Top 5 Hair Myths – Debunked or Proven True?

There are so many myths about everything that are floating around these days. It has become hard to know if you are truly helping yourself. Whether that means exercising, using the right products, or just eating the right things. While I am still trying to sort through all the information on other topics, I thought I could do my part by clearing up some common hair myths!

Top 5 Hair Myths – Debunked or Proven True?

Cutting your hair makes your hair grow.

FALSE.

Hair grows from your follicle, inside your scalp. No outer interaction will have any effect on how your hair grows. However, if you keep up on regular trims, your hair will grow healthier and thicker. So that way, the next time you come in for a haircut, you don’t have to be worried that your hairdresser will want to take off an excessive amount of hair.
If you pluck one grey hair, two grow back.

FALSE.

No matter what, we cannot increase the amount of hair follicles that we have. This makes it impossible for more than one hair to come back after plucking. However, you still should avoid this because it can be damaging to your scalp and hair follicles. This habit may lead to potential bald spots in the future. To tame those pesky greys, call Ashka Salon Spa today to set up your regular hair color appointments.
A cold rinse will add shine.

TRUE.

By rinsing your hair with cold water right before you exit the shower, you are helping to seal your cuticle closed. When your cuticle is shut, your hair appears smoother. This gives light more surface area to bounce off of, making your hair appear shiner. Who doesn’t want shinier hair? If this isn’t enough shine for you, you can always pick up some of Aveda’s Light Elements Smoothing Fluid to add to your style.
If you always use the same shampoo, it will eventually stop working for you.

FALSE.

I have to admit, until I started doing my research for this blog, I completely believed this myth. If you were to look in my shower, you would see the multiple kinds of shampoo and conditioner (maybe a few stray bobby pins too) in there. However, I have been proven wrong! This is a total myth. I think I might have been just looking for some validity to my product problem!
Unwashed hair is better for styling.

TRUE.

I’m hoping this cleared somethings up for you and you are feeling more confident in your hair care journey!

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

Get Your Beauty Box at Ashka Salon Spa

Monthly subscription boxes of any type seems to be all the rage lately. At Ashka Salon Spa we have jumped head first into that trend! We now are offering our own “Beauty Box”. Although most of these types of products change monthly, ours goes as long as supplies lasts. I have seen multiple of my guests fall in love with new products this way! Its an awesome way for people who want to try out Aveda products but don’t want spend a lot in case they don’t like it.

What Can I Expect To Find in a Beauty Box?

Each time we come out with a new “Beauty Box” it is different! We have had two now. One was Damage Remedy themed, and now we have a Smooth Infusion box.

Currently in our Smooth Infusion Beauty Box you get:

Smooth Infusion Shampoo Sample
A Sample of Smooth Infusion Smoothing Masque
Smooth Infusion Style Prep Sample
A Sample of Smooth Infusion Nourishing Styling Creme
$5 COUPON for product at a FUTURE visit

Would you believe me if I said you get ALL of this for ONLY $5? Well you should, because it is!

What is the Beauty of a Beauty Box?

I think the coolest thing about Ashka Salon Spa’s Beauty Boxes is that it gives you a chance to sample the Aveda products. I have said it before, and I will continue to say it, I TRULY believe that Aveda products are the best choice for your hair. However, living on a budget myself, I understand that it is scary to invest in something you don’t know for sure. By giving this affordable option to dive into the Aveda world, Ashka Salon Spa is making it much less frightening.

Give it a try! I promise you won’t regret purchasing one of our Beauty Boxes.

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

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Aveda’s New Thermal Dry Conditioner – Now In Canton!

Dry Shampoo has been my absolute favorite product when it comes to saving my hair and my sleep schedule. The only thing that I don’t like to about dry shampoo is that after a day or two it really feels like it has dried out my hair. When Aveda said that they were coming out with a Thermal Dry Conditioner, I was ecstatic.

What is Thermal Dry Conditioner?

“Instantly conditions, detangles and softens hair in between washes while a calming aroma with 25 pure flower and plant essences naturally refreshes all hair types and textures.”

This product gets rid of that “dry shampoo feel” in my hair. I love the way my hair feels after I use it! I haven’t tried using heat tools after it yet. Others have curled their hair after using it and swear it makes a huge difference. It has a heat protectant in it so that you are safe from the added heat!

The Aveda website says that it contains “a blend of certified organic jojoba and sunflower oils” that “conditions and detangles hair in between washes”. Everyday I hear more and more people talking about how long it has been since they have washed their hair. It is important to adapt our products to these types of trends and that is exactly what Aveda is doing with the new Thermal Dry Conditioner.

Thermal Dry Conditioner on Extensions

Jessie, one of our Extension Specialists at Ashka Salon Spa, has found that she really likes using the Thermal Dry Conditioner on hair extensions. Since your natural oils aren’t going all the way down to your extensions, they can end up drying out a little. By adding this dry conditioner, it will keep your extensions feeling fresher, longer!

I promise you won’t be sorry if you invest in the new Thermal Dry Conditioner!

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

ashka Ashka Salon Spa AVEDA Hair Products Shampure Thermal Dry Conditioner

Shake those Winter Blues at Ashka Salon Spa

Everyone can agree that we have been having the most beautiful winter weather this past week here in Michigan! I can’t get enough of these 60 degree sunny days. It is going to hit me really hard if it doesn’t last. As someone who definitely suffers every year from the “Winter Blues”, Michigan winters can be long and hard for me. I know I cannot be the only one who gets a little more pep in their step at the first signs of spring.

What Are the Winter Blues Exactly?

The winter blues is something a lot of people of experience. Even in my own friend group I feel like I have this conversation multiple times a year with many different people! Of course everyone experiences this differently but I lose a lot drive during the winter months. The rest of the year I am more likely to want to try new things, work longer hours, and just overall be in a better mood. I am definitely guilty of packing on my winter layer with carbs, even more than I normally do. 😉

The more official term for winter blues is “seasonal depression“. From my research, I found that the farther away you live from the equator the more likely you will suffer from seasonal depression. With the lack of vitamin d from the sun in the winter months, our brains are forced to work extra hard to produce melatonin. Melatonin is the hormone that helps to regulate your sleep pattern and also is linked to depression.

To help regulate your seasonal depression, there are “sunbox” lights that replicate the beneficial effects of the sun!

Luckily the actual sun starts coming around more often just in time for spring!

What Helps Me Shake the Winter Blues in Time for Spring?

Once the sun starts to break through the clouds on a regular basis, I try to start focusing on myself. I try to get exercise into my daily routine in someway. I always get on a “I need to drink more water” kick right around springtime too. Last, but not least, I almost always need a hair change! 🙂

My favorite thing to do in the spring is start to lighten up my hair again for the summer. I love that it can be subtle, or dramatic depending on how I’m feeling that year. And how big of a pick me up I might need. 😉 As a stylist, spring hair is one of my favorite yearly transformations as well. I just cannot get enough of it.

Highlights and Balayage all around! Call today to set up your appointment.

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

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Di Biase Hair Extensions Class

Jessie and I took an hair extensions class last month and it was such a great experience. We took our class through Di Biase Hair Extensions. While we were there we were certified in 2 different types of extensions: fusion, and sticker hair. We were there all day long and I mean ALL day. We started class around 9:30 am and did not leave until after midnight. While it was a super long day, I felt like I truly understood every concept we had covered that day.

What Did We Learn In Our Hair Extensions Class?

Class started with us talking to Dale, one of the owners, about the business behind extensions. He taught us about how Di Biase hair is “ponytail collect”. This means that when the hair was cut from the head it was put into a ponytail first. This keeps the hair all in the same direction that it grew out of the head giving you “remi” hair. If hair is not ponytail collect, they have to remove the cuticle from the hair and then create a fake one to simulate remi hair. If the hair is not remi, fake or true, it will literally fuse together because the cuticle is all different directions.

After we talked with Dale for a while, Vicki, the other owner of Di Biase then taught us how to do the sticker hair. I have already taken a couple classes on the sticker hair so it was more of a review for me.

We then moved on to the fusion extensions. As Vicki showed us how to do these, she made them look super easy. Jessie and I both were thinking, “Okay, we got this!”. We practiced on mannequins first and it was definitely harder than it looked. We probably put 20 to 30 bonds in the mannequin before we switched over to doing Jessie’s hair.

Jessie was my model and I was hers. It was an absolutely amazing experience and hair extensions class. If I don’t say so myself, I’d say we did a pretty good job too! Call the salon today to set up your complimentary consultation!

After Our Hair Extensions Class

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

ashka Ashka Salon Spa Di Biase Extensions Hair Extensions

AVEDA’s Mid America Hair Show Part 2

Last week I talked about the first part of AVEDA’s Mid America Hair Show! I wanted to finish telling you all about my wonderful experience this week. Hair shows are one of my favorite ways to find inspiration because of how intense they can be. I did not think it would be fair to try to squeeze all of that amazing-ness into just one blog post. Here it goes!

AVEDA’s Hair Show – Barbering

Dusty Rhode came on stage to talk about AVEDA’s barbering world. He talked a lot about different hair textures and how we, as stylists and artists, need to do what we think is best based on the hair type. For instance, using AVEDA’s Grooming Cream is great for longer textured hair. Some new products that Dusty talked about were the Men’s Thickening Paste, and the Men’s 5 minute Grey Blending Color! There are a lot of new and exciting things in the barbering world.

AVEDA’s Hair Show – Haircutting

Ricardo Dinis is the Global Artistic Director of Haircutting. When he came on stage at the Mid America Hair Show, he said that he recently has been extremely inspired by the art world. A powerful quote from Ricardo that I can’t stop thinking about is, “When you see something beautiful, you have to stop and stare”. He was talking about how we have the power to create a look for our clients that causes people to stop and stare. I have been striving to create a look like this for each one of my clients.

AVEDA’s Hair Show – Texture

Tippi Shorter works with all kinds of textured hair. She is AVEDA’s Global Artistic Director of Texture. She talked a lot about a new class she is designing called “Architexture”. This is a class on how to properly cut curly hair. Tippi mentioned how when she is working with her celebrity clientele, she works with a lot of wigs. She wanted to give us tips for working with wigs. Although I personally do not work with wigs all that often, it was still very interesting.

AVEDA’s Mid America Hair Show was absolutely incredible. I am counting down the days until Congress 2017.

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

ashka Ashka Salon Spa AVEDA Hair Show

New AVEDA Skin Care, Here is a Sneak Peek!

AVEDA has been working on revamping their skin care line for a while now. I am happy to announce that it is right around the corner from being released! The estheticians at Ashka Salon Spa have now taken three webinars in order to get ready for this new AVEDA skin care launch. Coming up within the next few months, we will have taken the AVEDA Skin Transformed. Here our estheticians will learn all about the new Tulasara line!

AVEDA Skin Care – What is Ayurveda?

While AVEDA has always taken an Ayurvedic approach to skin care, with the new Tulasara they are taking it to the next level. Ayurveda is a traditional healing method of India. When the word is broken down it means the “knowledge of longevity”. It is based off of your certain element. The options are Infinity/Air, Fire, and Water/Earth. If you want to figure out what element you are, you can take a quiz here.

When I took my quiz, I actually ended up being a balanced version of all three. The quiz gives you your results and recommends diet, medicine, climate, and yoga for your specific type.

AVEDA believes that your skin is the first to show when you are imbalanced in some way. On the other hand, when you are living a balanced life, you will have healthy, vital skin.

AVEDA Skin Care – What is Tulasara?

The new skin care line that AVEDA is coming out with is called Tulasara. Tulasara mean “back to balance”.

What is different about it is that there is one main line for everyone, and through the use of concentrates, it is fully customizable for everyone’s skin care needs. The concentrates that Tulasara will have include firm, bright, and calm.

AVEDA Skin Care - Concentrates — AVEDA Skin Care – Concentrates

Firm: helps to lift and firm the skin, will also restore radiance.

Bright: also helps restore radiance, but will specifically help with dark spots and discoloration.

Calm: instantly soothes the skin, makes it more resilient over time.

AVEDA skin care is also coming out with their very own dry brush and oleation oil for at home use! I am personally really excited about these two. Dry brushing is great for exfoliating and promoting healthy cell turn over.

AVEDA Skin Care - Dry Brush — AVEDA Skin Care – Dry Brush

All in all, Ashka Salon Spa is pumped about these new products and so am I. They should be in salon no later than september! Be sure to plan on stopping in to try one of our updated facials and get your hands on some new products!

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

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My Photo Shoot Experience in Canton, MI

Working on behind the scenes of photoshoots and runways has always been a dream of mind. Whether it was designing clothing, modeling or doing hair, I knew I wanted to be in that atmosphere. I have worked on one other photoshoot helping someone do hair. Ashka Salon Spa has added 2 photoshoots per year where the team is able to participate. The salon can then use these photos for promotional material! Jessie and I decided it would be a great opportunity to work together on. Evelyn also decided to do her own look as well! All in all it was a great photo shoot experience.

Jessie and Josie’s Photo Shoot Experience

This was my first photo shoot where I was completely in charge of the hair. Jessie loves doing makeup, and is amazing at it. We knew we were going to work together. I love braids so I knew I wanted to incorporate that somehow into the hair design. Jessie wanted to use warm deep tones.

One thing we learned with working on our first photo shoots was how much work it really is. We also learned how much preparation goes into it. Jessie and I didn’t realize that you even need to think about how you want your model to pose! We are looking forward to working together again on the holiday photoshoot later this month.

Evelyn’s Photo Shoot Experience

Evelyn had her cousin come in and did a very beautiful balayage. It really brightened up her model’s look. Day of the shoot, she curled and braided her hair. Evelyn also gave her model a natural makeup look. She looks glowing and beautiful!

You definitely need to stop in to see what our amazingly talented stylists can do with your hair and makeup! 734-414-9980 Look for the other images on our facebook and other social media accounts.

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

ashka Ashka Salon Spa AVEDA model Photo Shoot Photography

Prepping for a Business Trip in Canton

Prepping for a business trip can be incredibly stressful. I will be attending Ian Michael Black’s Color Culture class in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the middle of August. Ian Michael Black is AVEDA’s Global Artistic Director for Hair Color. This will be the second time I will be flying for education. There are a lot of things that you can’t control when you are flying, so the best thing to do is to be sure of everything that you can.

My Business Trip – What is This Class About?

This Color Culture class is a once in a lifetime experience. I will be able to be in a small classroom environment learning from Ian Michael Black himself. On top of that, I will also have the opportunity to get a behind the scenes tour of the AVEDA factory as well as their corporate office. I cannot even begin to express how excited I am! I’ll be sure to blog all about my experience.

How Am I Prepping for My Business Trip?

I have always been someone who needs to make a list to pack. I like to have everything written out and prepared. It will stress me out if I am unsure if I forgot something. I recently purchased a new notebook specifically for this trip. I will use the first few pages to make my packing list. I also want to write down some classes that I want to ask Ian Michael Black if I am given the chance. On top of all of that, my manager was saying we should be sure to have all phone numbers and addresses on a printed out itinerary.

I still cannot believe that I have the ability to attend this amazing class. I am going to take full advantage of every minute while I am there. Be sure to stay tuned into our blog so you can hear all about it!

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

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AVEDA Products in Canton, Michigan

Recently I have become aware of how much of an impact I personally have on the environment. I switched to a plant-based diet, put a recycling bin in my room (and actually use it), and switched to using almost all AVEDA products. I don’t think that many people realize how much AVEDA does for the world and our environment. AVEDA as a company is extremely concerned about their carbon footprint. Ashka Salon Spa recently hosted a “Why AVEDA?” class for some of the girls at the salon. It was wonderful to hear all about how AVEDA gives back to society and the earth!

How Does AVEDA Help The Environment As A Company?

AVEDA is the only beauty company that manufactures its products with 100% certified wind power. When I heard this fun fact, I was blown away (no pun intended). I think that is incredible. More than half of the electric energy in the United States is made from burning coal. Through the use of coal it affects our ground, water, air and the workers as well as local residents. While wind power still has some effect on Mother Earth, it is definitely overall less negative.

AVEDA products are all manufactured by 100% wind power.

Another thing that I thought was really cool is how dedicated AVEDA is to giving people clean drinking water around the world. Every April is Earth Month and AVEDA raises money and awareness for the importance of access to clean water. Since 2007, AVEDA has raised more than $38 million for projects that support clean water at home and around the world!

And of course, AVEDA never tests on animals! They actually have a “testing salon” where people book appointments, knowing that they are being the test dummy for a new product. I was so happy to hear that this was an option!

How Does Purchasing AVEDA Products Help Our World?

An easy way to see how purchasing AVEDA products helps give back to the world is that it is furthering a company who does genuinely care about the environment. By purchasing from another company, you may unconsciously be supporting animal testing or consistent pollution.

AVEDA products are all packaged so that they can be recycled. Today 90% of AVEDA’s bottles are 80% post-consumer recycled plastic. This helps to keep tons of junk out of landfills daily! They say it saves AVEDA 600 tons of new plastic every year.

Like I said, I am slowly becoming more aware of my personal carbon footprint. I am incredibly blessed to work with a product line who believes in taking care of the Earth as much as I do.

Stop into Ashka Salon Spa for your AVEDA products to join AVEDA and I as we continue to take steps to better the world we live in.

Until Next Time,

Josie 🙂

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