dirty sexy hair

I can count on one hand finger the times last month that I was able to shower and dry my hair before leaving somewhere in the morning. I typically take a shower at night after the boy has gone to bed...partly because the time it takes for me to shower and dry my hair is just too long to leave a toddler under no or partial supervision...by the time I was looking beautiful, there would be marker all over the wall and dog food/water all over the floor. So...I shower at night and usually end up going to bed with wet hair. The problem with this is that it means that when I wake up in the morning, put my hair in a ponytail to run on the treadmill, and take it down again, my hair usually looks like this:

Not attractive!

So...most of my hair tricks involve how to make your hair look presentable when you can't wash and blow-dry it. First, say hello to my lil' friend-dry shampoo.

I first heard about dry shampoo a couple of years ago in a fashion magazine. It was in an article about how you should only wash your hair 2-3 times a week in order to keep it as healthy as possible, and how you can use dry shampoo in between washes to keep from looking greasy. Dry shampoo is also great if you just need to add some body to your roots at any time. I was like, 'that sounds awesome!' However, when I first head about it, only the expensive salon brands were making it, and it seemed like a far away dream that I would ever be able to put dry shampoo to use. Now, it has caught on, and is available in an array of prices. So far, Suave is the only kind I've used because it's the cheapest-less than three dollars. 

To use dry shampoo, spray it directly on your roots from about 8-10 inches away.

Next, you massage it in with your palms, the heat from your hands helps to activate the shampoo, and lift your roots up for some body.

After, you can see that my hair is already looking more voluminous and less greasy and flat.

Next, to help disguise the bumps and waves in my hair from wearing it in a pony and sleeping on it while it was wet, I am going to put some waves in it, using a medium-sized curling iron. For natural waves instead of spiral curls, wind your hair around the iron (in about 1-2 inches sections) leaving the ends sticking out. Like so:

You do not have to spend a lot of time doing this. Move quickly. It only took me about 10 minutes. When you're done, if you have any pieces that are much less wavy than the rest, just re-do them.

Almost done! Next, gently brush through the curls with your hands, to give it more body and to make it look more natural. Flip your head upside down and shake your hair a little.

ALLLLLLLLLLLLL done!