{beauty} easy summer hairstyles

Who cares what the calendar says... it is officially SUMMER in Florida!

Sweltering, humid days and nights... nothing quite like it.

With the intense FL summer heat comes lots and lots of hair and makeup frustrations.

Two things about my hair:

A) It is L-O-N-G.

B) I have no idea how to do anything to my hair except blow-dry, straighten, and curl it.

Check out the tutorial I used to learn how to get soft curls - it is extremely helpful!

I will be working outside at a summer camp during some of the hottest months out of the entire year coming up shortly. I knew that I needed to find some ponytail and braid styles that were quick, easy, and durable. Since I will be playing with kids outside quite a bit, I want to make sure that my hair is off of my neck and back and out of my face. I have learned that practice makes perfect when it comes to new hairstyles, so I searched Pinterest & Real Simple's websites, and set out to try out a few new styles.

Click on the source links beneath the photos to visit the original websites!

The "Rainy Day" Style:

{source - Real Simple}

Directions: To get this look, you must first pull your hair into a low ponytail. Divide your ponytail into two sections. Take the first section and wind it into a bun. Pin with a few bobby pins. Take the other section and repeat. Add a fun headband to complete the look.

My experience: This style was easy to put together, but I had to use a lot of bobby pins to hold up my long, thick hair. It didn't feel too terribly secure. Word of advice: Don't try to twist your hair section before creating the bun. The hair will be too thick and heavy, and will likely stretch out your bobby pin. I have no idea if this makes sense to anyone but me, but I think you will see what I mean! 

Verdict: I think I will definitely rock this look sometime, but probably not at summer camp. Also, I kind of think that the original poster has shorter hair, making the buns a bit neater looking.

The Double Braided Bun Style:

{source - Join the Mood}

Directions: Follow the photo tutorial. She did a great job displaying the steps!

My experience: This was a very easy hairstyle to put together quickly. Note to self: invest in tiny clear hair ties. My normal sized lime green one totally showed!

Verdict: I will definitely wear my hair like this to summer camp. It is extremely secure and cuter than a normal bun. I looove that it keeps all of my hair out of my face and off of my neck.

Follow my Style - Hair & Makeup board on Pinterest to see more styles I want to try.

I do not know how to utilize hair products at all...

Now that I am a college graduate, I think it is time I learn. :)

Question of the day: What is your favorite summer hairstyle?

xo, Jen

{beauty} no-heat curly hair: it works!

My hair does not like to hold curl.

AT ALL.

It is the type of hair that falls out on the right side of my head (that I just curled) before I even finish curling the left side.  It doesn't help that I live in Florida. Humidity + resistance to curl in the first place = sad, sad me. It also takes me forevaaaa to curl it. I have long, fairly thick hair so I am looking at around 45 minutes spent to end up with just plain wavy hair. 

Exhibit A:

My hair was curly as can be before I stepped outside.

I have seen a lot of "time saving & no heat" tutorials floating around the blog world recently and was quite intrigued.

Particularly by this video: 

I thought to myself, I have a headband that will work perfectly for this!

And I usually watch TV for a bit before going to bed... might as well make that time useful and style my hair for the next day!

Here is another tutorial - in pictures this time:

credit

IT WORKS FOR REAL! I tried it last night.

Sorry for the creepy Myspace-esque picture and my messy room. It was 7:20 AM. :(

You get the picture?!

I pinned my hair into a half-up / half-down style this morning because the curls were really intense and I didn't have enough time to completely work them the way I wanted.

I love this method though! My hair is still pretty curly (8 hours later) & it was a really fast way to look more polished in the morning. Yay for finally dressing like a real person for class and for not automatically grabbing a hat, t-shirt, and Nike shorts. (Give me a tiny break? I have 8 AMs everyday!) I really think that I will use this no-heat curl method more often. :)

By the way, I was awake by 7 AM and out the door (dressed, makeup, hair, and coffee) by 7:30.

Time saver extraordinaire. 

Have you tried a no-heat curling method before?

xx, Jen