Holiday Special Edition of Saturday Shop Talk with Ms.Fran

WOW! What a busy weekend I have had! I worked this Saturday to get all my clients looking right for their weekend festivities! Then yesterday I went to a barbecue! So with the busy weekend ahead of me, I asked my fabulous co-worker Fran to help me give this blog a little extra meat!

Fran was one of the educators at the school when I was a student and although I personally never had her, boy do I look up to her! She has such an incredible understanding of this business and I value her opinion on styles, color and cuts more than I think she knows. When I was a student everyone was always buzzing about what Ms. Fran had planned, fun and exciting activities and no matter what always a smile and positive reinforcement. I'll never forget when I was a student, she paid me a compliment that really helped give me the confidence I needed to be a stylist. I had just finished a vintage formal design on a live model for a competition we were having at the school and she came up to me and tapped me on the shoulder and said "we need to stay in touch with you, you have to come back, see this, this is amazing." I think about that so often now that I am a teacher, how much our words can mean to these up and coming stylists.

Ms. Fran with her contagious smile!

So lets get to it, here's what we are chatting about this week:

1.    Paulie D- Have you seen his new hair cut? IS this actually news? I kinda feel like he cut his hair so that he could get his name out there again. I saw him once in Atlantic City. He was "DJing" and to be quite honest I DJ better with my car radio.   

• FRAN SAYS: First off, I'm embarrassed to say I had to look up who Paulie D is! He isn't my type, but it wasn't the haircut I noticed, but the body did catch my eye! The man could be bald as far I'm concerned!

2.    Plans for the summer?- I hate vacationing in the summer, most places are overcrowded and crawling with little ones, although they are cute, I prefer to vacation when they are seated in classrooms. I am headed to Disney and on a Disney Cruise this September and I can't wait! Other than that I plan on a few weekend trips here and there starting next month with a quick trip to Gettysburg.

• FRAN SAYS: Summer getaways will be pretty local as far as I'm concerned with the cost of gas and food being so high. I'm thinking of just hitting the Jersey Shore. They are Sandy strong and strong after Sandy!  Before you go, stock up on food and fill up on gas, but don't forget the liquor store! Word is, their thinking about changing the amount of legal alcohol consumption for drinking and driving. So, I don't see many people wanting to spend a lot of money dining out if the limit becomes one drink!

3.  Yard Sales- It seems to me that as soon as the weather warms up people are selling their unwanted belongings on their lawns. I absolutely love them!  Working Saturdays in the salon would always make it so hard to get them but now that I am off most Saturdays I am stopping the car every time I see them and adding to my pile of junk at home.

• FRAN SAYS -Yard sales, I love them! Someone elses junk is my treasure! Better yet I've trashed picked treasures and they were free!                 

4.) BBQ go to foods: Did you ever notice that a barbecue is just not a barbecue without potato salad, pasta salad and deviled eggs? I can't help but eat two or three deviled eggs, they're my absolute go to at a summer time party. My cousin Patty always made the most delicious ones and I think of her each time I grab for one and probably always will.

• FRAN SAYS: Whether it's potato or pasta salad, I enjoy them both unfortunately. But don't be making it with miracle whip!(YUCK!)  Real mayonnaise girl over here...why would anyone use miracle whip???- Fran, I couldn't agree more!

5.)   Stiletto nails- I have to admit when these things started popping up I couldn't stand them. There was just something that looked so fake to me. Celebrities have jumped on board with this and now they're everywhere. Like most trends do, this grew on me. I prefer them to be on the rounder side though not filed into a sharp point. What do you think?

• FRAN SAYS- I think its amazing how trends decide what people will or will not be caught dead wearing. However, the pointy nail like all trends was in the past and is making a comeback! I'm personally always 3-5 years behind the trend so with that said, I will probably be getting a little point to my nails within the next few years!

6.)   Which Sex and the City character are you? - I have been re-watching Sex and the City lately. It is one of my all time favorite shows. It got me thinking, do you have a group of gal pals? Which character do you relate to most? Personally, if you asked my friends they'd probably say Samantha but less promiscuous. I am loyal and will always come through in the end. I give honest opinions and tell it how it is. I am also always good for an inappropriate comment or two. Which ever character you are I am sure you know how important you are to your group, the great thing with friends is we all bring out something special in each other.

• FRAN SAYS: I always compare the salon I work in to Steel Magnolias. I love people of all types, having the differences is what makes everything so fun! I can't say I am the prettiest or even the smartest. sometimes one of the funniest but most importantly I would like to be known as the one who brought everyone together.

Well that's all I have for you today. I hope you had an amazing weekend. Remember Memorial Day is about more than BBQing. It is about remembering the service men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice so we can all live free and safe!

  Fran thank you so much for sharing your thoughts with us! Your a gem!

Thanks for reading and Stay Beautiful,

Scissorhands Jill

Check back in on Wednesday for this weeks Hump Day Hair Chat: How to beat the summer frizz!

Hump Day Hair Chat: Highlights

Hello everyone, I am coming off of 6 hrs teaching cosmetology at the school and 4 hrs of doing cosmetology tonight in the salon and believe it or not I still am excited to talk about it with all of you on this weeks edition of Hump Day Hair Chat. (Do I love this business or what?)

Highlights: It's that question we ask ourselves the minute the weather starts to warm up, the sun stays up longer, the flowers start to bloom and the flip flops get busted out. Why is that? It's so interesting to me that this trend seems to never go out of style; I remember begging my Mom for Sun In.

If you are considering lightening up, here's a few things to keep in mind. 

• If you are currently dark, remember the process of lightening the hair is a process. It may not be as light as you want the first time. Its better to gradually go lighter than to damage the hair by going to light to quick. Frizzy fried hair just ain't cute. So lighten up slow and go with  a  caramel tone first you, can always go lighter again mid-summer.              
• One of my favorite looks this season is face framing highlights- I am currently sporting this look. Highlighting just around the face is a fairly easy change and brightens you up in all the right spots. The contrast of the lighter hair against sun kissed skin is amazing. When fall comes and you want to go back to a darker color its a smooth transition to get back to your pre-summer look.

• A variation of this is the Ombre. In my opinion Ombre is starting to phase out a little but when done correctly  it is super hot. Be sure that your stylist knows what you are looking for be clear on how you want your end result to look. Ombre should start at about the mid-strand and should have a soft faded effect.

TO DO!! 

On a side note, Khloe is my favorite Kardashian

NOT TO DO!!(YIKES)

• There's always the platinum blonde highlight. Tough to get,it tends to take a while to transition from dark to light without damaging the hair. Super stunning,but the maintenance is unreal roots pop up in a blink. Be prepared for regular salon appointments to keep up with the root. If you go this direction, make sure you pick up a bottle of Paul Mitchell Platinum Blonde ($10). This shampoo is a vibrant purple and helps to tone out yellowing to keep that blonde platinum. Often times the water coming out of your shower head has certain minerals that can cause the blonde to become dingy and the purple shampoo washes that right out! 

HOT!!!

Listen whatever you decide, embrace it and rock it! Hair is the best accessory, try something new this summer! Don't get stuck into a ritual of all dark in the winter; highlights in the summer year after year. Change it up and try a new highlighting technique, tell your stylist your open to a little something different, we are creative people and love when the client lets us showoff and do something fun!

Thanks for reading and Stay Beautiful,

Scissor Hands Jill

Check back Saturday for Saturday Shop Talk with myself and my first ever guest blogger, fellow stylist and educator the funny and fabulous Ms. Fran!

Sunday Steals.

So much to talk about today! Last night I went to ULTA to pick up a few goodies that were in the circular and I made the mistake of bringing my main squeeze Frankenstein. He was very embarrassing and what made it worse was other shoppers were laughing so that only fueled the fire.     I am currently plotting revenge for the next time he drags me his ULTA: Home Depot.

From my haul last night were several amazing steals! To start off with lets talk brows! It seems to me that women spend more time tending to the hair they do not want on their face then the hair that belongs there. Brow grooming doesn't just stop at waxing, they require daily maintenance. I have been recently using the Anastasia Brow Kit ($36). Anastasia knows brows, she is the brow stylist to so many of Hollywood's leading ladies.

This kit includes several must haves:

• Brow powder duo-a light color to highlight and a darker color to shade in the brow. The duos come in 3 shades so you can match them to your natural brow color.
• Mini duo brush- this is two sided a brush on one end and a comb on the other this is ideal for applying powder.
• Clear Brow Gel- this is amazing, it applies like mascara and it keeps your brows in place and combs them in the right directions.
  

I also suggest picking up Brow Fix ($21). This is awesome it is a wax pencil for your eyebrows this is perfect for training your brows to grow in a certain direction or to control unruly brow growth. This is a bit pricey but worth the money because it will last you a long time since you use a small amount daily.

Next up, NYX Cosmetics are all buy one get one 50% off. I am a huge fan of NYX. They are inexpensive but great quality. I picked up a few staples in my makeup trunk and a few new items that will be so fun to wear! 

•  NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil ($4.49)-  If I was Oprah, these pencils would be on my favorite things episode," you get a pencil, you get a pencil, you get a pencil"(you get the idea).  My go to color is #604- Milk. It is a creamy white and goes on so smooth. The tips do not feel like pencil it is more like a cream based eye shadow in pencil form. The Milk is perfect for a highlighter or substitute it in as a primer for shadows. I added 605-Strawberry Milk, a soft shimmery pink, #621A- Pure Gold, a warm orangey gold and #630-Cashmere, a softer paler gold.
  
• NYX Liquid Crystal Liner($4.49)- I don't think a woman can ever have to much sparkle! These liners are just perfect a thin brush applicator makes sure that you do not over do it when applying. I grabbed it in Crystal Aqua, Crystal Pink and Crystal Gun Metal. They have a dramatic sparkle and really make your eyes light up! 
  

• NYX Retractable Eye Liner($4.49)- I have this liner in black and white but last night I grabbed it in Pink. I won't wear pink every day but I thought it might be fun for the under eye if I am wearing pink shadow. 
  

I then moved from makeup to hair and picked up Not Your Mother's Way to Grow Shampoo and Conditioner ($5.99). These are on sale now for $4.99 and are advertised in the circular.I have not tried this brand before but haven't heard anything bad about them. This shampoo and conditioner are sulfate free so they are not damaging on the hair and they claim to help stimulate hair growth. I'll let you know about that. Plus they smell amazing! I figured for $5 they are worth a shot.

I hope all of you know that there is a 20% off coupon running until June 1st. This coupon is good towards one item and I chose to use it on Conair More Big Curls Volumizer Hairsetter ($25). I am curious how many of you use hot rollers?  I love them and I especially love that this set is only the large diameter rollers. These help to give you that voluminous soft wave look that is so hard to achieve on your own when blow drying  By using my coupon I saved $5.20 making these guys a total Steal! Now if you were to order these online, this Thursday they will be on special for $17.99. I just am impatient and didn't want to have to wait!

That concludes my ULTA break down for this week. But it doesn't conclude todays blog. I want to share with all of you a website that I just can't get enough of. 

BH COSMETICS- This site has all those great palettes you always see the pros using, the prices are so low that you can not believe how much you are getting for the amount you are spending!

This week I received the 12pc Berry brush set ($18.00). If you are looking for pro brushes these are amazing. Soft and durable plus they have a pink handle!

 BH Party Girl Palette ($12.00) this palette includes 40 vibrant eye shadows  Perfectly pigmented and a variety of day and night tones. A perfect combination of shimmery and matte shadows that will suit your every need!

 I also grabbed the Contour and Blush Palette ($18.00). This is great for highlighting and defining your bone structure. Using lighter tones in areas you want to make pop out and darker tones to minimize, like under the chin or along the jawline. 

 Lastly, I grabbed 7 of there Loose Glitters. These are so fun to wear. I like to wear them as eye shadow. They have to have something to stick to though, so I use a home made adhesive- sugar and water. Dab your brush into the sugar water and then dab your brush in your glitter. You can apply as eye liner or shadow! The best part about these goodies is they are on sale for only $3.50 each and they're huge!

Well that completes this weeks Sunday Steals. I wish you all happy shopping and remember you can never have to much makeup! Please let me know if you try anything or have tried anything! 

Thanks for reading and Stay Beautiful,

Scissor Hands Jill

Check in this Wednesday for Hump Day Hair Chat: Summer Highlights: to do or not to do?

Saturday Shop Talk

Conversation in a hair salon is one of the best parts of being there, as a client or an employee. I always enjoy catching up, sharing stories, gossiping ,covering news stories or current events and really just chit chatting about every day life. 

Since I began teaching cosmetology, my Saturdays in the salon are limited to once a month, if that. I tend to work evenings. So with that said I'll give you topics... and you can talk "amongst" yourselves... or with me!

 

1. Kim K- The pregnancy is not doing much for her. She has always been one of my beauty idols and while she is still beautiful, she needs to be directed to the nearest Motherhood Maternity store stat. The clothes she wore pre-pregnancy are just not cutting it and are really not flattering. Don't even get me started on Kanye, recent gossip mags are painting him as a pretty lousy baby daddy and the baby isn't even here yet. (I called that one).
2. The Gatsby- I am hearing great things about it. I plan on seeing it tomorrow with my mom as a belated Mother's Day outing. I pretty much love everything that Leonardo DiCaprio is in so I have high expectations for it. My good pal Steph reviewed it at Life According To Steph.        
3. Millers Ale House- I know this one may seem to be a bit random but with these restaurants popping up everywhere lately I have to say, I was not thrilled with it at all. We went there when the one by us first opened and it was mediocre at best. We chalked it up to being new and still ironing out the kinks. So we gave it another go and we ended up with a pizza that was not cooked all the way through. You can get beer anywhere but good food is another story so we have removed them from our list of go to spots. (But even bad publicity is publicity so definitely try it yourself, because whats bad to me may be great to you!)
4. Men- Women in salons across the country will talk about what their men do or don't do for them. It is a complete guarantee that within the appointment it will come up. Shout out to my man Frankenstein (or Frank as he prefers) who is in my good graces today for picking me up a donut this morning before I woke up!
5. Gardening- When I first moved into our home I had no clue how to maintain a garden. But with the help of those who do, I have Roses (all hot pink!), Bleeding Hearts, Azaleas, Rhododendrons, Lilies, African Violets and a huge vegetable garden. Any suggestions on how to keep the animals away? I have been sprinkling hair clippings on the soil to keep them from eating our veggie plants but that's not working that well. 
6. Whats on your TV?- There are only 3 shows on my weekly schedule that I am keeping up with (an all time low). Mad Men is coming in at #1 for me. Don Draper, you are just so cool and when ever I see you light up and swirl a scotch on the rocks I can't help but want to do the same. Roger Sterling,you are my old man crush.  Joan Harris, when they some day make a movie about my life, (I can dream can't I?) I have you casted to play me. #2 is Real Housewives of Orange County. Vicki Gunvalson, you looked better before surgery. Also, kick out your whiny son in law, if you want to date Brooks then go for it. Tamara, Eddie, Slade and Gretchen... you guys just are strange. #3 would be Deadliest Catch.This show allows me to escape from the realities of my life on a weekly basis. My obsession with King Crab is pretty ridiculous. I like to watch pretending that I am apart of the whole adventure, i'd want to be on either the Northwestern (Sig has a strange sex appeal about him) or the Time Bandit because I think they have the most fun! 
7. What's for dinner?- Anyone cooking up something amazing tonight or are you headed out somewhere? I am thinking of doing crock-pot enchiladas tonight- view the recipe here at my sister Lauren's blog Confessions of a Domestic Wanna-be. 
   
   

I hope you all enjoy your Saturday, whatever your doing. I am planning on doing nothing for the rest of the afternoon and am really looking forward to it!

Thanks for reading and Stay Beautiful,

Scissor Hands Jill

Tomorrow on Sunday Steals: I will introduce you to my newest obsession, BH Cosmetics and Anastasia s Brow Kit.

Hump Day Hair Chat : BANGS

With everyone from Princess Kate, Kim K and our First Lady Mrs. Obama sporting bangs I figured before you run out and get some, lets chat first.  

Anytime a client sits down in my chair and says "I think I want to try bangs!". Two things go through my mind, first, " you shot me down, BANG BANG" (Cher if your reading, I love you and lets be friends) Cher is on constant repeat in the soundtrack of my thoughts.

 Second, "they're going to regret this". Most clients dive into bangs because they are bored with what they have or saw them on a celebrity and got inspired. But the reality is within the 6 weeks that normally passes between the cutting of the bangs and their next trim they decided they hate them and often come back saying "I think I am going to let the bangs grow in, don't trim them". 

Why is that? Well to start bangs are a MAJOR commitment. If your normal styling routine in the morning consists of washing and going , bangs are not for you. They sit smack dab on your forehead and when they are not styled, yikes what an eye sore!

Another problem is, you aren't quite sure how to style them once you get home. Sure they look great when you leave the salon, but they should your probably paying $40 or more for a PRO to style them for you!

I'm going to break it down: 

• The Swoop bang- this is amazing and completely the easier of the bang styles to commit to. They look great on everyone and if I can make a suggestion, when having them cut never have the shortest piece or the starting place of the bang sit above the inside corner of the eye. Why? Because any shorter and they will look like you are growing out straight across bangs. When styling them you want to do three things. 

1. Spray your roots with a volumizer, my personal favorite is Paul Mitchell Extra Body Daily Boost ($24)
2. Pull the hair forward and in the opposite direction of where you want them to lay.
3. Then place the brush on the other side of the hair and pull them up towards the side you want them to lay

Lifted and swooped!

The other style is the straight across. There are several variations of these bangs. I prefer the crescent shape.

They hug the forehead better and have a more adult stylish feel then the blunt straight line that can look more childish. When styling these bangs its best to use a flat brush to help keep them laying flat and neat. If you use a round brush the larger the brush diameter the better. Smaller diameter brushes are going to give you a curlier look so try to avoid them. Using the flat brush or large diameter round brush pull the bangs forward and down towards the nose. DO NOT lift up, this can make them stick up and give the appearance of a cowlick.

The bottom line is you have to choose what works for you and what will be easiest for you to maintain. Bangs can be sexy and can really change up your whole look! If you go for it make the time to get them looking right on a daily basis and wear them proud!!

Thanks for reading and Stay Beautiful!

Scissor Hands Jill

Check back for SATURDAY SHOP TALK ( this is my version of Coffee Talk with Linda Richman)