BEAUTY SCIENCE: Chelating Shampoo

A chelating shampoo energizes your scalp and flicks your hair back into life. The ingredient EDTA is what does the work. It is a colorless water-soluble solid that dissolves limescale and ions. Your list of ingredients will include EDTA (Ethylenediaminetetraacetic Acid) in the name; Tetrasodium EDTA or Disodium EDTA. EDTA is a chemical that binds and holds on to (chelates) minerals and metals such as chromium, iron, lead, mercury, copper, aluminum, nickel, zinc, calcium, cobalt, manganese, and magnesium.

A chelating shampoo works just like an exfoliating face wash. It does more heavy lifting than your regular shampoo.    A chelating based shampoo deploys active molecules called chelating agents. These agents grab on to minerals, dirt particles, and left over shampoos to make a new ring structure. They form a cage around the nasty stuff,  withdrawing gunk, slime, minerals, and residues that build up in your hair from all the things that like to stick to or damage your hair and scalp, including:

• Hard water showers
• Minerals-heavy well water
• Chemical services
• Copper residues from water pipes
• Daily gels, hair sprays
• Skin shedding
• Color depositing shampoos
• Oral medications

Take a close look at your scalp, you may see these residues.  They don’t only coat your scalp. They also form an invisible sticky layer around your hair strands.  And to make it worse, 

the stickiness attracts dust and dirt like a magnet. It makes your hair more greasy and your scalp, itchy and flaky.  Want proof ?  Your hair brush can definitely tell a tale or two. Besides looking like a graveyard for your shedding hair, you’ll also find dust and yellowish blobs that come from your hair.

Washing your hair twice a month with a good chelating shampoo will get rid of  dust, residues from sprays, gels and other stuff you put in your hair, along with mineral residues from hard water. The 

results:  

• Easier glide through knots
• No crunchy hard water hair.
• Your conditioner will work much better.
• Flat ironing your hair will be faster - improves glide without all the gunk!
• Hair appears fuller - the volume is because of less weight on hair.

Shop now to get good chelating shampoo.

Brows that will Steal the Show this Holiday Season

We all know, it's the brows that frame the face.  No matter what other make-up you wear, or even if you wear none at all, having your brows shaped and groomed is a must.  Here's how to make them a show stopper!

In what order to I apply my skin care products?

We get asked this question a lot! There’s actually an order in which you should be layering all of your skin care products, from facial cleanser to serum to face moisturizer to eye cream. If you’ve always wanted to know whether your moisturizer should go on before or after your serum, read on. Here, we give you the ultimate guide to layering your skin care products.

Ribbon Highlights - give them a try!

In the world of hair color, there are a lot of trends to keep up with these days. From purple balayage to mushroom brown to shadow hair, it can seem overwhelming. But there’s a new highlighting technique that’s currently trending on social media feeds, and we think it’s here to stay: ribbon highlights. This gorgeous highlighting technique is one you’ll want to look out for, and maybe even try out for yourself! We’ve got the scoop on ribbon highlights, including what they are, how to get them, and the best ways to maintain this pretty hair color trend.

Taking Care of YOU this Holiday Season!

‘Tis the season—to practice self-care! While you may be focused on running around to find the perfect gift for your friends and family, preparing holiday meals and treats, there’s no better time to treat yourself to some much-deserved TLC. And what better way to do that than to indulge in a luxurious beauty routine? From clay masks to hair masks, there are so many ways to pamper yourself this holiday season. Keep reading to say no to holiday stress and find out how to practice self-care during the holidays.

BRAND PROFILE: Celeb Luxury

Their specialty is color depositing shampoos and conditioners.  Their vision is for you to love your haircolor.  They make color fade a thing of the past.

• Viral-Extreme Colorwash comes in Hot Pink, Purple, Teal and four other colors. It adds color to your hair while cleansing to stop fade and wash out! 
• Gem Lites Colorwash is for those less adventurous; with colors like brown diamond, ambers and sunstone. 
• Viral Pastel Colorwash is in shades of lavender, light pink and baby blue! All Colorwash colors get an even deeper look with consecutive washes. 

Are your hair products causing your acne?

Do you have tiny bumps along your hairline, the upper part of your forehead, shoulders or upper back? The culprit may be your hair care products. This is so common, dermatologist have a name for it — acne cosmetica. This literally means acne caused by products we apply to our skin or hair.  According to The American Academy of Dermatology, hair is one of the main causes of adult acne, so the connection is a lot more important than you might realize.

BEAUTY SCIENCE: Vitamin C

Vitamin C - It's the only antioxidant that is proven to boost production of collagen, which is a key part of the skin's structure.  As you age, the rate at which your body naturally produces collagen declines, and this is one of the main reasons why your skin begins to wrinkle and sag.

Professional Hair Styling Tips on Hair Straightening

One of the most important hair styling tips to remember is to always brush your hair before straightening (preferentially using a brush with natural bristles) and remove all residual hairspray, mousse, etc. Brushing your hair relaxes it and makes hair straightening much easier.

Winterize your hair!

With the chill of colder months upon us, weatherproofing your hair is just as important as weatherproofing your wardrobe. The bitter cold, dry air, and unpredictable wind can make doing your hair a nightmare. Luckily, we’re proactively planning the hair looks that’ll help you ward off the cold weather in style.

Great Hairspray Tips!

Most people have hair spray in their bathroom cabinet. Should you just spray it on top of your hair to give it the desired hold or can you also apply it close to the hair roots? Which of the many hair sprays should you use for different purposes?

A glamorous Braid!

Braids! From the first time your mother put your hair in pigtails, braids have been part of hair fashion. Why?  Because they keep our hair neat, can be used to create everything from a romantic, soft look to a gloriously elegant crown to a girl-next-door casual look.

Braid Aid by Redken will help you to create beautiful sassy braids that look as if you just stepped off the catwalk. Style will last longer and have more of a defined look!

BRAND PROFILE: Sorme

Sorme has been a sophisticated brand of cosmetics and skin care products for over 20 years.  Many professionals teamed up with some of the finest formulators to bring this exceptional line to enhance natural beauty. Formulated with plant botanicals, natural minerals, vitamins and age-reversing peptides help protect and improve your skin.

Save my Chapped Lips!

Temperatures are dropping and there's less moisture in the air, so we know what that means — lips start to get dry, itchy, and cracked. Yet while you obviously know what chapped lips feel like (a hint: they're super tight and uncomfortable), you might not know exactly what causes your lips to get so...chapped.

First off, what exactly are chapped lips?

Chapped lips, also known as cheilitis, can have many causes. When you hear 'chapped lips' most people are thinking about cheilitis sicca. This is chapped lips as a result of excess dryness.

The skin on the lips is among the most sensitive areas on the body and the most exposed to the environment. The lips do not have the same concentration of oil glands as regular skin and are constantly exposed to environmental factors, like lip licking, cosmetics, and cold weather. All of these factors can dry out the skin barrier, leading to irritation, inflammation, and flaking.

BEAUTY SCIENCE: Carnauba Wax

Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, also called Carnauba Wax, is obtained from the leaves of the Brazilian tropical palm tree, Copernicia cerifera. It is used in the formulation in a wide range of products including baby products, bath products, lipstick, makeup, fragrances, coloring and non-coloring hair products, nail and skin care products, personal cleanliness products and shaving products.  It is hypoallergenic.

A story of giving!

BCC Staff are enjoying unpacking a box of donated items

from Surface Hair! They'll repack and send to hairdressers impacted

by the Camp fire.

I don't know how many of you know this, but Beauty Care Choices is a northern California company.  This past year we have been devastated by wildfires surrounding us; even having to evacuate ourselves during the Carr fire.  But the worst fire, the Camp fire, absolutely destroyed the town of Paradise (just to the southeast of us).  No homes, no businesses, but the will to rebuild. We wanted to help in a personal way, so we posted on our Facebook page.

📣ATTN Nor Cal Hairdressers: If you have lost your tools of trade in the #CAMPFIRE or #CarrFire we want to help you rebuild! We have shears, drapes, capes, bowls, foils, clips, combs, brushes, hot tools, shampoos, conditioners and more to help you get back to the thing you love to do. Please DM us with what you need and we will assist in getting it to you.
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
We really appreciate all of our brands stepping up to help the beauty professionals in our area. Also a huge thank you to all of our customers who have reached out to check on us.

Giving a hand up, instead of a hand out motivated us.  You can't rebuild a town if the people are unable to restore their business and begin making a living again.  Our post was shared and shared and as a result we have 20 hairdressers needing help to begin again.  Their stories left us heartbroken.

But this isn't about us.  We aren't the heroes of this story...only the organizer.  We reached out to our manufacturers and vendors for their help in supplying the products and tools these hairdressers needed and, thanks to them, we were able to send out a first box of supplies to each of the hairdressers and another is on its way.

So, this story is to thank our vendors for their generosity in helping these beauty industry persons get back on their feet, including:

• Salon Tech
• Loma Organic
• Kenra Professional
• Goldwell US
• Surface Hair
• Matrix Professional
• Schwarzkopf (Henkel)
• KMS
• Wella Profressional

Our box from Surface Hair

How do lip plumpers work?

Lots of lip products promise to produce bigger, sexier lips. Do they deliver?  The answer is tinted or clear, in the form of a gloss, balm, stick, gel, or pot, traditional lip plumpers fatten the lips temporarily -- sometimes by irritating them.

Use your Conditioner first!

Lather, rinse, repeat. Right? Right. Except when it comes to conditioning our hair. Turns out, we’ve all been doing things totally backward…our whole darn lives. Here’s what to do instead.

The Many Ways you can use Pomade!

Pomade is a hair styling product that has been used for decades to achieve many different hairstyles. Traditional pomades are oil based and very slick, but the more modern pomades are water based. It's easier to wash out and gives the hair a lighter hold.  They are slightly more expensive than oil based ones but allow you to restyle throughout the day.  Whether you have long or short hair,  want slick backed hair, shiny hair, messy but styled hair, or spiked up hair, pomade is a great styling product to achieve the look and have it last all day long.

Choices:

• A matte pomade has less shine and is best for hair that tends to get greasy quickly with pomade.
• A sheen pomade has much more shine and would be good for someone with dry hair.
• You can mix a matte pomade with a sheen pomade to create your own perfect balance.