Forevermissvanity - A UK Lifestyle Blogger : Hair extensions

Hairtrade Hair Extensions

I've always felt self conscious about my hair. I'm one of these people that wake up in a morning and it takes them hours to get their hair right - the majority of the time I just give up and hope it looks reasonable. My thick wavy hair has a tendency to stick out at awkward angles first thing in the morning and although sometimes I can wake up and have the nicest little curls, it usually ends up a frizzy mess by lunchtime.

Until I started my hairdressing course over 7 years ago, I did pretty much nothing with my hair. Growing up I was boring - barely got it cut and settled for having it long and marginally straight. My hair used to knot up so easily and it was incredibly difficult to tame - I had no patience. I felt like hiding my head under a bonnet, then another issue arose - hats don't really suit me. When I was sixteen, something clicked. For the first time in my life I felt style conscious.I enrolled on a hairdressing course at my local college and my life quickly changed. Suddenly I was dipping my head in all the colours of the rainbow, at one point I had jet black hair with a full head of bright pink highlights. My next move was to cut my luscious long hair into a bob. Needlessly to say that was my biggest hair disaster to date. I will never suit short hair. It made my face look round and being a little bit more of a tomboy back then, many people thought I looked masculine.

My life then changed dramatically when one day a friend brought into some hair extensions for one of her clients. It was something I had read about, seen in the media, but never tried myself. I always assumed that they would be difficult to apply and a pain in the rear end. My friend at the time then convinced me to go hair extension shopping with her and the rest is history. I loved and still love, the ease of clipping in hair extensions and the difference they can make to your entire look. I will never try glue ins as I have seen far too many hair disasters working in a salon, but clip ins and 3/4 wigs are like my best friends. Always there for when I need a pick me up in the hair department.

A few months ago I decided to blend in with the crowd and make my hair ombre. It was probably one of the best decisions I made as my hair looks much more vibrant and adds warmth to my face. Changing my hair colour meant that my previous hair extensions are now a no-go and the for the last few weeks I've had to painfully live without. I've always thought that buying hair extensions to match ombre hair would be rather difficult, but I decided to take the plunge by the selecting some I&K Auburn clip ins (link*) from Hairtrade.

These hair extensions blend in so well with my hair colour and clip in like a dream. They are soft, easy to style and look and feel fantastic. Admittedly I'm not into wearing hair extensions on a daily basis anymore - that was just a phase, but for girly nights out these are essential. My fine, dull hair can be transformed into long vibrant tresses and my confidence is given a nudge in the right direction.

Do you wear hair extensions?

Hair extensions have always been one of my go-to confidence building products. Whenever my hair looks limp and lifeless, I can always trust my clip ins, 3/4 wigs and weaves to give me that 'just stepped out of the salon look.' On Sunday I was kindly invited to the Halo Hair event in Manchester to sample their range of hair extensions, be pampered by their team of stylists and of course, like all bloggers do at events - get fat eating lots of cake and in this particular case, macaroons.

Halo Hair are a British hair extension company that sells a variety of hair extensions online, with their most popular product being the Halo. The Halo is a hair extension piece with a difference - instead of being clipped in, the hair is suspended on a fine thread of plastic that sits on your head like a halo. The hair is then pulled gently through to give you a seamless hair transformation.

Before attending the event, we were all asked to supply a current photograph so they could match our colour and I was shocked to see how closely matched my hair colour happened to be. Having coloured my hair consistently for the last 9 years, my hair colour is brunette, but has slight undertones of red from colouring straight over bleach blonde. The weft of hair I was supplied with by Halo Hair extensions was a perfect match and once applied, made my hair look natural.

I have worn hair extensions for several years, but honestly I haven't come across hair extensions that feel so light before. The Halo feels so natural, that it almost feels non-existent, it is like walking down the street with your normal styled hair. The hair is soft, easy to style and even though I have only put the hair in once myself so far, I have found it the easiest of all my hair extensions to put in.

I only discovered Halo hair a few days ago, but I am now hooked and even looking into buying another set to make my hair look even thicker. The Halo has won many awards and once you have tried them for yourself, you can really understand why they are so popular. This blog post is a teaser of my full Halo hair review that will be up hopefully in a few days time. I hope you are excited as I am about the next post.

Four years ago, my hair meant everything to me. I went from pink to black, purple to brown and had many variations of cut from the classic bob to long tousled hair with a full fringe. This was when I did hairdressing and getting up every morning meant my hair had to be in a perfect state. If you didn't experiment with your hair, you would be classed as boring, if you didn't cut your hair nearly every two weeks you 'wasn't in style'. I loved hairdressing, the socialising, the chance to be creative, but it wasn't me. I longed to write, get a degree and create a career for myself. There's only so many blow waves I could handle and as my course dragged along, I found myself humming 'Beauty School Dropout' from Grease. Nevertheless, I managed to finished my qualification and before I went onto study Media and later go to University to study Journalism. The fact that I'm a qualified hairdresser is something I rarely let people know. It's been years since I touched a pair of scissors, do you really trust me cutting your hair for the sake of a saving money? I don't think so.

It's not losing the skills that has really bothered me about my hairdressing past, after all it's like riding a bike I'm pretty sure I'd pick it back up, it's my lack of willing to experiment with my hair that has gone missing. Being a hairdresser, it was in my nature to play around with colours and get stylish cuts, but the last few years I've settled with safe colours and the standard one length style. I'm getting bored, but I'm in such a style rut even I don't know what to do with myself. My spontaneity in the hairdressing department has vanished and my hair is suffering as a result.

This year I'm wanting a change, but right now I'm not sure what to go for. I absolutely adored my long blonde hair, but if I bleach my hair again it would probably be a disaster. My full fringe was the envy of most of friends at one point, but my hair growth pattern makes it stick up unless it's properly blow dried. These days I'm buying half wigs all the time and trying to play with different styles, but sometimes it would be lovely to go out with my natural hair looking naturally fabulous, something right now I can't see happening. It doesn't help either that my wedding is in 9 months and I have to be careful of how much I change my style in case I hate it and can't get rid of it before the wedding.

My plan of action for the moment is to put off changing the colour or getting any dramatic cuts, but to improve the health of my hair and style experimenting with a few different styles. Adding curls every couple of days might give my hair a new lease of life and when it's healthy, hair always looks better. I'm planning on investing in more Macadamia hair products as I've always found them to give my hair excellent shine and nourishment and I would also love to try these sleep in rollers as I've tried sleeping in my other rollers in the past and they're very un-comfy. Finally, I plan on purchasing more half wigs and some good quality remy extensions, like the high quality brazilian hair from Pauls Hair World.Clip in hair are a great way to change your look*, I don't think I would survive without them. I have many clip in and half wigs right now, like the ombre half wig from Wonderland Wigs and the straight long locks from a seller on Ebay. Before I do anything dramatic, I need to see if I can love the hair I already have. Then, if I find that i'm really not happy I can start making changes. The worst thing is walking into the hairdressers and getting a spontaneous hairdo. Sometimes it works, but I've always been hit with regret.

Do you have any plans to change your hair this 2014?

And which out of my hairstyles do you prefer?

Last night I was sat in bed thinking about my recent spending habits and dwelling over Christmas shopping. So far I've bought many 'Christmas Treats' for myself and barely spend a penny on other people - apart from my fiance. Every time I go to town, it's one present for them and about three for myself. I can't help it, the shopaholic kicks in and for some reason I become impulsive. It doesn't help that there's so many fabulous bargains around at the moment and when Black Friday suddenly appeared, I couldn't neglect the amazing GHD offer that Feel Unique had going. My friends and family always look at how much I spend and think how on earth does she do it? Well, I don't go drinking like many people my age and I have three part-time jobs on the go. I'm not incredibly irresponsible with my money. I have savings, I've started a pension, so why not? My reasoning behind my latest impulse shopping is that i'm moving house in January and I know I'll have to curb my spending. I'm stocking up on all the things I want before I start to limit myself. My fiance just laughs at me and says: "It's your money" and he's right...but maybe sometimes I do need a stern talking to.

My latest shopping splurges have been everything from hair extensions, makeup, GHDS and a wonderful fur jacket from Miss Selfridge. Yesterday I fell in love with some checkered trousers from River Island and within moments they had made their way into my handbag. I left the store thinking I've been naughty again, yet embracing my cheshire cat grin. I've come to the conclusion that Confessions of a Shopaholic is my autobiography, minus the debt and the glamorous job - hopefully the job aspect of that film will come in the future.

So the first item I treated myself to was this beautiful half wig from Ebay. Ebay has some fantastic hair extension and wig sellers and I've book marked so many of them. I have lots of half wigs from Ombre to curly hair and this time I wanted something long and thick to cover up my thinning hair. This synthetic half wig cost me £18.95 which is cheaper than a haircut and really transforms my hair. I really believe that 'once you go half wig, you never go back'. They're addictive, they look fantastic and so much more comfortable than clip in hair extensions.

My next purchase was a Black Friday bargain from Feel Unique. I grabbed these GHD straighteners for £79 instead of £135. This was fantastic timing as my 6 year old pair of GHDs were finally succumbing to old age and wasn't heating up anymore. I'm a firm believer of GHDs and I swear by the fact that they are less damaging to your hair than most hair straighteners on the market and having had my old pair for over 6 years, I know that they have a long life span.

For a long time now I've been searching for the perfect fur coat and I finally found it in Miss Selfridge last Saturday. This coat is incredibly soft, comfortable and it doesn't make me look hefty like a lot of the fur coats out there. I got this coat whilst it had a 10% discount and it only cost me £80. I will be selling my other little fur coat as I don't like it as much as I love this. I can't stop wearing it in this cold weather.

Shortly after buying the fur coat I saw this bag on offer at River Island for £30 down from £45 and I knew I had to get it to match my fur coat. I love how much space this bag has and it's perfect for carrying around my Macbook or doing heavy Christmas shopping.

Finally I've been wanting this Michael Kors perfume for such a long time and thanks to Black Friday at Debenhams, I managed to get hold of it with a little bit of a discount. This will definitely be the fragrance I will wear over the Christmas period.

What have you been buying lately?

Hi, my name is Jessica and I'm a shopaholic.I confess that having spent several days saying I was going on a spending ban, I'm guilty of shopping til I drop. In my defence, everything I bought was an absolute bargain and all was done in the name of my blog. Gosh, who am I kidding? I broke my shopping ban and I don't feel guilty one bit. The first item I've recently bought are my new hair extensions in the above photo. My hair has been looking so dead lately and I really need a haircut. I wanted a temporary fix for those days where my hair is looking drab and I've become obsessed with half wigs. This half wig was bought from Ebay for £18.99 - cheaper than a haircut and they look fabulous.

My second purchase was getting my nails done. I've recently got a new job and wanted my nails to look really nice. It's been years since I last got my nails done, because my previous job had me handling a lot of chemicals and they used to peel off within a few days. I went to a salon in my local town and the Jeleration nails applied. They look so sparkly and feel ten times better than before I went in.

If you have read my Twitter feed lately, you will have seen me ranting about fur coats. I've never found a fur coat that suits me. I don't know why, but I always feel like they make me look podgy and a little bit old fashioned. I came across this coat whilst in Dorothy Perkins the other day and fell in love with it.I admit, the sizing could be better. This coat is a size 6, but still feels big on me, but during the winter I suppose it's great to have a coat that is quite roomy. The jacket was supposed to be £59.00, however there's a 20% sale on at the moment and I got another 20% off with student discount. That came to an almighty 40% off and the total sale of £35.40. I couldn't believe my luck.

The last two items I bought are from Miss Selfridge. My local branch currently has a sale on and at the moment, you can buy any sale item and get one free. I've been looking for a small bag to take to work and university on days where I don't have to carry a lot around. The bag was £20 and I got the playsuit free. What's more interesting is that I was allowed student discount on top of the sale and I managed to get the bag and playsuit for £18 instead. The previous retail price of these items were £42 each, meaning I got a massive £66 saving...I think my spending was justified.

Have you been shopping lately?

The last few days I've demonstrated in my blog posts how to change your hair from brunette, to ombre, and curly brunette. It's been one hell of a fake hair week, with forevermissvanity more fake hair than at a barbie factory and i'm pretty sure it's not going to be the end of my extension experiments. However, for now, the last lot of hair extensions I'm going to show you are the hair pony tails from Hot Hair.

Images taken from the HotHair website

HotHair.co.uk has a variety of clip in hair extensions to suit your everyday need. Whether you're looking for long flowing tresses or a perfect pony, they have it in stock. My main focus today is their range of clip in pony tails, great for those who have fine or shorter hair. There's a vast selection to choose from like hair that is already curled or a braided pony tail. These are great to use when you're in a hurry as they simply clip in and go. HotHair kindly sent me a pony tail to show you, however the shade is slightly darker than my own hair.

As you can see, the pony tail is clipped onto the back of my pre-existing pony and a piece of hair is then wrapped around the base to cover the hair fixtures. In this photo, you can see the difference of shade between my hair and the pony tail, however it's not too bad. It's advisable that you really analyse the different colours available to you before buying and maybe even asking a friend or relative to double check you're ordering the right one. With hair extensions, it's almost impossible to get the exact shade of your own colour as the majority of your hair pigment is a mix from all the previous colours you may have used or natural highlights due to sun exposure. Despite this muddle up, I do see the benefits of the clip on pony's. Having fine hair myself, I really do think that they are the solution for a thick lengthy pony hair on a night out. At £19.00 - which is cheaper than a hair cut and blow-dry, you really can't go wrong.

http://www.hothair.co.uk/

As you may have noticed, I've had a rather big obsession with my hair lately and I'm becoming a hoarder of hair extensions. My new favourite everyday clip in hair extensions come from a brand called 'Salon Confidential'. Salon Confidential are big hit with celebrities and are making a name for themselves within the hair community.

These hair extensions are in the colour chestnut brown and they are a perfect match to my hair. Salon Confidential hair extensions are all pre-styled so you can simply clip them in and go. I love the natural wave they have and how my hair is transformed to a Kate Middelton-esque style within seconds.

The best thing about these hair extensions is that they come in 12 pieces, unlike most hair extensions that come with a trio weft and a few for the side. This allows you to get easy volume and it's easier to spread the hair extensions out so they cover the whole area of your head and look more natural. These come in a 18 inch length, which is perfect for me.

With the hair extensions being pre-curled, it gives you time to focus on getting ready to go out, rather than spending hours on your hair. I love the finished result when they are finally in.

And here's the finished result. Comfortable, natural looking and very curly. I could wear them everyday.

These hair extensions are £45 from

http://www.salonconfidential.co.uk/

Have you ever felt the urge to change the way you look, but not had a clue where to start? Being a fashion and beauty blogger, I'm always keen to try out the latest trends and play with my self image. I always find that a new hairstyle is one of the easiest ways to give yourself a confidence boost, but it doesn't always have to be as dramatic as cutting half your hair off or going from black to blonde. Wonderland Wigs recently introduced me to their range of 3/4 wigs and being a fan of hair extensions, I knew it was something that would love to try out. Wonderland wigs have such a wonderful variety of hair extensions to suit your needs. Whether you're keen to try the ombre trend or want something bright and bold for a party, there's a fab range from as little as £25 to £180.

So here's a picture of me I took a few days ago with my usually dark brown hair extensions. I'm wearing my brand new Specsaver's glasses and trying to go all geek chic. Since the beginning of the year, I've had the urge to ombre my hair, however last time I did I tried, it really ruined the ends of my hair and ended up not looking the best. The only way I could properly get it done would be to spend a lot of money at the hairdressers and then again, I would still have to live with throughly conditioning my hair every week to stop it snapping. When I came across the Ombre 3/4 22 inch wig, I felt like it could be my saviour and the answer to my problems.

Ta-da! It works a treat and I've had so many compliments so far. My hair looks thick, luxurious and ombred whilst maintaining it's health. The wig was quite difficult to put in at first, but there are easy guides on Youtube to get you started.

I love how hair extensions enable the wearer to change how they look within the space of 10 minutes. I've gone from a dark brunette to dip dyed blonde. The wig stays on perfectly and blends really easy with my normal hair, despite being synthetic. My only niggle would be that they feel quite heavy to wear at times, but that's the price you pay for super volume locks.

The ombre wig costs £39.99 from Wonderland Wigs and I think it's a great price for the quality. You get a whole head of hair and I'm sure if it's maintained properly, it could last quite awhile. Would I be wearing these wig extensions again? Yes, all the time. It's great to have a refreshing summer look and be able to snap into winter mode within seconds. When you have cravings for light summer hair, sometimes its better to take a less drastic approach than grabbing hold of a bleach bottle.

Do you like these extensions?

http://www.wonderlandwigs.com/

Since colouring my hair blonde, my beautiful locks have never quite recovered. My hair is often dry, lifeless and the only way of a revamp is to wear extensions and hope for the best. Being a hairdresser in the past, I've always been very picky when choosing shampoos and conditioners. I've been told by my old lecturers, that the trick to determine whether a shampoo is that good is whether it foams up straight away or not. If the shampoo foams up in the first wash, it's diluted and probably wont keep your hair clean as long. Many hairdressers recommend two washes for a reason - the first is to get rid of the dirt and the second is to cleanse the hair before conditioning. I really don't know whether this is an old 'hairdressers' tale, but I take it very seriously and I normally find that my hair is in great condition for it.

Being fussy about my hair means I care a lot about what goes on it and if at all possible, I like shampoos or conditioners that use natural ingredients. Herbalife Strengthening shampoo and conditioner is a paraben and sulphate free range, that contains aloe vera to add a fresh scent and keep your hair well mositurised. With a combination of lemon blossom, white lilies and musk, this little duo is perfect for those who love beautifully scented hair. The olive oil extracts and shea butter help to replenish dull hair and add the all important moisture our cuticles are in need of. The winter weather can be quite harsh on hair, so it's important to give it a treat now and then, so you and your hair look your best.

I have used these products twice since I got them and so far I'm really impressed with the results. I love changing my hair care routine every couple of months so that my hair doesn't become dull. The Herbalife shampoo and conditioner seem like the perfect next step to combat my dry, split ends and I'm already seeing an improvement. Herbalife's strengthening duo costs £9.22 for each item, but a little goes a very long way. When I go to the hairdressers, they always say that my hair is in excellent condition for someone that has changed her hair colour as almost the amount of birthdays she has gone through. I will only use the very best for my hair and if it involves spending a little bit more to get that shine, I'm happy to do so.

The Herbalife shampoo and conditioning set are so gentle that I've used them to wash my hair extensions and the above pictures show the results. I've had many compliments since using the products - many people have approached me asking if I've changed anything about my hair. The simple fact is that I've switched my hair care routine. I think my hair was trying to tell me that I needed a change and that change has made a big improvement.

For more information and the products check out: http://products.herbalife.co.uk/

What do you think of the range?

Hairtrade Hair Extensions

Every Girl Deserves a Halo

The Many Hairstyles of Forevermissvanity

Look What I've got: Recent Shopping Hauls

Oops...I shopped.

Hot Hair Hair Extensions

Salon Confidential: Brunette Extensions

Wonderland Wigs: Brunette to Ombre!

Herbalife Hair Care