iVillage - Hair and There

Plaza Ambush Makeovers

Fri, 16 May 2008 14:18:31 -0500

The New Kids On The Block (yes, those New Kids On The Block!) had the plaza packed today with fans of all ages, which made for endless possibilities when looking for the next two women to get a Plaza Ambush Makeover! The two women, Heidi and Karen, got fabulous new looks just in time for summer! Check out the video.

Watch the segment from TODAY

What do you think of the ladies' new looks? Leave a comment or question below!

And if you missed any of the other Plaza Ambush Makeovers you can click here to catch up.

More from Louis Licari

Try on hairstyles by Louis Licari on Makeover-O-Matic!
More TODAY on iVillage

Mother's Day Beauty

Thu, 08 May 2008 15:56:42 -0500

It's Thursday, May 8th and I am on a return flight from LA to New York. Obviously, this is my favorite time to write my iVillage blog. I am trapped on a plane and I have seen every movie American Airlines has to offer. I always start my flight by scanning the newspapers and magazines. I read everything from the Wall Street Journal to the Star and love them both. I obviously have very eclectic taste or I am a bit schizophrenic. The great bonus of my eccentric reading habits is I always have a new idea for the next blog. This week, however, was a no-brainer. I mean, really, Sunday is Mother’s Day. What better time to talk about moms than right now.

Yes, I am going home to see my mom on Mother’s Day and yes, I bought her a present I think she will like. Don't get all misty-eyed on me now, I am a good son, but I was hardly a great one. I often was the cause of disappointment and heartache. It took me years to understand how much she loved and care for me. I was a little slow to mature and realize that she would do anything she could to make my life better. This unconditional love is a unique quality to mothers. This is an almost universal trait in all moms that will never change.

This truth is a constant but that's the last bastion of traditional motherhood. Moms often work outside the home, have many interests independent of their family and definitely stay part of society. They don't drop off the planet to this mutant world of mothers. Today’s moms don't look like mothers any more. I was reading Peoples 100 Most Beautiful issue and I was overwhelmed by the number of hot-looking mothers. It starts out with the most beautiful cover shot of Kate Hudson. As I turned the pages I could not believe how many gorgeous moms there where in the magazine. Page after page appeared of great beauties like Halle Berry, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Garner, Brooke Shields, Jennifer Lopez, Vanessa Williams, Mariska Hargitay, Marcia Cross, Isla Fisher, Julianne Moore, and Salma Hayek. I know these are some of the most beautiful woman in the world and they are movie stars. I know it is their job to look good and they have every luxury available to them. I am also aware that these are the ladies who set the bar for the rest of us. By the way, don't think for one minute these women always look this good. They work to create an illusion of beauty. This is the wonderful news. Most women work hard to look good. With effort everyone can look better.

The biggest tip I can give you to looking great is to vow to never throw in the towel. Find time to take care of yourself. It doesn't take that long to pull it together and nothing will make you or your friends and family feel better about you. No one likes a martyr. So don't look or act like one. It's too easy to look good and be happy.

Go to the salon and have a makeover day of beauty. What better present could you give yourself if your husband isn't smart enough to think of it first? Just think how great you will feel after a new haircut, color, make-up lesson, manicure, and pedicure. I know money is tight for many people today but that doesn't mean you have to skimp on your looks. Hair salons come in all price points today. Inquire in your town and find a place that does good work and is in your budget.
TIP - The best salons always have training nights when you can have your hair done at a fraction of the price. The classes are supervised by professional hair dressers and the results are usually very good.

Let's not forget about at-home color. It has never been easier to use or more gentle on your hair. Remember to always do a preview test before you start and you will know your results before you finish. Small changes work better than big ones. Your hair color will look more natural because it will stay in a healthy condition and most likely be the most flattering to your skin tone.

Learn how to blow dry your own hair. Never be forced to be dependent on your stylist for every blow dry. Your hair dresser should be happy to share their tips to blow dry your hair type. If your hair style is too hard to manage you have the wrong hair style. Looking good doesn't take much money, it just takes time. Just like The Gap and Target make great-looking stylish clothes at reasonable prices you can shop around for reasonably priced hair cuts and hair color. If you are a mom and in New York this Friday, come to the plaza for Today Show's Ambush Makeover. You will have a special place in our hearts this week. You might be the lucky mom to be our next makeover. Happy Mother's day!

More from Louis Licari:

Illusive Youth

Mon, 05 May 2008 13:36:02 -0500

Who doesn't want to look younger? I guess there are the 15-year-old girls like Miley Cyrus who are trying to look older. But short of that group, I don't think I ever knew anyone who said she wished she looked older. Think about it. Women tighten their faces, plump them up, and use miracle make-ups to create the illusion of youth. They literally exercise their butts off or invest in a drawer full of Spanx to have the young-looking bodies they had as teens. Do you think Madonna, Demi Moore, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ellen Barkin or Susan Sarandon are couch potatoes? They work hard to look vital and vivacious and young. Have you ever seen better-looking post-fifty women? They'd be hard to find. This is the A-list. There are always the women who go too far in their quest for youth. I could make a list here, but the names are too obvious to mention. These women end up looking like mutants. You can't tell if they are old-looking young or young-looking old. This is an easy line to cross and must be carefully avoided.

Your hair is the easiest way to maintain a youthful appearance. It is also the best way to look your most beautiful. The right hairstyle complements the shape of your face and can actually give the illusion of a mini facelift. The wrong hair style - which is usually the one you have been sporting for more than five years - can actually drag your face down.

I would suggest you avoid extremes. Hair that is excessively long or very short is hard to wear. If you wear your hair long, be sure it has shaping around the face. I know I have said this before, but I still see this beauty faux pas all the time. If you are over a certain age, be aware of the length of your hair. There is nothing more horrible than someone who looks young from the back and old from the front. If you notice young guys doing a quick whip around after they see your face, you most likely need to rethink your hair style. Short hair should never look suburban, whatever your address. It should have style, flattering layers and a fringe to keep it looking soft and sexy. The rule here is that if it looks like a practical hair cut, it's the wrong hair cut.

Now it's time to talk about hair color. There is a myth that permeates American culture that blond hair looks young. Color that is a little softer and brighter can make you look younger, but it is not always the answer. Hair that is too light can drain the color from your complexion the same way grey hair can. To me, excessively blond hair is like carrying a sign that says you have turned grey. Did you ever wonder why there are so many blondes in Miami Beach? I will never forget a cartoon I saw in "The New Yorker" magazine of a bride being carried across the threshold by her groom saying, "Will you still love me when I am old and blond?" I think that cartoon said it all.

Color must flatter your complexion. It must make it come alive. I think the biggest problem with hair is that as the years go by it, looses its vibrancy. This can happen for two reasons: The number one reason is grey hair. I believe grey hair steals the life from hair color. The second reason is that hair color just fades over time. Hair color can start to lose its vibrancy as soon as puberty occurs. Brown hair loses its warm tones, blond hair becomes dull because it loses its golden tones, and red hair just fades to a no-color brown. The answer to young-looking hair is to put the rich color tones back. This can be done with semi-permanent or permanent hair color. Minimal highlights not too different from the base color can also solve this problem.

Everyone wants to look the best they can. There is nothing better than looking healthy and vital. The tip here is to keep it simple and do what's right for you. Trends are for teens, not people who want to look a few years younger than their years.

A Librarian and Air Force Vet Get Ambushed

Fri, 02 May 2008 16:29:22 -0500

Another Friday brings another round of Plaza Ambush Makeovers! A school librarian and an Air Force veteran get glamorous ambush makeovers courtesy of iVillage's Louis Licari and fashion expert Jill Martin. Take a look at their transformations!

Watch the segment from TODAY

What do you think of the ladies' new looks? Leave a comment or question below!

And if you missed any of the other Plaza Ambush Makeovers you can click here to catch up.

More from Louis Licari

Try on hairstyles by Louis Licari on Makeover-O-Matic!
Get more info from the Today show on iVillage

Love, Lust, Caution

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 11:02:46 -0500

You are walking down the street and you find yourself staring at a woman's mane of hair. You feel a bit like a stalker because all you want to do is look at her hair from every angle. You almost want to touch it. It is the perfect texture. The way the light hits her hair is mesmerizing. It has a glow and a shimmer that seem to come from within. The combination of tones is perfectly balanced. Even the "too bright" highlight that perpetually falls in her eye is seductive. Her hair is perfect.

Then you catch a glimpse of yourself in a store window and your heart sinks. You feel like a total loser. Your hair just doesn't have the vibrancy of the woman's hair that made your heart melt. Yours looked great in the bathroom mirror when you blew it out this morning, but now you know it's not even close to the perfection of your dream hair. Your hair texture is very fine and it separates. Instead of a mane of hair, you have wispy hair that seems to become invisible as it grows long. And the color looks blah. It's not a strong all-over color or a tone-on-tone color with depth and dimension. It's just a blend of colors that mesh together and don't seem to be doing much to brighten your face.

What is wrong with this picture? Why don't you have the hair you long for? Are you genetically deficient or totally incompetent with a hair brush and spray? I suspect that neither of these things is true. You may not think you have the hair you deserve, but I bet you have the hair that is right for your face.
TIP - Accept your hair's texture and color family to let its true beauty come through. Your motto to true beauty should be: "Lose the battle and win the war! Accept your God-given hair, and make the most of it."

One of the biggest problems that women have with their hair is their own reluctance to accept its texture. You might think it's too fine and flat, or frizzy, kinky or curly -- or a combination of the above. Basically, what this means is that many of you probably torture your hair daily to make it look like something it's not. Most women become bored with their look and like to play dress-up or dress-down with their hair. There is nothing wrong with this if it's done on an occasional basis. Change is exciting and fun. But it becomes a problem if you can't leave the house without an hour-long blow dry, or if you have to visit your salon more than three times a week. This means you have a serious problem and it's time to rethink the style and cut of your hair. Tortured hair is damaged hair. Damaged hair is never pretty. It should be avoided at all costs.

Lusting for another person's hair color, especially when it doesn't relate to your own color at all, is the best reason to proceed with caution. Everyone's hair takes to color differently. The color you end up with depends on varying factors. These can include your natural hair color, hair that has already been colored, the amount of grey hair you have, and the texture of your hair. Everyone's hair color is unique.
WARNING - Even though we can make dramatic color changes with today's hair color technology, it's usually not a good idea. More dramatic change usually results in hair that is more difficult to maintain, turns brassy quickly, and ends up in rough condition. It is almost always better to pick a new hair color that relates to your natural color. This will guarantee that it will complement your complexion. Besides the obvious reason of covering grey, this is why we color our hair. We want our skin to look radiant. We want to look the best we can.

If you do find yourself in love with someone else's color, and you find yourself lusting for a change, always proceed with caution. The color you are dreaming of is probably not the color you should have. Some of our best fantasies are best left alone. Remember the expression, "Always be careful what you wish for." It's usually true.

More from Louis Licari:

Get more Today content on iVillage!

Plaza Ambush Makeover Magic

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:01:52 -0500

Have you had the same haircut for twenty years? Do you feel shy about making changes to your looks and getting more attention? You are not alone! Each Friday Louis Licari performs a Plaza Ambush Makeover, and this week, Louis made over not one, not two, but three women. The transformations are amazing.

Watch the segment from TODAY.

What do you think of the ladies' new looks? Does it give you any ideas of your own? Leave a comment or question below! And if you missed any of the other Plaza Ambush Makeovers you can click here to catch up.

Is the blond-haired woman disappearing?

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 14:50:15 -0500

There was a time, not so long ago, when the quintessential beauties were always blonds. People born blond wanted to be blonder. People with dark hair wanted to be as light as they could be, even at the risk of frizz and brassy hair. The woman with the lightest hair was always considered the prettiest. Well, times have changed.

Women have realized that the most flattering hair colors often extend far beyond the blond pallet. I myself became aware of this doing the Today Show's Ambush Makeovers. The blonds always looked good, but the warmer, richer, darker colors looked great. They made the most significant positive difference on almost every makeover. More vibrant hair colors made women's skin tones look more radiant. The makeovers looked prettier and younger. No one was more surprised than me by this realization. I made my career keeping some of the most famous women in the world blond. Have I been blindsided by blonds? I might have been guilty of being a "blond addict", but one day at a time I am opening up myself to the world of more fiery colors.

Ambush Yourself At Home

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:36:11 -0500

How many times have you been flipping through fashion magazines and wondered why your hair doesn't look as great as the women in the photographs? The models might be younger and maybe even prettier but that's no excuse for your hair not to look gorgeous. Hair can make an ordinary woman look like an exceptional beauty. Don't ignore your most important fashion accessory. It is too easy to make good hair look great and the best part is you can do most of your primping at home. This usually takes very little time and costs a fraction of salon prices.

Watch the "Ambush Yourself At Home" segment on TODAY

Here are some easy tips.

Never walk around with your roots showing. This looks unkempt and like you don't care about your appearance. Don't fool yourself; people do judge a book by its cover. There are root touch-up kits available that can cover the grey hair on your part or hairline in 10 minutes. You can practically put it on while you are brushing your teeth. Having a busy schedule is no longer an excuse for walking around with grey roots.

Are you due for your highlights a couple of weeks after you have a major event to attend? Don't panic! There are temporary mascara highlighting wands that come in great colors. They can be used to extend a touch-up or add extra highlights around your face for your special occasion. They will wash off in one shampoo.

Brush on highlights easily give permanent salon quality highlights at home. With a brush you have exact control of color placement. The guess work of the old fashioned cap highlight is gone. You place the highlights exactly where you want them to fall. This is perfect for accenting facial features or your hair style. The new highlighting kits come in gold and bronze shades. You will never have to worry about your hair looking like a frosted home job again.

Plaza Ambush Makeovers

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 16:16:59 -0500

Each Friday Louis Licari transforms two deserving women from frumpy to fab with a Plaza Ambush Makeover! This week a retired hairdresser from Tennessee gets a deserving update to her look in honor of her 60th birthday, and another woman from Hollywood, Florida who "never cuts her hair" is transformed!

Watch the segment from TODAY

What do you think of the ladies' new looks? Leave a comment or question below!

And if you missed any of the other Plaza Ambush Makeovers you can click here to catch up.

More from Louis Licari

Try on hairstyles by Louis Licari on Makeover-O-Matic!

Do I need a makeover?

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 11:52:53 -0500

"Louis, what would you do to the way I look if you were looking at me for the first time?" Women ask me this question almost every day. Women almost always know when it's time for a makeover, even if it's on the subconscious level. If this question has ever crossed your mind, you probably do need a makeover. Most likely every time you look in the mirror you know you are not looking your best.

MISTAKE 1) Your hair is just hanging without doing anything to flatter your face shape. You often find yourself wearing it back in a pony tail. Your hair color is not as vibrant as it once was. You might be feeling bored, starting to go grey, or just dreary. You don't have to put up with not feeling or looking your best. Take an action, take the time, and give yourself a cut and color.

It’s time to let the new you out. There is no better way to look more beautiful than releasing the beautiful hair that you have been totally ignoring. This is the sure fire way to release the true beauty of your hair.

MISTAKE 2) This happens when women try to force their hair to look like something it isn't, such as thicker, curlier, or straight. Accept what you have and make the most of it. Make yourself a promise. Take care of your appearance by making the most of your natural hair. People will notice your new hair instantly and tell you how great you look. You will love the way this makes you fell.

Mistake 3) You have had the same style and cut since you were in school. Small changes are mandatory to look modern and your most beautiful. Your face and hair change over the years and your style and color should too! TIP - Go to the salon with your old haircut and color. Tell your hairdresser you are ready for a change. Don't tell him or her what to do. Be open to suggestions. Most likely you’ll be happy you were brave enough to make a change and update your look. Remember the rule of thumb: Five years with the same haircut and exact same shade of hair color is the end of the statute of limitations of beauty and style.

Mistake 4) People can't see their own color. They often think they are brown when they are blond. Barbara Walters recently admitted to still feeling like a brunette on “The View”. The hardest person to look at is ourselves. We see ourselves as we were, not as we are. I know this is a frightening thought, but the general consensus of opinion is that we see ourselves five to ten years younger than our actual age. Go to a professional and have your hair color-checked from time to time. Is your color so blond that it washes out your complexion? Is it so red it looks like a wig, or is it so dark you are starting to look like a vampire? If any of these scenarios are true, you must make immediate changes. These are not flattering hair colors. At this point I must mention a personal pet peeve: hair that is so over-highlighted it looks like a solid color or a single process. If there is no contrast between the base color and the highlighted color something is desperately wrong.
TIP - If highlighted hair needs to be touched up once every four weeks your hair is over-highlighted.

Mistake 5) Weight loss and gain warrants a change in style and color. Hair styles and colors can change the shape of your face and add or subtract pounds. Take advantage of this, a new shape and color can accent or hide a multitude of sins.

Mistake 6) "I don't have time for myself." This is no excuse. Make time! You deserve and need it for your self-esteem. No one likes a martyr! Most salons are open early and close late for the working woman. If you have children and do not have a sitter, bring them to the salon. It doesn't take more than a couple hours for a cut and color. Bring toys and keep them amused. Video games, coloring books or something to read will work wonders. Everyone, staff and clients included, most likely won’t notice the young guest.

Mistake 7) Overuse of products. Today’s hair looks fresh and clean and controlled but never coated. If your hair looks sprayed in place so it can't move or coated in grease, you are misusing products. Hair should be touchable and move in the wind.

Mistake 8) Trying to grow fine hair long. Fine hair below the chin looks see-through and always separates. Shorter hair looks thick and full. One hair problem that is rarely discussed is the general thinness that occurs to almost all women over forty. This hair must be kept short to look full. Extensions are the only way to add body and fullness to fine hair. They do require maintenance and they are expensive.

Mistake 9) You are looking for a promotion at work and you are wearing the same style and cut. Appropriate change of appearance is an easy way for people to look at you in a new way. You must look like a leader and as if you already have the promotion. You must look like the new empowered you. Your previous dress and style are no longer suitable. You must look at yourself as a leader. Your co-workers will expect this from you and you will instantly gain their respect.

Mistake 10) You have been going to the same stylist or colorist so long, they don't look at you any more. If you find yourself sitting in the salon chair with a wet head and the haircut begins without a discussion, or your color formula is mixed before you talked to your colorist it is time to move on. You pay to have the stylist and colorist re-evaluate your hair each time you sit in the chair. This is an essential part of the service. Don't allow yourself to be cheated! This is an imperative part of the creative process.

A makeover is the most fun way to have a head start on a new life. A new you is the easiest way to gain confidence and have a fresh and optimistic outlook about life. What are you waiting for?

Hair color rehab

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:21:58 -0500

Rehabs have been one of the biggest trends of 2008. We have seen our most famous celebrities go into rehab for drinking, drugs, sex addiction, racial slander (I still don't get that one), and exhaustion. I am most amazed by the short duration people spend in rehab. People tend to be in and out of rehab in a few days. A month seems like an eternity, 3 weeks is a lifetime, 2 weeks is the norm, but there is always the Berlitz course that takes five days or less. Usually there is the rather rough entry photo that appears in the press (remember Britney’s famous bald umbrella attack), and a more glamorous quick picture upon departure. The paparazzi are well rewarded for their most awkward shots. Substance abuse used to require months in rehab and often repeated visits. After release from rehab there would be the mandatory AA meetings and the 12 steps to keep them on the straight and narrow. This is now apparently old school thinking.

Hair color can be addicting. I have known many women who have been powerless over hair color. There are women who can't be blond enough, (Christina Aguilera, Pam Anderson, Donatella Versace), red enough, (Tilda Swinton, Marcia Cross, or Debra Messing), or dark enough, (remember Ashlee Simpson with her raven hair and prominent nose, Cameron Diaz in her post J.T. look, and who will ever forget Angelina Jolie with her raven black hair the night she planted one on her brothers' lips).

Before you make one of these dramatic color changes it is time to seek out the color expert in your town to be sure you are making the right color decision. Once you have made a dramatic color change and it proves to be the wrong color choice you have to seek the help of a power greater than yourself: the color professional. The color specialist will slowly bring your hair back to a more appropriate color. Any attempted rush hair color corrections will result in hair that is in desperate need of repair. Hair that is not healthy does not take color as well as hair in good condition. Rush jobs could make the color correction take twice as long.

Take a picture of yourself with the hair color that did not work. This will stop you from making any other rush decisions when you see a hair color that looks beautiful in a picture but is not appropriate for you. It will also help you to understand why the hair color choice did not work, which usually means it did not relate to your skin color. Dramatic hair color changes can be too invasive for some hair textures and result in bad condition hair. There is nothing uglier than hair in bad condition no matter what the color.

There are solutions for bad hair color decisions. You are not going to like all of them but they will help you retrieve your color.

See a professional and be open to their advice. Listen to how long the rehab will take and what it will involve. Write down the questions that you want answered. Listen closely to their answers. I know that people often have selective hearing during consultations. This can lead to more heartache and disappointment.
Cut your hair if you are emotionally ready for another change. This is the quickest way to speed up the color removal process.
Condition your hair with heat. Hot conditioners will help to remove hair color. I know that not too many people have bonnet hair dryers at home, but conditioning your hair in a plastic baggie and then wrapping it in a hot damp towel will do the trick. Change the hot towel after ten minutes and repeat procedure.
4) Let your hair see the light of day. Use a sun block on your face but throw away your hats. Nothing will fade hair color quicker than the sun. Your new conditioning routine will keep your hair healthy.

Avoid impulse coloring. Make sure the color you choose is right for you. iVillage.com has a "Makeover-o-Matic" that will let you see how you will look in your fantasy color, cut and style before you apply the first drop of color or take off the tiniest snip of hair. It makes trying on a hair color as easy as slipping in and out of a dress. If you think you are powerless over the constant desire to change your hair color, the "Makeover-o-matic" is the perfect tool for you.

More from Louis Licari

2 Deserving Plaza Ambush Makovers

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 16:37:56 -0500

Each Friday Louis Licari transforms two deserving women from frumpy to fab with a Plaza Ambush Makeover! This week a mom from Ohio gets a deserving update to her look, and another mother from Pennsylvania gets glammed up!

Watch the segment from TODAY

What do you think of the ladies' new looks? Leave a comment or question below!

And if you missed any of the other Plaza Ambush Makeovers you can click here to catch up.

More from Louis Licari

Try on hairstyles by Louis Licari on Makeover-O-Matic!

Attention, at-home colorists!

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:19:22 -0500

Tonight I am teaching a single-process class to the assistants at my Beverly Hills salon. I often learn as much as they do because teaching class forces me to rethink and pare down hair color theory to its simplest form so it becomes easy to understand.

Class night was full of action. There was a Paris Hilton sighting at the restaurant Mr. Chow's which is directly across the street from the salon. People are still fascinated with her. The paparazzi went crazy. I am personally amazed her 15 minutes lasted this long. Janice Dickinson stopped by the salon to say hello. She made a grand entrance and was actually very sweet to all the clients. She might be a bit eccentric but she is a spirited woman that puts a smile on everyone's face. She was helping the assistants critique the coloring of models scheduled that night. The models and assistants loved every moment. She actually has a very good color eye. She breezed in and out and then we got down to serious business.

Color class models often color their hair at home. This provides me with a chance to see what makes at-home color work and all of the most frequent at-home color mistakes. As you all know, I believe in at-home color. I think that it provides a viable way for people who can't afford the time, money, or both to take advantage of the wonders of hair color.

The big tips for surefire results for at-home users are things I said many times before.

Always stay within a few shades of your natural color.
Avoid frequent color changes.
Do a preview or strand test to see the results before you begin.
Never use at-home color over hair that has been previously chemically processed (i.e. permed, relaxed or straightened)
Never try to color your hair black or platinum blond at home.
Hair to be colored at home should be in good condition.

The biggest mistake I see in coloring is when people become obsessed with covering every grey or try to be the blondest or the reddest they can be. They will bring in pictures from magazines that are too light, air brushed, and photo shopped. These colors are impossible to achieve unless you wear artificial Dynel wigs. This is why class models frequently color their hair at home in between class touch-ups. They are attempting to achieve impossible results. This can result in a number of gross errors that might take a long time to repair. If you find yourself strolling down the hair color aisle every time you are in a drug store you are probably a hair color addict. Don't allow yourself to walk down the hair color aisle. It is too tempting and easy to pick up another box of color. This is called flirting with the substance. It will only result in a large bill when you have to go to your beauty salon to have your color corrected.

Another reason people color their hair too frequently is because of grey hair. No one notices your grey hair more than you. It could be a single strand that blends with your own color but when you look in the mirror it stands out like a big wart at the end of your nose. You can easily be obsessed with covering a few grey hairs. This results in people coloring their hair way too often. I have known clients to color their hair every five days to rid themselves of grey hair. When you color your hair too often this results in dark walls of color around their face. This is a major beauty faux pas. It makes your face look harsh and uneven. Natural hair color contains many nuances of color. The darker the color, the more difficult it is to see variations in color. If you have one or two strong grey hairs on brown hair use an eyebrow applicator. This will help to keep the hair color specifically on the grey hair only and help to avoid dark spots.

The other reason at-home colorists end up with the wrong color is because they pick the shade because of the picture of the great-looking girl on the box. That is how the hair color looks on her natural color. Remember your end result will be a combination of your natural color plus the shade you chose. Your natural hair color can be darker, lighter, more warm or ash than the model on the box. Hair texture will also change the results of the final color. Coarse hair is more resistant to accepting hair color. Read the tips on the back of the box. They will help you to achieve the hair color results you desire.

I love teaching class to the color assistants. It forces me to keep thinking about how to make hair color simpler and easier to use. If hair color becomes too complicated you are doing something drastically wrong. Always remember our model (KISS-keep it simple, silly) and you end up with your perfect color.

More from Louis Licari:

Hair Makeunders
Seeing red in '08
Highlighting 101
Try on hairstyles by Louis Licari on Makeover-O-Matic!

A newlywed and youth group leader get ambushed

Fri, 21 Mar 2008 14:04:11 -0500

Each Friday beauty experts Louis Licari and Jill Martin surprise two lucky women with glamorous new looks with a Plaza Ambush Makeover, and this week was no exception!

This week we makeover a newlywed teacher from Texas and a youth group leader from Oklahoma.

Watch the makeovers from TODAY

What do you think of the ladies' new looks? Leave a comment or question below!

And if you missed any of the other Plaza Ambush Makeovers you can click here to catch up.

More from Louis Licari

Try on hairstyles by Louis Licari on Makeover-O-Matic!

Stretching your beauty dollar

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 14:08:49 -0500

You don't have to be a business genius to realize it's time to be frugal with your dollars. Almost all financial experts are warning all of us to save our money and pay down our credit card debt. It's great advice, but sometimes it seems impossible to follow. How do we maintain the quality of our lives when we should be spending less and everything seems to be costing more? I can't help you figure out your daily budget during this cost-of-living crisis, but I can tell you how you can look better for less. There is no reason for you to give up any of your beauty routine. It is time to be smarter with your beauty dollars.

Did you know you can have your hair cut for free or for minimal cost at most top salons? Call the best salon in your area and ask if they have a class night. Class night is when the top assistants cut hair to hone in on their skills. They are supervised by the hair cutters at the salon. The results are almost always salon quality.
WARNING! It does take longer for a class night hair cut. The assistants are being watched and stopped to explain their cuts as they proceed. Bring a book and never book when your schedule is tight.

If you can't find a salon that provides class night, you can at least stretch out the time between haircuts. The easiest way to do this is to learn to cut your own bangs. Watch your hairdresser cut them. Notice the length of the bangs after they have been cut while your hair is still wet.
WARNING! Bangs will appear much shorter as they dry. To prevent too short bangs cut half as much as you think you need to trim. You can always cut more later.

You can also find a class night to have your hair colored, but today’s at-home hair color kits have made it easy and foolproof.
TIP - Make sure you read the directions before you start your at-home color process. They will help to guarantee the results you desire. Avoid dramatic hair color changes. The more dramatic the hair color change, the faster the roots will show and more frequent touch-ups will be required.

You can always extend your touch-ups with one of the new touch-up kits. They are easy to use and are sold at most drug stores. You apply the color only where the re-growth is obvious which is usually the part or hairline of your hair.
TIP - If you are using a touch-up kit for your hairline, pick a slightly lighter shade. Using a slightly lighter shade will prevent a dark rim of color around your face. This will give you another two to three weeks between touch-ups.

Don't be penny wise and pound foolish. Buy the proper hair dryer, brushes and hair products that your hair requires. This will make it easy for you to have a salon finish for your styling.
TIP - If possible, work with the texture of your hair. This will prevent a difficult blow dry and be faster and easier to maintain.

Looking great and saving money can be done. It takes a little more time and effort, but it's not that hard to do. Pick up your phone book and let your fingers do the walking to find the best class night in your area. If you are in New York or Beverly Hills, call me (here's the salon information). We have class night for color and cut every Monday night.

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