Gluten Free Hair Care

"Dear Angela,

I have celiacs. While my skin doesn't break out or burn when I use skin and hair care containing wheat, I do get an itchy scalp. My dermatologist told me that over time I may become more and more sensitive to skin care products containing gluten. I am having a harder time finding top notch hair products without any gluten. What do you recommend?
-Darla Charelston"

Well Darla, I am so glad you asked! There are a lot of gluten free products for your hair out there and I would love to share some of my favorites.

Shampoo and Conditioner:
All of the shampoos and conditioners from Sexy Hair are color safe, gluten free, paraben free, salt free and sulfate free. They have tons of options to choose from including purple shampoos for blondes, ones that add volume, anti-frizz smoothing formulas, hydration focused formulas, curly hair shampoos, and others! Here is link to their website where you can see all the products they offer, order online and find a salon near you that carries and sells the products. There are other gluten free lines out there too like AG and Surface.


Deep Conditioning Mask
Not to sound to one-note here, but the sexy hair smooth extender mask is seriously amazing. It leaves hair feeling hydrated and full without any sign of frizz and is (just like the shampoos and conditioners) free of parabens, gluten, salt and sulfates. Check it out here.


Leave in Conditioner
I have tried and love this product from Juice Organics. I have not tried their full line, but Juice Organics is a sister company to Juice Beauty (an all natural skin care line that I love), and Juice Organics is all gluten free! This leave in conditioner rings in it at only $13 as well! You can learn more and buy it here!

Curl Cream
Not only is this a great gluten free curl cream, but it is also one of my favorite curl creams on the market as a whole! I highly recommend this product to anyone who has curly hair. It is best for full hair that you are working to define and control the curls, as well as for people with medium textures who have a little curl that they are trying to to bring out! Click here to learn more about the Curl Defining Styling Cream from Living Proof. 




HairsprayI have three recommendations for gluten free hairsprays. For a great standard hairspray that is not aersol I like the Paul Mitchell Freeze and Shine Spray, because it dries fast, so you don't get that plastic-look. If you prefer an aerosol hairspray with a little added shine factor I prefer TIGI Bed Head Headrush. Then you have the award winning Sebastian Shaper Plus which is also a massive fan favorite all over the country and is gluten free.




Volume Builders
Surface Haircare is supposed to be a 100% gluten free line, and this texture powder is incredible! click here to see if you can find a supplier near you! As for a spray I love the Sebastian (another gluten free brand) and their Volupt Spray (pictured on the right).


Mousse
Because Sebastian is a gluten free brand they are on this list A LOT. but they make amazing products! For a lightweight mousse foam, try Whipped Creme, and for a more high hold traditional mousse try Mousse Forte.

REVIEW: Urban Decay Ozone Lip Primer Pencil

 Packaging - 5 (excellent)
Longevity - 3 (average)
Wear - 4 (very good)
Protection - 4 (very good)
Vibrancy - 2 (not very good)
Overall:


I heard tons of great stuff about Ozone! I was so stoked to get some to test out but I have to say I was unimpressed in the end. First I will talk about the packaging because I truly loved it. It looks high end, it is durable and it is a classic pencil, so you do have to sharpen it. I usually dislike pencils I have to sharpen however this ones casing around the product was separated a little do that after sharpening you didn't waste very much (if any) product! Yay!

 So the way I tested this was by putting the Ozone on only half of my lips. By this I mean the top and bottom halves of the right side of my lip. After applying the ozone I applied a Smashbox lipstick. I waited and checked on the look at least once every half hour for 5 hours. What I noticed is that immediately after applying the side with the primer looked duller. However after a few hours the side with the primer looked better. So I guess what I am trying to say is that it will dull the initial application, but in the long run it does help lipstick stay longer .

I repeated this test with a few different lipsticks. One was the TooFaced Melted Lipsticks. These lipsticks feather like no ones business. I hate it! The ozone seriously stopped it right away! It was AMAZING! As a lip liner it truly worked very well. Overall it is pretty tacky in texture too. You can feel it on your lips all day! In the end I only wear this with a few lipsticks as a liner and otherwise I just use my normal lipstick.

Award Show Season Inspiration!

I love all things hair, makeup, beauty and fashion! So Awards Season is AMAZING to me because of all of the red carpets. My husband teases me all the time because I love cozying up in jammies and watching the red carpets and then skipping out on the actual award ceremony (Facebook will tell me who won in real time anyways). As Award Season is winding down here are my top 10 looks. These aren't the only fashion loves I have, but they are definitely favorites! I love gowns that are well fitted, unique, artistic AND flattering. Some dresses are art, but not flattering and vice versa. That is why I chose these. 

Who do you love that didn't make the cut?

REVIEW: NYX Butter Lip Balm

Packaging - 3 (average)
Scent - 4 (very good)
Vibrancy - 4 (very good)
Variety - 4 (very good
Wear - 4 (very good)
Overall:

I have done a couple other reviews of NYX lip products and I haven't been impressed. So when I got the NYX Butter Lip Balms in the mail I wasn't expecting much. However I was pleasantly surprised by this product. The packaging is plain, a little boring, but clean. It smelled yummy, fruity (as most colorful lip balms do). There are several colors for you to pick ranging from a fun red to more neutral peach tones. When you put it on the color is noticeable. It isn't as vibrant as a lipstick (it is a lip balm after all) but it does add a nice pop of color that isn't to in-your-face. When you put on different shades there is a noticeable difference. One application lasts about 4 hours, which is fine because it is hydrating, and most of the time we end up reapplying lip balms and chapsticks every 20 minutes out of habit. It is perfect for an easy look or a lazy day. It's great for playing sports or even going to the beach since you can hydrate and add some color at the same time. I also highly recommend this for young girls just starting out with makeup and people of all ages who aren't super comfortable with lipstick but want a little something-something.

What do you think about the Kylie Lip Kit accusations?

This is the email I got this morning:
"Recently a lot of news outlets have been freaking out, because apparently Kylie's Lips Kits are the exact same ingredients as Colour Pop's and NYX's. But Kylie's cost almost $30 compared to the $6 and $7 price tags of the other two.... What do you think about this?"

So I am going to start by saying - I haven't tried Colour Pop's yet. They are in the mail, and I am excited to try a few, but I haven't just yet. However I have tried the NYX Liquid Lipstick and the Kylie Lip Kit. If you check out my post Which Liquid Lipstick Is Best you will see a direct comparison of the two as well as three other popular brands.

UPDATE: I HAVE tried the Colour Pop Liquid Lipstick Here is my direct comparison post!

Now for a little story. I hate Miracle Whip, but I love Best Foods Real Mayonnaise. I will only eat Best Foods Mayo and once in awhile a batch will be too "miracle whippy" and I will buy a new one. Miracle Whip and Mayonnaise share over %50 of the same ingredients. In fact the products (that have about 10 ingredients each) the first four ingredients (40% of the ingredients) are the exact same! But I love one and hate the other. Why? Because those last ingredients make a big difference.

So onto the lip kit issue. Some people are upset because the first few ingredients of the Kylie Jenner Lip Kit are the same as the Colour Pop and NYX lipsticks, and then several of the ingredients throughout are the same. I am sure if you look into Anastasia Beverly Hills the same will be true again. Why? Because these are the base ingredients for a liquid lipstick in general. Good luck trying to find a lipstick out there without any beeswax in it. I mean you can but it is really difficult. That is because that is a base ingredient for all brands. Here is the ingredients comparison:

Yellow - Same ingredient same order

Blue - Same ingredient similar order

Pink - Same ingredient different order













Here is the thing, order REALLY matters! Just like with my mayo and miracle whip, a few ingredients being different makes a big difference! On top of that there is only 1 ingredient that the Kylie Lip Kit has that the Colour Pop does not use, while Colour Pop's is full of other ingredients, most of which are cheap fillers that dilute the product making it less potent. Usually high end products have the same ingredients as lower ends brands, but without all of the cheap fillers and stuff.

Here is the other thing, I have used the Kylie Lip Kit, with this formulation (yes I checked) and the consistency and wear of this one vs the nyx is TOTALLY different. The Kylie Lip Kit is unique, because it has a very watery consistency where everything else I have tried (the nyx, tarte, ABH, Ofra and others) are all creamy. However even though it feels watery when putting it on, that allows you to use very little, and it is still really pigmented. It also causes the liquid lippy to create a thin layer of color as opposed to a heavy one which helps in the long lasting wear and kissability of the product.

I have now tried the Colour Pop Liquid Lipsticks, and while I DO think it matches the Kylie Lip Kit in pigmentation and texture, it doesn't seem to last as long and it harder to take off. Worst of all the transfer rate is horrible! You can read my in depth results and thoughts here!

All in all I do not think the Kylie Lip Kits are the best liquid lipstick on the market, but they are one of the best! And what is more imporant to this article, they ARE different. I know people seem to have issues with the Kardashian/Jenner Clan, but honestly, they are brilliant. Most people feel they do practically nothing and get paid a ton, because of a sex scandal and TV show that began almost 10 years ago! However, these women work and work hard! They spend little time with their families, they are in constant contact with business partners and managers, they never get to turn off their work brain, and they are enjoying what they have. Granted they did not earn the lavish lifestyle afforded them before the scandal, and I am never going to pretend they earn everything they have with the same amount of blue collar sweat middle class America does, but they work. Frankly they are brilliant business women. Making small batches to keep the liquid lipsticks hot and exclusive is genius! If you don't like them, don't pay attention, but stop the hate. #HatersGonnaHate

REVIEW: Laura Geller The Real Deal Concealer

Packaging - 4 (very good)
Wear - 5 (excellent)
Coverage - 5 (excellent)
Longevity - 6 (incredible)
Variety - 4 (very good)
Overall:


This concealer is great! The packaging is simple, clean and functional. When you put it on it lasts all day, which I love. This concealer is super heavy coverage, it is basically an incredibly thick full heavy coverage foundation to be honest, but it works. It's heavier than most full coverage foundations almost acting a a pancake makeup. But it works. A little goes a super long way, so while you get a small amount it lasts for months on a daily use. There are 5 bendable choices in shade, varying from Fair to Deep. In the end I recommend this product.