Butter for the Summer: the ultimate hair care ingredient for the summer heat!

Haircare with butters are a must for Summer, when your hair is in need of hydration! Butters are known to protect, close up hair cuticles, nourish and restructure the hair. Check out my top picks for products that have a butter ingredient in them:  

Cocoa butter and Shea butter aren't the only effective butters out there, although it seems that way because they are always in the spotlight. Explore other butters and try something new. There's a product out there with butter for every hair type. Butters aren't always so heavy either so if you have finer hair and think that it'll weigh it down, well that is not always the case. For those with finer hair use a little less and start 1" - 2" from the root. Ladies, I chose the Alterna Bamboo Men Nourishing Conditioner and Shave Cream because it is not only a great conditioner for men, but it is also an amazing product to shave your legs with.

Memorial Weekend Must-Haves!

We are heading to the beach for this long weekend! Woo! Us GBS girls do not pack lightly...we are ready for the beach and after. Check out our picks for Memorial Weekend must-haves :

• Supergoop! SPF 30 Antioxidant-Infused  Sunscreen with Vitamin C Broad Spectrum Spray - if there is anything from this list you use let this be it. YOU HAVE TO PROTECT YOUR SKIN! #1 Rule always use sunscreen, always! 
• Living Proof Instant Texture Mist - let's keep the beachy waves going all weekend long!
• Mio Get Waisted  - help debloat your tummy and get bikini ready before you head out.
• Maskeraide Weather Warrior Sheet Mask - calm, soothe, and heal after the beach your skin.
• Supergoop! Lip Balm SPF 30 - because who wants burnt, chapped lips?! 
• OPI Infinite Shine To Infinity and Blue-Yond- the perfect shade for your fingers and toes will have you looking fabulous. 
• Cane + Austin Ultra Sheer Weightless Sunscreen SPF 50 - your face needs way more protection. Protect you skin from aging and sun damage because wrinkles aren't a good look!
• Davines Su Hair & Body Wash - super moisturizing for your post-beach shower.
• CV Skin Labs Rescue & Relief Spray - will bring hydration back into your skin and is a LIFESAVER if you get a burn.
• Tan Towel Express Tan - if you're in need of a little color before you go to the beach so your legs don't look so pasty :) 
• Evian Facial Spray - keep cool all day long by giving your face and body a little spritz of happiness
• Violet Love headband - they look so great with any bathing suit and such a beautiful selection of fun, summer styles.
• The Wet Brush - get those tangles out after the water and the ocean breeze .
• Rene Furterer Dry Shampoo - sweat? what sweat? spray a little to your roots so your hair is looking fresh.

Stay safe this weekend, have fun & relax :) 

The Must-Have, Styling Regimen Staple

There is one product that I've come across that I find plays well in almost every hair type. Everyone I know that has tried it, swears by it. The ultimate, staple hair product that needs to be in everyone's styling regimen? Davines Oi/Milk! This all-in-one milk is a multi benefit beauty treatment & is good for all kinds of hair. The active ingredient in Oi/Milk is Roucou Oil, which comes from Africa, Asia, & South America. Roucou oil comes from the Annatto plant and has  natural SPF (unlike Argan oil) & contains 100x more beta-carotene than carrots! If ingredients aren't all that you care about in products, then you should totally care about the smell of Oi. All the products in the Oi line smell like..in my opinion...a sexy man lol. They really smell amazing!! Check out the many benefits of Oi/Milk and don't forget check out the rest of the Davines Oi Collection. 

Benefits:

• adds shine

• adds softness and silkiness

• has an excellent detangling power

• facilitates combing of dry and wet hair

• controls frizz

• has an exceptional conditioning effect

• gives body without weighing hair down

• moisturizes hair

• facilitates blow drying

• heat protection

• provides a longer-lasting hairstyle

HOW TO USE:

After using oi/shampoo, towel dry and spray oi/all in one milk 10-15 times on roots and ends: do not rinse and continue with styling. Depending on the type of hair, increase or decrease the number of sprays.

The Speedy Blowout

So as a curly girl I cringe at the thought of even planning on straightening my hair (which is rare because it takes forever..and a lot of patience). The past few times I've messed around with a few product concoctions and I think I finally nailed it. Here is my recipe for a fast, frizz-free blow dry:

1. On towel-dried hair, apply Living Proof PHD 5-in-1 Styling Cream on length ( I get a little oily on top if I apply too much product, but go for it if your hair can take it..this product gives great volume!)

2. Then I spritzed Redken Pillow Proof Blow Dry Express Primer all over from roots to tips

3. I followed up with a light blow dry and when it was a little more on the drier side I used Living Proof Straight all over while it was still a little damp.

4. Blow dry however you like to style and if you like your hair very straight use the Living Proof Straight again on dry hair before you flat iron

Straightening my hair isn't such a to-do anymore with these couple of products. Love that I get to rock the locks straight and frizz-free more often! 

20% off of Living Proof until May 31, 2015. FREE FULL-SIZE PhD Styling Cream with any $75 purchase or a travel-size PhD Shampoo and Conditioner with any $50 Living proof purchase! use code: HHM15 on www.GBSbeauty.com at checkout!

Product Review: Maskeraide Sheet Mask

The recent sheet mask craze has gone viral so I decided to finally give it a go. I'm really big on masks and treatments and was pleasantly surprised with the outcome of my skin after the mask. For my sheet mask I used the Maskeraide All Nighter.

My skin loved it! After a weekend of sun and a little too much fun this mask was perfect. My skin felt hydrated, revived and my under eyes were revitalized. I would definitely recommend the sheet masks, especially for a GNI (girls night in). I also really like that there are so many different options; next up is definitely Detox Diva or Weather Warrior. Not only are these masks effective, but they look so fun and have such cute names (great gifts or stocking stuffers). Here is my #sheetmaskselfie. Please excuse the Snapchat caption I forgot to save the picture before lol

Eliminate curl chaos!

We are continuing the celebration of Curl Month at GBS. Today I wanted to feature L'anza Healing Haircare because it is such a great line for all hair types, but curls as well. Curls need healing so any shampoo or conditioner you use from L'anza will be great. Now onto their awesome Healing Curls line which contains Curl Define Cream and the Curl Perfecting Treatment. There are 3 traditional methods to curling hair that will give you the outcome of curls you want: perm, heat styling, and styling products with way too many gross chemicals in them. These methods are all extremely damaging to curls. Get more spring and bounce without damaging your hair by using L’anza Curl Perfecting Treatment and Curl Define Cream. Bring your curls and waves back to life! The treatment contains key ingredients which include yogurt and milk thistle. These ingredients contain high levels of the amino acid, Cysteine. Cysteines are the building blocks of hair, these amino acids are in charge of strengthening the hair. The Curl Perfecting Treatment is formulated by science that adheres to the Law of Physics.  I won’t bore you with the scientific details, but it is so cool the formulas they come up with to get you the perfect curl. One of the formulas is called “Extension Spring Rate Calculation”. It’s pretty crazy what goes into making the perfect curl product. When I used the products I followed up with a diffuser and my curls were beautiful. They were frizz-free, shiny and still looked great on the second day. I liked pairing it with a high hold gel because i feel like my curls need just a little bit of hold, but again no 2 curls are the same. 

·         Eliminates “Curl Chaos” Common problem with curly hair
·         Eliminates frizz
·         Perfect fiber alignment and definition
·         More spring and bounce
·         Spiral memory
·         Formulated by science – adheres to Law of Physics
·         Curl retention 

Product Spotlight: Ouidad Moisture Lock Leave-In

Express, never suppress your curls! Ouidad Moisture Lock Leave-In is one of my favorite leave-in treatments for curly hair. It is so hydrating and a great primer for styling products. Moisture Lock defined my curls and kept frizz down to a minimum. Note: even if you don't have curls and just need some hydration this product will probably work great, too.

Here are a few of it's benefits: 

• Gives curls body and substance without weighing them down
• Encourages a well-defined curl pattern with healthy movement
• Free of residues and polymers that interfere with styling
• Helps build a lasting, breathable moisture foundation within the curl cuticle that dramatically improves curl formation, ease of styling and even the look of hair color 

Key ingredients and benefits:

• Prickly Pear Cactus Extract draws moisture from the air and seals it in for superior conditioning
• Antioxidants Green Tea and Vitamin B5 protect hair and promote shine
• Arnica Extract, a healing agent, promotes long-lasting hydration and helps seal the cuticle layer to prevent frizz and encourage healthier hair and scalp.

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