And now for some hair product reviews!!! Another looong post!

Some backgroud info...until January I had completely virgin natural red hair. I hadnt colored it in over 5 years. Well, that got boring and therefore I decided to go for a bolder red. Mass chaos and purchasing of hair care products insued. So, here are some reviews of my trial and error journey to the perfect hair. Hardy har har.

And here are my reviews...for reference I have medium thick, mid-back length ,wavy, slightly dry and frizzy, red hair that I color and straighten.

Sulfate Free Shampoos and Conditioners:

Basically I really love Pureology Hydrate Shampoo and Conditioner (~$20) because it is Sulfate free and supposed to be great at preserving hair color but decided to look for something cheaper. I try to get about 3-4 days between washes and Pureology, while it leans toward drying out my hair ironically enough, it gets it clean enough that it doesnt get oily fast.

L'Oreal Ever Pure ~$7 - didnt lather much even for a Sulfate Free and left my hair very weighed down

Biolage Delicate Care ~$15 - smelled super nice but also didnt lather much and left my hair weighed down

Hairtrition (Sally's Beauty) ~$8 - Im digging this a good bit. Smells very good, lathers pretty well and my hair stays clean a day or two longer than with the two above. Also got the deep conditioner and it made my hair really soft in the shower. I also shedded a lot less than I have been lately with this.

Dry Shampoos:

Baptiste (Sally's Beauty) ~$6 - this is my long standing favorite so far. While it is white and can leave lots of powdery residue on your hair, it drys super fast and doesnt feel filmy or weighed down.

Shampowder (Informercial, purchased at Target.com) ~$15 - I bought this in search of a tinted dry shampoo for my darker hair. I had read about Bumble and Bumble Hair Powder in red but its ~$30 so I tried this first. The application method is a pain in the ass. It comes in a hollow wand/brush applicator like some of the mineral foundations do. It took forever to get it open and working and then not much comes out at once. It does have a nice vanilla scent and does blend in better with my hair. Its only average on soaking up the oil and doesnt leave my hair filmy.

Tresemme Fresh Start Waterless Foam Shampoo ~$4 - I was really excited to try this b/c it sounded so strange and intriguing. The directions say to use 2-3 pumps and that was way too much! It was like a foamy mousse that you massage in. Well, unfortunately I didnt love this because it took forever to dry and then it left kind of a film on my hair.

Tresemme Fresh Start Dry Shampoo ~$4 - again, smells very very good and citrusy. But again, unfortunately it took forever to dry. Baptiste usually drys in about 30 seconds to a very powdery finish but this took over 2 minutes to dry and also left a dull filmy-ness to my hair.

Heat Protection products:

Redken Smooth Down Heat Glide ~$5 travel size - This is a serum type leave in that you apply while hair is still damp. Seems to be similar to Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum, but a little less greasy. So far I have been using it when I first wash my hair and I have no real complaints or comments. I guess I should notice it keeping my hair healthier eventually and not breaking off as much after flat ironing...

Tresemme Thermal Creations Instant Heat Tamer Spray ~$5 - I have been using this when I touch up my flat ironing on day 2 or 3. It smells nice and doesnt make my hair greasy or weighed down. Adds a little sheen too. Again though, it may take a while for me to know if it is working.

Curling Products:

Tresemme Curl Hydration Creme ~$4 - I wanted something to put into my damp hair to activate and tame my natural wave/curl. Again, as with all of the Tresemme products (Im on a kick lately!) it smells great. I do think I used too much the first time, probably about a nickel sized amount, and should have done about a dimes worth. In other words a little goes a long way! It definetely gave me soft controlled waves.

Tresemme Thermal Creations Curl Activator Spray ~$4 - Havent tried this yet, will update with a review once I have!

Hot Tools Gold 1 1/2 inch curling iron ~$30 - I got this to replace my *seemingly* old and worn out Conair Instant Heat 1 1/4 inch curling iron. Despite reading tons of good reviews I hated it! It had a funny plastic smell and the spring wouldnt clamp on my hair enough. My curls fell out in about an hour. I also think that it was slightly to big for my hair length and the desired medium loose curls instead od just waves. Back this went to Ulta!

Conair Instant Heat 1 1/4 inch curling iron ~$15 - Im not sure why I thought I needed to replace this orignally! I guess I should have headed "if it aint broke, dont fix it" because this thing is way better than the Hot Tools. Spring clamps down great on my hair and the curls last forever. I dont know why I thought it needed to be hotter because its perfect. It also heats up way faster!

Deep Conditioners/Treatments:

Joico KPAK Penetrating Reconstructor (Protien Treatment) and Joico KPAK Intensive Hydrator (Deep Conditioner) - Im reviewing these together because it was recommended on Makeupally that they work best together in this order. It was recommended that you do the Recon. for about 5 mins and then the Hydrator for 5 mins. This is supposed to be especially good *before* hair coloring, but should not be done right after or you will strip the color!! Just ask me how I found this out...So far, I have done this treatment 3x and it seems to be keeping my hair pretty healthy despite me coloring it a lot more lately. Im hoping it really helps improve me hair over time.

Hair Color:

Ion Demi Permanent Hair Color (Sally's Beauty) ~$5 - This was my first experience with Demi Perm. color. The smell wasnt too bad and this stuff make your hair SUPER shiney! Loved that about it...but it fades super fast too. For me, in about 2-3 works.

Ion Permanent Hair Color (Sally's Beauty) ~$5 - I decided to try this and see if it would last bit longer that the Demi...so far it mostly is. The level of shine is pretty close to the Demi. My hair is still pretty bold, but red still rinses out with every wash. Looks like I can get about 4 - 5 weeks with this.

That is all for now!!

Urban Decay Book of Shadows II Look :)

Here is a fun look from the UD BOSII :)

Jinx on the lid, Misdemeanor in the crease, Sellout to blend and highlight. Generic black eyeliner on waterline. Flipside liner on top lid with MAC Peacocky glitter liner on top...enjoy!

Latest and greatest purchases :) LONG POST!

None of these are super new items to the scene, but they are things I've picked up lately and am enjoying :)

First is the sparkly Sonia Kashuk Quads from Target! The browns quad is Showstoppers, and the purple is...

Basically, these are uber soft and shimmery/glittery and are something even the biggest glitter ho wouldnt wear often. This coming from a big glitter ho. The base colors are pretty sheer and dont blend together super well. But, they are pretty fun and would be great for a club/date night look! The best thing about these is that they are a cheaper ($10.99 each for a quad) and slightly better version of the new Urban Decay Stardust shadows. So, if you are lemming those, get these!!!






Hard Candy's new blushes in Pin Up and Honeymoon: These are great!!! Very shimmery/frosty, but they go on smooth and give me just the right amount of color without looking garish. Pin Up is almost bronzer like on my lighter skin and Honeymoon is a gorgeous light peachy shade.



Next is some of the Hard Candy Eyeshadows. These arent super pigmented, but they are all nice and smooth. I really like how the have almost micro glitter in them for added fun!




Next is my Kohl's/Flirt Beauty holiday palette! If your Kohl's still has these, go get one! This is the perfect bronzy/neutral palette. Im not usually a fan of Flirt stuff but the eyeshadows in this are right on par color and quality wise with a few Urban Decay shades (baked, half baked, twice baked). I can do comparisons on request!





Next....living proof that I am a UD junkie :) I finally obtained all 3 Book of Shadows palettes!!! Do not ask me how much I paid...Im still feeling a little guilty ;)

Now, I have a love/hate thing with these...Love: so many colors of UD even at the prices I paid, its a better deal than owning them all full size. Hate: the portability issue. These are so clunky!!! I had to go out and get a bigger makeup bag to bring this with me to work. Yes, I am guilty of putting my makeup on at work. Sorry, I love my sleep :)

Below I did some comparisons of the shades that you will find in them. Many are similar, and many are the same. You will find the most overlap between the BOSII and AIW.

If I had to choose 2 out of the 3, I would choose BOSI and BOSII. But, I LOVE Alice in Wonderland, so I had to have that one too :)






Comparisons...
First are the aquas L-R: UD Peace Deluxe, BOSII Jinx, AIW Alice
Peace is the boldest and most pigmented, Jinx has a duochromy tint similar to MAC Tilt and AIW Alice is in between.

Now the Greens L-R: UD Graffiti Deluxe, BOSI Absinthe, BOSII Homegrown, AIW Absolum
Again, Graffitti is the boldest, Absinthe follows and the other two are a lot more sheer and golden.

The golds...well I spaced out and totally forgot what I swatched now, sorry!



Im pretty sure that is enough for one post!

Again, I appear out of nowhere...

It seems that I have completely abandoned this blog and all things beauty...until now! I cant promise that I will post here much, but I would like to post some things occasionally because I know that when people search "Fyrinnae Swatches" they will always end up here ;)

On a personal note I will say that the reason I returned is that I am much more into beauty related things than I have been in over a year! Sitting in your house alone for a year with no job can do that to you. I have however spent a lot of time growing my Etsy business and making that a success, so it was worth the break. I also finally got a part time office job so now I have cash to spend on makeup and whatnot again, YAY!

While I attempt to find pics of some looks Ive done recently, I will entertain you with some hair pics instead :) Here is my latest...bright reddish purple hair, joy.