Abbey Road Videos and HairDo Review

As if opening night isn't stressful enough on its own, this particular show was fraught with even more anxiety since the entire show was filmed that evening. It's mostly for archival purposed, but the theatre brings in a 3 person camera crew who edits it together afterwards, so it's more than just a straight-on shot the entire time. A bunch of cuts were posted on youtube this week, so I thought I'd share some of them with you.

First up, "Hard Day's Night." I want to show you this because of the fabulous grey suits I chose for the men in the show:



At this point in the show, their suits are in the more "disheveled" stage- most of them have loosened their ties, removed their jackets, rolled their sleeves up, etc. But you can still get an idea of what the suit itself looks like on Todd (singing lead). The suits came from H&M and were very affordable- only $99 for the jacket and $49 for the pants. We had to perform some minor alterations like taking in the waists and hemming the length on the pants, but overall they have a really nice, slim fit. I also liked that they have a nice sheen to them- almost like a sharkskin suit, but not quite that shiny.

Next up is Blackbird, performed by Michelle. She's a regular performer at AMT and for this show I got to put her in some really spectacular gowns. This particular gown is beaded from top to bottom and looks really beautiful under the lights. I don't think the video really does it justice.



Did you happen to notice her hair- probably not, but if you did, you saw that it's about shoulder-length. Well, in act 1, it's all the way down her back. You can see it in this video of "Maxwell's Silver Hammer." Skip to about 1:45 to see her hair if you like:



Looks pretty great, right? I actually used Jessica Simpson's line HairDo to achieve the long, 70's-era locks on Michelle. I purchased it at MaxWigs and it wasn't cheap- $89 for synthetic, but it was worth it. The color she's wearing is "Sandy Blonde," but there are plenty of other color and style options available. The great thing about the HairDo line is that it is intended to work with your own natural hair. You pull the hair at the crown up and out of the way, then you use the clips that are sewn into the hair piece to secure it in place. Let your own hair down over the top of it and it's a perfect seamless blend of natural and faux hair.

She dances a LOT in the show and the piece has never once even started to come loose, so you know it's quality. Here's a picture of the hair in action:

In case you haven't figured it out yet, I highly recommend the HairDo line. I own the bangs myself, and after seeing how great this piece has worked out, I'll probably use more pieces in shows in the future. Have any of you ever tried this line? What do you think of it? Would you ever wear fake hair in real life? It's one thing to do it on stage, but another thing entirely to pull it off in real life. I've done it, so it's definitely possible! Leave a comment and tell me what you think!

Summertime Hair

It has been very humid for the last few weeks, which isn't too difficult to deal with, except for the fact that I'm currently trying to grow out my hair. It's down past my shoulders now, but on hot, humid days it is really annoying. So lately I've taken to pulling it up or back, but in an effort not to be completely boring and mundane, I've been sporting a messy side bun. I start by parting my hair to the side, then I sweep it all into a low bun on one side. I've also been adding big flower clips or little feather fascinators to them for a little added pizzazz. It looks far more interesting than a basic ponytail, but it's just as simple to execute. Trust me, I have ZERO hair-styling skills, so if I can handle it, anyone can. While the messy side-bun was more of a trend LAST summer, I didn't really participate then. My hair was too short. But this year I'm sporting it nearly every day. A few examples:

I am loving the braid in this last one.

Not all side buns are as successful as they need to be. (Even the last one whose braid I love, is a bit too much of a mess- sort of reminds me of a bird's nest. Not a good thing.) To successfully pull of the side bun look, make sure you keep it low and just a bit tousled. Or if you are going for the sleek look, make sure the bun is as sleek as the hair. If you have slicked back hair, but a messy, tousled bun, it will look disconnectd, almost as if you are wearing a fake piece of hair. (Which I do all the time- more on this topic in a bit.) The same is true of the reverse- too neat a bun on a tousled head of hair will appear disconnected and fake. If you place it too high, it will look like Minnie Mouse lost an ear, so be very careful with placement, too. Case in point:

Be consistent with the texture and keep the placement low and you'll be able to sport the side bun with confidence. If your hair is too short for a nice, full bun, consider adding a piece or two. I do it all the time and no one is the wiser. Seriously- it's amazing what people will think is my real hair. Sometimes I use a Fun Bun:

 

Shoesday Tuesday- I didn't forget!

I know today is Shoesday Tuesday- I didn't forget! Between setting up the Etsy shop and a hectic day after work, I didn't get around to it. So sorry. Maybe if I type fast I can get this post published before midnight and it can still qualify as Shoesday Tuesday not Shoesday... Wednesday (which is totally lame).

Anyway, I started off my day in a pair of super cheap, super old black ballet flats. I am telling you, these shoes have become a torture device. I don't know how my feet made it through the day, but there are 4 inch heels in my closet that are more comfortable than these flats. So today when I came home from work, I threw those shoes in the trash. I kicked them off the minute I walked in the door and immediately tossed them in the garbage. That'll teach me to buy cheap shoes. But now I need to replace my black ballet flats.

I'm diggin' these:

Kelsi Dagger Caymen Ballet Flat, Endless, $49.99

But this isn't the only clever use of zipper trim on a ballet flat. I'm also diggin' these:

Elizabeth and James E-Just Flats, SSENSE, $188

And these:

Bamboo Phelps Zipper Bow Flat, Urban Original, $14.80

And these:

Jessica Simpson Zipper Trim Bow Detail Ballet Flat, Lord & Taylor, $69

So what do you all think? Which ones are your favorite? I'm not sure I'll go for zipper trim flats, or standard black without any embellishments, but I do need to replace them. Happy Shoesday Tuesday!

Shoesday Tuesday- Pretty in Pink

After work today I got my first pedicure of the season:

About the only thing related to shoes in this post is that I really didn't plan well for the pedicure. I wore my (favorite) black CLOSED-TOE wedges to work today and didn't have time to stop at home to change before heading to the spa. So I ended up wearing those disposable flip flops all the way home. Thank goodness I didn't get pulled over! I even left the toe separators in! I realized after the pedi was finished that I'd chosen a bright pink polish. (The colors never look the same on your toes as they do in the bottle, do they?) I thought I'd picked a much deeper purple-ish pink, but it was more of a bright fuchsia once it was on my toes. I realized then that I'd gone WAY overboard on the pink today. I wore this dress to work:

And since it was a little chilly, I threw on a trench to keep warm:

Pink, pink and more pink. I'm reminded of Dolores Umbridge:

It seems like nearly every other weekend there's a channel that will run a marathon  of the Harry Potter movies. Over this past weekend I watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. If I haven't mentioned it before, I'm a HUGE Harry Potter fan. I've read all the books at least 5 times, and I like the movies, too. Anyway, maybe Dolores Umbridge's character subliminally affected my outfit choice today. Perish the thought.

And now before you all start commenting on my new hairstyle, specificaly the bangs, let me set the record straight: they are fake. Remember this post about the faux-bangs? Well, I finally got up the nerve to wear them out in public. I felt a little like Zooey Deschanel or Anne Hathaway in "The Devil Wears Prada." They were a big hit at work, but just like bragging about bargains, I'm unable to keep it to myself that my bangs aren't real. Every time I heard "I like your hair!" or "Yourhair looks good today!" I abslutely HAD to respond with, "My bangs are fake!" It was like tourettes. Well, it was nothing like tourettes, actually, but I felt like I couldn't hold it in. All day I just kept on exclaiming, "My bangs are fake! My bangs are fake!" And here I am announcing it to the whole internet, too. I'm out of control.

But enough about my bangs. Did I tell you they're fake?

HairDo by Jessica Simpson- Bangs

Good evening, everyone! A while back I wrote a review on the HairDo Clip in Bangs from Jessica Simpson's faux hair line. I work with a lot of hair pieces in my line of work, so I see what looks natural and what doesn't. Anyway, in that original post, I wasn't prepared to show a picture of myself in them, but I finally managed to take a photo with the bangs on for all of you to see:

Sorry for the blurry photo- I'm a terrible self-portrait artist. But as for the bangs, what do you all think? Feel free to comment on either how bangs look on me, or the bangs in general as a faux hair piece. I think they look really natural- they blend into my own hair pretty seamlessly, don't you think? Comment are always welcome!

Review: HairDo Clip-in Bangs

A while back, Jessica Simpson got together with Ken Paves and created a line of hair pieces- mostly clip-in extensions designed to be worn with layered hair. Most were a little beyond my price range ($80ish), so I never tried them out. I was, however, quite tempted. In my line of work, I ask the girls I dress to wear faux hair all the time but I think a lot of women are intimidated by the idea of wearing it in real life. I've incorporated a few hairpieces into my style repertoire with great success and that's with mostly cheap stuff. No joke. I even wore a curly hair comb to a wedding and got SO many compliments on my 'do.

Recently, I discovered a piece that I found too intriguing to ignore. I even splurged and bought it for $35 (with shipping). It's the Jessica Simpson/Ken Paves HairDo Clip-in bangs. I'm in love. I wore it for the 2nd half of the day today and fooled just about everyone. Hardly anyone noticed and that was a pretty clear indicator that they looked natural, don't you think? The color was a flawless match with mine and it truly blended in without looking like an added on "piece." The bangs are designed with three small clips underneath the layer of bangs. Simply part your own hair down the middle and clip on. I did it several times without even using a mirror and achieved fabulous results every time. These bangs are far superior to other add-on bangs available on the market right now. I've tried another pair that actually wraps around your entire head and let me tell you- they are hard to put on and look soooooo fake. If I didn't look so battle-worn from the long day at work (it's nearly 11 PM and I've been here since 9:15 AM!), I'd photograph myself before and after to show you how great they work. However, since I look far too wretched today to photograph, I'll just show you the HairDo demostration pictures because it TRULY is this easy and effective.

And yes, they look that natural and fabulous in real life, too. I give these clip-in bangs a solid 2 thumbs up.

P.S. Just in case you're wondering why I'm at work so late and lso ong, The Black Crowes are playing at American Music Theatre today. It has been a fabulous, if long, day- they have all been so polite, and friendly, as was their opener, Truth & Salvage.