Looking for a new spring hat?  See which hat trends will work with your face shape.

When ushering in the new spring, there are things apart from shoes, dress and coats that we want to think about changing. Even if you have not been an avid hat-wearer in the past, this can be your year to change things up and transform your style from mysterious or sporty, to chic and classy with just a change of a hat. And, if you’re having a bad hair day or feeling sun shy, voila . . . hats become your new best friend!

The fashion industry simply can’t get enough of the over-sized floppy hats craze, from straw, cloth and even suede. The great thing about these hats is that they can help you achieve a classy feminine look at a very affordable cost! Furthermore, by playing with the different angles of your hat, you can recreate a myriad of looks that will bring about any number of different sides of your personality.

By tilting the floppy hat slightly such that it hides most of your forehead, you will invoke an element of mystery and bring out your soft feminine side. Over-sized floppy hats generally suit oval-shaped fashionista’s best, but squared shaped faces  also look magnificent in this trend! Don’t mistake these hats as being strictly beach wear or simply trendy, causal accessories; they can also work with business and other formal attire!

If you are looking for something less dramatic, then you might hail the return of the cloche hat! Similar to the over-sized floppy hat, when tipped at just the right angle, it hides a little bit of the face, preserving an element of mystery. With this jazzy fit, women can achieve the shy yet, oh so sophisticated look, at the same time!

Of course, we cannot forget the fedoras that have received so much attention this last year. But this euphoria has not ended and trend analysts say it will continue for most of 2012! So don’t be too quick to chuck them out of your wardrobes yet! If you are tired of your fedora, you can always add (or remove) feathers, ribbon, bands or gems, to make it funkier or liven it up for spring! Most women can pull off the fedora look, like most hat’s . . . it’s an attitude thing.

Another hat in the same family as the fedora, is the bucket hat, which is also one of the more surprising trends this year. The reason for its lack in popularity previously could be its simplistic designs or because of its original function as a fisherman’s hat. However, nowadays we see more and more bucket hats that are decorated with ribbons and jewels that have made it more feminine and increasingly more wearable! The shapeless nature of this hat makes it compatible with almost all face shapes and will definitely add that extra punch you need to jazz up any outfit!

We love what hat’s do for a woman’s look!  Grab your best girlfriend (or best confidant) and go in search of a hat or two, you will need a second opinion and you can laugh all the while you’re gettin your fashion on!

Barb Quinn on Google+  

How to do hair highlights

Hair highlights are popular because they allow you to change-up your normal hair color without the dramatic results of an all-over hair transformation. Hair highlights also offer you a way to gradually lighten your hair, instead of risking a dye job that you eventually hate. In short, highlighting your hair sounds like the perfect solution to spice up your look, or if you’ve just been bored with the same color you have had since birth. Of course, it’s really important to get ready for the process, and here are some tips for how to prepare for hair highlights.

Have Realistic Expectations

When you’re flipping through catalogs of women with gorgeous hair highlights, don’t expect your new hair color to look exactly the way it seems on the models. Unless you’re the model’s identical twin, you’ll probably have a different face shape, larger or smaller forehead, and your starting hair color may be completely different as well. In short, you can’t trust the highlights in pictures because they could have been touched up digitally, making the color hard to recreate in a salon. Hair highlights will also vary due to your hair stylist’s preferred techniques.

Find your Match

If your skin is pale with freckles, you don’t want highlights identical to Jennifer Lopez because you’d end up with hair that doesn’t work well with your natural features. And if you have medium-to-dark skin, the hair color you choose shouldn’t be based off of what a natural redhead or blonde girl would choose! Before getting hair highlights, it’s best to research the colors that will work best with your natural hair color, skin tone, and hair style to find the best match for you.

Be Aware

When preparing for hair highlights, think of it as adding a beauty accessory to your hair. Highlights need to match your style of dress – both when you’re at work and relaxing at home. You’ll also want to think of any important occasions like job interviews, weddings, proms, or other times where you are expected to look your best. If you’re going to any of the previously mention events, you don’t want to get over-the-top highlights in your hair that don’t match up with what you’re doing.

Lifestyle Appropriate

If you’re not expected to look professional at your job, then you have more freedom to experiment with chunky highlights that offer a higher contrast. But beware of making your wrinkles more visible with stark contrasting highlights since they tend to enhance one’s flaws more than subtle highlighting changes. If you’re concerned about making a drastic change to your appearance, opt for well-blended highlights that look natural while complimenting your natural hair color.

Be Committed

Having hair highlights requires commitment if you want the color to last. You should be willing to use a shampoo for color treated hair, and be ready to revisit the salon every other month (or sooner) to have your highlights retouched. You may even need a few more deep conditioning masks or treatments after you’ve gotten highlights to reduce the chance of damage from using heat on your hair.

Revisiting salons every month or two can be very damaging on your hair, so it requires a couple of extra minutes each day to keep the hair from splitting or becoming dry! Highlights also need more time under the dryer if you’re not happy with the end results. Highlights can be difficult to reverse, and can further dry out or damage your hair, so it’s important to understand the risks and benefits of getting hair highlights.

Find the Right Hair Stylist and Salon

The last step in how to prepare for hair highlights is ensuring that you go to a salon you’re comfortable with. This will make the experience go smoother, and allow you to relax while you’re under the foils. If you’re uncomfortable asking the hair stylist questions, then you won’t feel comfortable telling her you’re unhappy with the color, or explaining in detail what you really want him or her to do.

With so many hair trends, hair highlights have never gone out of style. In fact, they have only gotten more and more popular with men and women of all ages. Since they’re an easy way to add a change to your hair, and can even be done at home now, it’s no wonder why so many people are turning to highlights instead of dying their hair one boring hair color.

Going back to our original discussion on preparing for hair highlights, don’t forget to ask questions when you have them, and be honest with your hair colorist about what colors you like. Also, be open to suggestions since hair stylists will give you helpful hints to find the right color of highlights for you.

Guest contributor Ashley Olson is a professional writer and she enjoys sharing tips on hair coloring and in several other beauty topics.

For further discussion on hair highlights you might want to check out these other articles:

• How to Fix Bad Highlights or Lowlights
• Caramel Highlights
• Highlight Hair at Home?
• Hair Lowlights – what is it? Can I do it at home?
• Hair Highlights A New Technique
• A Highlighting Tip From American Salon Magazine
• Tips for Hair Highlights at Home

Don’t Put on the Heat Without a Straightening Balm

What straightening balms do:

They temporarily tame textured hair, reducing frizz and flyaways.

Why you need a straightening balm:

If you want sleek, soft hair that does what it’s told, a straightening balm (aka serum or creme) will smooth the hair shaft. While flat irons and salon straightening services are also effective, they can be damaging if used excessively.

How to use a straightening balm:

Begin with a smoothing shampoo and conditioner. Then, apply product to damp strands and blow-out hair with a brush working section by section, being sure that each one is totally dry before moving onto the next.

Just work Cutler Straightening Cream into damp locks from root to tip, then style normally. It adds a sleek, flyaway-free finish that’s soft and shiny.

You can multi-task with Aveda Smooth Infusion Glossing Straightener . . . it straightens and smoothes while adding a mega dose of gloss and heat protection.

Straight Finish Humidity Control Hair Mist from Paul Labrecque offers quick-drying, weightless, flexible hold. It takes hair straight without sacrificing soft, touchable movement.

Liqwd Professional Smoothing Catalyst’s Nano-Hydraspheres surround each strand to smooth it out and add a boost of moisture. After you blow-dry, your mane will be flat-iron sleek!

Tame unruly locks from the get-go by using Unite Smoothing Conditioner after you shampoo. As a bonus, it locks in color as it defrizzes.