The Blunt Midi Bob

Suprise! I had a bit of a drastic hair change yesterday and I was so happy with it that I thought I'd share it with you. If you have a look back through some recent outfit posts you can see how my hair was previously- fairly long with light blonde ends but very dark brown roots. I've been growing my hair for years after having a very short pixie cut when I was about 13 and it was a decent length but the ends were gross- they got tangled easily and just always looked messy, no matter what oils or products I put through them. While I'd been enjoying experimenting with bright colours over the blonde base, the last few weeks I'd just become more and more unhappy with the colour. My roots were a dark brown that made the blonde look very unnatural. It was also looking quite brassy, and overall I was just tired with it. No matter how I styled it, I was never completely happy so I booked myself into the hairdressers to get it fixed up.

I knew I wanted a really blunt cut and my hairdresser was so thrilled by this, chopping away all the straggly ends that instantly made my hair look in better condition. It's quite a lot shorter than it was, sitting just on my shoulders, but it's still long enough to tie up and style. As for the colour, it was a very last minute decision to go darker, as I was originally going to go for a dark blonde all over but changed my mind the night before! I went for a warm chestnut brown all over, although there are still some tones through it from the highlights that were already underneath, so it looks beautiful when it catches the light. I'm so pleased with how it turned out- I was nervous I wouldn't like it but I think it's such a welcome change and really makes a difference to how I feel about my look. I got this done at Cute Hair in Wolverhampton, a salon I've been going to for years and would really recommend if you're in the area!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Haircare Empties

It's been a long time since I did an empties post because it became such that I was just repeating the same products and I figured people would be getting a bit bored of that. A lot of my hair products have been running out lately so I thought an exclusive haircare empties would be a nice twist.

OGX Biotin and Collagen Root Boost Spray: This little spray bottle has lasted me quite a while, and has lasted longer than the matching shampoo that I use (I'm almost onto my third bottle of the shampoo actually!). I spray this all through the roots of towel-dried hair before I blow-dry it. It just helps to give my fine hair a little bit of lift and the smell is really pleasant too.
Would I buy this again? Definitely, I already have a spare ready to use.

Blow Pro Dry Texture Spray: I picked this up for £2.99 from TK Maxx on a whim because people were raving about texturing sprays and didn't expect to like it as much as I do. When my hair is looking a little lifeless I spray this through to give body and texture and it makes it easier to style and get it looking exactly as I like it. I'm interested to try texture sprays from other brands to compare.
Would I buy this again? Yes, as long as I can still find it at TK Maxx!

Herbal Essences Uplifting Volume Dry Shampoo: I adore this dry shampoo- it is by far the best I've tried, although I've heard a lot of people say they're not a fan. Often on second-hair days, my hair is flat and dull but this helps to give it some body and make it look like I've just blow-dried it. I spray it through my hair, rub it in with my fingers and brush it out if there's any residue. It's a bargain price too.
Would I buy this again? Absolutely, I swear by this stuff.

V05 Dry Backcombing Spray: Are you sensing a theme here? The majority of these products help to give my hair the volume and body that I like and this is no exception. If I'm doing an updo this is great for help give it some texture to keep it in place but equally when my hair is loose I like to spray this through the roots and fluff it up with my fingers. It just gives a bit of volume without the need to backcomb.
Would I buy this again? Probably yes.

Lea Stafford Sea Salt Spray: This product is like summer in a bottle. I've had it for a couple of years but have been using it sparingly because I adore the smell- whenever I use it I am reminded of summery days and holidays. It gives my hair a lovely beachy texture (as long as you don't use too much- then it just gets tangled!) and as I said, it smells divine.
Would I buy this again? Yes but I'm in no rush to repurchase it until next summer.

Olivia Ellen XXX

L'Oreal Feria Dip-Dye Excess // Review

Yeah, I know- dip-dye is so last year! But I was feeling kind of bored with my hair and since I no longer have to go to school where there are so many rules about hair colour, I decided to try something fun. I originally wanted to pick up the Bleach London dyes but the Boots I was in didn't have any so instead I decided to try the L'Oreal Feria Dip-Dye Excess in the shade Pink Pop. It comes in 4 shades: 2 pinks, a red and a purple and I went for the lightest pink. They're semi-permanent and claim to last up to 10 washes. It comes with a resealable tube of dye (which is great as it means I can top it up if I want to) and a plastic brush for combing the product through your, all for just over £5.

It's been a long time since I used an at-home dye and I always used to get someone to do it for me (so it wasn't my fault if it went wrong!) but for this I decided to go it alone. I've watched enough tutorials on YouTube throughout the years to have a vague idea of how I was going to apply it. I put on an old black top and parted my hair into two sections which I tied into bunches. I then put in another bobble at the level that I wanted the dye to come to, making sure it matched on both sides. Wearing gloves, I squeezed the dye out of the tube and just began applying it onto the hair with my fingers, working it through and being sure to cover it all. The comb helped here as it separated the hair and showed any sections that I'd missed. While my hair has been bleached in the past so the ends are quite light, there are also some highlights through it and my hair wasn't as light as the box recommend, so I was intrigued to see what the final colour would be.

I'm actually really pleased with the intensity of the pink. While it's not as neon as on the box, it's still very pink so I'm happy. There's probably enough in the tube for a few more applications which is great so I'm looking forward to experimenting with different styles.

Hair History // Part 2

Part 2 of my hair history now, 2012 to the present day still saw a fair few changes to style and colour- see part one here if you haven't seen it yet!

1. February 2012, very dark brown again. This was a style that I went back to many times, just very straight with a long side fringe. I didn't often wear my fringe on my face as it was too much hassle and I've never been one for fussy hair styles.
2. April saw my hair go quite bright ginger which I had for a while and actually really liked. Possibly one of the favourite colours that my hair has been.
3. My hair went natural that summer, this is possibly the nearest to my natural colour it has ever been. Basically since I was 13/14 I've just been growing my hair out. I've had trims and a few various styles but I've never been short again since the boy cut.
4. This is, I think, the nicest my hair has ever looked. This was for a wedding and I got my hair styled before hand. I just think it was such natural curls and I really liked how it framed my face. Why can't my hair be like this naturally?!
5, 6, 7. From October 2012, my hair was a fair pretty much shoulder length and was quite a natural colour.
8. In Christmas '12 I went for a fringe for the final time, but as usual it didn't last long and I haven't had one since then.
9. On to the start of 2013 at last- I was really starting to grow my hair and when I went to the hairdressers I would literally only have a tiny bit off the ends of my hair. I like the shade of red my hair was here.
10. Prom hair! This was June '13, how bad do my roots look! I'd had blonde highlights put in before this and my whole hair was quite light so my roots really showed through a fair bit. I got it curled at the hairdressers for this.
11. This was taken in Uganda this summer, my hair had gone quite light in the sun and was naturally wavey for once! Luckily you can't tell in this photo that I hadn't been able to wash my hair for three days.
12. later that summer, you can clearly see some quite blonde bits here.
13., 14. Both September of 2013, I love the colour of my hair here but because it was so light compared to my natural colour it was such a pain. I had to keep getting it redone to stop my roots looking awful so...
15. ...in October I went for something a little darker. Kind of a dark caramel colour and although you can't tell in these last two photos, my hair is about 3 inches past my shoulder.
16. Finally the present day- my hair is dark red and straight. I haven't really got a fringe as I tend to have my hair off my face a lot, often tucked behind my ear. I wear it up in a topknot a lot as it is just the right length and is so easy when I don't want to bother with my hair.

My hair has changed so much throughout my life so far and I doubt I'll ever stop changing it, particularly dying it because it's an easy way to change my look around. It's grown so much since I first had it cut short, I can't believe it's almost 5 years ago since it was a pixie cut. Despite hating my hair at times, I wouldn't go back and not do it again because it's all lead me to where I am now, and however much it annoys me at times, on the whole I'm happy. Where next? Your guess is as good as mine, watch this space!

Olivia Ellen XXX

Hair History // Part 1

Looking back at these photos, I think it's fair to say my hair has changed a fair bit in 16 years and 8 months of my life so far. I'd trawled through a lot of old photos to find these for you and today I'm going to share with you my hair history part one, and next week I'll be posting part two so give me a follow to look out for that.

1. Me at 18 months. I was quite a fair haired baby although what I would currently class as my natural colour is a mid brown.
2. Around 5 years old, my hair looks quite blonde here although my mom once told be that she used lightening spray on my hair as she wanted a blonde girl!
3. I was aged 9 in this photo and this was pretty much my hair for a chunk of my childhood- long, mid brown and naturally deadly straight which I hated at times.
4. In 2008 (making me 10 or 11 here) I started to change my hair. I got it cut so it was shoulder length which was a drastic change at the time. How awful is this pose?! I was off to a 'formal' party so my mom curled my hair for me.
5. This is the summer of '09 so I would have been 12 and my hair is in a pixie cut. I liked this because it was so easy to maintain, I literally did nothing to it.
6. Christmas 2009, still a pixie cut but a bit neater.
7. Oh the cringe! This is the shortest my hair ever was, it was literally a boy hair cut and this was in 2010 so I would have been 12 and in year 8 at school I think. Looking back on this I really hate it.
8. This was my 13th birthday and is when I first starting regularly dying my hair. It had grown a little and I'd dyed it a gingery-red.
9+10. These were actually on the same holiday in 2010. I'd grown my hair out a bit and had a full fringe, although I was getting fed up of managing a fringe s often kept it pulled off my face.
11. At the Clothes Show in 2010, my hair had grown a fair bit and I'd dyed it almost black.I quite like the frizzy style it's in here.
12. Christmas '10, shows the length of my hair at the time. I've always had naturally very straight hair which for me was a nightmare because it always just looked so flat.
13. At the start of 2011 I went back to a fringe and dyed it a dark plum colour. This fringe didn't last long- it was such a pain to keep neat and I could never get it to look just right.
14, 15, 16. All in the summer of 2011. My hair was a light brown colour (how awful are the roots in the last photo) and it wasn't quite at shoulder length.

Olivia Ellen XXX

Haircare Routine

Like my make-up routine, I change up my haircare regularly so today's post is mainly going to be me showing you some of my favourite haircare products and some that I keep going back to, starting with shampoo:

Like so many people, I'm a huge fan of Aussie products, and although I like to try a variety of shampoos, Aussie is the brand that I keep going back to. The 'Take the Heat' range is one of my favourites because I really feel like these help to strengthen and repair my hair. I also use the 3 Minute Miracle maybe once or twice a week when I feel like my hair just needs a bit of a boost.

These are the products I tend to find myself reaching for most. Firstly, two sea salt sprays- by Lee Stafford and one by Aussie. I like to spray these into my hair and then scrunch it up and it just gives a lovely textured, voluminous look, plus they both smell lush. I use this Aussie Shine Serum when my hair is feeling a bit dry, particularly on the ends and it makes it feel very soft and shiny too. Of course, I couldn't live without hairspray- I don't have a particular favourite but I'm using this VO5 one at the moment and it's working pretty well.

In terms of styling tools, I don't use much. I rarely use my hair straighteners anymore, my hair dryer is the only thing I really rely on. I use my hair Tangle Teezer everyday because my hair gets in such a mess at times and this makes it so easy to brush. I also couldn't live without hair bobbles and hair grips- I often throw my hair up in a top-knot when I don't want to wash it or bother with it and I always get little stray bits so I always need hair grips.

I am a hair-dye obsessive and have been dying my hair regularly for 4-5 years now. I often do it at home using semi-permanent kits and like to keep the colour swatches so I can remember what colours it's been. My favourite out of these is the bright ginger or the rich red, although neither lasted very long. I'm sure I'll continue to dye my hair for a long time, because I love how easily it can change your appearance and I like to match my hair colours to the seasons.

Olivia Ellen XXX