Here Is Demi Lovato’s High Ponytail And How Her Stylist Was Able To Do It

 Demi Lovato gave Us all high ponytail envy on Monday, August 7, with a trio of Instagram posts that showed off her serious glam game. The “Confident” singer was rocking a shimmering orchid eye, perfectly groomed brows, fluttery lashes and a coordinated flush, as well as a gorgeous sheen on her lips from lip gloss. But, the real scene stealer was her flirty, fun and oh-so curly high ponytail, which Lovato wore cascading to one side. 

Stylish caught up with Lovato’s hairstylist, Justine Marjan, who broke down the exact steps and products she used to give the former Disney star her peppy look. To start, Marjan prepped Lovato’s damp hair with Tresemmé Beauty Full Mouse and OUAI Wave Spray and then blew the singer’s hair dry with a ceramic round brush for maximum volume. 

Once the hair was dry, Marjan sprayed Bumble and bumble Dryspun Finish Spray and used a 1 ¼ inch GHD Soft Curl Iron to create tiny spirals in small sections of hair, taking care to alternate the direction of the curl. 

Then Lovato’s curls were combed through and a few clip-in extensions (from the Hair Shop) were added for length and fullness. Marjan then took a small amount of Fatboy Sea Salt Pomade in her hands and gathered the top half of hair into a high half-up ponytail and secured it with a BLAX hair elastic. Next, she gathered the bottom half of the hair and attached it to the top ponytail with a hair bungee, wrapping a piece of hair around the base to camouflage it. 

The key to the girly vibe though are the baby hairs, which Marjan took care to pull out around Lovato’s face and then sprayed generously with R+Co Vicious Hairspray for hold. To finish, RIta Hazan Root Concealer was used to camouflage any partings. 

How to Stay This Whole Summer Without Wearing Any Bra

Of the few things that rank above whipping your bra off at the end of the day in Satisfaction Points™, not wearing an underwire at all has to come out near the top. Here, some advice for how anyone can go free-boobing this summer—even those of us who were born without fashion-girl chests.









CHOOSE A THICKER FABRIC

Eliminates the need for nipple covers; still provides some support, emotional and otherwise. You could do a solid-colored knit like Olivia Newton-John here, but for extra coverage, go for a stripe or other print.


OR STRUCTURE
The jacket-with-nothing-underneath thing is so chic and so flattering. If you're not keen on having to deal with fashion tape, though, just put on a bandeau—you still get the skin and the braless-ness, but with just a bit less *movement,* if you know what I mean.

OR A ~DISTRACTING~ NECKLINE
Have you ever seen an ugly sternum? Didn't think so. This is why, if you're going to show anything, it should include the area between your boobs. Go loose enough with a U-neckline top like Kendall's or even just an unbuttoned-to-there shirt and you definitely won't need a bra, no matter how big/ungainly you think you are.

OR JUST OBSCURE EVERYTHING WITH AN EXTRA LAYER
Doesn't have to be a bomber—something silky and robe-y works well for the summer.

GO DEEP WITH THE ARMHOLES
It's simple optics: The more boob strategically shown, the less boob there must (conceivably) be. For that, the chic-girl version of a bro tank does just fine: The neckline should be cut low, the armholes should dip enough for some side-boob, and the whole effect should be breezy.

OR LOOSE, LOOSE, LOOSE
As long as you've got some shoulder/clavicle action, you're good.


OR A BOOB VALANCE
A huge ruffle hiding everything works too.

OR BOOB SCAFFOLDING
Boob *fence*? In any case, the laces provide the architecture that holds them in place while simultaneously advertising them. Perfect.

Why Ebony Girls Are Having A Hard Time Finding Brown Lipstick

Celebs and models are gracing red carpets and runways in the ubiquitous chocolate shades ringing in the season's best beauty trends. But if you, like all of us, subsequently mobbed the store searching for a brown of your own, you most likely were sorely disappointed.

As a woman of color, deeper lip shades are staples in my lipstick/gloss/stain collection. Finding them, however, is a much harder feat. Going to any makeup counter in search of a deep nude or true brown is the equivalent of pulling impacted wisdom teeth sans Novocaine. Either the shade meter ends at more-pink-than-cocoa or the salesperson looks at me like I've just asked for free YSL.





Brown lipsticks are a surefire way to avoid the tragic case of the wrong pink and the *right* shade complements a range of skin tones, immediately makes the eyes look bigger, and gives the face a lift (are you online shopping yet?). So, why are true browns so few and far between? Bobbi Brown, iconic makeup artist and the queen of earth tones herself, revealed that many brands shy away from the shade in attempts to side-step the trend pitfalls of yesteryear.

Brown lipstick was essentially the cornerstone of '90s beauty trends. And while stunning on the likes of Whitney Houston and Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction, the general public got dealt a hand of muddy grey undertones and drying finishes that left the lips looking sunbaked. "Brown lip color is often looked at as dated or boring," says Bobbi. "But brown comes in all different shades and textures, and when paired with the right look, is a fresh and modern mistake-proof complement."

As we find ourselves in a continued obsession with matte finishes, it may seem searchers of brown lips are doomed to an eternity of rare finds, but luckily there is hope. "Long-wearing formulas used to be known to dry out your lips, leaving them looking cracked and caked. Now, with the help of ingredients like Muru Muru and Shea Butters, long-wear lip colors are creamy, lightweight and extremely wearable, so while the shade may be classic, the formula is totally modern," says Bobbi.

Not to mention, Bobbi Brown will be releasing her "Wine & Chocolate Collection" this fall featuring, you guessed it, rich brown shades (hopefully in which you can sip vino without worry).

The next time you're looking for a brown color to play up the natural tones in your lips, follow Bobbi's advice and look for shades with warmer undertones of red and blue. If you're not ready to take the dive, select a sheer gloss for a softer, everyday look.

How Often Should BlacK Men Shampoo Their Hair

HOW OFTEN SHOULD MEN OF COLOR WASH THEIR HAIR?
It’s pretty obvious to most people that black men’s hair is different, both in look and feel. It should then come as no surprise that our hair care should be different as well. Let’s take a look at the reasons.

IT’S DRY
We’ve all heard that black hair in general is dryer than other hair, but why? This is mostly because of the curls in our hair. The natural oils that are in everyone’s scalps travel down straight hair much more easily than curly hair. This alone makes black hair more dry and subject to breakage/loss. The natural oil just doesn’t get to most of our hair.

There’s nothing that can be done about this since the curliness of our hair is determined by the bulb shape of the hair follicle, which is determined genetically. Hooked bulbs cause curly hair, round bulbs cause straight hair.

WASHING

Due to the unique nature of black hair, we men must be more conscious about the drying effects of most shampoos. Shampoos tend to contain chemicals that strip the existing oils off of your hair, which may be fine for straight hair, but can be overly damaging to curly hair, which doesn’t replace the oils as easily.

While you’ll need to take into account how curly your hair is, generally washing 1 – 2 times a week achieves the desired cleaning effect without overly drying out our hair. It is also ok to condition hair daily.

With this knowledge and these tips you should be set to get the look you want without any troubles.