My friend Sam Adams came in for a man make over last week. He recently left the world of male modeling for a more corporate career that requires him to wear suits and look a little more clean cut. I think we can all agree that all that blonde hair is amazing, but I was dancing around the salon with glee when he came in for the big change. Sam’s long hair is one of the first things people think of when they hear his name….also this…so being the one responsible for the change was a big job.

He came in asking for something a little retro, that could be worn different ways, and something that didn’t look like every other guy walking down the street. I cut the entire thing with my straight razor to give it the right texture, and left lots of length on the top so that it can be worn all kinds of different ways. It looks pretty clean cut here, but the top is quite long and looks very ’90s punk if worn down. I’ll have to take some more pictures of it!

I cut his sides really short towards the front, and gradually went longer as I got towards the back, so that he can comb his sides back for the Don Draper look.

Rumor has it he loves it, and equally as important, so does his wife

It’s hot out there…

Do you get all snippy with your hair in the summer? or leave it long?

Click here for this week’s Divine Caroline post!

Photo of me two summers ago when I got snippy.

Stay cool out there, stay cool.

These days I’m doing less and less layered haircuts on my clients. To read more about how you don’t have to have “The Rachel” anymore, go read this week’s Divine Caroline post!

Click here!

Image from Divine Caroline

This week’s Divine Caroline post is all about the glorious trim!

If you’re wondering how often you should be trimming your hair to keep it healthy or to keep it shapely, click here!

Me and my friend Hads after a big cut!

I feel like the highlight of my hair’s life/career will be the day I get a pixie cut. I have always wanted one. I mean, ever since I’ve been in my 20s I’ve wanted one. I never really thought about it before then. I don’t know what is stopping me really. I am pretty proud of my hair-guts, and I’m not really afraid to try new things….but the pixie, at this point it’s almost the untouchable. What if it’s not as exciting as I’ve always thought it will be? What if I like it for only a month?

I know I’ll have a pixie one day, but it has to be the right time. So, for now I’ll look longingly at the pixie hair of my fancy. The girls with all the hair courage.

Carrie Mulligan

Michelle Williams

Sienna Miller

Agyness Deyn (she comes into my salon. Her platinum pixie is cuter than you can imagine)

My mom. Photo of a photo from the late 1950s, she’s the cutie on the left. My mom is actually an inspiration to me in a lot of hairy ways. I’ve had a client for 3 years that gets my mom’s shaggy early 70s cut.

So. I vow right here on Hairdresser On Fire, that one day I will get a pixie. I will not be afraid forever. I will have one.

It just might be two or three or four years.

PS Something about a pixie screams for a drastic hair color, right?

I’ve decided to do a series focusing on how to get the best volume for your hair, because to me volume is the most important factor in achieving a good hair day. Doesn’t that sound so weird and funny? But anyone who knows me, knows that I’m constantly fluffing up my hair throughout the day, making sure it stays nice and huge. What is your passion? My passion is huge hair. Apparently many of you have a passion with huge hair too, because volume is probably my second most common email topic, next to frizz.

So, the very first step to creating wonderful voluminous hugeness, is having the right hair cut. The problem here, is I can’t just say “Go get your hair cut like ___” and have the problem solved. There are just too many hair types and textures and head/face shapes for that. That is why it is so important to find the right stylist (eh hem, me maybe?) who will be able to talk to you and find out with you what will work for your styling routine, texture and hair type.

Hair types= Thin, Fine, Medium, Course, Thick.

Hair Textures= Curly, Wavy, Straight.

Decide what your hair type/texture is, and that will help you find the best cut(s). **I say cuts because who is going to keep their hair one way for the rest of their life?**

My type and texture is wavy and fine with medium thickness. That really leaves me with a lot of room for different hair cuts and I have found that I can do many lengths and still have volume. What works the best for me though, has been to have a blunt bob (chin length to shoulder length) with no layers, or to have it long with lots of layers and framing around the face. When my hair is long, I absolutely have to have framing around the face. I have worn my hair short for the last year, and I have realized that I needed a regular trim much more often with my long hair to prevent it from losing it’s shape, than I do with my short hair. If I had something short and layered, I would probably have to get it cut more frequently than I do with my blunt cut. But again, it would be a completely different story if I didn’t have wave in my hair.

Aside from getting regular haircuts to maintain the shape, the technique being used is very important. If you have heavy or weighed down hair, it’s likely that a razor cut, point cutting or thinning for texture will help lighten it up. You wouldn’t believe how much your hair can spring up with the right cut!

This post will get way too long if I explain each and every hair type, so let’s continue it in the comment section! Tell me what cuts have worked best for you to maximize volume. Do you have questions about your hair type and what would work best for you? I’ll do my best to answer them so check back!

Sorry for the structural chaos of this post. I can’t help myself because volume is my passion.

Next Volume post will be about how to shampoo/condition for the best results!

Come back and you could have hair like this!

Ok, maybe more like this…

Because it always comes back to Zooey, right?

Last week, my friend Lindsay donated her hair to the organization Locks of Love. Lindsay had been planning on donating it for about a year (or more) and grew it as long as possible, so she could send as much as she could without “looking like a boy” afterwords. I always love doing drastic changes on my clients/friends, and being a small part of something so charitable is that much more special. Lindsay donated about a foot of hair! I know her hair looks unbelievably long and a bit weighed down in the pictures (and it was) but when she had it curled and all jazzy, it was STUNNING! We ladies get very attached to our hair, which is what makes donating it such an act of love!

Before. Lindsay looking beautiful even with a buttload of hair.

After. Lindsay looking beautiful and fresh faced as ever. ps we threw in a half head of foils and finished up with a toner (Shades EQ 8N) to make it soft and subtle. It was her first time with highlights so we didn’t want to go crazy with the change!

If you’d like to donate your hair to locks of love, click here for more information. And then have me do it! I love getting in on the action, and I need all the help I can get when it comes to getting into heaven.

Have you ever donated your hair?

Q by Claire: ***I have totally thin hair but I don’t want my hair shorter than ponytail length. Which cut is best for me? Also, I live in Australia. DBJ.

A by Reagan: Not to get all mushy on your Australian a’, but my heart really goes out to people with super duper thin hair. It is hard to feel beautiful when you aren’t happy with your hair. I have some really good tips for you though, Claire! So get pumped!

Tip number one-Get a trim often. Really thin hair tends to lose it’s shape much faster than thick hair. Keeping your ends trimmed up will make it look fuller.

Tip number two-Blunt cuts are best. Don’t let anyone use a razor or texturizing sheers on you. Avoid point cutting too. You want your ends blunt so that it doesn’t look stringy.

Tip number three-Avoid too many layers. It will make the length thinner. You can have long layers if you insist, but nothing shorter than an inch or two above the length.

Tip number four-Bangs (fringe) are awesome. I really try to talk my super thinnies out of lots of layers, like I was saying in tip three, so a straight, square cut with bangs makes for a nice style. Bangs prevent your cut from looking boring, and gives you a beautiful shape. There are many lengths and ways to wear bangs, so find something that you like with your face shape. A round face looks better with sweepy bangs.

Tip number five-Clip in extensions. You could also go for more permanent extensions, but those are very expensive and have to be redone every few months. I have clients who clip in a couple of rows when they go out, and it creates so much fullness. Remember, you can get extensions the same length as your hair if you don’t want your hair longer. Just a few rows will make a big difference. Give it a try!

Here are a few pictures of the ideal thinny hair cut.

Nicol Richie has extremely thin hair. This haircut is perfect for her. She has extensions all over the place for thickness, even in her bangs! I can tell, cause it’s my job to tell.

Agyness Deyn has a very similar cut, but shorter and with a heavier fringe. This look will be best between her length, and just an inch or two past your shoulders. You don’t have to have super short hair just because it’s thin!

***I wrote my own question for Claire, just to get to the point. Don’t be offended, Claire. I want you to be my friend, and one day I’m going to make it down to Australia.

ps, I give up with the pictures. no matter how I try, they never center properly. Boo.

I’ve been getting a lot of questions about what type of hair styles look good for specific face shapes. Today we’re going to talk about the round face shape. Because guess what! I’m a roundy myself! I like to say I’m in-between round and heart shaped, because I always thought it would be cute to have a heart shaped face, but I think I’m definitely leaning more on the side of round. How do you know if your face is round? Your face is nearly as wide as it is tall, and your cheek area sticks out the farthest.

So, the first thing I recommend doing, is looking at celebrities with round faces. Because a lot of celebrities wear their hair a lot of different ways, so you can compare what you like and what you don’t. I’ve uploaded a few images of fellow roundies, with haircuts/styles that I think are suiting in a good way. (please forgive the random order of the pictures!)

Kirsten Dunst. I think this girl is gorgeous. And let me just proclaim right now that the bob is universally flattering on every face shape and hair type. She looks great with a bob. In fact, stunning! Here she is wearing it with a little wave.

Cameron Diaz. I know she looks a little square in this picture, but in most pics it is more round. There are two important things about Cam in this picture…1) her layers aren’t too short 2) sweepy bangs! If her layers were any shorter than they are in this picture, it would widen her face more. The bangs balance out the roundness, and the heavy part breaks it up as well. Heavy part+sweepy bangs are the way to go for roundies! Want me to stop calling us roundies? Too bad so sad!

Ginnifer Goodwin rocking another beautiful bob with lots of fullness at the bottom.

I had to post two of Ginnifer, because this style works so great for a round face. Having her hair pulled to one side is a great way to not overcrowd her facial region. I’m trying to get creative with my descriptions, because I feel like I’m writing “face” too much.

Kirsten again with a bob, but this time it’s straight! See how she has a little volume/height at the t0p? That does wonders for a round face.

And the last picture is where it gets awkward. I am saying awkward, because although this girl has a round face with blunt bangs, I still think she looks very pretty. Blunt bangs and/or a center part don’t usually work as well on round faces. But I have to say, I do them both on occasion myself. I just need the variety!  Blunt bangs tend to smoosh the face down more, making it look short. But I just think they look so sassy, so I give myself some every few years.

Whatever I’ve put in this post is just to help you out when choosing the right hair cut or style for you. If you feel like something else might work, then do what you want! Try something new with your hair now and then, it’s not going to kill you if you decide later it wasn’t the best choice!

Key things to remember about us ladies with round faces…
*Avoid too short of layers
*A heavy side part looks best
*sweepy bangs make you look hot
*volume at the crown elongates your face