What I Wore Wednesday: Hely Hair Studio, Glasgow

I've been told that shadow roots are the new "in" thing for hair but let's be honest I just let my highlights get WAY too grown out. This is the second time in a year I've let my hair venture into unintentional ombre area and I don't know what I keep doing this to myself! I love being blonde and my natural dingy shade of blonde just doesn't cut it--I want my hair to be blondie, blonde, blonde, BLONDE!

Luckily the fabulous Sindy from Hely Hair Studio came to my rescue. I was really impressed with Sindy and the team at Hely Hair from the Paul Mitchell event last month so I made an appointment to come in and get my hair sorted out! My highlights needed sorted and my cut was way grown out and was lacking shape and style.

I met with Sindy earlier in the week to discuss what I was after; basically a brighter blonde with lowlights in my natural dirty blonde so any growth isn't super obvious. My number one hair length rule is it always has to be long enough to go in a ponytail but otherwise I wasn't fussed with how much needed to come off to make it look fuller and healthier.

Sindy mixed up three different shades and I got all foiled up. After my colour was processed I got a deep conditioning treatment that made me feel like I'd temporarily joined Daft Punk.

I didn't have to worry about getting lucky though because my cut and colour came about amazing! I ended up having a few inches off to bring back my long layers and give some shape to my hair and the blonde is back!

I love going brighter blonde for summer--who am I kidding I love being a brighter blonde all year round! I'm super happy with how my hair has turned out and I'm so glad to have found somewhere that can give me the style and colour I love so much! If you are looking for a salon in Glasgow to give you that perfect blonde hair I can't recommend Hely Hair Studio enough!

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What I Wore Wednesday: Paul Mitchell Intelligent Styling

I love my hair. I fully own up to the fact that my state of mind/mood is impacted by whether or not I'm happy with my hair. And I'll be honest I've never been the best at styling my hair. I tend to wear it down and straight or down and wavy--that's all I got. I blame my Mom who used my sister and I like Barbie dolls and braided and bowed our hair but never really taught us how to do it ourselves. So I was really excited to head to the Paul Mitchell Intelligent Styling event at Hely Hair Studio in Hyndland.

The event was the launch and learn about Paul Mitchell's new Neuro Intelligent Styling tools. The Neuro®, precision instruments include the Neuro® Dry, Neuro® Smooth, Neuro® Unclipped Rod, Neuro® Unclipped 1.25, Neuro® Unclipped 0.75 and Neuro® Curl. I personally fell in love with the Neuro Curl which creates waves and curls. It has a premium titanium barrel to ensure fast, precisely regulated heat in seconds and the clip grips hair for better style control and a smooth finish. I like my curling wand but this makes curls and waves so much quicker and easier!

The talented staff at Hely Hair Studio were on hand to create a variety of looks using the new Neuro tools as well as new Paul Mitchell express dry products. I opted to try a braided or plaited look because it is something I've never been able to execute myself.

First up I tried a flirty fishtail braid with a plaited crown. It's hard to tell but there is a teeny, tiny braid wrapped around the braid bun! This looked so amazing from the back and is definitely something I could never do myself but I was a bit self-conscious about how it looked from the front. Basically I was all face and I have A LOT of face!

So next we tried braiding just the front from my part to behind my ear and then I played with the Neuro Curl to create some waterfall curls at the end. We also kept that teeny, tiny braid I mentioned before (see it on the left?). I loved this look and it would be perfect for a day at the beach as your hair would be out of your face but not scraped back into a ponytail.

I got some great tips from the team at Hely Hair Studio on how to recreate this look myself but I've not given it a try yet. When you braid or plait your hair like this yourself you need to work upwards rather than downwards--otherwise you end up with what I have had in the past which is just a random braid hanging in your face!

What is your favourite way to style your hair? 

What styling tool or product could you not live without?

THANK YOU to everyone who nominated me I've been shortlisted in the BiBs! Voting is now open and I'd really appreciate if you took a minute and voted for me!

 I'm category 12, Style, Transatlantic Blonde. 

If you can take a second to click I'd really appreciate it! 

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Feminist Friday: Hairy vs. Hairless

Anti Pervert Hairy Leggings

It all started two months ago with those stupid freaking hairy "anti-pervert" leggings. You know the ones I'm talking about. The ones that permeated my Facebook news stream with comments of "haha" and "eww." The ones that were billed to keep unwanted male attention at bay. Those stupid freaking leggings drove me to a feminist rage that put me on threat level explosive. I hate them. Even more so I hated that no one else around me seemed to understand that they weren't funny and they weren't gross but were the epitome of patriarchal bullshit and  perpetuated the beauty myth while not so subtly victim blaming.

So if you don't want "perverts" perving on you then you should have hairy legs. So obviously hairless legs are the only attractive thing to have; if you have hairy legs you're gross and even the perviest perv will leave you be. I've talked about hairlessness and what society tells us is beautiful before so I'm not going to rage on too long here--on the grand scale of how fucked up these leggings are it's the lesser of all the evils.

Women "have" to wear these leggings to stop perverts. Why can't the perverts stop themselves? Even suggesting that they will stop unwanted attention suggests that any unwanted attention is the fault of the woman being harassed and not the harasser--victim blaming and not even vaguely subtle about it. I'll also take it so far as to say they perpetuate the belief that rape is about sex when rape has nothing to do with sex and is about power. If you're a pretty, hairless girl you could get perved on so you need to protect yourself by making yourself ugly and hairy so no man would ever want to harass or perv on you. Obviously unattractive women are never raped or harassed, duh. 

I promise they're really hairy.

Those freaking hairy leggings pissed me off so much I decided to say fuck it and I would grow my own pair of leggings and challenge my own thoughts about hairy legs and say fuck you to the man. One little problem though--I can't shake that feeling that other people are judging me and my hairy legs and I really don't like it.

In general I've been okay about it. I've gone to swimming pools, worn dresses without tights to work, but I've also been somewhat hyper-conscious of what I think is other people staring at my legs. I'll be fine and not think about it but then cross my legs in a meeting and think that everyone is looking at my legs and how hairy they are. It doesn't help that hair in general grosses me out and I don't know if that is just a personal hang-up or societal norms rearing their ugly head but I can't embrace and love my hairy legs like I would in some utopian feminist fantasy. Maybe two months isn't long enough to break my subconscious subservience to societal norms but I'm not anywhere near 100% secure about having hairy legs.

I find myself apologizing for them, too. To the girl who waxes my eyebrows to friends when I'm out for drinks--they all say the same thing about how blonde I am and they hand't even noticed. They couldn't have not shaved for two months but I still can't reconcile it. I want to be happy, hairy and care-free but for whatever reason I'm fairly sure I'm at the end of my hairy journey. Although I have to say writing this and "coming out" with my hairy legs has made me feel a bit better about it all.  Still though feeling the wind blow between your leg hairs isn't a particularly pleasant experience.

It's increasingly difficult to reconcile my feminist beliefs with my own personal beauty beliefs but I hope I can fall back on my most favourite feminist belief--choice. I chose to have hairy legs and at some point I'm going to choose to have hairless legs again. Sure my choices are partially informed by what society tells me I should do but if I buck the norm and still don't like it surely making an informed choice is worth something? 



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What I Wore Wednesday: Rainbow Room International

I've made no secret that I've been hating my hair lately. For ages all I wanted was really long hair and then once I got it I felt like I couldn't do anything with it. I was super impressed I didn't pull my hair back once at work yet the whole time I really wished I'd thrown a hair tie in my purse. Every time I walked past the bathroom mirror it just didn't look right and I wasn't loving it at all.
So I found it quite serendipitous when I got the chance to try out the services at Rainbow Room International at Royal Exchange Square in Glasgow. Rainbow Room was founded in 1979 and is an award winning salon synonymous with quality, luxury and innovation. There are 9 salons, 2 beauty and spa salons as well as the prestigious academy. I'd heard great things about Rainbow Room but had never been myself.

When I met with David, the salon manager, I let him know I felt like my hair was too long and just hung there and that my unintentional ombre (more commonly known as massive grown out roots) was making me feel a bit blah and I was open to suggestions. We talked about my face shape (heart) and how angles would help flatter it and how to brighten my hair up with a mix of highlights and cooler low lights as my natural colour is quite warm.
I also learned that a lot of shampoos have silicone in them that cause build up that not only coats your hair but can block up your hair follicle and weaken your hair; it can even make two weak strands grow instead of one strong strand which is why you can have shorter standing up bits of frizzy hair! David scraped my hair to show me the silicone build up and I couldn't believe it. There are certain shampoos I won't be touching now!   I got started with an amazing Shiatsu head massage (lovely after all that flight drama) and then had my hair cut first before colour. David cut my hair first because then he could apply my highlights to flatter and accentuate the new cut. Then five different colours were applied to my head with foils and afterwards David painted on colour outside of the foil where it would process differently.

David talked me through the best way to blow dry my hair (don't part it and don't tip your head upside down ::coughMOMcough::) and what sort of products to use as well. Rainbow Room have their own product line formulated especially for Scottish water including a light weight leave in conditioner that can be used to style as well. When I first sat down I'd told David I wanted to know what he thought about my hair and what he thought I should do since he has been with the salon over 20 years with experience in London and Amsterdam before that and he did not let me down!

Pink and Grey Top- Gap

Sweetheard Jeans, Old Navy

Blue Flip Flops, Old Navy

I LOVE my hair! At first I thought maybe the colour was a bit dark but I think my eyes were playing tricks on me. My hair looks so much healthier and has so much body and fullness. There is an actual shape to my hair now instead of just two flat curtains. I'm so happy I was able to go to the Rainbow Room and experience their friendly and talented staff first hand. I would whole heartedly recommend them to anyone and can't wait to see their new styling videos they are producing shortly. David had offered to show my different ways to curl and style it but as I had to pick up Blondie Boy from school I didn't have time.

Rainbow Room International haircuts and colour vary in price by the level of stylist but you can also get stand-by appointments or appointments with students in their training academy.

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Transatlantic Blonde was provided a cut and colour free of charge for the purpose of this review but all opinions are my own. I am ridonkulously picky about my hair and if I didn't like it you would know--I only speak the truth!

What I Wore Wednesday: Birthday Dinner Out

This past week has been in a word: INSANE. Blondie Boy's birthday party was last Friday, followed the next day by his actual birthday and followed the following day by NBH's Mum's 60th Birthday/his sister's 30th. It was a birthday bonanza weekend!

I have no acceptable or even vaguely okay looking photos of myself from Blondie Boy's party or from his birthday lunch out. To be honest I didn't really wear anything exciting since it was a kid's party anyway. I did put an effort in to my outfit when we went out for Persian food for my SIL's birthday dinner on Sunday and in an even bigger twist of fate Blondie Boy and I BOTH looked cute at the same time (If you're a Mom you'll know this rarely happens--it's usually you or the kid--not both).

I'm not 100% on my skinny jeans with my ankle boots but I gave it a try to recreate the outfit I would have worn on New Year's Eve if we went out:

Blondie

Sequin Top- Loft

Skinny Jeans-Old Navy

Ankle Boots- New Look

Jacket-Zara

Blondie Boy

Skull Sweatshirt-Target

Plain Trousers-US Polo Association

Gym Shoes-Adidas

Fox Hat-ASDA

Blondie Boy has had these plaid pants forever but they've always been to big on him. They finally fit and I loved how they looked with his skull sweatshirt. A little preppy, a little punk and of course he through in his favourite fox hat for good measure.

I also tried out this thingy called a "donut quiff comb" I got at Claire's. I have no idea what it supposed to be used for but I used it like a "bump-it." My hair is really fine and obviously blonde and bump-its just don't stay put in my hair and you can see them through my hair so I thought maybe this quiff comb would work for a bit of volume when I pull my hair back.  Luckily for me it totally worked. You can't see it really in this photo but to me that is a good thing because I didn't want to look like Snooki!

Do you have any crazy gadgets or random techniques you use to make your hair cute?

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What I Wore Wednesday: Chanukah & Night Out

It was to the wire and I almost didn't have a WIWW outfit this week. NotBlondeHusband got struck with the sickness but and was really, really unwell for several days. So while he was quarantined in the bedroom Blondie Boy and I hung out downstairs making mulled apple cider and decorating gingerbread men.

Isn't our wee gingerbread family cute? I cancelled a night I had out with the Glasgow Women's Aid Board so I don't have a fancy night out outfit to show but I do have what I wore  today. Today Blondie Boy and I went to his class to teach them about Chanukah! It was super fun and I showed them the menorah, taught them how to play dreidel and sing the dreidel song and BB and I made egg-free cinnamon sugar donuts for them all as well. I was actually really impressed at how long we were able to hold their attention!

We came home from that and then I ran around like a crazy person trying to get my VISA application together. Thank you so much for your thoughts last week because I passed my test!!! I can't say it went smoothly it totally didn't. I went to go park and the street parking was all closed for "filming." It freaked me out but I found a spot nearby luckily. I sat outside the room and was studying when I saw a girl get her ID out so I decided to grab mine. IT WAS NOT IN MY WALLET.

I called NBH frantically asking where it was as I'd asked him if it was in my wallet before I left and he said yes but he'd apparently thought I'd asked about my bank card! So he jumped in the car to bring my ID to me. The test people said as long as he made it before registration closed I'd be okay. So I'm freaking out now because I don't want to lose £50 if they won't let me take it but luckily he made it literally 1 minute after the test man told me I had 3 minutes left!

So yes I passed and then I got the back bank statements I needed today in the mail so I rushed around trying to get copies (they make you send the originals and a set a copies) and then to the post office and then I met my friend Julie to to a Cook School class!

It was great fun hanging out with Julie, who I hadn't seen since Guns N Roses, and the class is amazing; Head Chef Phil Lewis showed us how to make so many different dishes for holiday entertaining and best of all you get to eat them all as they generously top up your wine glass. 

That's not even all the food we ate! There was soup, curry and an amazing Panettone Bread Pudding with cherry jam too! Phil was extra kind and dug out some mince pies and mulled wine for Julie, too! We had a fab evening, came away with all the recipes and are going to try and book on to a full day class next!

So while I'd planned, in my head, to change clothes between teaching toddlers about Chanukah and going out I ended up wearing the same outfit; hopefully it translated well from day to night!

Old Navy Turquoise Boatneck Sweater with Button Detail on Shoulder 

Gap Purple Quilted Vest

Old Navy The Flirt Skinny Jeans

Sketchers Back Boots

You can't tell because of the vest but the sweater has two buttons on each shoulder which I think is just a really cute detail. Also it is a great length for skinny jeans because it is a bit longer than normal sweaters but not as long as a sweater dress. Somehow I managed not to spill any food on myself so I was able to take this picture when we got home!

On a totally unrelated note look how freaking long my hair is! It is really starting to annoying me for a variety of reasons not really length related and I'm tempted to do something new to it. What would you suggest? Keep in mind there is no way I'm going for a pixie cut or dying it black so don't even go there :)

Pink is the New Chic

It will no surprise to anyone who knows me that I've done this. I've done it before (okay 10 years ago) and I've been thinking about doing it for a few months now. I was thinking about it again with The Hollywood Housewife popped up in my Instagram stream and I thought well she's my age and she's done it so why can't I?

So what have I done? I've gone and dyed my hair pink--not all of it, just a bit underneath--and I LOVE it. I work for myself so really nothing was holding me back and I'm so glad I've done it. So here I am all pinkified. What do y'all think? It is a sort of hot pink, fuchsia shade now and will eventually fade to a gentler bubble gum sort of pink.

My Mom says I look Eurotrash; since I've wanted to be Eurotrash since I was 14 I will take that to be a huge compliment!

I guess I'll know soon enough as NotBlondeHusband and I are off for a mini-break (toddler free!) to Sweden tomorrow! I'll try and tweet when I get wifi; see you Monday!!

PS: Because I like y'all here is the picture from 10 years ago; don't be too hard on me. I swear two pink chunks framing your face was super cool in Ohio in 2002.

No Heat Curls- Tried and Tested

You may or may not have heard of the no heat curls where you wrap your hair around a headband and sleep in it overnight to create curls. If you have you are probably thinking why the hell is she blogging about this that was ages ago and well you are partially right.  I've tried the no heat curls last year and failed on various levels ranging from minor to epic.

Then I saw Morgan from The 818 post about how much she was loving the no heat curls and I thought maybe I should give them a try again and well um yea fail again. I like to hear about other people's triumphs and failures when trying out these things so I give you my no heat curl fails.

#1 First Attempt Mini Fail (June 2011)

This was actually my best attempt but I say fail because I had to put a bunch of scrunching mousse in to get it to look like this. Yes I'm serious- it took both the headband and products to achieve these less than impressive waves.

#2 Second Attempt EPIC Fail (June 2011)

I can't believe I'm actually posting this because it was such a hot mess and I have no make-up on in the first two pictures and therefore am a hot mess myself. After reading around on the internet some more I tried spraying my hair with salt water as recommended for better results. I ended up with a pyramid of crazy clown curls--not a good look. We had to meet NBH's Grandma so after finger combing with wet hands and pinning some back I ended up with the look on the right.

#3 Third Attempt Straight Up Fail (March 2012)

Okay not the best picture but less curly that the first mini-fail and I've got no explanation other than I straightened my hair the day before so maybe that had some effect?

So what do you think? Do I give the not heat curls a fourth (okay actually fifth because on the attempt prior to that last one I wrapped my hair the wrong way but that doesn't count) try or just give up? Have y'all tried it with any success?

What I Wore Wednesday: Versace for HM

Last Thursday I was lucky enough to win a Twitter competition and skip the queue for the unveiling of the new Versace for H and M collection! (ed note: I know it is not H and M, but I can't get an ampersand to work for some reason!) I got to go in early and shop before anyone else hit the store. The same rules still applied: I could only shop for 10 minutes and only one of each item.  

I went in with only two items in mind and came out with five items from the Versace collection. I had planned a fashion show for y'all but well life took over so lucky for me Polyvore stepped in! So here is how I *would* have worn them if I actually got chance!

I'm still unsure about a few items and have until tomorrow to return them so please be honest about what you think! I'm also keen to hear alternate styling options, too!

Embellished Skirt-Versace for H and M 

Black 3/4 sleeve top- H and M

Black Peep Toe Heels- Stuart Weitzman (Don't actually own but have similar pair)

High stylized bun

Black Ice Manicure- 15 Royal Terrace (I'm loving how the micro glitter breaks up the black!)

Red Dress- Versace for H and M (Sold out! No Link)
Black Peep Toe Heels- Stuart Weitzman (Don't actually own but have similar pair)
Long, Straight Hair; Middle Part

Black Fur Vest- Versace for H and M (Sold out! No link.)
Black Leather Studded Bag- Versace for H and M
Black Boots- Sketchers
Skinny Jeans- Old Navy

Floral Leggings- Versace for H and M

I've no idea how to really wear the leggings other than some sort of plain black top; any ideas? Did you shop the new Versace collection?