01.09.2013
The Hair Files: George Papanikolas for Joico and Just Extensions!


For some reason, as soon as January hits, I always seem to get in a hair funk.  My friends assure me that my hair looks “fine” but I get really down on myself and end up going back to the two things that make me hair happy: perfect blonde highlights and new hair extensions.

So I went back to one of my absolute faves for highlights: George Papanikolas for Joico.  I’ve already raved about him here and hereso clearly, you know I’m obsessed.  George is one of the hottest and most sought after colorists in Hollywood; Instyle, Allure, and People Magazine have all recognized George as one of the countries top colorists.  Using the French, freehand technique “balayage,” he creates natural-looking, sun-kissed color that looks, as George says, “like you’ve spent a summer at the beach, not three hours in the salon.”

One of the most important ingredients in George’s color blends is a foundation of healthy, shiny hair.  To produce his vibrant color results, he relies on Joico’s Vero-K-Pak Color, as well as Joico’s Hair Repair System which includes Joico’s K-PAK Deep Penetrating Reconstructor to keep his cients hair in optimum condition.  This award-winning hair fixer is packed with Joico’s unique Quadramine Complex, which transforms strands instantly, leaving hair stronger, glossier and easier to manage.   

So touching up my color was step one (and photo one, above).  Step two was filling out my fine hair with extensions.  Now, my previous hair extension experience was truly epic but when I found out about Just Extensions, LA’s first extensions-only salon, I HAD to try them out.  Just Extensons is a Drybar for hair extensions, if you will, and you know how much I love a dedicated salon.  The best part?  Aside from the excellent customer service, their extension packages are crazy affordable.  I texted my friend Kristen, who is a frequent “weave” getter, and when I told her she could get a full head for $150, she replied back “a full f&*cking head for $150?!?!  I’m making an appointment!”  Now that’s excitment for good hair.  With three signature packages that include; micro-links, braided sew-in, beaded one-step weft, and fusion techniques (all ranging from $100 – $300), there really is something for every hair type.  Ugh, and guys, I TRIED out clip-ins (really, I did), but they’re just not as good!  I’m sorry.  This is the real deal.  I sent the salon manager a recent photo and when I came in for my appointment, she had four packs of perfectly matching hair, ready to go.  About two hours later, I looked like the second picture and I’m not even kidding – heads turned as I walked down the street.  A true testament to GOOD HAIR.


03.13.2012
29 on March 9th and amazing highlights by George Papanikolas!

I never thought that I’d ever say “29 is the new 22,” and especially not in a good way.  For the first time since I turned 22, I had a bit of a quarter life crisis freak out about getting older and yeah, you might consider it a bit of a meltdown.  Thankfully my BFF since 4th grade (and, ironically the friend that talked me off the ledge on my 22nd birthday), managed to calm me down with her words of wisdom.  Essentially, she reminded me that 29 is, in fact, not old and I have to learn to accept my life for what it is and not what I thought it would be as a teenager.

With that said, I am so insanely lucky to have found such amazing friends in Los Angeles…sometimes I honestly have to take a minute to soak it all in, which I did at my birthday sushi dinner last Friday night where sixteen of my closest friends celebrated my 29th birthday with me.  It felt good to be surrounded by all of the positive people in my LA life, and, I had brand new George Papanikolas highlights to boot!  As anyone knows, fresh highlights can really give your self esteem the super boost that it needs when you’re in the middle of a quarter(ish) life crisis and George knows exactly how to get the blonde that I covet (hello, he does Sarah Michelle Gellar and Nicole Richie).

I can’t say enough about George (you might remember my post from last January) where I raved about George’s balayage skills and, of course, Joico– one of my favorite hair brands.  Right now I’m obsessed with the Joico Smooth Cure line and especially the Smooth Cure Thermal Styling Protectant.  The line reduces frizz by 79% (yeah, that’s a lot) and even though I don’t really worry too much about frizz/humid hair here in LA, I do worry about protecting my hair from heat styling tools, and the Thermal Protectant spray is a-mazing for that.

 

01.09.2011
Highlights from George Papanikolas and Joico, my new product love

So if you’re a loyal reader of my blog then you know a few things about me 1-) I love all things Gwen Stefani 2-) I like any beauty products that smell like food and 3-) I’m very picky about my highlights.  I recently had the opportunity to try out the fabulous George Papanikolas at West Hollywood’s Andy Lecompte Salon.  If you haven’t heard of George, you probably don’t read Us Weekly or People because he has A-list celebrity clients like Nicole Richie and Sarah Michelle Gellar and he has them for good reason.

Not only was George insanely nice but he actually listened when I tried to explain the exact shade of blonde that I covet and he even humored me when I pulled out my iPhone and showed him my Facebook photo (oh yes, I did it).  His secret weapon?  Well besides his amazing belayage, George uses Joico products and on me he used Joico’s Hair Repair System, which helps repair and lock in color.  Personally, I loved the smell and my hair felt super soft and shiny when I left the salon.  I think I might have found my LA colorist…it’s about time.

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