"Let Me Fix My Weave..."

I've always dreamed of having long, thick hair but that was never in the genetic cards for me. And since the hair-loss crisis of earlier this year, obviously the next best thing is to use extensions to give the length, volume and amount of hair I wish I really had...

I was inspired a long time back by Kim from KimberDoll and her DIY post about how to dye your hair extensions at home. I bought some really great extensions (or as I affectionately refer to it as, "my weave") a few years ago but they were a caramel honey brown colour and since I've gone back to my natural choco brown, they needed to be dyed.

Seems simple enough eh? 

 This is a weft of the pre-coloured (100% human) European hair...totally better than synthetic hair.

 They are crazy long, 18" extensions ...but are fine once curled and styled.

 $10.99 L'Oreal Sublime Mousse hair dye in  # 40 Pure Dark Brown. This colour ended up being too dark but it seemed like a perfect match in the store. Of course.

More on that later...

 The foam colour was super easy to apply, just mix the activator with the main solution in the foam dispensing bottle. I set down a white plastic garbage bag to work on and protect the counter top.

I had to make sure the dye was thoroughly applied to the extensions for total coverage...

 The colour needed 20 minutes to set...I used tin foil for easy clean-up.

 After rinsing, washing and conditioning the extensions with the provided conditioner, I gently combed them through with a wide-tooth comb and laid them flat to dry over night on a towel.

 Once the extensions were dry I curled them by anchoring the weft of hair with a heavy weight (in this case books, rocks and a pillar candle?!?) over the side of a half wall in our hallway.  According to most recommendations for curling extensions (on YouTube), curling them before you apply them is easier and offers more control.  I sprayed a thermal heat protector on each section and curled each weft of hair 3 times with a big barrel curling iron then set the curls with a firm hold fine mist hairspray (I like John Frieda's Full of Volume spray.)

 YES, obviously the colour was TOO DARK but now since I've gone darker with my current colour from the salon, they're a perfect match...

*There are a ton of YouTube videos on how to correctly put on extensions, the snapping teeth-like clips are super simple to attach to your own hair and can be clipped on in a matter of minutes.

*I'll admit the entire process was a lot more time consuming then I had expected (colouring/curling) but the final product is worth it. The extensions look natural, are easy to wash and I'd recommend re-washing and re-curling after each use in order to keep them from looking over-styled. 

*I've never dyed my own hair at home (only in the salon) and overall its pretty simple enough. 

BUT I think I'll continue to leave it up to the professionals to handle my own "real" hair because it's so piss poor fine. 

Obviously selecting the correct colour is a kind of a big deal...duh.  Live and learn!

Now it's your turn to try this on your own extensions. I'll admit I was a bit intimidated by them at first, I'm no hair-stylist...but at the end of the day they're just hair so have fun with them! 

spotty at best!

Dolls, it's been a busy last few weeks with Easter, spring break and friends from out of town visiting. There's been plenty going on but not a lot of blogging to document the fun! Believe me that I understand that this is 'no beuno' for my readers. I'm pledging to pull up my socks and post more often.

So I last wrote about an event that I went out to with some girlfriends, a Calgary Flames Hockey wives "Better Halves" charity event fashion show, auction, food and booze-fest. It was about as much fun as a girl can have on a Wednesday night...

The wives and girlfriends were gorgeous models for the evening and they did their best to werk it for the crowd!

 Wine, models and 400 women...

 Dana with Brett Wilson (Dragons' Den), apparently he's a bit of a ladies man...

Picture quality goes down as wine consumption goes up! It's the price you pay for too much Chardonnay...

Color pop for ladies night....

I'm officially in love with orange and fuchsia together... and I'll be wearing this on Wednesday night, to THIS....

A fashion show/ladies night put on by the
Calgary Flames Hockey team better halves
 (aka WAGS- wives and girlfriends)
Bring on the fashion, wine and fun...

I'm honestly not a huge hockey fan but I won't say no to a night out with my girls since this party is off the ice completely...


Happy weekend lovelies! 

Expensive doesn't mean better...except when it does...

Here's a list of a few new products that I've started using in the last couple weeks. I'm especially in love with the foundations and though they are pricey they are so worth it. 

In the last few years I've really changed my opinions about high-end makeup and really

believe that you can find great drugstore makeup for a fraction of the price. 

BUT  that doesn't mean that it's not still worth coughing up the dough to buy a higher end product from time to time...you (usually) get what you pay for..

I'm really in love with this Chanel foundation. It's apparently replaced the now discontinued Pro Lumiere Foundation and I don't mind the newer formula. It offers full, long lasting, natural coverage that's buildable...but around $52.00 it's not the sort of product I'll use everyday. Perfect for special occasions, photographs and times when I want flawless coverage.

BB creams (beauty balm) are the latest rage, though I don't really see how they differ from a tinted moisturizer??.. they claim to conceal, perfect and moisturize.  Still, I'm liking Garnier's BB cream as it comes in a light/medium and medium/dark option- which seems to "generally" cover most skin tones. It's easy to apply with your fingers and blends well, though it's definitely not foundation-like coverage (not that it claims to be.)  Overall I think it will be a great lighter product for the summer months and around $19.99 per tube, its great for everyday use. 

I heard about this product first from Beauty Broadcast, Emilynoel 83's YouTube channel. She highly recommended this Tarte Mascara. I find that it provides decent lash volume, length and isn't clumpy.  It lasts all day and it's not too wet, or too dry of a formula. It also contains clay from the Amazon River (as in dirt...sounds exotic right?!)  So river dirt must equal longer lashes!
As wonderful as that may be, with an almost $20.00 price, I don't know that it's a must-have product?

I won this foundation last fall in a foundation giveaway from Beauty Crazed In Canada. And though I can honestly say that Clinique makeup has never been on my radar, I'm so glad I tried this foundation.  I have a super oily t-zone and am prone to the occasional acne breakout (when will I outgrow zits already!?) 

While I can't promise that this product will help prevent breakouts, I will say that it's a great long lasting foundation. At around $36.00, it offers a light feel and amazing flawless coverage without looking caky or heavy. I am in love!

So what are your new fave spring products?  Any must haves or are you sticking with your old stand-by favorites...?? 

rock the color block...

So I'm back in a shopping mood (finally) since I haven't really given two hoots about hitting the stores since last fall. I felt I had everything that I "needed" and not much was speaking to me. But no more! One can only wear black/brown/black for so long. I've got NEW inspiration...bring on the color kids!

Ka-chow! That's a lot of color..and I'll admit it sort of intimidates me, but I broke down and grabbed some mint-green skinny jeans ($19.99 from Winners) and a cobalt blue pair from Old Navy ($20.00 on sale this week).  I'm naturally a black on the bottom, color up top sort of dresser but I think this is worth a try for this summer...I can't hide in black forever!

  Zip it ok?...This is just a regular Dolman sleeve top in a bright turquoise green but the zipper detail (on the back) makes it interesting, no? I grabbed these metallic flats, since metallics are the shiz this season...so they say...

(Top, Zellers $14.99, flats Zellers $12.99)

Color blocking and Zippers? Yes and yes.  (Bottom Block top, Suzy Shier $25.00)

For that wedding/baby shower I'll inevitably have to attend, Pleated, Belted, Chiffon Dress in Navy, (Suzy Shier $40.00)

 So are you all still hiding in your fleece and Uggs?  I don't blame you if you are...its hard to shed the layers and show some skin. Mama needs a tan something terrible but that's not going to be an option for months yet. 

 I even have a hard time ditching socks and wearing flats -never mind sandals? What if it starts snowing again...that can happen at ANY GIVEN MOMENT in these parts...

Have you caught the spring shopping fever yet...are color/short sleeves/bare legs calling your name?

Yet another post about mint green? Guilty.

It's March and we're having a snow storm right now (as least 20 cm more are going to fall tonight) but that's ok because my mind is already stuck on spring. I love the neon and pastel colour in the stores right now but I definitely won't be buying much of anything until we have a serious weather-warm-up. 

Easter egg pastels (a carry-over from last year) are my fave right now (yes this is nothing ground-breaking, they're everywhere) but I'm tempted to grab a pair of mint coloured jeans, though I really think they can be a bit tricky to get away with, especially in the lighter tones- since I'm not a size 4...

This pair is from Forever 21's plus collection, the bright mint green shows no mercy. So perhaps this should be a springtime no-go for Mama?  

Maybe I should stick with mint green in small doses, maybe like this Essie colour, Absolutely Shore.

It's actually much greener (less beige) in person but gives a nice pastel pop of mint.

So mint took until this season to grow on me...either way this colour is totally trendy but likely won't be around for yet another season, so maybe there's no harm in picking up a cheap pair of skinnies from Zara, Forever 21 or Old Navy...?

Or...maybe I should stick with a smaller hit of the colour from accessories like a ring or belt.
What do you think of spring's hottest colour, mint? 

Outside our front door tonight...spring in Canada is awesome. Eh?

Tiffany, red wine and Manny...

So typically February is a non-event, boring-type of month, but thankfully this year I've managed to dodge the late-winter blues and the month has flown by quickly! 

Keeping busy with friends and having a lot of events to attend seems to have made February come and go in a flash...can I get an Amen for that!

Valentines was a blast and our friends Nick and Voula hosted a 34th b-day party/Valentines day dinner party at their home for my girlfriend Dana. 

Red red wine on Valentines!

Four of us girls decided to get together and buy Dana a few pieces from Tiffany. The birthday girl laughed and cried...there's a whole lotta emotion that comes from a little blue box!

Last weekend was the Family Day long weekend where we live, which is really just a made-up day off (because February has got nothing going for it and the local powers that be figured that people needed something to look forward to, but I'll take any long weekend I can get!)

We went over to our friends Dina and Joseph's for dinner, he's a great cook and he whipped up some avocado and shrimp appetizers. They were beyond delish,,,this will be one of my new go-to appies.

So tasty...check out the recipe here

It's Manny from Modern Family with my Kid #2...no I joke, but Dina's 13yr old son is a dead ringer for Rico Rodriguez, in my opinion anyway. So cute!

Am I right or what?...

Happy end of February, hope your month has flown by quickly too...I'm ready for spring now! 

99 Problems...

So recently I've found myself facing a new adversary/enemy/evil. No it's not the scale, it's something entirely different and completely upsetting.  All of a sudden last month my hair started falling out, a LOT and I'll admit it's been pretty crappy dealing with it.  I'm fairly certain it's a combo of stress and hormonal imbalance but whatever the frack is doing this, ima 'bout ready to lose my ever-loving-mind....

It's not like I'm some paunchy, middle aged man who can accept this sort of thing as just being part of life.

 A 30-something woman losing her hair is not OK. 

The hair gods have been cruel to me, and this seems like their latest prank. I already have thin, fine hair and am no stranger to using every thickening, volumizing and strengthening hair product ever created.  EVER CREATED.

(Now before you start asking if the hair loss is related to my latest diet, I'd have to disagree because though I joke about "being hangry and starving" I'm certainly not. I'm following Weight Watchers, and losing in a slow and sensible way.)  

The hair loss started before my latest diet so I doubt there's any link. I've had my thyroid and iron levels tested and everything seems ok. So this leaves me feeling even more bummed because I don't exactly know the cause of this hair loss???

I've got a referral to a dermatologist next month to check out the problem further (telogen effluvium- is what it's called) and I've already shelled out plenty for the latest products that claim to prevent hair loss...and I'll admit I've borrowed my dad's Rogaine...since my family doctor said that's exactly what the Dermo will prescribe anyway!

Seriously? Ugh.

So my question is, have any of you ever experienced sudden hair loss (other than post-pregnancy) and if so, how did you not lose your mind?!?!  Did your hair come back and how long did it fall out for?

 Feeling NOT so 

Mama's Hangry...

Around this time every year in January I'm usually at a point in my annual "Massive Weight Loss 2012" program, that I'm ready to tear off the limb of the person next to me, splash a little Tabasco sauce on it, chew on it and call it a day.

I am hangrrryyy, which by definition, is one step up from starving. I have a pounding headache from eating barely any carbs and I've taken snarkiness to a whole new level in this house.

But it's all in the name of thinness.

Behold my current thinspiration... I've taken the liberty of pointing out some of JHud's best attributes.

Lord knows her face is everywhere right now and every third ad on TV is one of her Weight Watcher commercials.

Nothing wrong with that...it keeps my eye on the prize!

Since half of my friends are on some sort of diet right now, I think we can all relate to wanting to look a whole lot more like Jennifer.

But in the words of my friend Jaimie in a recent text convo, Jennifer best be on the up and up and not be hiding any "procedures" or super secret Hollywood diet voodoo...

{Come on, you gotta admit that something else is going on with her cheeks, maybe a little lift here and there?}

So I don't have the luxury of doing anything other than busting my (ample) butt in the gym and counting Weight Watcher points like all the other ordinary shmoes. 

But who else is with me?

If you're hungry and you know it start to cry clap yo' hands!

Mama's baking!....what what?!

So tonight around 10:00 pm I decided that I was feeling DTB...."down to bake."  And that's exactly what I did, if you call throwing a few super simple ingredients together to create pure awesomeness! I won't pretend that I even like to bake, it's way too precise and I don't even have a sweet tooth. But, I am a huge fan for anything with cinnamon, spice, cloves, nutmeg, etc, and this recipe has a big bunch of pumpkin puree in it. No, believe me, it's pure awesome.  Allow me to share this little bit of yumminess with y'all...

"Easy Pumpkin Spice Muffins"

Ingredients

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan or line with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves until smooth. Spoon equal amounts of batter into the prepared muffin cups.
3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.

And that's all she wrote! Yup, it couldn't be easier. Try these, they don't disappoint!

you can find this recipe here...