Phenomenal . . .

Phenomenal . . .
Life, Growth, and Connection (This sunflower was nourished by my hands.) 2010; Photography by Benita Blocker. Please become a follower of this blog.

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Sunday, August 30, 2009

Define Good Hair?

First of all, there is no such thing as "bad hair." Our Creator knew what He was doing when He created us.

Now, for people born with "low maintenance hair." You are blessed.

Low maintenance hair is hair that can be washed and air-dried or diffused. No wrapping at night. No rolling at night. No flat ironing. Just finger and go.

Low maintenance hair can have the flexibility of being worn straight which makes it high maintenance for that time period.

Now, for those who do not prefer to wear their curl pattern or if you don't have a curl pattern at all, our hair (me included) is high maintenance all the time.

High maintenance hair is sensitive to chemicals, heat, weather and stress. Finding a hairstylist is extremely hard. Most of the hairstylists with absolutely gorgeous hair are born with "low maintenance" hair.

Just because their hair looks gorgeous does not mean that they know how to maintain your higher maintenance hair.

If you are interviewing a hairstylist, ask about their maintenance for their hair. How often do they need a chemical touch-up? is a great question. If they are at 8 to 10 weeks, and you know you have an afro pushing 5 weeks, then you also know that your hair is not in the ballpark with their hair. I would keep looking for the next hairstylist in that case.

Now, suppose the hairstylist's hair looks a "hot mess?" Interview them anyway. Why? I always find it hard to work long hours and maintain a cute style with high maintenance hair. You either are going to pay "top dollar" to offset the fact that the stylist needs to keep her hair done . . . or you are going to let her work speak for itself.

As far as male hairstylists go, I do not understand how men keep their hair barbered short and female clients are drawn to them for service. Female hairstylists can not even get a break. Their hair has to look flawless all the time.

Good hair means low maintenance hair. Bad hair is good hair. It takes more time, but when you find the right stylist -- life is good! Keep interviewing until you find her!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Dreaming of Opening a new salon?

A lot of folks dream of owning their own salon so . . .

Here is a list of rooms to put in your new salon whether you are a stylist or a salon investor:

1) Dispensary ( room to mix chemicals, formulate color formulas, store hair color)
2) Break room (a place to eat, make a short phone call, take a mental break)
3) Storage room (for cleaning chemicals, office supplies, disinfecting tools)
4) Laundry room (washer and dryer --as many as you need to keep towels going)

If you can imagine these four rooms can take up a 1000 sq ft then you still have shampoo area, styling stations, platform hair dryer area, retail display, checkout counter, waiting area.

2000 sq ft is still a small salon.

The task of finding booth renters or trainable employees is even harder. If they are extraordinarily good, then they will eventually start their own salon. So you start over again with finding good staff.

The salon business is not an easy one. There was a time when it was excellent money, but with the cost of living going up, expenses are up, and demand for hair services is down.

I hear that people always want to look beautiful. They are right, but only a small percentage need to look glamourous all the time. Clients are stretching their appointments out until they absolutely need you. You have to be patient, educated, and ready.

Downtime is for cleaning, studying, and trying new initiatives. (Always remember this secret!)

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Texture and Texturizing

Hey! I have a lot on my mind for my first day of blogging!

Texture is your wave pattern or lack thereof. I am in search of the best texturizer to take a zigzag pattern to a s-shape without compromising the integrity of the hair nor overprocessing.

I am have some leads . . . . I just have to finish my product testing.

First trial: Soft & Beautiful Botanicals Texturizer - Regular; I loved the new wave pattern, but product seemed extremely drying to the hair. A lot of hair dressing (Mizani Rose H2O) was needed to maintain the moisture balance in the hair for the styling phase. It's a lithium hydroxide base texturizer, and the more porous ends went straighter than the rest. The product makes the hair more humidity resistant which is a second benefit. However, one trial with this texturizer was enough. I have another texturizer on my list to try.

It is being shipped to me. It will be a few weeks before I will have time to try it and give you feedback. So stay tuned!

Higher Power

Hey! I debated about putting "God" in my blog name, but that is my higher power. I hope that I do not offend anyone.

My blog is about hair and its timeless beauty regardless of texture, length or density.

Secret #2 Hair can still be growing even if you are not seeing any real increase in length. If you are seeing new growth at the root, then you should make sure that you are not breaking at the ends.

Hello Beautiful! So you are interested in Hair!

Hello and Greetings! I am sooo excited to share my hair secrets with you. I am a full time cosmetologist licensed in North Carolina, California, and Georgia. Everyday I learn or discover something beautiful about hair that I want to either research further or repeat the performance.

My clientele is diverse. From ZigZag curl pattern to Wavy to Straight. From medium to coarse in texture. From extremely thick density to thinner densities due to various reasons.

I have seen a lot over the years. I have grown many heads of hair over the years. I have learned how to improve some hair processes and invent my own routines.

I love customizing hair solutions and products for whomever sits at my shampoo bowl.

Secret #1 Everyone who sits in my styling chair gets a consultation, but they do not always get invited to my shampoo area. Smile. We all have choices. Stylists and Clients should be a good fit personality wise too!

Okay. I do not want to write a book on my first blog entry. So I digress here. Talk to you again soon.