Archive for the ‘L’Oreal’ Category
A perfect wash and blow-dry can do wonders – it transforms your appearance and hide the sins of not having had a hair cut in months. Like me.
Last week I was invited to award-winning hair salon Brooks and Brooks for a wash and blow-dry and I turned up with bad looking hair – always a good start. The salon is tucked away on a side street close to Holborn tube station and the surroundings makes it feel like you are walking through a boutique arcade.
Brooks and Brooks, which opened 10 years ago, has recently undergone a £120,000 make-over. There are two floors (ground and basement) with different areas all giving a comfortable, warm and relaxing, homely feel where you can have your hair cut and coloured, and also have your nails done by their resident manicurist who only uses OPI.
I do quite a poor job of blow-drying my bob so my stylist came to the rescue and gave my limp-looking locks some lift from the crown. I was also introduced to a Bumble & Bumble product for strengthening and thickening my hair, one of the brands Brooks and Brooks uses (as well as Kérastase, L’Oréal and Kevin Murphy). It’s a shame I had nowhere to go afterwards but home. Any way, here is what I left the salon with…
These pictures were taken when I got home so excuse the ruffles courtesy of London Underground’s own unique blow-drying system. Bah.
With lots of offices and businesses in the area, Brooks and Brooks are open till 9pm most days so it’s possible to fit in an appointment after work.
Brooks and Brooks is at 13-17 Sicilian Avenue, WC1A, London. To find out more, visit www.brooksandbrooks.co.uk. You can also follow the salon on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BrooksHair.
Lately I have had a lot of compliments about my hair colour and the truth is, it’s a home-dye job. I rarely break the salon rules but I had to reach for the bottle for a colour boost in-between waiting for my next visit to see my colourist Billie. (Please Billie, don’t slap my wrist when I see you in a few weeks!)
I had my hair coloured a plum red in September so I tried to pick a close match to it with L’Oreal’s Casting Creme Gloss in 360 Black Cherry (£6.49).
I did this 3 weeks ago and it was a fiercely intense colour which has gradually faded but still remains pretty vibrant and glossy…and I wash my hair several times a week. (The perils of having short hair means more maintenance!)
How the shade looked following colouring
L’Oreal’s Casting Creme Gloss, which is ammonia-free lasts about 25-odd washes, I think which suits me fine since I didn’t want to risk making a mistake or giving Billie a difficult job to fix things.
How the colour looks 3 weeks on…
So the gamble paid off – I got great results, no visible damage (so the formula is gentle), shine and lasting colour for a grand sum of £6.49. What do you think? Have you tried the Casting Creme Gloss range?
