Sebastian + Burlesque

Sebastian Professional’s Re-Shaper Hairspray takes center stage again as the Official Hairspray of Burlesque, the upcoming musical film starring Cher and Christina Aguilera.

Sebastian Professional is launching a limited-edition, Burlesque-inspired gift set that is available in salons nationwide for $30. With purchase of the Sebastian gift set, which includes Re-Shaper hairspray, the signature product used on the Burlesque movie set, and Drench shampoo, consumers get a free movie ticket to see Burlesque and a chance to win a trip for two to the Hollywood premiere of the movie!

The highly-anticipated movie is about Ali (Christina Aguilera) a small-town girl with a big voice who escapes hardship and an uncertain future to follow her dreams to LA. After stumbling upon The Burlesque Lounge, a majestic but ailing theater that is home to an inspired musical revue, Ali lands a job as a cocktail waitress from Tess (Cher), the club’s proprietor and headliner. Burlesque’s outrageous costumes and bold choreography enrapture the young ingenue, who vows to perform there one day. Burlesque, in theaters November 24th, features an all-star cast including: Cher, Christina Aguilera, Eric Dane, Cam Gigandet, Julianne Hough, Peter Gallagher, Alan Cumming, with Kristen Bell and Stanley Tucci.

Shea Butter for Hair

Shea butter:Africa as Argan Oil: Morocco

My skin loves products with shea butter, they moisturize my skin leaving it feeling soft and moisturized all day long. My hair is a completely different story. Originally, I attempted to use pure shea butter for sealing in moisture when I would moisturize my hair, but it left my fine hair really weighed down and greasy feeling. Not quite sure what shea butter is? Not to worry, basically Shea Butter is a made from a nut and used for cooking, skin care, and hair care.

On my straightened hair, I applied a very small amount of shea butter after I applied a water based moisturizer and it left my hair feeling very piece-y, weighed down and greasy. When I airdry my hair a little bit of shea butter helps add shine and controls flyaways, but overall I'm not a fan. I tend to avoid products made with Shea Butter high up on the ingredient list because it's just too heavy for my hair. If you have thick, natural hair you may find that shea butter works wonders for you as a moisturizer, scalp treatment, sealer, and shine enhancer.

What to know more about Shea Butter? Check out this great collection of information over at Treasured Locks.com

Lifestyle Leak: Eastern State Penitentiary

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays! I love the scary activities, the costumes, and of course the candy. Each year I try to do some Halloween related activity, so far this year I haven't but I wanted to share an awesome Halloween activity I did a year or two ago. Me and the boyfriend visited Eastern State Penitentiary for Terror Behind the Walls.

We made a whole day of it since we live in Jersey! We drove down to Philly and grabbed a bite to eat at Rembrandt's (part of the Fright and a Bite package for 2010). Fright and a Bite is a Dinner Package that now include a Terror Behind the Walls Quick Pass, allowing you to skip the lines! Several different restaurants are offering a special frightening menu at a pre-set price. When we went I don't remember if it was part of a package or not but we decided to put select regular items off the menu and I do remember that Rembrandt's has some of the best hot wings around!

Anyway, now on to Terror Behind the Walls. I had a blast, I was scared to death but it was great. Once you park, you take a trolly down to the prison and on the way the "tour guides" give you some history about the penitentiary and how it's been known to be haunted. Here is a little background, "many people believe that Eastern State Penitentiary is haunted. As early as the 1940s, officers and inmates reported mysterious visions and eerie experiences in the ancient prison. And the ghost sightings have only increased since Eastern State was abandoned in 1971."

Experience it for yourself:

Eastern State Penitentiary

22nd & Fairmount Avenue

Philadelphia, PA 19130

Phone: (215) 236-3300

Tropical Isles Red Pimento Hair Growth Oil Review

(Red Pimento Hair Growth Oil, $10.99 OilsfromJamaica.com)

As you guys all know I've been using Jamaican Black Castor Oil on the nape of my hair and finally it's growing in. What I do is put a tiny amount on the tips of my fingers and then massage it right into my scalp in the problem area. I do this about 3-4 times a week and proceed with my regular hair care regimen. Now, I've been experimenting with a new product by Tropical Isles, Red Pimento Hair Growth Oil.

Product Description: Tropical Isle Living Red Pimento Hair Growth Oil. Pimento (Jamaican All Spice) Jamaica's only indigenous spice. The essential oil is considered the best quality in the world. Jamaican Strong Roots Red Pimento Oil Hair growth with Black Jamaican Castor Oil 100% natural. Your roots and your hair will love you using this.

Thoughts: I'm loving it! The scent is medicinal but it's pretty light and pleasant. My favorite thing is the applicator tipped bottle, it makes applying the product super easy. The only ingredients are Jamaican Red Pimento Oil, Jamaican Black Castor Oil, Coconut Oil, and Wheat Germ. That's all! I've been using this for about a week and it's great.

Have you tried it? Are you loving it?

Fall Hair Care Focus

For me Fall is all about revival as far as hair care is concerned. Even though I take special care of my hair all year round, I feel as though the period between the end of the summer and right before it gets really cold is important in my own personal hair care regimen. During the summer months, I co-wash more often but I also leave my hair out more often. During the fall months, I'm still co-washing regularly but I'm wear my hair up more often and concentrate on moisturizing my ends more. Since I can co-washing about twice a week, I need a moisturizer than is a bit more on the watery side so it can really get to all my hair easily.

Matrix Hydra-Seal Leave-in Créme is infused with Aloe Vera and Algae help nourish and restore hair’s moisture balance and its very thin so it penetrates and gets to all my hair without me having to sit and divide section by section to ensure moisturization.

Coconut Oil is another Fall Hair Care must have product. Actually coconut is one of my staples year round, I can't say enough about the power of coconut oil when used to add shine, seal in moisture, and soften up new growth.

Over the summer months I'm happy to report that my problem area (the nape) has grown in a lot. Before it looked crazy and was about a half inch in length now it's about three inches long (when straight) and curly. I'm almost positive that the relaxer does not take in that area like it does on the rest of my hair. The rest of my hair has a loose wave while this area is slightly loosened small spirals post relaxer. Now to keep up with that, I'm moisturizing that area twice a day and applying JBCO when I remember (which is like three times a week). Right now that is my number one priority, maintain the health back there and keep increasing the length.

What hair care goals are you focusing on this fall?

Instyler Giveaway Winners Announced

Congratulations to Yvette and Vanessa S. (who also Tweeted!) you both are the proud new owners of a brand new Instyler!

Mother Daughter Giveaway SOFnFree

Giveaway Wednesday is here again! Up for grabs this week is a Mother/Daugher Healthy Hair Care Set from Sof'nFree!

Mother Nature's recipe for healthy, beautiful hair. Sofn'free GroHealthy Milk & Olive contains an unusual medley of milk protein, olive oil and Omega-3 to strengthen, protect and beautify naturally curly hair. No other hair-care line has this triple-treatment combination. The girls' line, "Serious Therapy for Little Heads," is the very first children's product line made to treat specific hair or scalp problems: shedding, thinning, temple and nape damage, breaking, and chronic dryness.

Mom's ($26 total)

Three-Layer Growth Oil -- $5.99

Leave-In Treatment -- $5.99

Strengthening Créme -- $5.99

Daily Growth Lotion -- $5.99

Really Deep Conditioning Treatment -- $1.99

Daughter's ($29 total)

Oil Olive Growth Lotion -- $4.99

Temple and Nape Gro with Almond Butter -- $5.99

Shea Butter Damage Repair Treatment -- $6.99

Thick & Healthy Olive Oil Cream -- $5.99

Growth Oil With Olive & Soybean Oils -- $4.99

Although both lines do feature a relaxer kit, I do NOT promote using relaxers on little girls so the relaxer kit will not be included in the "Daughter's" part of the giveaway. Now for the Momma's what you do to your hair is your own buisness, whether you are relaxed or natural I'm all for healthy hair. So, when you enter let me know if you are relaxed or natural... if you are relaxed you will receive a relaxer kit as part of your prize... if you are natural you won't! See easy as 1,2,3! Now use the contest machine to enter... BTW it's open to everyone! No location limits on this one.

Lifestyle Leak: Hot Vinyasa Yoga

Over the past year or so, I've dabbled in a few different types of yoga ranging from Bikram to Hot Power Yoga to my newest studio that offers Hot Vinyasa Yoga. I must say that I really like the new studio I've been frequently that offers Hot Power Vinyasa Yoga. What exactly is Hot Power Vinyasa Yoga? Well, Garden State Yoga breaks it down very simply " Hot Power Vinyasa takes the traditional vinyasa series and incorporates a dynamic more rapid flow that detoxifies, heals and rejuvenates the body. Often referred to as “meditation in motion”, this open level power vinyasa class cultivates strength, endurance, focus, balance, and flexibility. The room is heated to 90 degrees with 40% humidity to help facilitate the integration of sweat, strength and spirit. Whether you are a beginner yogi or an elite athlete, come and experience the life changing, body transforming, calorie burning and mind calming effects of a regular hot power vinyasa practice."

Since I've been going pretty regularly and practicing Hot Vinyasa Yoga, I've been bringing along different products to help get me through. My Yoga bag beauty must haves include:

Hint Water - Because the room is heated to 90 degrees (it usually feels even hotter once you start going through the motions) you will SWEAT like never before. While I'm practicing the sweat is literally dripping off me. So rehydrating is key, I'm not the biggest fan of water so for me it's a bit hard to replace the water that's lost. That is, until I was introduced to Hint water. Hint water is just water with a fruit essence like Blackberry or Watermelon. What exactly does that mean? Well I think it's more trickery of the sense than an actual flavor boost. Lost? Well, Hint water smells so good that it tricks my brain into thinking it actually tastes good. End result? I drink it like it's juice.

Philip B. Blue Spray - I tried practicing while my nose was a bit stuffy thinking it would just clear itself up. The heat and humidity actually made it worse but instead of quitting I spritzed myself with a little bit of Blue Spray and my chest tingled and my nose started to clear a bit, plus the people around me loved the clean eucalytpus scent.

Cool Off Towelettes - After I practice as you can imagine I feel amazing but the amounts of sweat in my clothes and on my body is a bit gross. Cool Off Towelettes are the best because they cool down your skin AND wipe away the sweat. These towelettes are unique because they are infused with a clean-scented formulation of natural ingredients that include cooling herbs, plant botanicals, and essential oils. The immediate cooling effect lasts an average of 20 minutes past the time the towelette is removed and gives a totally relaxed sensation to whichever part of the body you chose to cool off, I especially love to use these on my stiff shoulders and lower back.

Protective Style: Yacht Knot

Spring 2011 runways had some beautiful hair styles, but the Yacht Knot seen at the S/S 2011 Luca Luca show was to die for! It has the potential to be my favorite protective style, it's that beautiful. Perfect for every single occasion ranging from a night with the boys at the sports bar to a magicial wedding, hell it could even be the brides hairstyle. We have Celebrity stylist, Teddy Charles, to thank for this beautiful down do. I've got the deets on how to recreate the look at home. Teddy used the new Remington T-Studio Pearl Ceramic styling line to create the nautical-inspired “Yacht Knot” hair look that accompanied the breezy, ethereal runway collection for Luca Luca S/S 2011.

Rock the Look:
· Part hair down the middle
· Lightly crimp the roots and add curls throughout with the new Remington T-Studio Pearl Ceramic Styling Wand (luckily most of us have amazing natural texture so we can skip this step, instead allow your hair to air dry for the most texture)
· Brush out the curls to create a wavy texture
· Section off the top and bottom and twist both top sections back into a knotted bun
· Wrap the remaining bottom section around the bun
· Pull out a few wispy pieces at the hairline for a touch of romance, spray with a little hairspray and cruise the catwalk!

Beauty Break: Spring 2011 Nail Trend

Amanda Fontanarrosa, CND nail professional created a beautiful and unique look for the Ruffian Spring 2011 runway show that's sure to be a hit for Spring 2011. The "Monogram Moon Manicure" features one coat of Putty plus one coat of Washed Down White, edged with Blackjack and topped with Air Dry to go with a French Foreign Legion, 1940's inspired collection.

What do you think? Love it?

The Undone Bun

The undone bun was spotted all over the catwalks of fashion week and tons of celebs love rocking the look. Celebrity hair stylist, Larry Sims gives the inside scoop on how to achieve his favorite runway style, a fun, flirty, undone bun!

“Whether it’s high on your head or low at the back of your neck, this smashing style can go from the runway to your work place. To accomplish this look make sure your hair line is smooth while your bun is undone. To keep your hairline smooth, my favorite go-to is Smooth ‘N Shine Super Shine Conditioning Gel. It defines, holds, and moisturizes while giving your hair brilliant shine.”

Red Hot Like Rihanna

Nikki Ferrara, colorist at Sally Hershberger Downtown believes that redheads have more fun.

If you’ve ever been tempted to become a red headed temptress, Ferrara shares a few tips on
achieving the right shade for you…no matter what your natural base color.

REDHEAD TIP #1: Stay near the same depth as your natural base color. If you're naturally a
medium blonde to light blonde you can go as deep as a vibrant copper or as light as a strawberry
blonde.

REDHEAD TIP #2: If you’re a brunette, steer clear of cool blue or violet-based reds like
mahogany or anything that says ‘eggplant.’ If you are already pretty dark, they have a tendency to wash out your complexion and it just doesn't look natural when it appears in the sunlight.

REDHEAD TIP #3: When you want to add more vibrancy, ask your colorist to add tone-on-tone
highlights. This will also help color keep its shine and prevent it from appearing dull. It keeps the red more interesting.

REDHEAD TIP #4: Red hair requires a bit of maintenance, unfortunately glosses tend to wash
out pretty quickly. If you're in between appointments and need a bit of a boost, opt for a color
depositing conditioner. Choose a conditioner with more color concentration in it, and will
smooth the shaft the longer you leave it on. As for shampoos, always use one formulated for
color treated hair. This will help to keep the color from fading.

Fall into Fall with an Instyler Giveaway

Remember back when I did a video review of the Instyler Rotating Iron? If not, watch my review here. I still use my Instyler to flatten out and amp up some curls, and it works best when my hair has been previously blowdried. My friends love their Instyler, too! There are a few cons to using the Instyler so be sure to read up on those before you enter.

Ready to win? This giveaway is open to US residents only. The last day to enter is Tuesday, October 12th at 6pm EST. There will be 2 winners!

There are 2 ways to enter:

1. Enter to win by leaving a comment on this post!

2. Enter by commenting at the end of this post that you tweeted about the giveaway. Follow me (@antihairslave) on Twitter and tweet the following: Follow @antihairslave and RT to win the Instyler Rotating Iron! #AHSgiveaway

Split End Fix?

All my fellow Anti Hair Slaves, know that split ends and heat damage cannot by "fixed." We do not get tricked and caught up in the hype of products like White Sands The Fix, that claim to fix split ends. Instead, we take precautions to prevent split ends and heat damage before they occur. But, even the most hair conscious person cannot avoid every single split end and this is where products such as The Fix by White Sands comes it. The Fix is formulated to help fill in the gaps in the hair's cuticle which will buy you a little time before your trim. Also, anyone with porosity issues with their hair will find this product especially helpful because it does find those holes in your strands and settles right in. Just as a reminder, hair with low porosity has a hard time retaining moisture and accepting chemical treatments like relaxers and colors. Highly porous hair will absorb a lot of moisture but it will also release a lot more leaving hair dry and dry hair leads to damaged hair. Your goal regarding porosity is to fall somewhere in the middle and The Fix can help with that.

(WhiteSands.com The Fix, $19.00)

Just as your favorite concealer hides fine lines and blemishes, The Fix by White Sands transforms into makeup for hair by smoothing out cuticle imperfections for a flawless foundation of healthy, shiny tresses. Split ends vanish, coarse locks are cured and frizz is finally finished!

Miracle Mask Protein Conditioner

(Inova Miracle Mask, $48.00 InovaProfessional.com)

The name Miracle Mask is appropriate when it comes to Inova Professional's all star deep conditioning mask, Miracle Mask. I tried it and my hair loves it.

Product Description: Formulated with avocado oil, keratin protein, silk protein and white carnation oil to provide intensive nourishment and hydration, The Miracle Mask repairs split-ends and other symptoms of dry, weak, and damaged hair, while simultaneously detangling and improving manageability. Hair will be healthier, luxuriously smooth, and with brilliant shine.

Thoughts: We all know nothing will repair split-ends, I'm not sure when hair care companies will realized we won't be tricked by that claim. Although, it cannot repair split ends like it claims it does help out tremendously with detangling and softening. The scent is amazing and it leaves my hair feeling soft and strong. The strength comes from the Silk and Keratin proteins. The packaging is unique and you get a lot of product for your money, 17.6 oz. to be exact.

Rock the Look: Cassie

Cassie has changed her color several times. Her trying something new on her edgy cut was inevitable. Hair is a wonderful woman's accessory and I think as long as the hair is healthy, we should all empower ourselves to play. The goal was choosing color and highlights that complemented Cassie’s skin tone while imparting a clean finished look that was perfect for a fashion week debut."

How does Cassie explain her shaved side and new blonde locks? “I've always loved to try different looks with my hair. I guess that comes with being a model/artist. I'm true to my long tresses but sometimes I want to change things up a bit!"

Rock the Look:
Shampoo and condition with Ojon Shine & Protect Shampoo and Conditioner. Apply a light mist of Bumble & Bumble Prep, a leave-in conditioner that works to moisturize the hair. Follow up with Bumble & Bumble Thickening Spray to give nice volume and a soft hold. It also helps set the curl as you blow dry using the round brush technique. Use the Brazilian Heat Ionic Dryer with the Brazilian Heat 43 mm Thermal Ceramic & Ionic Brush for faster styling. Finish off with Paul Mitchell Super Clean Spray for a flexible hold.

As for color, Angela used Affinage Infiniti Permanent Haircolor Crème. She mixed equal parts Café Latte (9.035) and Very Light Intensive Golden Brown (9.33) and applied the combination to prelightened hair.

Relaxer Times

Here is a little tidbit of information about me and relaxers: When I self-relax, I never time myself. Instead, I make sure I have all my supplies on-hand so that I can apply, smooth, smooth some more and remove. Instead, of timing myself I determine when it's "ready" by the look and feel of the new growth. I can guess that the entire application and smoothing process only takes about 7-10 minutes and the end result is smooth but still wavey looking roots.

How long do you leave your relaxer on?

Tourmaline + Hair

Look at your flat irons, curling irons, and other high quality heat tools - chances are they have tourmaline in the plates. Well, what exactly does that mean and how does it benefit my hair are common questions.

Tourmaline is a crystal silicate mineral compounded with elements such as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. Tourmaline is classified as a semi-precious stone and the gem comes in a wide variety of colors. The most common species of tourmaline is schorl. (as per wikipedia) The word tourmaline has two etymologies, both from the Sinhalese word turamali, meaning "stone attracting ash" (a reference to its pyroelectric properties) or according to other sources "mixed gemstones".

Once tis crystal silicate mineral is ground down and added to the plates of your heat tools it has the ability to do some pretty cool things to your hair. For one, it emits negative ions and negative ions help smooth the cuticle of the hair. The smoother the cuticle the shinier the hair appears, a rough cuticle will give hair a dull look. But the biggest plus for us, is that a smoothed out cuticle actually helps retain moisture! One of our biggest problems solved by a heat tool? Sort of, but don't get it twisted the over use of heat will damage your hair no matter what's ground up and inbedded into those tools.

Lifestyle Leak: Joe's Crab Shack

After watching all those "Eat at Joe's" commercials featuring delicious looking seafood buckets, me and my boyfriend took the 40 minute drive down to south Jersey to Eat at Joe's, Joe's Crab Shack that is. Then waited about 25 minutes before we were called to our table and this was on a weeknight, mind you. Yes, I guess you can tell that I'm one of those people who hate having to wait to be seat, but such is life.

To get things started we decided to share the Classic Sampler featuring Crab Dip, Great Balls of Fire and Crispy Calamari. Then for the main course I had Samuel Adams Steampot (Sweet Snow crab, 1 pound of clams, meaty lobster claws, sausage, fresh corn and potatoes all steamed in Samuel Adams lager) which the man had The Crab Daddy Feast (Snow crab, Dungeness crab
and King crab). The main courses both blew the appetitizers out of the water, but guess what? They ran out of nut crackers so we had to resort to using our hands (peep the bandaid on my finger in the photo, because I left with 3) to crack open crab. As for drinks, I had the Strawberry Comfort (Squeezed lemons mixed with sweet strawberry purée, SOUTHERN COMFORT, BACARDI limón Rum and Sprite), and it was super good - actually one of the best mixed drinks I've had in a long time. We will probably be back because the crab was very tasty and the lobster claws? AMAZING.

Plus, there was live entertainment! The song Ride the Train came on and the entire wait staff busted out in this dance, it was great!

Try it for yourself:

4901 Stelton Road

South Plainfield, NJ 07080

908-753-4204

or visit JoesCrabShack.com for a location near you

Lifestyle Leak: Brenda Novak Heat Series

Although I can easily spotted with a magazine in front of my face, I occasionally read a book here and there too! I was introduced to what I call the "Heat" series by Brenda Novak through Three Custom Color Specialists. Brenda Novak, the author behind the Heat series penned three books, White Heat, Body Heat, and Killer Heat and each book was accompanied by a Three Custom Color Specialist lipgloss pot with the same name as the novel. Even though I love Three Custom Color Specialist the books are better!

Each novel follows a different Department 6 agent who has been enlisted to help solve a major crime or string of killings. Each novel is engaging and keeps you on the edge of your seat with anticipation and suspense, plus each novel has an underlying love story and I'm always a sucker for a love story. Part of me actually wishes the Heat series gets picked up as a TNT TV series called Department 6. You can visit BrendaNovak.com to read the first chapter of Killer Heat right now.

If you're interested in the glosses as well, the entire trilogy of glosses is available at ThreeCustom.com

SOS: Save Our Scalps

Our poor abused scalps! We heat them up with blowdriers, hooded dryers, steamers, and occasionally burn them with flat irons, curling irons, waving tools, etc. But men have it worse than we do. A little coconut oil to the scalp will alleviate most women's scalp issues, but what about those unsightly bumps some men get on their scalp, base of the neck, under the chin? Well there's a medical term for what's happening and it's called folliculitis. Basically, it's an infection of the hair follicule and if left untreated it can lead of serious scarring that can inhibit hair growth completely, that's called scarring alopeica. In a nut shell, scarring alopeica destroys the hair follicle, replaces it with scar tissue, and causes permanent hair loss.

Prevention is key! And now, two prominent California dermatologists with a large celebrity and athlete clientele, Dr. Sheri Feldman and Dr. Louise Stewart, have developed Clear Poreformance™ Shampoo and Conditioner. This antibacterial, deep pore cleansing system is designed specifically for hair and scalp (www.clearporeformance.com). This dynamic duo not only wash excess oil off the scalp and out of the hair, but it also features special ingredients that work to kill and prevent growth of bacteria and deep clean the pores, helping to prevent scalp irritations.

I had a friend test it out and it does work! Prior to using this system he was using Dial Antibacterial soap to shampoo his scalp which was working as well, but Clear Poreformance has more of the ingredient that works to kill off the bacteria. So if you know someone that could use some assistance in this area, definietly recommend Clear Poreformancy Shampoo and Conditioner for scalp issues and Dial Antibacterial soap for the affected areas on the face.

Clear Poreformance Shampoo and Conditioner is exclusively available online at www.clearporeformance.com.