Stylist David John shares these three quick and easy styles for fabulous holiday hair in minutes!
Stand apart from the sleek stands of seasons past by adding some curls! Run a large barrel curling iron through hair and create a strong side part. Spray each section with hairspray before curling to create a crisper curl. Not only does this protect hair from heat, but also makes for a sexy, retro glam look.
Go for the gusto and treat yourself to a clip-on hair extension! Available in Sally’s Beauty, choose a color that matches your own or have your own hair dyed to match. Clip in the back for added length/fullness. Wear curly, straight, in a sleek high ponytail or chic low bun. Extensions are easy, breezy, versatile and fun!
Glam up your ponytail. Super sexy and playful, simply create a side part and brush hair back with hair spray. Ponytail should be medium to low height and secured. Take small piece of hair and wrap about rubber band to conceal. Fasten with bobby pin or sparkly barrette for an elegant twist.
Legendary stylist and John Frieda Collection Creative Consultant Harry Josh tells you how to achieve—and hold—fabulously festive holiday hair:
Cocktail Party
Start the night out right with a chic chignon to complement your cocktail dress. “Before stepping out of the shower or towel-drying hair, squeeze out excess water then coat wet hair with a generous amount of Frizz-Ease Original Serum to prevent hair from frizzing as it dries,” says Josh. “Next, create a defined side part and blow dry hair with a flat paddle brush. Don’t worry about getting hair super straight—this style is supposed to have a little shape and volume. Once hair is dry, pull back into a loose side bun and secure using a clip or bobby pins, not a hair band. Spritz gathered hair with Sheer Blonde Crystal Clear Hairspray and smooth your palms over the hair’s surface to tame flyaways.”
Dinner Party
Take your hair from chic chignon to show-stopping pony in the time it takes to refill your cocktail with a little touch-up of Frizz-Ease Thermal Protection Hair Serum. “Shake hair loose and flip it over, quickly bringing it together on the top of your head,” recommends Josh. “Secure hair using a loose band or clip, then place a drop of Frizz-Ease Thermal Protection Hair Serum in palms and run through your pony for a smooth finish. The serum adds definition and shine to the natural wave created by the chignon. Keep hair frizz-free throughout the night with a spray of Frizz-Ease Moisture Barrier Firm-Hold Hairspray.”
Late Night Party
Take a break between parties to let your hair down for the night. “Loose waves are a perfect late-night look—holiday hair doesn’t always have to be an updo,” Josh advises. “Wrap individual sections of hair around your finger, starting with the under-layers, and spritz lightly with Luxurious Volume All-Out Hold™ Hairspray to create waves and boost body on the go. The spray provides all-night hold and major volume for no-fuss, fabulous style.”
Go ahead! Ask your questions–now’s the time to get product recommendations, comparisons, or just find out what my favorite moisturizer is. I’ll be keeping an eye out on this post so I can answer questions quickly aka today! 
Feel free to chime in with your answer to someone else’s question, too!
How can I save money on makeup?
There are a whole bunch of ways to save money on makeup, and let me tell you some of my favorite ways.
Bargain beauty. There are bargain websites, like makeup.com, which sell some name brands for up to half off. YMMV, though, because sometimes nothing strikes my fancy and other times there’s a bunch! Beautycrunch.com also has a few brands available at discount prices, too. My favorite way is just doing some preliminary searching on the internet to try and find a deal.
Friends & Family Sales. These days most brands are getting into the friends and family spirit by holding annual (or sometimes semi-annual) sales where you can save 15-20% off on everything. I have found many of these deals are good online only, though.
Keep a Lemming List. Don’t ask me the history of “lemmings” and why they’re called such, but if you keep a list of products you have an eye on… you can easily check it to see if an item is on sale. Say you spot a F&F sale going on, but you’re not sure what you loved–your list will help you remember. This also helps me keep my eye on the “prize” (prizes?), because I’ll often save up for an item I really want and skip on an item that’s just so-so but might catch me with its fancy packaging.
Know What You Have. There’s a good reason why people ask, “What’s a good dupe for _______?” Most of us don’t want to own ten versions of Deep Truth eyeshadow (though, despite this, many of us own at least one or two). You can easily save money by not buying duplicate products, but also going for variety rather than collecting them all. Even when there is a slight variance, you might ask yourself, “If I used a different base or layered it with X shadow, could I dupe it that way?” An easy dupe might not be available, but you might find a good dupe by layering colors (e.g., lighten your deep green with a frosty yellow).
Gift Sets and Gift With Purchase. With the holidays right around the corner, nearly every cosmetic retailer gets into the spirit of the holidays by pushing gift sets, palettes, etc. Usually, these are a good deal. Often you’ll get more for your money than buying things alone. Sometimes you can try new products out by spending less (like getting a trial set). Also, brands do GWPs throughout the year, which let you try new products or rediscover old favorites, plus a cute makeup bag or what have you. (By the by, Clinique has an amazing one coming up!)
Should I get full size brushes or a brush set?
It isn’t actually a question of which one to get, but which one will better suit your needs. There is often debate between brush set quality vs. full-size brush quality. In the case of MAC brush sets, they are machine made, while full-size brushes are handmade. These brushes contained in sets aren’t terrible, and they get you good value for the price. They just aren’t identical to full-sized brushes, and it makes sense, because you’re getting the brush set for much less than if you bought the full-sized brushes together.
Value is the number one reason to purchase a brush set over individual brushes. The MAC face brush set contains the SE 187 and the set retails for $49.50 (as of Holiday 2008)–and the full size version retails for $42.00! Say you rarely use the 187, then you really don’t need the full-size version, right? You just get more brushes for your money than you would buying individual brushes. Budget beauty addicts may find brush sets a way to invest in good brushes without breaking the bank.
Finally, those who are new to makeup might find this an excellent opportunity to take advantage of trying out multiple brushes at once. This way they can figure out what brushes they actually will use and how often will they be used. If you love eyeshadow, you might find you just need to have MAC’s 239 brush–and perhaps even a few of them.
Go ahead! Ask your questions–now’s the time to get product recommendations, comparisons, or just find out what my favorite moisturizer is. I’ll be keeping an eye out on this post so I can answer questions quickly aka today! Feel free to chime in with your answer to someone else’s question, too!
