| 5 Minute Trendy Up-Dos Review |
| Karen Marie Shelton |
| Revised Date: 4/28/07 - Original Publication
Date; 6/2/2000 |
Introduction
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Barbara Lhotan |
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Courtesy Barbara Lhotan - All Rights Reserved. |
will never forget when I first "discovered this incredible gem" of a hairstyling book. I was on one of my weekly product buying trip for the Marketplace. I was wandering through a garden of fingernail polish, hair sparklers and glittery head bands searching for some new goodies for HairBoutique.com.
Please note: This book is now out of print but may
be found through Amazon.com used book dealers. As I dug through the stacks of magnetic hair jewels I happened to notice a single copy of a little paperback (8 1/2" by 5 1/2") book titled 5 Minute Trendy Up-Dos laying on a table all by itself. The cost for the book was $9.95 US plus tax. My first thought was to just ignore the book. My experience has taught me that many styling books are limited in their long term value or appeal. After all, hair fashions come and go, in warp speeds. I have also discovered that with many styling books it is hard for me to re-create the styles because there are no photos, or steps or helpful hints. I wasn't able to resist the urge to pick up this book. The cover had some excellent photos of very exciting styles. I could tell by looking at just the cover that the styles appeared not only very current, but seemed to have very classic overtones.
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Barbara Lhotan |
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Courtesy Barbara Lhotan - All Rights Reserved. |
As I flipped through the 62 pages of the book. I was stunned. No, actually I was flabbergasted. Have you ever been in the grocery store checkout lane and decided to speed read one of the rags? If
you're like me, I am always trying to suck up all the facts about
Jennifer (Aniston), Brad (Pitt) and of course Angelina (Jolie). Unfortunately I usually have only a few seconds to do a brain transfer before I have to decide between paper or plastic. The same thing happened to me the with 5 Minute Trendy Up-Dos. This was the most beautifully done hairstyling books I had ever seen, with possibly the exception of Patrick Cameron's
various long hair works of hair art which are only available in hard copy.
I stood rooted to my spot in the store and proceeded to read every single page and look at every single photo. I really loved the fact that every one of the styles was shown in an evolutionary way so that you could watch the style take shape from the very beginning to the very end.  There I was trying to suck up all the good info I could in this book that I just could not put down.
Unfortunately it seemed like it was the only book in the entire place. I asked the owner of the store if she had any in the back. You know how that goes. They always seem to have more goodies in the back. She laughed and told me that she had only bought a few and they flew out the door. The copy I had my hot little hands wrapped around was her very own personal copy.
I decided to try and memorize as much of the book as my brain could
cram in with the idea that I would find it later. Before And After Photos That Are Amazing  One of the many things that amazed me was the fact that this book had all the edgiest styles.
It had so many different hot styles that incorporated such great features as big knots, little knots, trendy twists, rolls, crimps, loops, drapes and many other great techniques. (Photo credits: 5 Minute Trendy Updos - all rights reserved) Each and every style starts with a Before photo ("Before" photo above of the Big Knots, Little Knots long hair style). The target style is described step by step from the beginning to the gorgeous end.  It is amazing to look at all the "Before" styles and then compare them with the "After" styles. Some of the transformations are truly magical. ("After" photo to the side from the Big Knots, Little Knots long hair style).
Every style (designed by hair masters Barbara Lhotan and Louis Salvati), has photos that show each of the steps. Even better, all of the photos (2 inches by 3 inches) are in color and captured by the magical eye of celebrity/fashion photographer Eric Von Lockhart.  As I mentioned earlier in this review, the photos are very carefully and clearly sequenced so that you can easily create each style by following the photo and text directions.
With some of the styles, the instructions are illustrated with different colors to demonstrate where sections of hair may need to cross or where fingers need to be positioned. All of the styles are shown from multiple angles, front, back and sides. (Photo credits: 5 Minute Trendy Updos - all rights reserved)  One of the comments that I hear so often from HairBoutique.com visitors is their frustration with seeing only limited views of hairstyles in popular magazines.
I am often asked why so many hair styling magazines never show a full blown back of a hair style or may only show a limited view. The 5 Minute Trendy Updos book shows the stunning styles from all angles. Every finished style is shown from both the front and back views. Styles For All Types Of Hair, All Types Of Women Another obvious advantage of the book is that it seems to cover a wide range of hair lengths, textures and types. It also seem to cover a wide age range.  The store owner told me that her 16 year old daughter went nuts over some the curly and wavy styles while her 35 year old sister loved the long hair styles. (Photo credits: 5 Minute Trendy Updos - all rights reserved)
I did notice that some of the models in the book seemed to be in their 40s while some of the other models were obviously in their teens. Other models were in their 20s and 30s. While the book is dedicated to female hairstyles, it does cover a wide range of different hair lengths, types and textures. The 16 different unusual styles that are covered in the 62 pages of this book include the following updo styles: Short Styles
Pretty in Pins
Rolls for the Prom
Twist, Braid, Go  While the book only contains three styles that are specific to shorter hair, each of the styles are very versatile and could easily be modified to create new looks.
The short hair styles could also be used on hair that is medium in length. The style above is the Pretty in Pins short style. There is also a special style that incorporates hair rolls and is called Roll for the Prom. The Twist, Braid and Go short style is very easy to create and works on chin length hair. (Photo credits: 5 Minute Trendy Updos - all rights reserved) Medium
 Tails, Knots and Pieces Pulled
One Ponytail, Four Rolls, Four Wraps
Crimp, Knot and Ready
Swept Romantically Long
Wind and Wrap
Shakespearean Elegance
Big Knots, Little Knots
Give Curls A Twirl
One Loop, Four Drapes
Trendy Twist
Two Sections and Very Cool
Wrap it Up, I'll Take It!
Four Ponys, Two Knots and One Great Finish The longest styles fall between mid back and waist length. No backcombing is used or recommended to create any of the styles in this "hair friendly" book. Getting My Hands On This Find I asked the owner of the store if she had any other copies of the book in the back somewhere. She laughed and told me that she had only originally bought a few and they had flown right out the door. WOW. A fabulous find and none left. I was frustrated and afraid that if I didn't get to buy this incredible book that it would be gone and I would lose it forever. This was even before I discovered it is not available through regular book channels. After buying tons of other products the owner took pity on me and offered to sell me her own personal copy. I was very touched. I could tell if was one of her favorite possessions. She promised me that she would order a few more books and take one to replace her own copy that she sold to me. What a thoughtful gesture. Trying The Styles On My Own Hair Once I had the book safely stashed in my car I could not wait to get home and start trying the styles on my own long hair. I was like a kid in a candy store. Guard This Book With Your Life I have to warn you that if you lend this book to anyone, you may never see it again. I have already lost two books by carrying them around. A few weeks ago I was meeting a friend for lunch and I was enjoying this book when she arrived. She snatched the book right out of my hands and starting oohing and aahing over all the styles. Next thing I knew she was driving off with my copy. I bought myself a second copy but left if on my desk at work. One of the engineers walked in and started flipping through the styles. Bam, in a blink of an eye it was gone. This big burly guy convinced me that his 14 year old daughter and 30 year old wife would just love this book. So off went copy #2. My current copy is hidden inside my desk. I am not going to show it to anyone else because I know that it will also walk away. Guard your copy with your life and don't buy it as a gift unless you buy yourself a copy or you will have to shop for another gift when you decide you have to keep this book. Bottom line, it is one of the best hairstyling books I have seen in a very long time. Credits 5 Minute Trendy Up-Dos
Hairstyles by Barbara Lhotan and Louis Salvati
Make-up by Monifa Mortis Photography by Eric Von Lockhart
Copyright 2000 Thank You The HairBoutique.com wishes to say a special thanks to Caroline Clegg of Inspire for all her help and support. We also wish to thank Barbara Lhotan who is just fabulous to work with. Thanks also to Eric Von Lockhart for his fantastic photography. |