Beauty Break: Beat the Heat - A Very "Braidy" Sequel (Part 2)

Hello friends, time for more summer braids! To change it up a bit from a full up-do, Sharie did a romantic half-up, half-down braided style on me:

Braid it Baby Style #2 - Em's Look

Step 1: Sharie applied some mousse throughout my hair. Although my hair is super fine, there is a LOT of it - I find that mousse tends to be the best styling product for keeping it under control (my fav drugstore brand here).

Step 2: Section hair and place 1-2 inch sections in "foil rollers" (if you ever put your hair in rag curlers as a kid - I did! - this is exactly the same technique, only using strips of household aluminum foil instead of fabric). Sharie started at the base of each section and began wrapping it around the roller - when she had completed rolling my hair around the foil, she used the ends of the foil to hold each roller in place.

Step 3: Once foil rollers are in place, apply heat! I sat under the salon dryer but a blow-dryer w/ diffuser would also work well. I sat for about 15 minutes and after the rollers were taken out...

...my hair had LOTS of texture (texture = key for braids)!!

Step 4: Part hair to one side and begin loosely French braiding the larger section around your face. Sharie then braided the other, smaller side of my part in a regular braid and used a tiny elastic (yes, a single elastic!) to secure both braids in an uneven angle on the back of my head. She left the rest of my hair down & wavy. SUPER. EASY.

I couldn't help thinking that this would be a gorgeous hairstyle for a casual summer wedding (perhaps with a few tiny flowers tucked into the braids!) if one wanted to wear their hair down but still wanted something that would hold up and be comfortable in the heat/humidity.

We hope you enjoyed our summer braids! A huge thanks again to @ Sharie Manon and Matt Olivar (photos)!

<3,

Emy & Po

Mario Diab is a full-service salon located at 62 Crosby Street in New York City.  For bookings, please call212.226.6595 or email sohohair@mariodiab.com

Beauty Break: Beat the Heat - A Very "Braidy" Sequel

We here at Head to Toe look forward to summer all year long until of course it gets here and we remember how hard it is to look good in the heat(wave) and humidity of NYC.   The size of our hair seems to move in lock step with the temperature...as it gets hotter, our hair gets bigger...and bigger, and bigger, and bigger.  Now don't get us wrong, a little volume can be a girl's best friend, but there is a very big difference between a bit of volume and continuously expanding frizz.

Enter Sharie Manon of the Mario Diab salon in downtown New York City - a Style Network star in the making and a bonafide hair genius - with the perfect summer style to help us embrace our hair's natural texture (read HUGE) and yet still look chic as the temperature and humidity levels rise.

Braid it Baby Style #1 - Po's Look

For the record, Po is not gifted when it comes to doin' up the 'dos.  The day the scrunchie went out of style was the day that hairstyling surpassed her skill level...so if she can do this, anyone can.  This style took Sharie a grand total of 10 minutes and 5 pins...making this look perfect for a night out or a rushed weekday morning.

Step 1:   Keep things in control - Sharie ran some texturizing cream from roots to tips to help maintain volume, but control the frizz

Step 2:  Create an off-center part 

Step 3:  Begin to create two loose french braids on each side of your head.  Don't worry about making these perfect - the messier the better.

Step 4:   Continue the thicker of the two braids further along the back of your head.

 

Step 5:  Wrap each braid around the base of your head and secure with several bobby pins

Step 6:  Rock it! ;)

Stay tuned later this week for Em's braided look.  In the meantime, check out Sharie's blog for endless hair-spiration @ Sharie Manon and stay tuned for updates on her upcoming Style network show, The Glam Fairy!
 

Mario Diab is a full-service salon located at 62 Crosby Street in New York City.  For bookings, please call 212.226.6595 or email sohohair@mariodiab.com

Photo Credits: Matt Olivar  (Boom!)