If you’re a Shear Genius 3 fan you’ve watched Janine Jarman for the past nine weeks cutting, coloring, blow drying, brushing, curling, pinning, extending strands and turning out spectacular hairstyles in a very limited amount of time.

Who will ever forget her first Elimination Win in Week One when her stunning blonde Nymph from the sea floated down the runway strutting her gorgeous cloud of blonde tresses.  It was a WOW moment.

Male Hair Extension Victory Plus Bob Success

Janine also completely transformed a frumpy man into a hunk using HairUWear hair extensions.  The bubbly competitor also created a picture perfect bob on a model with naturally curly hair.   Of course Janine has had a few misses, but for the most part she has come in either as doing Shear Genius work or being a close second.  Her performance on the reality TV show has been stupendous.

Get To Know The Real Janine

While you might think you know Janine from her Shear Genius 3 performances, you may surprised with the real Janine.  I have known Janine since she opened her fabulous Hairroin Salon (www.hairroinsalon.com) located at 1553 North Cahuenga Boulevard in Los Angeles, California (90028-7312 –  Phone (323) 467-0392).

I’ve had the great fortune to visit Janine at Hairroin which is by far one of the coolest salons in Hollywood. (more…)

Yesterday I was talking to some of my hairstylist friends and of course we’ve all been watching Shear Genius 3 (SG3) every week on Bravo/TV.

As a result of the show lots of topics of hair conversation have been popping up.

One conversation was the Shortcut Challenge which is one of two challenges which takes place every episode on SG3.

The challenge is always timed.  Often the SG3 contestants are only given 60-120 minutes, depending on the hair challenge and what other hairdressing tasks might be included such as applying color, chemicals, hair extensions or other adjunct hair styling procedures.

Which brought up the question, how long a hair cut should really take.  In the real world of course.  Not on a reality TV show. The answer?  It depends.

A haircut may include the following variables:

1.    Length of hair (very short to very long)
2.    Texture of hair (straight, wavy, curly, kinky, mixed textures)
3.    Type (thin, medium, thick, very thick)
4.    Children of adult cut
5.    Male of female
6.    Wet haircut or dry haircut
7.    Cut only or cut with blow out and styling options?
8.    Haircut combined with other chemical treatments such as color or texturizing?
9.    Cost of the cut (inexpensive to full service cut)
10.  Type of salon or hair establishment (cut-in-the-box, high end or celebrity salon)
11.  Experience and skill level of hairstylist as well as reputation
12.  Number of people involved.  Are assistants included?

Of course there are always unforeseen variables but in general the key variables are listed.

In cosmetology school once we were taught to caught hair we were required to practice, practice, practice and focus on getting fast while being being precise and efficient.  Of course time is always money in the world of hairdressing.

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Anyone with thin, fine strands is always looking for tricks to make strands look fatter and fulled.

One trick professional hairdressers may use is to build in hidden crimps underneath the top layers.

(Image courtesy Vidal Sassoon – All Rights Reserved)

Why?  The crimps are carefully positioned on the layer closest to the scalp.  Then the top hair is lightly backcombed and then smoothed over the crimps.

The crimped hair is created with either a hot crimper, curling iron positioned to add a crimp or with rollers.

The benefit of adding crimps is that it acts as a sort of foundation to pump up finer top strands.   Crimps function in the same way as backcombing except less likely to fall due to the profile of the finished hot design.

Of course you can enhance the crimps even further by pulling out all volumizing stops with volume building shampoo, volumizing root spray and any other styling tools which help build in hair fatness.

More Information

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Hairdressers and stylists who cut lots of hair on a regular basis must find the very best shears for their hands and fingers.  It is their most important tool.

(Image of 100% handmade Elite Shear from Shark Fin® Shears – All Rights Reserved).

Risk Of Carpel Tunnel Nerve Damage

Not only will this cutting tool allow the hairdresser to create the very best hair cuts and styles for their clients, it will also protect from over extension of the middle finger, which reduces carpal tunnel nerve damage and other health related problems caused by improperly fitted shears.

Traditional shear design allows your hand to misalign causing dexterity strain and other pressure. (more…)

Right after HairBoutique.com was officially launched in 1997 I made a personal journey down to see Michael Kolar aka Motorcycle at the Michael Motorcycle Hair Salon in uptown Dallas.

He was charming and welcoming but definitely a hair guru with his opinions about hair.

(Image of motorcycle – Septober – All Rights Reserved).

At that time Michael was famous for his own long hair, the book he had written about hairlines and his unusual approach to dealing with hair. (more…)

Distinctive Features Of Oily Hair

Sebaceous glands are particularly large and abundant (approximately 66/inches) in the human scalp.  What are sebaceous glands?

(Image of Phyto Phytocedrat Sebum-Regulating Shampoo designed to assist with oily hair issues – Available at HairBoutique.com in The Marketplace – Image by HairBoutique.com – All Rights Reserved).

They are microscopic glands in the skin which secrete an oily matter (sebum) in the hair follicles to lubricate the skin and hair of animals. In humans, they are found in greatest abundance on the face and scalp, though they are distributed throughout all skin sites except the palms and soles.

Very high at birth, sebaceous activity drops during childhood then rises once again at puberty, reaching a peak in adult years. Excess sebum spreads onto the hair shaft, making the hair limp and flat. Oily hair looks dull, greasy and sticky. (more…)

Selecting Best Hair Cuts For Fine Hair

When Neutrogena commissioned the research firm Yankelovich Partners to explore “bad hair days,” some years ago the firm found that 90% of female respondents had them.   But what were they? Days when hair is “out of place,” according to 76% of respondents; “flat” hair (63%) ; or limp” locks (58%).  What do you do when “flat and limp” describes your hair type on any give day? Probably, have a whole lot of bad hair days.

(Image of L-R Patrice Jennings and Jennie Garth wearing a center parted shoulder skimming all-one-length platinum blonde bob on her fine hair.  Image at Tori Spelling Book Party – 04-13-09 – DailyCeleb.com – All Rights Reserved).

Never fear, if you have fine hair, which tends, regardless of the texture (straight, wavy, naturally curly, kinky) having the very best hairstyle to match your hair type will do wonders for preventing a bad hair days.

Keep in mind that many celebrities like Jessica Simpson and Britney Spears have fine hair and look at the amazing hair styles they have rocked over the years.  OK, well except when Britney was having a hair crisis.  But generally speaking the superstar performer does have naturally fine hair.

While Jessica tends to have a natural wave to her fine strands, Britney’s hair tends to be straighter.

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