To get this look, add a volumizing spray to your towl dried hair.  Use a root booster like Kiwi Coloreflector Root Elevator Power Hold Foam Gel to add a little extra oomph and then blow dry.  Mist your tresses with a thermal protection spray and then curl different sized sections of hair with different sized curling irons.  Near the face, use a 3/4″ barrel curling iron to get small sweet curls.    At the back of the head, use a 1 1/2″ barrel curling iron for those big, sexy voluminous curls.

Gently twist the hair at the base of your head into a loose and curly bun.  Pin down and arrange curls to achieve your desired look.  Spray the entire do with a flexible hold hairspray to maintain the loose look.

To add volume to any other do, there are many techniques to help you out.  Try blow drying your hair upside down after towel drying and applying a thermal protection product.  When it’s dry, give it a quick shot of hair spray before you flip your head back over and DON’T comb it out right away. After you flip your hair back, wait for it to fall naturally and then use a wide tooth comb or pick to help smooth out the top layer.

If the dryer trick isn’t working for you, try to use curlers to help you out.  Dry your hair and apply a thermal protection product.  Use 1 inch hot rollers around your head, especially at the crown and leave them in for the required time.  When you pull out the rollers, wait for the hair to cool completely before trying to comb or style your locks. After your curls are cooled, comb through them with your fingers to turn up the volume.   You can pull your hair back into a messy updo or smooth out the curls for a wavy, tousled look.

There are so many options and varieties of voluminous hair this season.  No more dull, flat hair for you! Try each of these techniques and play around a bit to get the hottest new hair trends for 2010.

The most important thing to do is find a good piercing salon.  Make sure that it is in a sanitary environment and you could even ask for Health Department records. If you want a tongue ring, don’t let price affect your decision.  NEVER choose a questionable salon just because the price of a tongue ring is cheaper.  You may spend less money now, but you’ll pay for it in the future.

The first thing that will happen when you get to the piercing salon is paperwork.  They will ask you to provide some information, as well as provide idea to ensure that you are old enough to get a tonue ring.

After you select your new tongue ring, the piercer should take you to a clean and sterile environment.  The piercer will mark your tongue after selecting a spot that will not interfere will blood vessels and nerves.  This is another reason to go to a trained professional; he or she will have been educated in the anatomy of the tongue and know how to perform the piercing safely.

The next step is to place a clamp on your tongue after the piercer has ensured that you like the location.  The clamp sort of looks like a long pair of scissors with two circles on the end where the needle will pass through.  The piercer will use a hollow surgical grade needle to actually pierce the tongue.  This is a tool that should come in a new, sterile package.  Your piercer will hold out the clamp and push the needle through your tongue.

At this point, the piercer will be ready to inster the tongue ring.  First they will remove the bottom ball, then put the end inside the hollow part of the needle.  This makes it easy to actually insert the body jewelry. As the piercer pulls the needle the rest of the way through, the tongue ring will remain in position inside the tongue.

The whole piercing process will only take about five minutes.  Most tongue rings are 3/8″ but they may use a longer tongue ring to allow for swelling during healing.  Between two and four weeks later, your tongue should be fully healed.  At this time you can change your tongue ring to one that expresses your personal style.

When people hear the term “body modification,” they often overlook the fact that even a simple navel piercing or the ever popular breast augmentation is a form of body modification.

On the more extreme side of the spectrum, however, there are people who do prefer explicit ornaments as a way to express themselves.  There are the standard belly button rings and tongue rings, but there are also some more creative piercings.  For example, dermal anchoring, like transdermal implants are pierced down into the skin to give the appearance that a small bead is simply resting on the skin.

In addition, people use stretching neck rings, get eyeball tattooing and even surgically split their tongues to achieve a lizard like appearance.

Be it good or bad, there are a number of individuals who have gained fame for their extreme or excessive body modification.  For example, Rick Genest tattooed his entire head and torso to look like a human skeleton.  Cindy Jackson claims to have more cosmetic plastic surgery than any other person in the world and Erik Sprague calls himself “The Lizardman” and has sharpened teeth, a full-body tattoo of green scales, a split tongue and even green inked lips.

What do you think of this trend?  Is it a cool way to express oneself?  Or a horrible disfigurement of one’s own body?

Tell us what you think!

This time, she’s back to blonde and came out of the salon with more hair than when she went in.  After being brunette for a couple of months, she’s back to the look that helped make her famous.  She got extensions to lengthen to shorter choppier look she’d been rocking and also got some new bangs!

Perhaps this newer lighter look could reflect a newer happier version of the paparazzi stalked star.  Perhaps not.  We never know with Britney.  The 28-year-old singer has had endless ups and downs since the days of her Mouse Ears but her fans seem ever loyal.  What do you think?  Is Brit back in action with a new blonde do or is it just another attempt to breathe some life back into her career and reputation?

Historically, the Aztecs, the Haida, Kwkiutul, Mayas of Central America and the Tlinglit tribes in the American Northwest had customs of body piercing.  It was often used as a form of self sacrifice or for religious reasons in these cultures.  Tongue rings were thought to be especially holy during these times because it was a way to draw blood to please the deities.

In Native American tribes, tongue piercings and other body jewelry were considered a way to bring people nearer to their gods through bleeding.  Aztec and Mayan tribes reportedly pierced their septum, a part of the nose, to appear fierce and intimidating to their enemies.  Rather than the modern day steel jewelry, they used bones, tusks and feathers as body jewelry.

Today, the tongue ring, as well as other body piercings are primarily for decorative reasons.  They are a means of self expression and personal decoration. The jewelry used is typically made from surgical steel and while it is often referred to as a tongue “ring,” it does not resemble the circular shape that it might imply.  In reality, it is a straight or curved barbell with a ball screwed to each end.  The ball on the bottom is often much smaller and used only to prevent the barbell from slipping out.  The ball on the top is used for decoration and expression

Even though these decorative trends are legal, many people, especially parents of teens, wonder if these are actually safe.  Can they cause accidental damage?  Will they get infected?  And of course, how painful will they be?

One of the most common piercing’s is the belly button ring.  It’s relatively easy to hide and on the lower end of the price scale for body piercings.  For this reason, it’s an explosive fad among teen and preteen girls.  To find out if the piercing is actually safe, this blogger did a bit of research!  Below are a couple of sites that give a doctor and other health professionals’ opinions of body piercings.

http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/articles/881.html

http://www.cyh.com/HealthTopics/HealthTopicDetails.aspx?p=243&np=292&id=2227

Bottom line:  body piercing and body modification is complete safe when treated as a surgical procedure and when properly cared for.

Hair cutting professionals use high quality hair cutting shears or professional hair scissors.  The reason for using these hair scissors  and not the cheapest craft scissors at the dollar store is clear:  the better the scissors, the better the hair cut.

Professional hair scissors should be made from a high quality metal that is free from nicks or cuts.  It is important that the blades are sharp, and while they shouldn’t need sharpened after every use, a hair cutting professional should pay attention to how many cuts he or she can perform between each sharpening.

In order to keep their hair scissors in good shape, remember a few simple rules for their care.

Rule one: Always, always, always clean the hair scissors after each use.  Rinse them with soap and water to prevent bacteria and germ build-up.

Rule two: Sterilize the hair scissors with a non damaging formula.  It is not necessary to sterilize the hair shears after each use, but before doing so, be sure that the formula is gentle enough to prevent harm.

Rule three: Store hair scissors in a dry place.  To avoid moisture, keep the scissors in a holster or in a place where they are sure to stay away from water or any wet environment.

Rule four: Don’t be afraid to oil hair scissors if they are in constant use.  Proper and occasional oiling can prevent rust and maintain proper movement in the shears.

And finally, rule five: Never, ever use hair shears on anything except for hair.  These tools are called “hair scissors” for a reason and using them on anything else can damage the blades and prevent them from doing their job.

Most importantly, bioplast belly button rings can be cleaned and sterilized very easily. Bioplast can be heated to 121 degrees Celsius, or approximately 250 degrees Fahrenheit.  These scalding temperatures will easily kill any bacteria and ensure that the belly button rings are clean and safe to wear.

In addition to being so sterile, this material is more flexible than titanium and surgical steel navel rings.  This allows for a greater range of movement and will reduce any tearing or stretching in the navel area. Because bioplast is a bio-compatible material, it is less likely than metallic body jewelry to be rejected by the body.  When the body rejects a new piercing, it will become infected and not heal properly.

Belly button ring retailers are also fond of this style of navel ring because it is “self-threading.” When the belly ring reaches the consumer, this is typically not an issue but manufacturers certainly appreciate it.  A self-threading belly button ring is one that can be cut to any size. Bioplast body jewelry are typically no more expensive than the metallic body jewelry of compatible styles.  They are reportedly “the best material for belly button rings” because they offer so many more benefits than metallic rings but do not have a higher price.

You can wear this comfy top with jeans and flats for a lunch date on Saturday, paired with slacks and a jacket to work during the week and even tucked in to some boot cut, loose fitting khakis for a PTA meeting or a casual date.  The possibilities are endless and it’s such a relief to wear something that doesn’t constantly remind you that shouldn’t have eaten that brownie before bed last night.

To get your own white tee, check out Gap for a great selection.  They have varieties in XS to XL and can meet everyone’s needs.  American Apparel, DKNY and Ralph Lauren also have boyfriend shirts to help you keep up with one trend you’ll actually enjoy wearing.  Jump on that bandwagon, ladies!  This is too good to pass up!