Change your Hair, Change your Life

Many of my readers will know I’m going through some massive life changes right now and what better way to celebrate all forms of change than to change my hair?

I’ve done a lot of colour changes from dark red to bright red, to purple, blue and even green. Of course putting all those colours in required bleaching my hair as they wouldn’t have shown nearly as well on my natural brown shade. Still, the last time I put blonde in my hair for any purpose other than making other colours show up was in high school. Back then I couldn’t handle the toning process – it irritated and burned my scalp. Therefore the toner came off too early and my blonde was always yellow. Yuck.

No wonder I decided blonde wasn’t for me and started only using bleach to support other colours, like purple.

Today however it seems the toning products are a bit gentler and I’m a bit tougher. I’m so happy these things are true because I’ve totally fallen in love with my blonde hair and plan to keep adding blonde and perfecting my shade.

Don’t worry, I still sneak a little pastel pink in to keep it fun.

The other change – and truly the more major change is the length. I had insanely long hair that people routinely thought was fake because they couldn’t imagine I’d actually grown it out.

It was proof of my patience. Like 8 years of patience. I cut it to a short bob before moving to University and I hadn’t cut it since. Until now.

I suppose I’ve less patience now for anything that holds me back.

And damn. It feels good.

Okay, y’all know I’m going to grow it right back out. That’s just what I do. But for so long I was seriously afraid to cut it. I cringed at the thought of a trim and flat out cried the day I actually cut it.

That poor hairdresser.

Still I am loving the freshness and having so much fun with it. Yes, it will grow long again but next time I won’t be so afraid of the change when it’s time for a cut.

Check out the before and after to see how big this change has been!

What’s been your biggest hair change? Did you love it? Hate it? I wanna hear all about it!

Why I Invest in Sephora

We all know it’s true that most of what can be bought at Sephora can be bought elsewhere for less. Affordable brands line the aisles of any drug store and one has to wonder how different the products can really be. I mean from one concealer recipe to the next, from one mascara to another, is it worth the price jump to pick up the designer brand in a Sephora?

I think so. Today I want to share why. Many beauty bloggers share the pros and cons of products from all price ranges in specific reviews for “X brand Y product” but they don’t always share, over all, why their best looks come with a such a pricey list.

I do want to acknowledge that being able to choose a pricey product is a position of privilege. I prioritize this cost in my budget to make it work and I’m here to share why I do so.

Before you even get to the product, the service itself has a dollar value

Once upon a time I thought shops like Sephora were for girls and boys who really knew what they were doing. Like, they were maybe trained make up artists or at least more successful at learning from artists on youtube than I was. I thought Sephora was all about those make up users. I didn’t really feel I fit in.

In reality the staff at Sephora know those products and how they correspond to different needs. They aren’t trained like that for the pros who also have that knowledge. They’re trained to help us – #realbabebeauty squad. When I walk in and say I’m struggling with something like finding a full coverage foundation that doesn’t cake, or a brow product I can use blind, or a face wash to win a battle with my hormonal acne… I know I can trust the staff there.

When I ask the same questions at a drug store I usually get anecdotal answers. “My friend also struggles with… and she loves…”, “I use this and I swear by it!” and so on.

But at Sephora I hear more reassuring things like “This product line contains ingredients x, y and z which are known to help with sensitive skin.” or “This brand can be used this in this way for…”

The knowledge the staff have is reason enough to pay a little extra. When you don’t know all the answers you can place a lot of trust in the staff to help you out.

You have to find products that feel good to use

I tried to go back, okay? I thought hey – I could probably save myself some money if I just bought mascara at shoppers instead of Sephora.

Two hours later with red, itchy eyes I swore I’d never cut my budget in that way again.

If you use more affordable products and don’t have side effects like flaking make up, itchiness, redness, soreness or anything else then I salute you. However for me, this isn’t the case. I have super fair, super sensitive skin and when I sacrifice the quality of my products I feel it (and see it!)

Even some brands at Sephora cause problems for me. Sephora, though, will let you exchange products and work with you to find the right one. When I brought back an expensive foundation that reacted poorly with my skin and made me look diseased they gave me full store credit to find a better formula.

Better Products Look Better

I denied this for a long time but in recent years I’ve come around. Some girls can make anything look pro but I don’t have those skills.

What I lack in skills can be made up for with products that look good to begin with.

That’s it. This one’s pretty simple.

Sephora’s Point System is Actually Pretty Good

As every point system should be, this one is designed to recognize regular customers who are spending a lot on the business. Right from signing up you earn points and at milestones like $1000 spent in one year you get big perks.

That sounds like a lot – once upon a time I thought I’d never be that level. But I’m here. I did give my card to friends a few times so I know some of those points came from their purchases. Even without those purchases though, the side effect of shopping at expensive store is that spend-based loyalty programs are genuinely rewarding.

You can get your make up done, pick up free samples and even attend exclusive events.

It’s not worth shopping there only for the loyalty program but the loyalty program goes a very long way to making me feel appreciated for my decision to frequent the store.

Take a deep breath #realbeautybabe  You deserve a less complicated relationship with your beauty routine

At the end of the day Sephora has made my relationship with the beauty world 1000x healthier. I shop with more confidence knowing if a product doesn’t work I can come back. I get answers from staff I trust. And I get the perks of investing in myself both in my results and in the beauty rewards program.

There a lot of complicated decisions to make in life. There’s a lot of things that can’t be made easier. Why not invest in this and make this one thing a little less complicated?

Function of Beauty: Am I really about to buy shampoo and conditioner from a facebook ad?

Well, if you’re like me you’ve probably seen Function of Beauty ads popping up all over your social media.  They catch your eye with pretty colours, alluring scent names and most notably, the promise to personalize your hair care.

I resisted these ads for months.  I already had shampoo and conditioner that I liked and honestly, as tempting as personalized hair products were, it still took me a bit to wrap my head around ordering online.

I read that they started out as a boutique you could visit and have your shampoo & conditioner made. I remember wishing I lived close to it because I totally would of loved something like that I just wasn’t sure about doiong it online.

Clearly I got on board with ordering my shampoo and conditioner online.  It’s not really like there was anything special about my experience buying it at the drug store or even buying “the good stuff” at Sephora – I was still just picking it up off a shelf.

So let’s get down to business – was it worth it?

Initial decision to Order

I decided to order, ultimately, because my hair care is personal. As you probably know I am all about dying my hair all kinds of colours. It’s teal, blue, a different shade of blue, a couple shades of purple and also pink. Hello #mermaidhair

Almost every time I receive a compliment on my hair it’s followed up with the ultimate hair dye question: How do you keep it so bright?

The answer is: Very carefully.

A lot of people have the misconception that hair dye happens at the salon and outside the salon you don’t have to think of it. The truth is that the real work begins when you leave the salon. Really, the salon is the easy part – I just sit there and Jess does all the work! I’m always looking for products that balance making my hair look clean, feel nice and brush easily, while also keeping as much of my colour as possible.

My hope with Function of Beauty was that I could “create” a product which truly answered my need for ultra-nourishing, caring for my hairs health hair care, that protected instead of attacking the dye.

First Impressions

The product arrived earlier than estimated, which was much appreciated since I’m never super patient when waiting for a package.

I loved the simple, personal packaging. It doesn’t hurt that my name was right on the box.  The selling feature of Function of Beauty is how personalized it is and they definitely deliver in that department.

The colour was exactly as imagined, and the smell is pleasant. I chose a medium strength peony smell. Over all it is every bit as satisfying as imagined to open this personalized set. I love how elegant the packaging is with the pumps and everything else neatly tucked out of sight at first.

More importantly – is Function of Beauty functional?

I am not entirely sure I had a good sense of what to expect. I think I thought it would either do nothing and be a total waste of time or I expected to be mind blown. I didn’t anticipate any middle ground.

This product didn’t dissapoint – the number one way the results show? I still have my hair colour!

A lot of products that advertise colour protection fail to care for my hair in every other way. The dye stays in tact but washing will leave my hair dry, tangled, and impossible to work with. It ends up a dull, awful rats nest.

Not this time! My hair is soft, brushable and total #mermaidgoals!

Function of Beauty has delivered – as promised!

Time to Change it Up and Reorder!

Okay so round one went well. If you’ve looked at the Function of Beauty website you may have noticed that they strongly encourage a subscription service. You can choose how often you want to reorder and making that subscription selection comes with perks like free shipping.

It makes sense – I am eventually going to need more, right? I selected the 3 month reorder and it was pretty bang on for timing. As you can see below I had a good amount of shampoo left but I was getting dangerously low on conditioner. That’s how it goes, isn’t it? Really waht I need is a bigger bottle of conditioner and a little less shampoo.

I tweeked my formula this time with the hope of getting a little more nourishment. Dying your hair can realllllly dry it out and for me, that means it can turn it to a rats nest very quickly. Plus, my hair is a different colour now so why shouldn’t I change up the shampoo and conditioner when it’s just as custom as my hair?

So now my products are blue and smell like the beach. I’m even happier with this formula. Adding on the nourishment has made a difference.

I was definetly a little skeptical at first. Part of why I wanted to reorder was to see if changing the formula online would change how the shampoo and conditioner affected my hair at all.

The product seems very similar to use. I couldn’t tell what’s really different about it.  However it does do a bit better keeping my hair soft and brushable a little longer this round so I’ll take that as a very good sign.

I guess part of me kind of figured it might all be the same stuff in different colours and scents but that our online selections might not have made a difference. While the texture and consistency are the same the results do suggest I got the changes I requested.

This time I took the at-checkout-add-on option to get a travel kit with hair elastics. It was an impulse buy, for sure, but also super useful when I went away for the weekend. Really, it’s the perfect accessory for those of us a little obsessed with our hair and picky about the product that goes in to it!

The Bottom Line:

I do love this product. I am pleased with how my hair feels after using it consistently for a while and I like the company. I like that they are cruelty free and that I can change the product without searching for a totaly new company.

Looking to order? Have $5 off! https://functionofbeauty.com/?ref=5a934d48e9406

Have you tried Function of Beauty? What’s your go-to hair product?

Since Dying my Hair Blue

1. Almost as reliably as people ask if my tattoos hurt, they ask if my hair is real.

Yep. Grew it myself.

2. I’m more confident.

There isn’t a lot of room for self doubt (and it’s hard to sneak passed anyone) when you have the brightest hair in the room.

3. I clash with a bunch of my clothes.

I put on my favourite bright red hoodie and cried a little. Good thing I always liked black.

4. I’m stubborn about it.

I always said it’s just hair and if I came across a job or something where it wasn’t appropriate, I could just change it to something more neutral. But I’m a little more attached than that so if someone doesn’t like my hair, they don’t like me.

5. It takes work.

Expensive products that are time consuming to use. Not to mention the time I spend cleaning the shower after I use it. I go to the hairdresser to get it coloured but I use a pigmented conditioner to maintain the vibrancy in between salon visits. With bright hair like this there’s no time to be lazy or it gets looking kind of sad. I don’t need the whole world seeing it on my head when I’m lazy!

6. It’s like a no-effort accessory

At least after all that work and money it makes me look ready to go with very little effort – take it down and brush it, and I’m good to go.

7. It’s really fun to style.

Plus when I do more than take it down and brush it, I have a lot of fun putting it in new styles to show off the colours.

8. I’m easy to find in a crowd.

Yeah, like I said… kind of hard to sneak passed anyone.

9. Do not try this at home.

Blue shower. Blue floors. Blue walls. Blue hands. Blue face… just leave applying you’re bright fantasy colours to the professional. A little maintenance like a pigmented conditioner is do-able but creating this look all on your own is not – especially not if you need bleach.

10. Trust your hair dresser

I never asked for blue hair. One day my hairdresser suggested that it would look nice with the purple and pink I already had and I totally trust her so here we are!