Tag Archives: straight hair

New Curl On The Block: My Miss Jessie’s CurlBar Haircut

Hey Rosés,

 
Wall and vanity of Miss Jessie’s Original Products at CurlBar

A few weeks ago I attended the grand opening party for curly hair experts Miko and Titi Branch’s latest project, the Miss Jessie’s CurlBar Salon. The salon is a beautiful French parlor-style loft in Soho. They use their award winning products and I couldn’t wait to get an appointment!

Salon owners Miko and Titi Branch

On a sunny day, I was greeted by the friendly Miss Jessie’s staff who escorted me into the brightly lit salon and served me fresh hors d’oeuvres (cheese, crackers and curls…yum!). Next they gave me a full consultation explaining their services, products and a multitude of options. I picked the “Wash and Go” cut and style – see more details on that below.

 

Before pic: shaggy uneven hair, split ends

The Miss Jessie’s process includes first blowdrying hair straight (you can opt for a curly cut too), then trimming ends. They have a full look book (more like a curly hair bible!) where you can view real women with textures like yours, and simply point to what style you’d like. Next they do a full shampoo and condition with their award winning eponymous products, then style your hair after drying.

Each person’s routine and products will be custom to you, but here’s a breakdown of the “Wash and Go” transformation they gave me:

1. Blowdry hair straight using fingers and paddle brush

Blowdried hair: Didn’t even recognize myself with straight hair!

2. Trim ends in sections

3. Cleanse hair with Super Slip Sudsy Shampoo

4. Cleanse hair with Crème de la Curl (no suds, sulfate free shampoo)

5. Condition with Super Sweetback conditioner

6. Work through leave-in cream in sections by lightly pulling and stretching individual wet curls – use Curly Meringue for soft hold and definition

7. Place under a hood dryer

8. After hair is dry work through Baby Buttercreme for extra moisture and shape hair with a wide-tooth comb and fingers

After pic: defined conditioned curls, structured shape

Other services include two-strand twist outs, coil outs, a variety of curly styling and up-do’s, and smooth blowouts. My style lasted four days without any water or additional product! It was smooth, moisturized and easy to wear as is or add more styling. I simply wore a bonnet to bed and scrunched in the morning.

Prices are VERY reasonable, and you can purchase the entire product collection in-store. The products are made with quality ingredients free of heavy and dangerous toxins.

Get an appointment ASAP! Tell them Alicia from Champagne Beauty sent you!

Miss Jessie’s Salon
441 Broadway, Suite 2
(Between Grand & Howard)
New York, NY 10013
Monday through Friday from 10am-6pm

To Book Appointments Contact:
212.966.5600
Walk-ins Welcome!

What are your favorite Miss Jessie’s products?

Taste the beautiful life ~ Alicia

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Product Review: March Birchbox

Hey Rosés,

This month Birchbox teamed up with Teen Vogue for a fun, playful and spring formal event-prep box of samples. Teen Vogue’s beauty guru Eva Chen also provided great makeup and hair tips for special occasions and everyday glam. Great sensitive skin and allergy-friendly brands like Tarte and Essie return with bright colors for spring. There were also great alternatives for the sporty girls, and anyone transitioning from processed hair to natural hair.

Take a look at some great finds for your next special event or to add a pop of color:

 

Tarte LipSurgence Lip Tint in Lucky

Champagne Rating: 4 out of 5 bottles

 

 

 

I was looking for a pale pink matte, and this came just in time! The giant crayon glides on smoothly with a texture in between a lip balm and matte lipstick. It has moisturizing vitamins A & E with a hint of color, clicks to refill (no pencil sharpener needed), and so sheer it actually looks nude. Perfect to wear alone or a great primer for lipstick or lip gloss. Be forewarned the strong peppermint oil smell and tingle, but has a sensitive skin-friendly formula: paraben free, sulfate free, mineral oil free.

Ingredients for Lucky: Octyldodecanol, candelilla cera/euphorbia cerifera (candelilla) wax/cire de candelilla, C12-15 alkyl ethylhexanoate, isopropyl palmitate, cyclopentasiloxane, silica, nylon -12, VP/eicosene copolymer, copernicia cerifera (carnauba) wax /cera carnauba/cire de carnauba, phenyl trimethicone, disteardimonium hectorite, hydrogenated coco-glycerides, mentha piperita (peppermint) oil, caprylic/ capric triglyceride, propylene carbonate, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, dimethicone, caprylyl glycol, sorbitan stearate, benzophenone-3, tocopheryl acetate, sodium saccharin, castor oil bis-hydroxypropyl dimethicone esters, retinyl palmitate, salicornia herbacea extract, dimethyl isosorbide, palmitoyl hexapeptide-14, tin oxide, mica. (+/-): Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), iron oxides (CI 77489, CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), red 6 lake & red 7 lake (CI 15850), red 27 lake (CI 45410), red 40 lake (CI 16035), yellow 5 lake (CI 19140), yellow 6 lake (CI 15985), blue 1 lake (CI 42090).

 

Kate Spade New York Perfume in Twirl

Champagne Rating: 4 out of 5 bottles

 

 

Twirl is the perfect name for this scent, it’s a mixture of flirty and fun with fruit and floral notes. Light enough to wear during the day for work or brunch, yet stimulating for wear in the evening for cocktails or a date. Each spray makes me want to dance, either with a cupcake or a cutie ;-)

Ingredients: alchohol denat, parful/fragrance, water/aqua/eu, propylene glycol, benzyl alcohol, benzyl benzoate, butylphenyl methylpropional, citral, citronellol, farnesol, geraniol, hexyl, cinnamal, hydroxycitonellal, hyrdoxyisohexyl, 3-cyclohexene carbonxaldhyde, limonene, linalool, butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane, ethylhexyl, methoxycinnamate, ethylhexyl salicylate, orange 4 (ci 15510), yellow 10 (ci 47005)

 

Kérastase Elixir Ultime

Champagne Rating: 3 out of 5 bottles

 

 

This nourishing oil can be used as a leave-in conditioner or pre-blowout heat protectant, but I used it as a shine serum on curly hair. It’s thick but not greasy or heavy. It smoothed top-side frizz and added a hint of shine when applied to dry curly hair.

Ingredients: Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethiconol, Zea Mays / Corn Germ Oil, Argania Spinosa Oil / Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Camellia Kissi / Camellia Kissi Seed Oil, Pentaclethra Macroloba Oil / Pentaclethra Macroloba Seed Oil, Linalool, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Limonene, Coumarine, Benzyl Alcohol, Parfum / Fragrance.

 

Twistband Hair Tie

Champagne Rating: 3 out of 5 bottles

 

 

This fun evolution of the hair tie causes little breakage and maintains elasticity even when wet after the gym. It did leave a dent on curly hair, perhaps straight hair has better luck. Great for rosés transitioning from perms to natural hair, and athletes who don’t want breakage after a workout.

Ingredients: N/A

 

Essie LuxeEffects Collection in Set In Stones

Champagne Rating: 4 out of 5 bottles

 

 

Wear this glitter nail polish alone for a silver disco ball effect or as a top coat for a blast of bling. The formula is free of formaldehyde, toluene and DBP. Great for sensitive skin, and safer with out toxic chemicals. I’ve tried plenty of glittery nail polishes and this is one of the easier ones to get off without having to scrape your nails.

Ingredients: Butyl Acetate, Ethyl Acetate, Nitrocellulose, Adipic Acid/Neopentyl Glycol/Trimellitic Anhydride Copolymer, Isopropyl Alcohol, Acetyl Tributyl Citrate, Polyethylene Terephthalate, Silica, N-Butyl Alcohol, Polyacrylate-4, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Benzophenone-1, Polyurethane-11, Calcium Aluminum Borosilicate [+/- May Contain / Peut Contenir, Ci 77891 / Titanium Dioxide, Ci 15850 / Red 7 Lake, Ci 77000 / Aluminum Powder, Ci 19140 / Yellow 5 Lake, Ci 60725 / Violet 2

 

What is your must have for a formal spring event?

Taste the beautiful life ~ Alicia

*All images via Birchbox
*All Items can be purchased on Birchbox for a discount with membership

 

 

 

Posted in Body, Face, Hair, PRODUCT REVIEWS | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Event Recap: Miss Jessie’s Curl Bar Grand Opening

Hey Rosés,

Image via Miss Jessie’s

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Thursday night, curly hair experts Miss Jessie’s celebrated the grand opening of their newest salon in Soho called Miss Jessie’s CurlBar. The salon resembles a Parisian hotel, complete with plush chaise lounges, crystal chandeliers, and floor to ceiling mirrors. Glowing shelves filled with the salon’s own delicious curly products, ranging from sudless shampoo, conditioners, creams, and multi-texture gel stock the bars throughout the salon.

CurlBar opens TODAY, Monday March 12th, and offers “Quick Service. Great Prices.” Stylists use Miss Jessie’s award winning product line to cut and condition a variety of textures including wavy, kinky, curly, and even straight hair. The ingredients are great for sensitive skin and allergies: paraben free, mineral oil free, and no irritating sulfates.

Salon owners and product pioneers Titi and Miko Branch were on hand to greet guests and give impromptu consultations as guests sipped sparkling blanc de blancs and exchanged hair stories. The event was produced by The PR Circle, check out pics below:

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Alicia with owner Titi Branch

(L to R) Owners and sisters Miko and Titi Branch

Bartenders in front of the product bar

Essence ladies: Nicole Melton and Tia Williams (welcome back Shake Your Beauty!)

Nicole Melton’s fierce up-do and Jewelry Jam earrings

Chandeliers add a luxurious touch to the Curl Bar lounge

Miss Jessie’s brand products at each vanity

(L to R) Saideh Browne of SaiBrowne.com, Tiffany Denise of Tea by Tiffany and Etophia Lane of The Bizness Girl flaunt a variety of textures

Featured Hair model Sean Denizard

Miss Jessie’s Curl Bar is located at 441 Broadway, 2nd Floor, NY, NY.

What are your favorite Miss Jessie’s products?

Taste the beautiful life ~ Alicia

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3 Hair Products to Make Your ‘Do Last

Hey Rosés,

 

Image via Getty

Nothing’s better than getting a fresh hair cut or a new style at your favorite salon. You go in cloudy, then walk out sunny, complete with jazz hands singing “I’m coming out, I want the world to know, got to let it show!” Now comes the dreaded Day Two, and as you attempt to reconstruct your stylist’s meticulous blow drying technique, you finally concede to the fact you are not a Hollywood hair magician.

Despite your lack of a cosmetology license there are great products that will not only keep your look fresh, but keep your hair moisturized and scalp clear from build up.

 

1. Fine-Straight Hair

Recommended Product: Oscar Blandi Pronto Invisible Volumizing Dry Shampoo

Purchase: drugstore.com $23

Keep that bone straight blow dry or voluminous blow out popped with dry shampoo. It absorbs grease and dirt, keeping hair light and scented like a fresh appointment. This spray goes on clear so it won’t flake or distort dark hair.

Ingredients:
Gentle Starches

Absorb excess oil and product build-up
Vitamin E and Wheat Proteins 

Strengthen and protect the hair
Lemon Verbena

Provides a fresh, clean fragrance

 

2. Curly-Wavy Hair

Recommended Products: Curls Unleashed Second Chance Curl Refresher

Purchase: sallybeauty.com $12.99

Organic Root Stimulator’s new brand debuted this winter, and is free of parabens, mineral oil, and sulfates. After your appointment, sleep with a bonnet (tying down with a scarf will ruin curl pattern). The next day pour a quarter sized amount in your palm and lightly run your palm through your hair front and back – don’t use fingers, they will separate the curl and cause frizz. Another method is to mix the formula with water in a spray bottle and give your roots a few sprays.

Ingredients: aqua (water), glycerin, propylene glycol, ppg-5-ceteth-20, peg-12 dimethicone, honey extract, aloe barbadensis leaf juice, hydrolyzed wheat protein, panthenol, camellia sinensis (green tea) extract, amodimethicone, trideceth-12, cetrimonium chloride, hydroxyethylcellulose, acrylamidopropyltrimonium chloride/acrylamide copolymer, dehydroacetic acid, benzyl alcohol, parfum (fragrance), amyl cinnamic alcohol, lilial, linalool, ci 15985 (yellow#6), ci 140700 (red #4), ci 17200 (red #33).

 

3. Styled or Up-Do’s

Recommended Product: Aveda Brilliant™ Emollient Finishing Gloss

Purchase: aveda.com $26

If you just went to prom, a formal gala, or simply had a great style you want to keep, make it sparkle like diamonds with this shine serum. On your first night tie hair with a silk or satin scarf (never cotton – it will dry your hair out) like you would a bandana. In the morning, smooth on this silky fragrant gloss with your fingers, and lightly brush the surface with a soft bristle. Aveda uses gentle natural plant ingredients, and this also works great to smooth frizz or split ends.

Ingredients: Include Extracts of Rice Bran Oil, Vitamin E, Jasmine & Rose

 

What’s the longest you’ve ever kept a hairstyle going?

Taste the beautiful life ~ Alicia

*Images belong to brands
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