PAUL MITCHELL ULTIMATE COLOR REPAIR SYSTEM GIVEAWAY

Good morning, Everyone! Hope your week is going great so far! As you may remember, a little less than 3 months ago, I got a wonderful new cut and color thanks to the professionals at Paul Mitchell. To say that this change was well overdue would be an understatement! Dry, damaged, unruly hair is what I was left with after putting my mane through unimaginable abuse this Summer and trying to rectify this problem on my own didn't help matters either! Word of advice, henna and super dry hair don't mix well, unless of course you like sporting a heap of yellowish-reddish mess on your head:) 

After getting my new cut and color, Lucie Doughty, Paul Mitchell's Editorial Director, suggested using Paul Mitchell Ultimate Color Repair System, which is designed to keep hair-color fresh for up to 9 weeks, reduce breakage and enhance shine. So far, I've been using it for a little less than 3 months and I can hardly believe the difference! Not only did my color stay fresh, I noticed my hair changed completely! It is definitely not the same dry monstrosity I had 3 months ago! Much healthier overall, it's soft and shiny and so much easier to style. Seriously! Right now it probably takes me a little less than 10 minutes to style my hair! I simply dry my hair with a paddle brush and curl a few strategic sections on top. And voila! All done!:)

Now, here comes the best part! Nine lucky readers will have a chance to win the complete Paul Mitchell Ultimate Color Repair System, which includes: 

1. Ultimate Color Repair Shampoo is completely sulfate-free, this shampoo contains reparative quinoa and nature-inspired ingredients to preserve hair color and combat damage. 

2. Ultimate Color Repair Conditioner is designed to lock in hair color and reverse the signs of damage.

3. Ultimate Color Repair Triple Rescue, protects hair from heat styling, which is one of the primary causes of color fade.

TO ENTER GIVEAWAY:

1. Follow Paul Mitchell on Instagram via @PaulMitchellUS 

2. Please, leave a comment below so that I may contact you if you win. 

The giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY and will run through Wednesday, December 10, 2014. I wish everyone the best of luck! 

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Paul Mitchell. The opinions and texts are all mine. 

Thank you for reading

& Keep On Smiling,

LOVE, 

Annabelle 

STEP BY STEP :: MY CURRENT HAIR-CARE ROUTINE

Good morning, Everyone! Hope you are all enjoying your week! So, it's been exactly 2 weeks since my hair make-over and since I started using Paul Mitchell Ultimate Color Repair System. Because I promised I will keep you posted on my progress, I would like to take this opportunity to talk to you a little bit about my current haircare routine and my new found love and respect of my hair:)  

As I have mentioned before, I put my hair through quite a bit of abuse this summer. In fact, I put it through so much abuse, by the end of August my hair was looking dry, brittle and brassy. Two weeks ago, I realized I can no longer go in public with my mane looking the way it did, so I turned to the professionals at Paul Mitchell. Aside from getting an amazing choppy bob, and a fresh color treatment. Lucie Doughty, Paul Mitchell's Editorial Director and the person responsible for the amazing color I am currently sporting, recommended a shade that is very similar to my natural color, but with much more dimension. 

Since I am absolutely crazy about my new color and want to keep it looking fresh for as long as possible, I've been using Paul Mitchell Ultimate Color Repair System. So, without further ado, here is my step by step haircare routine at the moment. 

1. I wash my hair with Ultimate Color Repair Shampoo, concentrating on the roots. Completely sulfate-free, this shampoo contains reparative quinoa and nature-inspired ingredients to preserve hair color and combat damage. Super gentle and moisturizing, I just can't get over how much smoother and healthier my hair feels after each!

2. Next, I apply Ultimate Color Repair Conditioner, which is designed to lock in hair color and reverse the signs of damage. Normally, I like to leave it on for about 15 minutes but once a week or whenever I have a little more time, I like to use it as a deep conditioner and I leave it on for a little longer ( around 30 minutes ). 

3. Finally, once my hair is towel dried and ready for styling, I spray Ultimate Color Repair Triple Rescue spray, to protect my hair from heat styling, one of the primary causes of color fade. A little tip, I noticed this particular product separates very quickly. So to get full benefits, make sure you shake it well, before usage. 

Since I started using this system, I noticed that not only did it help preserve the color, but it also improved the health of my hair overall. My hair is much more shiny, manageable and easier to style. I am definitely planning to continue using this system and keep you guys posted on my progress! 

As always, if you guys have any questions, about products or styling, please feel free to email me anytime! 

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Paul Mitchell. The opinions and texts are all mine. 

Thank you for reading

& Keep On Smiling,

LOVE,

Annabelle  

NEW HAIR + PAUL MITCHELL ULTIMATE COLOR REPAIR SYSTEM

Just between us, I've been in a big hair rut lately. My summer adventures, although very exciting, left my hair in a state that can only be described as a complete and total mess. One too many dips in the salty Pacific Ocean, combined with massive UV exposure thanks to my sun worshiping ways, left a lot of damage and made my hair look brittle and lackluster. To make things worse, in an attempt to give my hair color a bit of a lift, I decided to color my hair with henna. Not a good idea! Instead of a color lift, I ended up with a particularly horrendous shade of red, which after a few washes faded into something only Chucky would sport and hair that still looked overwhelmingly damaged:( 

So, after reaching my tipping point last week, I decided to turn to professionals at Paul Mitchell. After an initial consultation with the superstar hairstyling duo of Lucie Doughty, Paul Mitchell's Editorial Director, and Takashi Kitamura, International Platform Artist, we settled on a beautiful medium brown, a shade that is very close to my natural hair color ( before the unfortunate henna incident ) but with a bit more dimension. As I was staring at the swatch of this beautiful, gleaming shade, it suddenly dawned upon me, this beautiful new hair color deserved a cut as well! After all, I always said I will go short eventually and this felt like the right time to do it:) 

Once we settled on the cut and color, Lucie washed my hair with Ultimate Color Repair Shampoo and Ultimate Color Repair Conditioner, the first two steps in Paul Mitchell Ultimate Color Repair three-part, sulfate-free system which features reparative power of quinoa fused with nature-inspired ingredients, designed to lock in hair color and reverse the signs of damage. 

Next Takashi cut my hair, towel dried it and prepped it for styling with Ultimate Color Repair Triple Rescue spray, the third step in the system, which defends hair against heat styling - one of the primary causes of color fade.

Normally it takes me quite a bit of time to style my hair, but thanks to my new awesome hairdo the process of styling was quick and simple, which in my opinion is a true measure of a great hair cut. Takashi simply dried my hair with a round brush and then curled a few sections to add texture and dimension. 

Honestly, seeing this final result blew me away! The new hair looked much more polished, sophisticated, healthy and shiny:) I know, I know... I am gushing here, but I've been so unhappy with my hair lately and struggled to find the right products to use, so I am sure you can understand how happy I felt seeing such a tremendous difference after just a single application of the right hair care products.  

In terms of hair care, as I have mentioned before to keep this new beautiful hair color from fading and to combat the damage, Lucie suggested Paul Mitchell Ultimate Color Repair System, which is designed to keep the color fresh for up 9 weeks, reduce breakage and enhance shine. Naturally, I plan to continue using the Ultimate Repair System religiously, and keep you updated on my progress! 

P.S. If you have any questions about the cut, color or products used, please feel free to email me anytime! 

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Paul Mitchell. The opinions and texts are all mine. 

Thank you for reading

& Keep On Smiling,

LOVE,

Annabelle  

MY HAIR CARE ROUTINE

Bumble & Bumble thickening serum & Spray de Mode hairspray | Sephora Paddle brush with Ionic Technology | Alterna caviar repair re-texturizing protein cream | Zoe hair strengthener 

Hey Everyone,

So I wanted to do a quick little post about my hair routine, since I've been getting so many emails about what I do for my hair and which products I use. 

1. To keep my hair healthy I normally wash it no more than 2-3 times a week. I find that excessive washing makes my hair really dry, regardless of the products I use. When I do wash my hair, I always make sure to apply shampoo only to the scalp and never to the ends of my hair, which tend to be somewhat dry. I usually just work the shampoo gently down the ends of the hair, making sure not to scrub, which can lead to breakage or knots.

2. Unless I am short for time, I skip blowdrying completely, and just let my hair air dry. Pretty sure, you’ll be surprised how much healthier your hair looks and feels if you skip the blowdryer a few times a week. I know I certainly was, and overtime definitely saw a lot less split ends. I also like to apply Alterna caviar repair re-texturizing protein cream to prevent split ends and keep my hair from getting too dry. Now, I could never say goodbye to my blowdryer forever, but I do like to give it a day off every once in a while.

3. Every morning, I brush my hair for at least 10-15 minutes, using Sephora Paddle brush with Ionic Technology for maximum shine. Combing hair regularly helps to improve circulation and keeps scalp healthy. The importance of brushing hair daily, is something I learned from my mother, who always had the most beautiful, long hair. So, I make sure to follow her advice:)

4. Straight styles are the easiest for me, since my hair is pretty straight to begin with. Usually, I flat iron only the ends to give it a more polished look. I finish with just a bit of BB Spray De Mode hairspray with flexible hold to help the style last all day.

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Keep on smiling,

Love,

Annabelle