Are your hair growth products working?

When you invest time and money into a product line that promotes hair growth you typically have to just sit back and wait to see if there are any results. Are these things working? The pills, the shampoos, the serums, the thickeners. All you have to go by are the testimonials that are on the websites of the products themselves.

Fusion studios is offering a detailed scalp analysis appointment to determine if the time and money that you are investing into these products are actually working. What would this appointment include?

The appointments are set up as a pair. The initial appointment would include a detailed intake of the current topical products and or supplements that you are taking. In the treatment room a detailed scalp analysis is conducted. This analysis includes a inspection of every inch of your scalp, section by section, talking you through any and all features that we believe to be of importance. This would include analysis and location of moles, angiomas, scalp conditions, and density measurements. In a few specific areas of concern we will take a microscopic exam of the hair follicles and the hair coming of them. These images allow us to accurately measure and determine the effectiveness of the products in use. The analysis process is deeply relaxing and enjoyable.

After the scalp analysis a separate service of scalp micro needling and topical treatment to the scalp are available if requested. The micro needling service is relaxing, not painful. The micro needles do not puncture or bruise the skin. The process stimulates circulation. The scalp treatment is finished with head and neck lymphatic drainage.

The follow up scalp analysis appointment is included in the cost of the initial appointment. During this appointment we will again perform a therapeutic and detailed scalp analysis. Imaging of the previously measured scalp and follicles will again be charted.

Afterwards there will be a side by side comparison of the measurements and imaging taken during both appointments These will be used to make further recommendations about the effectiveness versus the cost of the current program that you are on.

The cost for the pair of scalp analysis appointments is $250. Additional scalp treatment services, including micro needling are $100-150.

Products related to scalp care, growth and exfoliation will be available for purchase at Fusion Studios. All products are very affordable, generally being around $20 per item.

Book an appointment today by contacting 208.841.1090

Hand Tied Weft

I have learned a few new tricks and now I can confidently say that I love installing hand tied weft extensions. I can make them invisible by installing one weft below and one above. I can blend them seamlessly by custom coloring. I can match the bead to the density and color of your hair and I can install quickly and accurately which will keep your hair feeling perfect for longer. I have been taking online classes over the last 12 months. I became certified in another brand and have dedicated myself to online learning every month over the last year. There are new options; new threads, new textures, new density, new installation techniques. Everything has gotten so much better.

Thank you to all of my current clients who allow me to experiment on your hair while learning what works best over time. If it weren’t for my amazing clients I wouldn’t know what I know. I can learn online as much as I want but actually practicing these techniques on real hair with different density issues is how I really learn.

I have included a few examples of my current work. Enjoy!

Hand tied weft

Hand tied weft

Machine tied weft

New website

I am so happy to say that my new website is 99% completed. I have been working my my web designer and content creator for almost a year now and I am very happy with the results.

My new website offers clients a way to explore all varieties of the hair extensions that I offer. It also offers clients the opportunity to book and appointment directly through the site. My biography will give them a better sense of who I am and how I have gained my experience in hair extensions.

So please check it out and tell me what you think. There are a few photos that will be changed, and I am sure a few other changes that I haven’t yet anticipated. That’s why I need your feedback.

Below is a link to my site. Take a peek.

www.fusionstylist.com

Keune

I just completed a Keune introductory color class. I learned a lot about their permanent, semi-permanent and blonding line. I have been doing research over the last year on a variety of color lines, debating which line I should switch to and Keune checks all the boxes. Keune is a salon exclusive company, meaning that they only sell to professionals this is very important to me! Keune provides ample education opportunities both online and in person. Keune formulates all their products with the greatest of care not only for the health of the hair, and the health of the stylist, but also for the look and longevity of the color. Keune offers incredible grey coverage whether you want a translucent look or more opaque.

The options that Keune offers to blondes really blew me away as well. They have cream bleaches, clay based bleaches and powdered bleaches, each of them have distinct advantages. No more one size fits all color removal. Keune offers so many options!

Another important factor for me is the ability to order online. I am not the kind of stylist who goes to a supply store to purchase 2 tubes of this and 3 tubes of that. I want the entire line at my fingertips and I want a constant supply of it. I like to place large online orders using a carefully crafted list. Also, staying out of the supply stores saves me money on random impulse buys.

A big thank you to the educator today, Tyree Ward for taking the time to teach about Keune. I was very grateful to be in the midst of a class of stylists today to listen to their questions and hear their personal solutions. Now I need to find out more about that intro kit…

Brazilian Blowout

Curious as to what this treatment can do for you?

It can reduce your styling time dramatically. By smoothing the cuticle with a treatment it eliminates or drastically reduces your flat iron time in the morning.

It will reduce frizz. Wether your hair is curly or straight we all experience a bit of frizz that is disappointing. The keratin treatment will put the frizz on hold.

Re-texture your curly hair. It will not eliminate your curls, it will smooth and transform them. Depending on the results you desire I have a few different strength options to choose from.

Make you feel like a star! When you blow dry your hair and get to stop there without further styling or fussing with your locks you will feel like you have received a Hollywood blow-out for weeks on end.

Brazilian Blowout ZERO 

Brazilian Blowout Original Acai

I am running a special on the treatment through November. Let's book your appointment today. Just think of all the time you will save over the holidays.

LUSH Cosmetics

I stumbled upon LUSH Cosmetics when I was in Seattle recently. The exterior of the store called to me "come in, come buy something" so when I stepped in I was already excited. They have piles of fresh handmade soaps, creamy face wash bars, shampoo bars and all sorts of other goodies. The staff was very friendly and upon learning that it was my fist time in the store they gave me a quick run down of they products that they loved the most, although it seemed rather hard for them to choose. Another perk of the company is that almost everything is Vegetarian and quite a few products are Vegan. I can't wait to gift them to my friends for Christmas.

I was drawn to the facial products because I tend to have too many shower items already, but now I want a great deal more, o.k. I want everything. I am already planning my return to the store when I am back in February because I can't wait to get my hands on some of the fresh face masks that aren't sold online. I have actually had dreams about shopping here again, that's how pleasant it was. When I woke up I felt like a home-sick kid longing for the comforts of their familiar territory. So I felt the next best thing to fulfill that craving would be to place a on-line order. Here are a few of the items on my long list.

Big fragrant blocks of colorful soap. All Soaps are vegetarian. Most are vegan too. Try this one SEXY PEEL a combination of organic orange and lime juices. 

CURLY WURLY is packed full of creamed coconut and coconut oil for healthy hair and scalp. It's also loaded with fresh eggs and hand mashed avocado butter to give moisture back to the hair

BIG is a va-va-volumizing sea salt shampoo. Using a seaweed infusion and citrus juices for incredible shine and sea salt to de-grease hair and remove dead skin cells.

MA BAR Is a fresh handmade bubble bar for your bath or shower. This one is a scrumptious chocolate caramel scent with a lump of brown sugar in the middle.

DREAM CREAM is nothing short of a miracle product. This cream has been making skin care dreams come true for years now. It is a combination of lavender, chamomile, and rose absolute in a soothing oat milk base. You can use it all over your body and face. This is LUSH's number one best selling product of all time!!

Fresh Handmade Face Masks: These masks are so scrumptious and fresh that they are only sold in the stores. They are stored in a mini refrigerator at each location and I was so sad to learn they couldn't be shipped because I would have purchased at least 4-5 more of them when on location. So if you ever do make it into a store, our closest locations are Salt Lake City, Portland, and Seattle, stock up. My favorite is SACRED TRUTH which is a brightening, restorative mask. It's so hard to choose between the 9 that they offer. Why not purchase all of them?

Tell me which products you would choose?

Sombre

Sombre is going to be the hottest hair trend this fall/winter. What is it? To explain I will have to start with Ombre. Ombre is a french word meaning graduation. In my world (the salon) it means a a base that is at least 3-4 levels darker than the ends. To most people it means I can have visible roots, long ones and bright pretty ends. It reduces your color maintenance, because "your roots" are visible and beautiful when you leave your appointment. If your natural color is lighter than your chosen base color, or you have grey hair this means that you can have every other appointment at the salon be a root touch up and the following appointment be a Ombre procedure. It's fun, it's beautiful, it's trendy but it's easy to carry off. You don't have to be 16 or have really long thick hair, or lots of money to spend on your hair.

Sombre takes the traditional process of Ombre and makes it a little more subtle, or subdued hence the S-Ombre. Kim Vo calls it the softer side of Ombre.

Why will this be so popular this season? Summer is over and obviously our hair is getting less sun so since we all want people to think our hair is just naturally this stunning and beautiful (yeah right) we want to steer towards a little bit of a darker sun-kissed look.

I was lucky enough to receive personal training from Kim Vo last night during an exclusive Webinar hosted by Behindthechair.com The class taught us how to achieve this beautiful effect in only 30 minutes application time, 10-15 minutes of processing and the rest is up to the customer (trim? style?).

Let's book you an appointment today and see how beautiful this would look in your hair. It can be done with lowlights too and also Red tones so we can really personalize it to your liking.

Overnight Hair Rescue, Caviar Anti-Aging by Alterna

This product is amazing in so many ways, I'll just start with a few reasons why I love it​

• You apply it at night and leave it in your hair, no bother with waiting 20-30 minutes to rinse and then dry.
• It is not greasy, sticky or tacky so when you apply it to your hair at night you can instantly go to bed and you won't have grease stains on your pillow​
• The effects are cumulative so the more you apply the healthier your hair becomes, unlike masks and deep conditioners which just temporarily boost the moisture.​
• Even with consistent use it 1 bottle lasts a long time, which is good because I think it retails somewhere in the $50-60 range​
• Everyone can benefit from it, if you're a blonde who wants to protect your dry, brittle or over-processed hair. If you are a brunette who wants more shine and happy hair. If you are trying to grow your hair out it will prevent split ends and boost elasticity. If you wear your hair short it will keep it healthy and prevent it from drying out. If you color your hair it will immediately boost the shine. If you wear your natural color it will make you feel like you are really spoiling yourself and it will additionally make your hair shiny like its been colored.​
• ​You shampoo it out in the morning, or whenever you get around to shampooing your hair, you'll never know it's in there if you skip the shampoo until next time. 

​Alterna Overnight Hair Rescue

Overnight Hair Rescue works by penetrating deeply into the hair, delivering vital nutrients for transformational results while you sleep. It helps to seal split ends, and strengthen hair from root to tips​, while simultaneously restoring shine and improving elasticity.

To apply: Dispense a dime sized amount of product into the palm of your hand, emulsify the product between your two palms (like your going to wash your palms) and apply to the roots of your hair. Dispense an additional dime to nickle sized amount, emulsify again and apply to mid shaft and ends. Viola, you're all done. Wasn't that easy? Now braid your hair, cuz it's cute and go to bed. Below is a video with a more detailed explanation of the process. Michael Sean Corby gives the demonstration, I love him! I've had the opportunity to meet him 3 times because he has family in Nampa (poor guy). I think you might enjoy it. ​

Chlorine Removal

It's summer, you're swimming, or your kids are. All is going well until you start to notice that your hair is starting to turn a lovely shade of slimy green....ahhhhh! What do I do now? 

Fist of all let's start with what to do before you jump in that pool. Your hair is porous (especially if you are blonde) which means that it will absorb water like a sponge. So instead of absorbing all the pool water get your hair wet with tap water. You can shower rinse it, spray it with a water bottle or run it under the sink. Then take a conditioner, the thicker the better, and run it through your damp ends, but don't rinse it out, leave it in. At this point you should try to braid your hair back or put it up in a loose bun,but sometimes we just want to jump I the pool. I know this sounds like a lot of effort but when you consider the time and money we put into our hair it's really not that much. Although after I've had a few drinks by the pool most things seem like quite an effort. 

For the kids, and in this circumstance I mean girls because of the length of their hair; same rules apply try to French braid or double braid before swimming. Wet hair, towel dry, spray with leave in conditioner and braid the hair. These water lovers need it the most. They stay in until their hands get wrinkly and their lips get blue. Once they get out of the pool unfortunately you have to un-do that pretty braid and shampoo out the ends. This is a detox shampoo (try to make me go to rehab, I say no, no, no. RIP Amy Winehouse) kids and adults can use, try using it twice in a row to really build a good lather. It will gently remove the residue buildup without stripping color from your hair. Concentrate on shampooing your ends where your hair is the most porous.

More concentrated efforts for chlorine happen when it's really gotten too late. Honestly,if you are trying to repair your hair at this stage it's probably going to be too late in most circumstances. I've tried bleaching it out which doesn't remove the greenish/grayish color very much at all. I've tried bleaching and toning but you can't tone out a residue. I've tried the home remedy route, things like baking soda, vitamin c, seen tomato juice not work, then ended up removing or cutting off all of those un-happy lengths of hair anyway. Luckily most of these experiments have been on extensions which means removal is just as easy as replacement. 

I don't have full time access to a pool so I don't really suffer from this problem. These are the rules I follow when poolside. Sunscreen, hat, lip balm, cold drink, pull my hair up as high as I can and try not to get dunked but if it happens I won't regret it. Enjoy the rest of your weekend! 

​