I love my snoods, they're great on bad hair days or after a hair experiment gone horribly wrong! So I've gone and done it again...created a hair tutorial video! I hope you all enjoy!
Can't wait for more? Then check out my Weekly Blog: Veggie Girl Eats Out for my review of Letizia's Fiore and find out if vegetarians should ever eat there. Click here to view Veggie Girl Eats Out!
What's your favorite fix for a bad hair day? Leave your response in the comment section below.
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Ever since I've started wearing the retro/vintage look I've wanted to find the perfect little hat to go along with the hair (still working on the clothes!). Well, one day when I was happily reading down the blog trail I stumbled upon The Modern Day Flapper and I noticed all these great hats she was wearing...then...I noticed that she was actually the milliner of these fabulous creations so I immediately surfed over to her Etsy shop Jayjayamore and essentially drooled until payday. Well, you can bet your last casino chip that when payday rolled around I ordered myself my very first vintage inspired hat, and boy was it difficult to choose which hat I liked best!
While at work, diligently working away, I received a package. I was so excited thinking it was my new hat, but alas it was just stupid business cards...stupid unwearable non-hat business cards. As the day drew to a close I realized it was too early to see my hat come through the mail, I had just ordered it on Sunday. As I completed this thought Brian (my co-worker) walked around the corner with a hat shaped box in his hands and he was headed straight for me! Bliss...my hat had arrived. It was everything I expected and more. The look and size was exactly what the website showed and the construction and materials where even better than I expected. The material was so soft and the embellishments were just perfect. I could not wait to run home and try it on!
Once home came the difficult decision...should I wear it on the right or left side? What's great is the hat is really easy to attach (two duckbill clips on the underside), easy to adjust, and very stable...I don't think even a good Chicago wind could whip it off my head. (it might possibly knock over me before the hat) Here's some pictures of my new accoutrement, please forgive the hair and make-up...it was a long day at work.
So what do you think...right or left? Leave your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below.
Weekends are made for trying out new hairstyles! Since I knew I'd be spending Saturday with friends I decided to try a very 40's hairstyle...my genius mind knew I would get honest feedback on how well I did and if I could "pull it off". So Friday night I casually flipped through my favorite hairstyling book, Vintage Hairstyling, to find just the right "do". I decided to go with the book's cover look...the happy pompadour, it looks so fun and sassy I just had to try it! This is such a fabulous book and I really want to support the author so I'm not going to walk through how I did the hairstyle, but I will tell you about the experience and how it turned out! :D (I've also included an amazon link to the book if you're interested)
It's my "Shoooot" Facial Expression!
So I set my hair and covered it with a hair net...yes I know it's very cafeteria chic, but I can't sleep without wearing one. I must fight zombies, or disco dance, or spin plates while I sleep because I wake with at least 2 or 3 rollers nearly unrolled...so the hair net has been a hair saver! The next morning, in true Jennifer fashion, I woke up late so I did not have as much time to spend styling the look as I'd like but I think it worked out OK for my first stab at it. I'll tell what really bugged this morning is that the hair in back didn't dry all the way (arguh...I think I didn't wait long enough after washing), you can tell by the lack of curls at the ends.
I Just Like This Picture :D
The steps in the book were really clear to follow, the most difficult part was getting the bangs just right. You can see from the picture that I didn't quite master that yet, but I think it works. btw...the picture is from much later in the day so I'm happy that the look was able to stand up to my daily activities and Chicago's wind. The only other thing I'd like to work on with the look is the very top. You can see the little white flowers on the top of my head...those are used to cover up the rubber band that's up there and I'm not in love with that look. I think I'm going to try playing with either wrapping some hair around the band or doing a criss-cross with a small section of hair on top.
One thing that I did play with was throwing in a cute little side pony tail and an extra flower...gotta have fun with it! I definitely like the look and will try it out again...I think I'll even work it at work!
Not Sure why I Keep Making the Odd Faces?!
What are your weekends made for? Leave your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below.
I'm ready for Spring to be in the air, for nature to wake up, and flowers to bloom! I adore flowers and nothing perks up a great vintage hairstyle better than a great flower. There are a lot of great places to buy floral hair accessories from, but sometimes they don't have exactly what I'm looking for, plus often times it's more fun to make it yourself! It's such a fun little project I wanted to share it with you guys, so I've created a step-by-step with some great pictures (ok some are great...some are a little fuzzy, but you all will be happy to know I found my missing tripod so the picture process should be getting easier soon).
What you Need.
Duck Billed Clips
Shop around for some great silk flowers from your local hobby/craft store (there's some great deals out there, Joanne has most of theirs on sale for 50% off)
Wire cutter (you don't want to cut the steams off with scissors since it will dull them pretty quickly)
Scissors
Duck billed clips (not sure what exactly these are called so I included a picture, plus I like the way the shot turned out)
Hot glue gun and glue sticks (I used all-purpose glue sticks)
Felt (works well as it doesn't absorb glue like a lot of other fabrics do)
Let's get Crafting!
Step 1: Clip the steam off, as close to the flower as you can
Step 2: If there is a plastic cap on the back of the flower you'll want to remove that by gently peeling it off, it will glue on better without the plastic and snip off any steam nub that remains.
Steps 1 (plastic cap visible here)
Step 3: Cut out a piece of felt approximately the same size as the top of your duck billed clip
Step 4: Place glue along the lengthwise edges of the felt and place on top of clip, hold in place while glue cools - careful this can be hot (also open up the clip so that you don't accidentally glue it together)
Step 4 - Completed
Step 5 (Optional): The flowers might look really cute with leaves as an added touch! The leaves will come with plastic on the backside, which you will want to remove by peeling off. Once that's done you'll just need to glue the leaves to the back of the flower, be sure to hold in place while the glue dries.
Step 5 - Removing the plastic
Step 6: Spread glue on the felt on the duck billed clip then place the clip on the back of the flower, try to avoid placing it directly on the lump as it will not anchor as well, and hold in place to dry.
Step 7: Ta-da!!! Your first custom made flower hair accessory. Now go plan the perfect hairstyle to best show off your new creation.
This blog is now going to be updated 4 times per week instead of daily, it's so much fun but some other projects are falling behind...if only that full-time job wasn't so, well, full-time! Next post will probably be Saturday or Sunday, but until then feel free to leave a comment! We love comments!
What craft projects are you most proud of? If you make your own let me know how it went!
I'm a written word girl...I like pen and paper, I love the texture of books, and darn it if I don't like sending letters through the post, but today I found myself filming and posting my very first YouTube video. I decided today that it would be easiest to demonstrate the Back-Finger-Twist method for victory rolls by posting a video rather than a series of photos. I didn't realize how ambitious this plan would be until I remembered I didn't have any video editing software and would have to run it all in one take...gulp! Since I've done corporate trainings for years I figured it was do-able. What follows is a brief description of what went on behind the scenes, the hilarity that ensued, and the world premiere of my first video!
To set the scene for you: I hauled in my big bendy lamp for "studio lighting" and since I have no idea where my tripod scuttled off to I used a combination of a overly large ladder, jewelry box, and digital camera...all used to prop up my droid phone. Yes, you heard that correctly...I did not use my camera (with video capabilities) to record the video, I used it to prop up...my...phone (in my defense the phone takes better video). All set-up I was ready to start recording...
Take one: talking, talking...wait where's my brush. Walk into the other room with camera running all the while asking myself..."who leaves a brush in the kitchen, that was...mumble, mumble".
Take two: wow, this is going good...wait, why am I suddenly talking in a Southern accent?
Take three: hey, this one is really good...I think this is it. REALLY!!!...I recorded myself sideways...who DOES THAT!
Take four: I trip over the ladder after turning the recording on
Take five: did I really just record the whole thing with my head cut off
Take 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11....
Take 20: By George I think I've done it!!!!
And here it is, the world premiere of Victory Roll Rollfection!
Have a splendid day!
Can't wait until tomorrow for more? Then check out my Weekly Blog: Veggie Girl Eats Out for my review of Jameson's Charhouse and find out if vegetarians should ever eat there. Click here to view: http://veggiegirleatsout.blogspot.com/ Have you made a YouTube video? Should I include more videos in my blogs? Leave your thoughts in the comment section below!
Since I've started wearing retro hairstyles the one look I could not get perfect was the victory roll, I got really close but there was always something a little off about it. I couldn't give up on my search for rollfection (yeah that's right, I just mashed up roll and perfection and made my own word) especially since this was a 1940s look I have adored for so long now. Look at the gorgeousness of Miss. Betty Grable and her luxurious locks with those perfect victory rolls, rollfection! So I did what any smart, at the end of her rope, girl would do...I enlisted the help of a friend!
I sat my friend Caroline down in front of a youtube video and said "Please watch this and tell me what the he*l I'm doing wrong". Her being fabulous and all she did just that. Once done she turned to me and said "It needs to be more..." and made a swooping gesture with her fingers. To which I replied, "Oh, you mean this...", making my own erratic finger motions. Then for a minute or so more we continued to talk in half sentences and hand movements before "Eureka!" I had it! (Note to readers: have you ever noticed that with certain people you have a bizarre language that is unique to the two of you, but must sound and look crazy to outsiders) Let me share with you my discovery which led to me being able to create rollfection with my victory rolls. (If you're not sure how to even start a victory roll I suggest the following youtube video by the fabulous Lisa Freemont Street: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfZwxAfbTYI )
Back: when you have hold of the section you are going to "roll" pull it towards the back of your head with a slight upward angle and roll towards your face
Finger: when the roll reaches your scalp place your pointer finger inside the roll, finger pointing to the ceiling
Twist: with your finger still inside the roll twist your finger so it's pointing to your forehead with a slight upward angle, and pin in place
Just remember Back-Finger-Twist and you'll achieve rollfection as well!
(I'll post pictures of the process in the near future for those of you that are more visual...update, posted the above video instead)
Here's a couple pictures of my finished product, please be kind I took these with my camera phone at work (during a break since I would never do something so personal on work time...giggle). You can see I've had my own fun with the victory roll and added a bit of a pin curl on my forehead. That's what I love about the vintage styles, you can really play with them and make them your own.
Have a stupendous Sunday!
Coming Monday: Undecided at this time, maybe a make-up review since I bought some great pencil liner (for that great retro winged eye look) and some red lipstick; or perhaps I'll answer the unasked question of "Why is your blog named Thin Invisible Steel? It's a mystery folks, but one I'll solve for you tomorrow!
Can't wait until Monday for more? Then check out my Weekly Blog: Veggie Girl Eats Out for reviews on restaurants and how vegetarian friendly they are. Click here to access that blog: http://veggiegirleatsout.blogspot.com/
What's been your experience with Victory Rolls? Have an opinion on what tomorrow's blog should be about? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below!
Insert fangirl-like squee here and you have my response yesterday when I received my snoods from http://www.littlebellesboutique.com/!! Briefly considered faking a stubbed-toe to leave work early and play with said snoods, but then reality got real (thank you CSI: Miami for that lovely line) and I realized I was no a longer pre-teen and was fully capable of reigning in my excitement to adult-like levels.
So I spent some time youtubing (yes, I totally verbedyoutube) hairstyles to wear with the snood. I really liked Lisa Freemont Street's "Snoods on the Job" video (I think she has the best vintage/retro video blogs out there for hairstyles, product reviews, and make-up...definitely check her out if you like any of the things I mentioned) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrKMVOP21aU and decided to try that for this mornings work "do". I work in a corporate environment, but not too uptight so I can have a little fun with my looks. Here's a couple screen grabs of the video mentioned above so you can get an idea of what look I was going for.
So I set my hair last night in the those lovely pink rollers, you know the ones, they're the color of peptobismal and they've been around since the dawn of time, using the curling pattern mentioned in the video. I found out the hard way if I set my hair in rollers right after I wash it my hair won't dry by morning (the animals in my house learned new curse words that day), so now I let my hair air dry for about 15-20 mins before setting it.
The morning rolled around and the alarm clock screamed at me to get up, so I smacked it for it's impertinence then went back to sleep. Then the alarm on my cell phone decided to get in on the action, for which it was rewarded for by being shoved underneath my cat, he's very large so he's able to muffle the sound of phones very well. All this to say...I woke up late this morning. Therefore...ergo...thus...hence...I did not have as much time to play with my snood hairstyle as I would have liked.
I unrolled my very tight bouncy curls. I pinned up the sides and was rewarded with a look very similar to what is shown in the pictures. Brushed and fluffed the curls in the back and slipped on the snood (brown for a conservative work look...if you were curious) and pinned it by my ears and at the crown, which holds very well I might add. And just because lately I can't go a day without a flower in my hair I added an off white one over my ear. I was disappointed to find that the curls on the top of my head turned out very frizzy this morning and pomade was not helping the situation then add on top of that...not a good look for me.
Ohhhh...frustrated sadness and clock of "get your butt to work" ticking away loudly (metaphorically as my clock is digital, though I would love to have an old ticking clock...counting down the hours of my life "mwah ha ha"!). So I quick threw in some very imperfect victory rolls and a rockin' pin curl and had something I could live with for the day. (I'll post a picture at some point today...having problems getting the picture off my phone...grrr, technology. Ha, ha, I kid...I love you technology).
All I can say for anyone else out there who might be playing around with vintage hairstyles...don't get frustrated, especially with the victory roll! Mine are not perfect (I will conquer them someday), but I love they way they look, I love the way I feel...fun and sassy, if you must know, so I don't give a hoot!
Have an amazing day!
Coming soon: another blog by me and my two friends on our vegetarian cooking adventures on Wednesday nights!
I sat my friend Caroline down in front of a youtube video and said "Please watch this and tell me what the he*l I'm doing wrong". Her being fabulous and all she did just that. Once done she turned to me and said "It needs to be more..." and made a swooping gesture with her fingers. To which I replied, "Oh, you mean this...", making my own erratic finger motions. Then for a minute or so more we continued to talk in half sentences and hand movements before "Eureka!" I had it! (Note to readers: have you ever noticed that with certain people you have a bizarre language that is unique to the two of you, but must sound and look crazy to outsiders) Let me share with you my discovery which led to me being able to create rollfection with my victory rolls. (If you're not sure how to even start a victory roll I suggest the following youtube video by the fabulous Lisa Freemont Street: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfZwxAfbTYI )
So I set my hair last night in the those lovely pink rollers, you know the ones, they're the color of pepto bismal and they've been around since the dawn of time, using the curling pattern mentioned in the video. I found out the hard way if I set my hair in rollers right after I wash it my hair won't dry by morning (the animals in my house learned new curse words that day), so now I let my hair air dry for about 15-20 mins before setting it. 
I unrolled my very tight bouncy curls. I pinned up the sides and was rewarded with a look very similar to what is shown in the pictures. Brushed and fluffed the curls in the back and slipped on the snood (brown for a conservative work look...if you were curious) and pinned it by my ears and at the crown, which holds very well I might add. And just because lately I can't go a day without a flower in my hair I added an off white one over my ear. I was disappointed to find that the curls on the top of my head turned out very frizzy this morning and pomade was not helping the situation then add on top of that...not a good look for me. 
