NuMe Ionic Blow Dryer (Review)

Throughout my college years, my hair was short. I'm not quite sure what was in my head at the time when I decided to ultimately chop my long, thick hair into a bob. But, for all four years of undergrad, I kept it above shoulder length.

Fast forward to post graduate years, and I made it into a mission to grow out my hair. Having longer hair is more manageable for me in terms of styling. It's easier to wear it curly or straight. Even if I'm having a bad hair day, an easy fix would be throwing it up in a bun. One thing I dread the most is drying my hair when I wash my hair especially before going to bed.

I needed a blow dryer that'll do the job quick.

Ready for Summer With My Ombre Highlights!

This past Saturday, I had decided to take the plunge and go lighter. I wanted to be summer ready and got my ombre highlights. I'm officially a quarter blonde.

See after the jump for more pictures!

Hair Tutorial: Easy Braided Low Bun Updo

Since Valentine's day is coming, here's an easy hair up do you can do within minutes. Well, only if you already know how to french braid your own hair. But if not, then there's plenty of time to practice! Or you can also just grab your hair into a low pony tail and then braid. This look is just so feminine and cute, and did I mention it's easy?



Back side



Watch the video:






It's finally Friday! Been waiting for this weekend since well... Monday! Well, I have plenty of cleaning and organizing to catch up to. I swear the cleaning never ends once you move out to your own place. I'm going to try and squeeze in some time to just relax and unwind. Hopefully, we'll also be able to do dineLA tonight or Sunday. I've been wanting to go.

I'll see if I can get a home decor post. I haven't been really decorating lately though, but I'll show you what I have done so far.

So what are your plans for this weekend??

Product Review: H2Pro Ceramic Tourmaline 300 Styling Iron (Special Edition)

Product Blurb: H2Pro Ceramic Tourmaline 300 Styling Iron (Special Edition) incorporates advanced combination of three distinct Nano technologies: Nano Ti + Nano TiO + Nano Ag. This powerful trio instantly creates unmatched styling capabilities and health benefits, leaving your hair healthier, shiner, and more vibrant. The advanced self adjusting plates equal more smoothness and sleekness from a styling tool like never before.

Heat temperature: 140-450°F

• Nano Titanium (Ti) = enhances the ionic effect, allowing hair to absorb more moisture for superior conditioning and shine
• Nano Titanium Oxide (TiO) = removes chemical pollutants and toxins from daily exposure
• Nano Silver (Ag) = removes harmful or damaging bacteria from the hair

Price: $160

Available at: http://www.h2prousa.com/





H2Pro Ceramic Tourmaline Styling Iron packs some major heat. I've had my fair share of drugstore brands to expensive straightening irons, but this one tops my list (yes, I've tried out so many straightening irons that I have a list).

What I like about this straightening iron is that it really heats up in mere seconds. I mean it gets really hot, and it stays hot. I've had straigtening irons that don't heat up consistently which can be a problem when you're in a hurry because it's not doing its job properly. Although my hair is relatively straight, certain sections of my hair do tend to go their own way or it gets puffy. Also, my hair is really thick and sometimes it usually takes several runs of the iron to get my hair really straight. But because this straightening iron maintains its heat temperature, it only takes me one run of the straigtening iron per section of my hair which also means less time spent on the mirror straightening my hair. It takes about 10 minutes max (for me) to acheive the pin-straight hair that I always want.
The iron also makes a good curler. Since the plates are not that wide, it makes it easy to wrap the iron around your hair.

Another good thing about this iron, is it keeps my hair nice and shinny, and it doesn't dry out my ends the next day. I don't know if it's just me, but whenever I straightened my hair (using a different iron), my ends tend to get really brittle the next day. I never experienced that using H2pro.

And, one more thing to love about this product is it doesn't pull your hair. I really hate straightening irons that snags your hair. Some irons tend to catch a strand or two of your hair, and ends up pulling it. But with this iron, it only glides down your hair nicely and won't snag or break your hair.

The only negative thing I can say about this iron is it's not recession friendly. But if you are looking for a good quality straightening iron, you might want to check this one out.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Tutorial: Curling Your Hair with Paper Bags

Who would've thought that you can actually curl your hair with a paper bag!? This is probably the best and most ingenious and inexpensive hair tutorial I've ever watched on YouTube.

Watch RiceBunny's hair tutorial on how to curl your hair with a paper bag. Yup, a paper bag. For the ladies who love curling their hair, you can give your hair a break from all the heat damage you're causing to your tresses by trying this method instead.

Aveda Dry Remedy Moisturizing Shampoo and Conditioner (Review)

Product Blurbs: Drenches even the driest, most brittle hair with moisture, leaving it soft, supple, touchable.

- instantly improves dry hair up to 63%, when used as part of our Dry RemedyTM Moisturizing System
- patent-pending Deep-Moisture complex penetrates hair to deliver lasting, intense moisture, powered by buriti oil, pomegranate and palm-derived conditioners
- relaxing floral aroma blend with certified organic palmarosa, ylang ylang and rose geranium, plus a hint of vanilla

Available at: Aveda salons, spas stores, and at Aveda.com

Price: $24 each (200 ml)

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5

I had to get my boyfriend's opinion on the results after using this shampoo and conditioner. And we are both loving the it!

I've always had a problems with my really, really thick hair looking dull, fried, and dry. For a couple of years, I had to deal with a really bad hair day, all day, everyday after so much abuse from straightening it everyday, highlighting, and rebonding it (in short, it was badly fried). It wasn't up until this year when I finally got my hair to a decent (and way better) condition than what it was before after taking care of it by avoiding straightening it everyday (yes I couldn't live a day without straigtening my hair after I shower in the morning. It was just that impossible for me).

Even though my hair has already been softer and better, the shampoo I was using prior to Aveda shampoo and conditioner did not really do much to my dry ends and it was lacking the ability to make my hair shiny. I also had problem with the frizziness on certain days when I forgot to put serum on my hair. My old shampoo did still leave my hair nice and manageable which I was pretty content with, but Aveda took it to a whole different level.

My hair is now super soft 20x! It's super silky, shiny, and smooth and I was surprised because I actually saw the difference within two days later of switching to this killer combo. My hair is seriously soft to touch. My boyfriend even made a comment that by just looking at it he said that it looks soft and silky. He's really big on nice hair, so he kept running and playing with my locks, and I couldn't stop playing with my hair too.

Even after only using this shampoo and conditioner twice, I can't help but rave how good this thing is. It really made a difference on how my hair looks and feels. I've been trying to get my hair in as its best shape possible and Aveda made it happened! My ends aren't dry and no frizzies considering I didn't even use a hair serum. It also doesn't make my scalp itch unlike other shampoos and conditioner. (Sidenote: the shampoo and conditioner looks like I guess pureed bananas. It looked a bit odd on me for a shampoo and conditioner)

I really don't have time to blowdry my hair in the morning, so I just step out of the shower and let it airdry. Even without blowdrying my hair, by the time I get to work, my hair has dried nicely and shiny while taming out the frizz.

But, I have a few gripes about this shampoo and conditioner. It has an herbal smell to it (due to the mixture scents of ylang ylang and rose geramium) which I'm just not really a fan of. I just kinda had some difficulty showering with it in the morning since the herbal, minty smell is pretty strong in the beginning although I'm pretty used to it now. The smell does go away after you step out of the shower, and it doesn't have a strong lingering smell not unless someone really tries to sniff your hair out.

The price range for this shampoo is along the lines of Ojon and Frederic Fekkai. It's a bit on a pricey range for a small bottle, but I guess it comes with such a high end product. But then again, you can really tell the difference within days after switching to this.

I really, really, really love my hair right now. It's been a week since I've been using this shampoo and conditioner, and I still can't believe how amazing my hair looks right now compared to how it was prior to using it. My ends aren't dry, my hair is shiny and way healthier. It's way easier to run your fingers through my hair now. My only biggest complain is the price especially that we're in a recession right now! But other than that this product delivers good results. And, this is with just the shampoo and conditioner. Imagine when I actually start using the masque too.

Ojon Hair Daily Intensive Shine Treatment (Review)

I know some of you have requested a review for the Ojon products that I bought at the conference in Las Vegas. Sorry for the lag, but I had to test the product out before I give my final verdict.

What they say about it: Created to instantly bring life back to dull and damaged hair, this smoothing serum contains light polymers that create an ultra-smooth effect while blow-drying, and create frizz-free curls when drying naturally. Plant derived conditioning agents fight the effects of humidity, while vitamins A and E leave hair soft and nourished.

Ingredients: Cyclopentasiloxane, Elaeis Oleifera (Palm) Oil, Dimethiconol, Ethylhexyl Cocoate, Parfum (Fragrance), Agar, Alginic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Glyceryl Linolenate, Phenyl Trimethicone, Glyceryl Linoleate, Methylparaben, Lecithin, Tocopheryl, Acetate, Butylparagen, Ethylparaben, Isobutylparaben, Propylparaben, Citronellol, Linalool, Coumarin, Limonene, CI 77491 (Iron Oxides), CI 77492 (Iron Oxides), CI 77499 (Iron Oxides). (Source)

Price: $24 (Tradeshow price $15)

Available at: Sephora stores, Sephora.com, Ulta stores, Ulta.com, and Ojon.com

Ojon Hair Daily Intensive Shine Treatment

Quality: 3.5 out 5
Price: 2.5 out of 5
Packaging: 3 out 5

Overall: 3 out of 5
How the product looks like when you pump it out of the bottle. Notice how the small beads have been broken down.

What I like about it: It made my hair soft and silky. One pump, and your hair has transformed into fabulous! I couldn't stop running my fingers through my hair after putting this on. It didn't weigh my hair down unlike some serums, and it didn't leave my hair as if it's been doused in grease. It gave me the shine that I needed, and managed the frizzies. It's even better after blowdrying or straightening your hair.

What I didn't like about it: The SMELL! The smell smells!! I couldn't stand it. Because I loved how the product made my hair look and feel, I just dealt with the smell in the beginning. The smell never really faded away in time. I thought it wasn't that bad until my dad had mention something. I mean I noticed it too, but I didn't think it was that bad. I just hate how the product smells like an old, musty man and tiger balm (you know that Asian ointment). I even got complaints in our house to stop using whatever I was using because the smell was unpleasant. I'm really particular about the smell that goes into my hair because people do get a whiff of whatever hair products I have on. And another bad thing was, you can prolly finish the bottle in a month. The picture shown above was after 3-4 uses only! And it doesn't help that the small bottle doesn't come cheap. Not too practical

Overall: I probably won't purchase this again. Not only it's expensive, the smell is just really bad. Although I really like the results, I'm just really turned-off by the fact that it smells like tiger balm. It's not worth the trouble for me. Maybe if they change the smell then I would consider getting it again. I'm just not down smelling like an old man.