Simple up-do how to :)

When doing a style, preparation is key. I prepped this young lady's hair with Kevin Murphy hair products: Body Builder, Anti-Gravity, and Damage Manager. I put it in wet, but you can also put it all in dry to get a stronger hold.

How to:
1. Prep the hair and blow dry upside down for added volume
2. Tease the hair in sections (back, side and side) according to how much added volume you want
3. Smooth the teased sections
4. Braid both sides of hair. You can either do a french braid or just regular braids and pin them back. I used          Easy Rider to keep the ends in and smooth out the braids.
5. Connect the braids in the back by twisting them together. This gives it extra hold and a cuter style than just tying it with a hair band.
6. Insert the bobby-pins in a horizontal/diagonal way so they cannot be seen. It is really easy to hide them in the braid, if needed.
7. After I did all this I gave her hair a little curl with my flat iron. You can also do it with a curling iron.

I hope you love it!

Just a preview of another photo shoot that I have done with Lora Grady. You can check out her website at www.loragradyphotography.com. You can also check out the rest of the photos that I have on my facebook page facebook.com/LisaF.Hair

Gerda Spillmann Skin Challenge:Week 2-8

Finding a Balance.

It’s not as easy as it sounds.  If I could find the perfect balance in life, things would be so easy.  Well, easier.  Luckily, finding the balance in my new skin regimen hasn’t been difficult at all. 

First, I apologize for the lack of blogs lately.  I’m not a great blogger, and trying to balance blogging into the rest of my life is more challenging than I thought it would be.

Second, I have to admit that I have added another product to my skin care regimen.  I know, I’m supposed to be simplifying but there’s only so much a moisturizer can do in the dry winter climate of Utah.  I noticed that sometimes my skin needed an extra punch of moisture.  Gerda Spillmann’s Renaissance Active Vitalizing Oil (http://gerdaspillmann.stores.yahoo.net/reacoilrao.html) has been my answer. 

Oil?  Yeah, that’s what I said.  When I saw it I thought that oil was the last thing I needed on my face.  Luckily, I decided to give it a go, and I’m loving it.  It’s like silky sunshine in a bottle with a kiss of orange goodness. 

Adding that product has helped me reach my new Gerda Spillmann skincare balance, and the results are good.  They haven’t been miraculous, but each week I’m seeing little changes in the tone, and texture of my skin.  What’s even better is that my Gerda Spillmann regimen is still a lot easier than my old skin care regimen.  The bulk of it consists of cleansing and moisturizing twice a day.  I use the toner once a day, and then I supplement my moisturizer with the Renaissance oil on an as-needed basis.  At first I used it about three times a week, but now I use it about once a week.

It is now Week 8 and since Week Two my cheeks have become baby-butt smooth, and my huge nasty pores aren’t so huge and nasty.  My troublesome blackheads are still hanging around but there's been some significant change.  I can tell that there’s an improvement with them.  So the question is… can you see a difference yet?

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P.S.  I promise that there is no trickery involved.  The angles aren't perfect because I'm taking the pictures myself with the help of my bathroom mirror.

Utah Bride Blog

Today was pretty exciting because Lora Grady from www.loragradyphotography.com informed me that we were featured on Utah Bride Blog to celebrate the first day of Spring! Whoo-hoo!!! Just two weeks ago, we worked together to do a styled shoot.... I was in charge of the hair and makeup and Lora was in charge of pictures! We had a beautiful model and everything turned out so perfect! Here is a preview! To see more pictures, check out Lora's website or visit www.utahbrideblog.com

Gerda Spillmann Skin Challenge: Week 1

Week 1:

As Henry David Thoreau put it, “Simplify, simplify.”

 I have done just that.

I have packed away my huge pile of skin care products (see previous post for my past skin care regimen), and replaced them with three products:

1.       Gerda Spillman Cleansing Milk

2.       Gerda Spillman Skin Tonic without alcohol

3.       Gerda Spillman Skinfood Extra Riche

Simplicity is heaven.

It has not always been that way because my skin is…well…special.  It is dry and sensitive on my forehead, top of my nose, and cheekbones, and then oily on my chin, sides of nose, the fleshy parts of my cheeks, by my ears, and along my hairline.    I quickly learned that I could not pigeonhole my skin into a single category of oily, or dry.  The only other option I had was to choose products that were supposed to be for combination-type skins.  Unfortunately, my skin thinks differently.

Not only is it dry, and oily, but it is also very sensitive.  **Curse my fair, Scandinavian genetics!**  I can’t use any sort of acne medication (salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide, retin A, to name a few) for an extended period of time without severe dryness and peeling.  Almost all acne skin care products I came across for combination skin had one of those ingredients in them, and they just didn’t work.   

Nothing seemed to work.

My dry, oily, sensitive skin has given me a run for my money.

 Literally.

I wasted A LOT of money trying A LOT of products that would make my skin happy.  Like I mentioned in the previous post I found something that worked fine enough, but in my daily routine I was using five to six products!   

Ridiculous right?  

 I am a mother of two little girls, and I can’t spend all my spare time pampering my skin.  But, if I didn’t take the time to take care of my skin for a day, I was regretting it for a week as I dealt with a breakout and dry patches of skin.

In one week Gerda Spillmann products have already changed my skin care life.  My skin care regimen has become so simple: Cleanse, Tone, and moisturize.

I couldn’t ask for more(or is it less?) in these three products.

The cleansing milk has a delicate fresh scent and is soothing and gentle.

The tonic, unlike other toner’s I’ve used, doesn’t sting or tingle when it goes on, but it leaves your skin feeling refreshed and clean. 

The skinfood is like mother’s milk for your face.  It is rich, creamy, and oh so luxurious.  With the help of the skinfood moisturizer I might be able to enter my face into the “Soft as a Baby’s Bottom” contest.

My overall satisfaction with the products is great.  I have found that I need to use a rag with the cleanser in order to get all of my make-up off, and I can’t use the toner on the dry parts of my face twice a day every day, but I have to use it on the oily parts of my face twice a day.   I’m also thinking I might have to use some sort of exfoliant once a week to help with my regular dry skin shedding. 

I am going to be patient as my skin adjusts to the new product line and l will give things another week to balance out before I add anything else to my new simplified routine.

As for improvement to my skin, I actually have noticed a little improvement.  Usually I will have a zit surface, form a head, and then I’ll pop it (don’t judge me…you do it too).  After a zit is popped it is usually red and sensitive for a day or two and then it will start to go away.   This week the zits that did appear on my skin seemed to have a shorter life cycle.  One in particular started forming on my chin.  I was worried that it might turn into one of those painfully huge zits.  After a day it just disappeared.  That made my day. 

Unfortunately my blackheads are still ever present on my face, as you can see in the pictures.  I just have to keep reminding myself that miracles take time.  As I patiently wait for my fabulous skin transformation, I will sit back and enjoy the simplicity of it all.

Until next week.

From Fine to Fabulous

I recently got my sister Teresa started on a Gerda Spillmann skin care regime. She is beautiful but she has always struggled with acne, even in her adult years. These are her words and this is her story....

Gerda Spillmann Skin Challenge:  Fine to Fabulous

DAY 1:

I’ve struggled with acne since the fourth grade.  I admit that I have not had it as bad as some, but I’ve had my fair share of zits.  At 26 years old, I’m still getting those zits.  After over a decade of trying almost every acne product out there, and several useless visits to the dermatologist, I found a mound of products and a skin care regimen that worked fine enough.  So I settled, and I’ve been using the same products for five years now.

My skin care routine has become a little tedious, but wavering from it usually resulted in a breakout.  My routine goes as follows:

1- Two different cleansers.  One cleanser for the morning and the other cleanser for the evening.

2-Two layers of three different types of moisturizers.  Again one combination of moisturizers for the morning, and another combination of moisturizers for the evening.

3-A toner.  I use this around three times a week.  Sometimes more as needed, but I have to be careful because it dries out my face.

4-An exfoliant.  I use this one to two times a week.  Again, it depends on if I am breaking out, and how dry my skin is getting from the toner.

5- A mud mask.  I use this about once a month.  I have to cleanse my skin, apply the mask, let it dry,  scrub it off my face, followed by a moisturizer.  It takes about thirty minutes from start to finish.

6-Blackhead strips.  I use them around every 6 weeks.  This is the best way to remove blackheads, but it never lasts.  My pores inevitably fill back in.

This skin care regimen left my skin looking fine.

“Fine.”

When it comes to my skin I cringe when I hear the words “Your skin looks fine.” 

Fine.  That is the curse that is my skin.

After dealing with acne for most of my life, having my teenage hormones settle down, and using the  skin care regimen listed above, I’ve been able to control my acne to the point of fine.

Yes, most of the time my skin does look “fine” from ten feet away.  Now let me bring you in a little closer.

Blackheads are the bane of my existence.

 My blackheads and I have been with each other for so long, I’ve even given all of them their own name.

Ok.  I am being a little bit facetious.

I have not yet reached the point of naming them, because I am obviously not fond of any of them. 

Actually, I hate blackheads.  I can deal (and have been dealing) with breakouts.  Those nasty little zits will eventually go away.  These blackheads, however, are here to stay.  What’s worse is that not only are my blackheads here to stay, but they are slowly spreading!  I am a little bit paranoid that one day my face might become one giant blackhead. 

I’m kidding… Sort of…

So here I am dealing, with my “fine” skin, and vain, yet realistic paranoia.

*Enter Gerda Spillmann*

My younger sister is a beautician, and was able to obtain a job with Gerda Spillmann.  I had never heard of this brand before.  She kept telling me about how great their products were.  I was hesitant to believe any product out there was as good as she was saying.  “I will believe it when I see it”, was the thought going on in my head.

My sister has similar skin to mine.  Along with mild breakouts as an adult she has the same blackhead pattern along her nose and chin.  She has also tried every acne product under the sun, to no avail.

Six months after she started using Gerda Spillman I am amazed at the transformation of her skin.  It is clearer than it has ever been and she just glows.  I would say her skin is magazine worthy.  That is why I decided it was worth a shot to leave my skin care routine that has left my skin looking “fine”. 

So today I begin a new journey.  A journey that will hopefully (and finally) take my skin from “fine” to FABULOUS.

Wish me luck and stay tuned for my weekly updates.

 Season Atwater is my boss's wife and also an incredible photographer! She was so kind to take pictures of the red melt I did (check out my pictures tab). She also took closeups of my sister for a product test we will be doing for Gerda Spillmann skin care.... More on that later! Check out Season's stuff! seasonatwaterphotography.blogspot.com/

Here are a few pictures....

I just had a great time doing a bridal shoot with some awesome girls! I was in charge of hair and makeup and they did their thing and took great pictures! Lora Grady has been a great person to work with and an extremely talented photographer! Check her out! www.loragradyphotography.com  and http://www.loragradyphotography.com/blog/