Feather Hair Extensions at Michael's Salon & Spa

This morning, Good Morning America featured a segment on new hair trends for the summer, featuring feather hair extensions. This new fad has taken the beauty industry and our nation by storm with celebrities and socialites sporting this new look. Michael's Salon & Spa has been selling hundreds of this latest accessory to its clients (See our billboard along Interstate 75).

Michael's Salon & Spa in Centerville, Ohio is the Dayton area's premiere Salon & Spa locatin with more than 30 years of experience in the beauty and hair industry. Known for staying up to date on the latest hair trends and high-fashion tresses, Michael's Salon is dedicated to creating cutting edge styles for its clients.

Want the latest hair fashion and fads? Visit Michael's Salon at its Centerville location or 'Like' us on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter.

For questions on feather hair extensions of information on Michael's Salon & Spa please call 937-435-4701.

You've been hearing about the "Bronde" hair color trend for awhile now in the big publications (Glamour, Cosmo, Stylelist, etc.) - think Jennifer Aniston, Gisele Bündchen and 90% of Victoria's Secret models - but do you know the best way to get the look?


Balayage is the highlighting technique used to "paint" on highlights to achieve the natural-looking, sun-kissed highlights of the bronde look. Michael's designers studied this technique from the masters at Jacques Dessange in Paris and brought it back here to Dayton to train the rest of Michael's talented stylists.

We love the balayage hair color technique because it's a natural-looking alternative to traditional foil highlights. The stylist has complete control of the placement and intensity of the highlights.

What do you think of the bronde look? Is balayage a highlight technique you would like to try?

Yes, Salon City Magazine selected Dayton's premiere salon and spa number 9 on their HOT 100 Salons in America!

Michael's Salon and Spa is working to raise funds for the Dayton Ohio chapter of the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women campaign. We are excited to work with the dynamic team at Go Red to raise funds and awareness of heart disease in women. Did you know that heart disease is the number 1 cause of death for women in the US?


Free haircuts with donation
In the month of September, any new client can donate $25 to Go Red for Women and receive a Michael's design cut and style, up to a $50 value. The entire $25 is donated to Go Red for Women, and you get a great new look! Sounds like a win-win, right?

How to donate to Go Red for Women:
If you are interested in donating to the Heart Association, all you have to do is email info@michaelssalon.com, and we will call you to schedule your appointment. All of our designers are participating to raise money, but there are limited appointments available with each stylist. Email us now to schedule your appointment in the month of September.

About heart disease in women:
The partnership between Michael's Salon and Go Red for Women was an easy one to make. Most of our clients are women. Most of Michael's hair stylists are women. It's obvious that we want to keep our clients and staff healthy. I would be willing to bet that every person reading this blog has been affected by heart disease in one form or another. Maybe your mother has high cholesterol, or your boss survived a heart attack. We can all work together to raise awareness and learn how to lead heart healthy lives.

The fine print:
Please include your phone number in your email. Print this page and present at checkout (this will help us keep track of the donation appointments). Payment must be made with cash or check, credit cards cannot be accepted for your donation. Valid for new clients only. Appointments must be made between Sept 1 and Sept 30, 2010.

Any questions? Leave a comment on this post or include them in your email to info@michaelssalon.com. Let's work together to raise funds and Go Red for Women!

We love it when our clients take the time to offer us feedback! Here is a comment that was submitted yesterday in the 'Share your experience' box on our website:

I promised Laura I would give an update, so here it is. Laura gave me the Keratin treatment on Wednesday. She did an excellent job. I loved my hair walking out of the salon. I had to wait three days to wash it. Saturday was the big test. Would I be able to cut my styling time in half??

I am so excited to say that it only took me about ten minutes to style my hair and walk out the door the way I like it. I was absolutely amazed. On top of that, my hair stayed completely straight without any frizz or curl. I am so excited about this treatment, and will do it again next year, just in time for the humid weather to start. Thank you so much to Laura for doing such an amazing job. You rock!!!!!  :) :)
-Name withheld for privacy

Are you noticing that your hair isn't as shiny and healthy as it was ten years ago? It's true, with age comes hair that is drier, breaks easily and lacks body and shine.
The recent issue (May 2010) of More magazine tackled this problem in an article titled "Ch-Ch-Changes!" More offered up a six week plan to bring back the silky texture we all love. Here are some highlights from the article, with tips from Michael's included (direct quotes from More in italics). Update (5/26/10) More's article on tips for aging hair is now available on their website. Disclosure: All product recommendations in this blog are by Michael's professionals:

Trim, then tame
Visit your stylist to get rid of damaged ends, then explore conditioning treatments. "Nearly every stylist we spoke to said for the most dramatic results, you can't beat an in-salon keratin treatment."

We've blogged about keratin treatments several times, but the treatment infuses keratin into your hair follicles to promote healing, block humidity, and prevent environmental toxins from entering the hair. It leaves hair smooth, frizz-free and manageable.

Give your do some downtime
After a keratin treatment, you should not wash your hair for 72 hours to allow the treatment to soak in. When you do wash your hair, use a sodium-free shampoo like Keratin Care. Salt will strip your hair of chemical treatments, which means your keratin, or color process for that matter, won't last as long.

Also, skip a day or two from shampoo. Your hair produces natural oils which help keep it moisturized. If you must, rinse your hair in luke warm water, and use a small amount of conditioner just on the ends.
**Personal note: Jodi talked me into shampooing every other day, and I'm finally able to keep red color in my hair, after many attempts that faded quickly. And as an added bonus, my shampoo and conditioner last twice as long!

Finally, go easy on the heat. When you do rinse or shampoo, use luke warm water, not hot water. When you blow dry or flat iron, use a thermal protectant like Iron It by Michael's, Aquage Beyond Shine or Trilliant by Sebastian.

Color Care
After taking great care of your hair, you might want to amp up the color a bit. The More article recommends 'Ask your colorist if (s)he can use an oil-based bleach, which processes hair more gently than a traditional bleach." Michael's uses Wella color processes, which are oil-based, and condition your hair as they color.

More magazine is a great resource for 'women of style & substance.' They celebrate women over 40, and offer tips on fashion, beauty, love, careers and more.

What do you think of these tips? Do you have other tips to share? Let us know in the comments!

Have you noticed how many celebrities have been wearing their locks in wavy curls? Have you tried to style your hair like this at home, just to end up with a tangled, half-curled, half-frizzy, doesn't-look-good-at-all mess? Here comes Myka to the rescue! She wears her hair in curly waves every day, so she took some time to show us exactly how to make your hair look naturally wavy, when it's not:

To style, Myka used products from Aquage and TIGI.

• While her hair was still wet, she used Sea Salt Texturizing Spray from Aquage to add volume, texture and separation to her locks.
  
• Once her hair is dry, she preps her strands with Bed Head Masterpiece shine spray by TIGI.
  
• When curling, Myka takes vertical sections of her hair, and curls by starting mid-shaft,  and working her way down
• She makes sure not to curl the ends, to keep the look loose and natural
• Once she curls the top front sections, she works on the bottom layers around her face, then curls sections in the back
  
• You don't have to curl every strand
• To finish, use a pea-size dollop of Bed Head AfterParty by TIGI to separate strands and add a smooth shine
• Flip head upside down and shake out curls, then use your fingers to separate and shape

What do you think - can you get this look at home? Is there a style or beauty tip you would like to see featured? Let us know, leave a comment here, on Michael's Facebook, or @michaelssalon on Twitter!

Our short answer: YES

 

Yes salon products are better, and here’s why. Look at the ingredients on your shampoo that you purchase at any retail store. I’m willing to bet that one or more of the following will be the top ingredients: water, salt (sodium chloride or ammonium chloride) or a sulfate.

 

What are these ingredients?

While water is a necessary ingredient, most store brands are highly diluted – to the point that it takes much more product to get the job done. For products that are diluted with high quantities of water, there will be lots of salt. Salt is a thickening agent, so that your product will seem to be of a good consistency. Sulfates, often listed as ammonium laurel sulfate, sodium laurel sulfate, or sodium laureth sulfate, are lathering agents. They make your shampoos or foaming products get bubbly to make you think they’re working. Salon products include these as well, but in smaller amounts, and at gentler doses. Sulfates at high doses are harsh on your hair, especially your hair color.

 

Why are they bad?

If your product is diluted, it will take more of the product to achieve your desired result. Which means that one professional bottle might last longer than 3 or 4 bottles of store products. Multiply the cost of a store product by 4, is it still cheaper than a professional product? Still, why are you spending so much on salt and water?

Salt is very hard on your hair, especially if your hair has been processed. If you are willing to pay 70, 100 or 150 dollars on a process, why would you strip it with cheap products?

 

Professional Recommendations

Of course, not ALL store brand products contain harsh elements, and some professional products do. One of the most important reasons to use professional products is because you can get specific recommendations from a licensed professional. Michael’s designers train with cosmetic chemists and understand what ingredients are in the products we offer. They will recommend the products you need to get the style you are looking for. And the best part – Michael’s guarantees the products we sell. If a product you purchase doesn’t work out for you, bring it back within 30 days and we will be happy to find another product better suited for your needs.

What do you think? Do you use professional products or store brand products? Are you satisfied with your hair's texture? Does your color last as long as you think it should? Let's get a discussion going.

Do you suffer from thinning hair? If so, you are not alone. 30 million women in the United States suffer from thinning hair. Laser hair treatments, available here at Michael's in Dayton Ohio, provide hope. This is not just another false claim saying "we can re-grow hair instantly!" For laser hair treatments to be effective, it takes patience and time. The FDA approves this treatment, and studies have shown a 97% success rate in increased hair count after 18 weeks of treatment.  It typically takes one year to achieve ideal results.

The Doctors television show featured this treatment on a segment about thinning hair. This video explains how the laser works: