everyone's time and energy. This is not the place for that. I won't be stating my hair curl type, but I will tell you the ways I have personally worked the curly girl method into my life, and what works for me, as a person who doesn't have 2 hours a day to perfect every curl.

So what even is CGM? Basically, we're cutting out sulphates and silicones that strip and weigh down hair, heat styling which damages hair, and switching to more natural products and techniques for drying and styling hair, as well as washing less often.

DAY 1: WTF?

A warning: The first month or so of CGM isn't pretty. It's a frizz-filled, oily mess of a thing and you're going to want to give up on it because your hair looks worse than ever. This will pass, I promise. You have to get your scalp and hair used to having a more natural environment, so it's going to take some time to work through the process of your scalp skin figuring out how much oil to produce.

I have really fine hair, and due to a chronic illness, there isn't much of it left. I'm very lucky it's curly. I have a low amount of frizz, relatively speaking, and my curl pattern is fairly even. I work 6 days a week, I have 2 kids, and I have a fella I like to look at who lives an hour away from me... so I have, like, no time.

I've tried a few different sets of sulphate, silicone and paraben free products, and have settled on Sukin's range of shampoos and conditioners. Natural Balance is the one I like for my hair, and I'll generally shampoo twice a week and use a small amount of conditioner every morning in the shower to reset my curls, which I generally don't bother tying in silk scarves or putting in a pineapple bun to sleep in.

If you love a good botanical scent, these are definitely going to be right up your alley. I love the way my hair smells, and I love the super-light formulation, which doesn't strip my hair of natural oils, or weigh it down at all.

In terms of styling, I'll generally wash/wet/light condition my hair, comb it out with a wide toothed comb in the shower (I haven't brushed it in 4 months and I love it so much!), then put a tiny bit of conditioner into my hands, rub them together and work it through the ends before plopping my hair into a towel while I clean my teeth, etc. I'll occasionally use a really basic hair gel, but I don't like the way it makes my hair crunch. When I scrunch out the crunch, my hair looks weirdly "fried" because it's so fine. Usually the bit of leave-in conditioner on the ends is all I need for a bit of definition.
Once I'm dressed and ready to go, I'll let my hair out of the towel, give it a quick scrunch and I'm out the door, still wet. Luckily I have the kind of job where it's completely fine if I show up with still-damp hair.

Yes, I'll admit that I'm still colouring my hair, though it's only about once every 6 weeks, and because of my thyroid condition, I'm finding that I just don't hold colour any more. Within a week, I'm pretty much back to my natural level of greys and that "grown-out" look where I used to dye my hair black. It's mostly just the ends now, and they probably need a good chop. I have noticed some growth in the 3 months that I've been doing CGM, though, so that's awesome. I've heat treated my hair once in that 3 months, and straight, it looked so much longer than it used to.

3 months later: amazing!

All in all, I really feel like this curly hair thing is working for me. The maintenance is minimal, I love the way it looks and feels, and I have some relief from that "bald" feeling I was starting to get with my tiny little 12-hairs-slicked-into-a-ponytail look I'd rocked for work for the past few years.

So... here is the result after 3 months of CGM. It looks great, and I finally feel good about my hair!

Sukin haircare is available Nationally at major pharmacies including Chemist Warehouse, Priceline, My Chemist and health food stores. Shampoo/conditioner are $14.95 for 500ml or $24.95 for 1 litre.

This is not a sponsored post, nor was I given the products to review. These are my own experiences and opinions. I value honest communication, and assume that my readers do too :)

REVIEW: LUSH KARMA KOMBA AND DARK ANGELS

Over the past few weeks, you've seen my Lush hauls, and i figured it was about time I did some reviews for you. Here we go, starting with Karma Komba solid shampoo and Dark Angels facial cleanser.

First of all, Karma Komba, which is an awesome orange and lemongrass scented solid shampoo bar. It's great for my fine, wavy, frizzy hair, and it's so, so easy to use! Literally like a bar of soap for your head, you just rub it on, lather up and rinse away! Definitely worth a look, and on my list of favourite things right now.

Also on my list of faves is my Dark Angels cleanser, which is amazing for my combination/oily skin. It looks and feels like playdough, it's black because of the charcoal in it, and it's super simple to use with your hands, or like I do, with my facial cleansing brush from Daiso. Dark Angels is a must-try for all oily-skinned peeps, and don't despair if that's not your skin type. For normal, combination and dry skin, you can check out Angels on Bare Skin, the sister product to Dark Angels.

 For a better look and some more of my thought, check out my video review:

 

Skillz: How to use bobby pins correctly

I know that bobby pins seem like a bit of a no-brainer, but the large majority of people are using them WRONG.

Do you find that your hair styles drop or your bobby pins don't hold in your hair, slipping out and ruining all your hair hard work?

You are probably using them upside-down.

You also probably use your teeth to open them up before sliding them into your hair.

If you use them up the right way, you don't need to do that, because they are designed to slide into the hair without being forced open, compromising the integrity of the "clamp".

Here is a pic, with the correct way to use a bobby pin circled in red.

Mind. Blown.

GIVEAWAY! JOHN FRIEDA PRECISION FOAM HAIR COLOUR! 5 TO WIN!

I really hope you all liked my review of the John Frieda Precision Foam hair colour as much as I enjoyed reviewing it.

I wanted to give you guys a chance to try it out for yourselves, and see just how awesome it is, and as part of my blog birthday celebrations, I have 5 of these awesome colours in brand new shades to give away!

The competition will be open internationally, and run through rafflecopter. All winners will be announced on the blog and on my YouTube channel on the 1st of October, 2013, and NOT BEFORE. There have been several scams running, especially on YouTube, where people are sent messages from fake accounts claiming to be people running giveaways, saying that they have closed it early and you are the winner, they just need your details. Please do not respond to anything that comes from any YouTube account. I will be contacting you via the email address that you use when you enter on rafflecopter, and the email will come from my official address (katysbeautysecrets@gmail.com). Because I am currently on vacation in Texas, the video announcing this giveaway will be delayed until I get home in a few days, so you guys will get the opportunity to enter first! Comments will be disabled on that video, as that's how the scammers are accessing peoples' usernames there.

So, to enter, just click on the rafflecopter widget that corresponds with your choice of colour, and you'll be taken to the entry page! Good luck everyone!

Colour 10A - Extra Light Ash Blonde

Colour 5C - Medium Copper Brown

Colour 4R - Dark Red Brown

Colour 2A - Luminous Blue Black

Colour 5A - Medium Ash Brown

REVIEW: John Frieda Precision Foam Hair Colour.

You know when you find a hair colour that just works for you? You had a colour in mind, and when you bought the at-home colourant it just worked out exactly the way you wanted it to? That happened to me this week. I don't think it was by accident, or good Karma, or Divine Intervention, though. This is just a really kick-ass product that does what it says it will do.

The awesome people at John Frieda sent me some of their new hair colours to try out, and it really is a new and different way to apply hair colour at home. I'll go through the process in a sec, but first I want to talk about what you get inside the box. There's the colour, the developer, a weird nozzle for the bottle, instructions, gloves and after-colour conditioner. Let's just take a second to talk about the gloves. They are actually really awesome gloves, not the crappy, noisy plastic type that never fit on your hands properly. These are like the kind of gloves my hairdresser in the salon wears. I really appreciate the little extras in a product like this, and for the extra little bit of cost in the product, they make life a lot easier.

So you mix the colour with the developer, and it ends up completely liquid, and with what looks like not much product in the bottle. The instructions then say to squeeze the middle of the bottle and dispense product into your hand and here is what happened:

FOAM! I don't know what I was expecting, considering it says FOAM right there on the box, the bottle and the ads on TV. Still, I was thoroughly impressed by the foam. Here's the upside of using the foam on your head; there is a lot more product in the pack. If you have long hair and usually need 2 colour packs, I would try this one. There was too much product for my fine shoulder length hair, and I didn't use about a third of it. Also, the mess... if you're usually a bit messy with your hair colour, this is the product for you.It wipes off of skin (and benchtops) so easily, and it's just generally easier to apply neatly and without making a massive mess of yourself. I've seen girls wandering around, thinking they look great (even beauty bloggers at events have been guilty of this!), with dye stains on their ears and in their hairline, which is NOT a good look. This foam colour seems to reduce that. In fact, I had not one bit of colour on any of my skin, clothes or bathroom when I was done, which is quite a feat.
So now for the important part. The results. What I was going for was "proper ginger", and I chose 6.5C, Lightest copper brown. I think I'll let the "After" picture speak for itself. I'm absolutely delighted with it!
I will definitely be going back to this colour for the forseeable future, because it's exactly the colour I wanted, easy application, great results, and the after-colour conditioner is just beautiful on the hair. I adore this product, and I highly recommend it to everyone who colours their hair at home.

You can find it for yourself at Chemist Warehouse, Priceline, Woolworths, Coles, Target and selected pharmacies.

Fair and full disclosure: John Frieda sent me this product free of charge for my consideration. I was under no obligation to review it. I endeavour to bring you honest reviews of products that I have personally tried and loved. Did I mention that I really love this hair colour?

Tresemme 2 in 1: Trying something different.

My hair is so super fine, wavy, frizzy, flyaway and there isn't really much of it. On the upside, it's really easy to tame and style.

Conditioners seem to weigh my hair down and leave it looking lank, but if I just wash it with shampoo, it lacks the softness that I like.

So, how better to cure my problems, than to use a 2 in 1 conditioning shampoo?

I started using this Tresemme one, after I bought it at the supermarket, and I'm really impressed with it. It hasn't made my head itchy, my hair looks great, really healthy and shiny, and although it doesn't leave it quite as soft as my conditioners do, it's lightweight and leaves my hair tangle free. For those of you wanting an easier alternative to shampoo and conditioner, this is definitely worth a try! Available from all good supermarkets and beauty stores.

A girl's best friend: Umberto Giannini Backcomb in a bottle.

Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while, know that I have thin, fine hair, and that usually that's not an issue. I just try to stay away from oily styling products and use things that boost volume.

This is a product that I use regularly to create fuller looking 'dos.

I bought it at my local Woolworths because it looked good, I liked the packaging, and I liked the promises that it made.

I'm going to start by saying that there is not a product in the world that will give you exactly the effect of teased hair If you expect that from this can, you're expecting way too much.

What it does deliver is volume and hold, so I use it for things like beachy waves, or for up-dos like victory rolls, where I lose the teasing brush and the hairspray and use this for both. French rolls are the same concept, just on the back of the head, and this works equally well when I want a really sleek, chic style too.It helps to hold my side-swept bangs in the style, as well as giving me a little bit of volume underneath the sleek hair on top. I have an extraordinarily small head compared to the rest of me, and it's hard to avoid looking like a pea head when I have my hair tied up tight or pinned up.

All in all, I really love this product. It's inexpensive, smells great, and is really versatile. Try it out!

Ban bad hair days with Polished London Dry Shampoo!

This morning, I received a gift in the mail from Polished London, and when I opened it up and had a try of what was inside, I couldn't wait to share it with you guys!

Until very recently, when I tried a different product from a sample box, I was a bit wary of dry shampoos, and I really think it's because I had no idea how to use it properly. I found that the ones I had tried didn't have a lot of pressure behind the product when you spray it out, which seems to be what sets this one (and a couple of others I've tried) apart from the rest.

The one I got was the coconut scented one, Cornwall Coconut. They also have a floral scented one called Bristol Bloom, and both of these names have meaning for me, because I'm from south-west England, very close to Bristol, and we used to holiday in Cornwall when I was little. Regardless of that, I'm not reviewing the name of the product, so I'll move on to what you guys actually want to know.

First of all, I'll talk about the scented one that I tried out, then I'll tell you about a couple of other cool varieties they have,

After I had sprayed the dry shampoo in

The coconut scent is really nice. It's not overpowering, just as if I'd actually washed my hair with a coconut scented shampoo. I just followed the directions, sprayed it into my roots, massaged it around a bit, then brushed it out. I haven't washed my hair since yesterday morning, so it was perfect timing for the package to arrive. I'm going to just show you the before and after and let the results speak for themselves...

After I brushed it out.

My hair is really fine, so I need to keep on top of washing it, because it only takes a tiny bit of excess oil to really make my hair look terrible, lank and gross.
This dry shampoo feels like second day hair, which is awesome to style, without the excess oil, and with a boost of volume to boot. It's absolutely perfect for my hair.

So... on to the other things in this range. I know some of you love dry shampoo, and I also know that you absolutely hate the white powder.
Well, now you have options. Polished London also had the amazing forethought to add "Blighty Brunette", and "Bonny Blonde" to the dry shampoo range. Coloured powders that blend into your hair colour!

Now, for the very best part. They're $4.99 a can! Available from pharmacies nationally, there's a stockist near you! Go try it, the only trouble you'll have is deciding which one to try first!

Big Hair Friday! (the wonder of hair extensions)

So I'm going to visit with my partner, who is currently living in Texas, at the end of August. I bought a spiffy new dress and sent him a picture of it, so that he could "ooh" and "ahh" about it, because I hardly ever buy nice things for myself and I wanted to show off.

When I uttered the words "All it needs is some big Texas hair!", he panicked and had visions of Dolly Parton and Dallas in the 80's, so I needed to show him what I meant by the "2013 version" of big Texas hair.

First, here's a picture of me, in the dress, with my natural hair curled. I have no makeup on, which you'll have to forgive, because this post is all about the hair!
It's nice and all, but for a really special occasion (like an anniversary dinner when you haven't seen each other in forever!), it lacks that little extra oomph that a really snazzy dress requires. This is a wear-your-prettiest-knickers kind of date, and a "wow" kind of dress. It's got to be special hair to go with it.




Cue my awesome Remy 100% human hair clip-in extensions, which I've done everything from straightening to curling to crimping and blowdrying with, and they are still perfect.

I have 2 full-head sets of 20" extensions in dark brown (the closest to my shade), and here I have curled them softly with my little Remington straightener to give some body and movement to them.

I think they add a lot of sex appeal, and a more feminine look, just perfect for a date with the fella. I think when we go out to a fancy restaurant, I might go all out and put some makeup on too!

What do you think? Short and natural, or big, long and full of volume?

Monday How-to: Hair Diamonds

Shine bright like a diamond! I have always loved having sparkly things to put in my hair. I think it comes from so many years on the stage, under those awesome lights, my sparkly hair accessories catching the light and giving me a sparkly glow.

So when the amazing people at hair chalk sent me some of their iron-in hair diamonds to try, I was so stoked!

For my video tutorial, look here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL9vVbW4AUM&feature=plcp

Here's how they work:

The diamonds come on a sheet, which you can cut to get the amount of diamonds you want in the shape you want. You can place them one at a time, as pictured above, or cut a strip or shape for your hair.

Leave them attached to the clear plastic and place them where you want them. They'll stick to where you put them, so do it carefully.

To set the glue, clamp the diamond for a few seconds with your hot iron (straightener). Please note that for strips or shapes, you need to clamp each diamond individually, don't run the straightener down the line of diamonds. Once you've clamped them, remove the plastic sheet.

And that is it! They will last up to a week, unless you want to remove them, which you can do using alcohol (I used hand sanitizer and they came out really easily).

Available from www.hairchalk.com.au go grab some for yourself! They are really affordable and the shipping is fast and free! Tell them Katy sent you!

This product was provided to me by the amazing people at hair chalk. As always, my opinions are my own. Images from www.hairchalk.com.au

New craze: Hair chalk!

I admit that I'm a total trend follower when something catches my eye, and this week, a friend of mine (thanks, Alice!) alerted me to the existence of this awesome new hair-colour-changing trend.

This morning in the mail was my brand new pack of 12 chalk sticks from hairchalk.com.au, and I set to work colouring in every bit of hair I could find...some of which did not belong to me... be Max enjoyed having "rock and roll hair" for the day.

I have an important event on this coming weekend (some of you might see me with my chalked hair if you venture out to the big Expo that's on this weekend in Melbourne) which allows me to dress up a bit and go wild with my hair, so I've already coloured in my clip-in hair extensions with several different colours and they look GREAT!

All in all, they are a little bit messy to use (I hear the chalk "bugs" they sell are less messy) but definitely worth the effort. Even if you get it all over the bathroom, your face, your clothes or the carpet, it just rinses right out.

Available from www.hairchalk.com.au (I love promoting little aussie companies, and my order was so personally presented, with my name written on the intro letter inside the package and everything), it's well worth the $15.95 and with FREE SHIPPING, you can't go wrong! Check it out!

Get hair like Miranda Kerr!

Ok... so maybe you have to be a bit genetically blessed to have hair like Miranda Kerr's, but she is the face of this new brand of hair care products, Clear.

I originally bought a $1 sample of the shampoo to try it out, and it lasted me a whole week! Because I've got baby-fine hair, I have to be very selective about the kinds of products I use, otherwise my hair can be left looking dull and lank, weighed down by products that are supposed to be making it lovely, soft and shiny.

Because I've been very mean to my hair over the years, I usually go for a product that is nourishing and repairs damage caused by colour and heat, so in this range, I chose the Total Nourishing Care shampoo and conditioner, as well as the treatment for coloured and damaged hair. I'm loving it. Not only is my hair lovely and clean, shiny and healthy looking, it's also silky soft and full of life!

Available at Woolworths, Coles, Priceline, IGA and BigW for under $10 each, it's definitely worth picking up some Clear products to try out.

Trendsday: the sock bun.

I am seeing "the sock bun" everywhere! Even JLo wore one at the Oscars this year!

My hair is still very short (just sitting on my shoulders now), so I'm going to slip in some extensions to try this with. My apologies for any visible clips or hair-colour-not-matching type faux pas.

So what you need to make a sock bun is:
A pair of scissors
A sock that you really don't want any more (a clean one!!!!)
Bobby pins
Hairspray
A hair elastic
A little bit of patience

Cut the toe end off the sock, and throw it away. Then roll the sock tightly into a bagel-type shape.
Next, secure your hair into a high ponytail with the hair elastic, making sure to smooth out the hair on the top of your head (you can tease, or use some Umberto Giannini Backcomb in a bottle if you want a little more volume on top).
Put the end of your ponytail through the middle of your sock-bagel, and start to roll it down the length of your hair, spreading the ponytail out and covering the sock-bagel as you roll it. (If you're having trouble with these instructions, I'll pop a youtube tutorial up in the next few days. Let me know if you want me to do it.)
Once you get the sock-bagel all rolled up inside the hair and sitting close to your head, just secure it in place with a few bobby pins and give it a spray with your favourite hairspray. I've used Fudge Urban Vanilla Raspberry hairspray.

Et Voila! That's it! The sock bun! Give it a try, tell me how you go! Mine turned out a bit messy, but with practise, it becomes easier to do it neatly. FYI, this was the first time I'd tried this.

Monday How-To: loose, flowing curls.....with a straightening tool.

I bought a new straightener on the weekend, and realized I hadn't shown you guys any of my hardware, or how to use it, so I'll show you over the next few weeks how to use different pieces of equipment or how to achieve certain looks using your straightener, curling wand, hair dryer, etc.

First up, how to create soft, loose curls with your straightening tool.

Begin with your straightener nice and hot, and all the tangles combed out of your hair.

Take your hair and pin up the top 2/3 of it (you might want to do 3/4 if your hair is thick). Start work at the bottom of your hair, taking small sections, approximately an inch wide.

Clamp the section in your straightener as if you were going to straighten it, then turn the whole straightener over, so that the hair is wrapped around it. I always flip mine up, but the same result can be achieved by flipping it under, the curl just runs in the opposite direction. Pull the straightener through your hair, keeping it's "flipped up" position all the way down the hair section, and voila! A lovely little curl!

Continue all through the lower section, then let down another 1/3 of your hair and style that in the same way. Pay attention to the back of your hair, you want to look just as good from the back as you do from the front!

Work through the sections and curl all of your hair, then all that's left to do is just to add some argan oil to your fingertips and run your fingers through the curls.. Done!


Let me know what hardware/styling how-to you want to see next!

Divine hair with Pure.

 I've been asked a lot which brand of shampoo and conditioner I use. I'll admit to being a bit of a switcher when it comes to hair care products, because I like to try out lots of different things. In the past I've used ALL the supermarket brands, as well as some of the salon-only brands that are available.

Hello, dear readers! (and my first review: Fudge hairspray)

Hello, beauty blog readers!

First, a little about myself. Some of you may recognize my writing style and photography technique from another blog. I tossed up whether to launch this blog after a messy breakup left me blog-less, and decided that the way to keep myself busy, and to cement my own place in this wide beauty blogging world, was to take the bull by the horns, create a blog that is all my own, and use it to put out the kind of content I want to put out.

Hopefully, you'll all love it and come back for more! My aim is to blog on Mondays and Thursdays every week, with special weekend editions occasionally.

I'm very busy at the moment preparing all of the elements of this blog, the email, the youtube channel, and getting business cards, etc all happening, so for this first post I'll give you a quick review of this great little product I've been using for a couple of weeks now, with great success.

I have really stupidly fine hair. Any amount of product seems to weigh it down and make it look greasy or limp. So when I use hairspray, I've always had to be careful how much I used, unless I wanted the helmet-head look for Navy Cadets way back in the day.

Cue Fudge Urban Iced Raspberry and Vanilla hair spray. It smells amazing, for starters. Generally hairspray has a weird chemical smell that reminds me of my nanna, but this one is awesome. The hold is great, too. On the weekend, I wore my hair pinned up in a bridesmaid-y kind of up-do and it held tight all night without looking glued-on. I've also used it through loose curls, just to help them hold their shape and it does wonders for that, too.

I bought mine at Woolworths, so you really don't have to go too far out of your way to get your hands on it. It's most definitely worth a try. I'll be replacing mine when it runs out!