Short Hair For The Holidays!

Introduction

Pre-holiday greetings, darlings! The Diva has taken precious time out of her incredibly busy schedule to help you get your fabulous short hair ready for the holidays. You can never get started too early! (Photo courtesy of Clairol - copyright - all rights reserved 2002).

Faced with all the scrumptious new hairstyles and fashions, what will you do to make yourself shine at the upcoming holiday parties? According to the Diva’s excellent fashion sources, the word for this holiday season is GLITZ. That’s right—glitz, glitz, and more glitz. After surviving a hard year economically and emotionally, we are celebrating this year with a turnaround from minimalism in hairstyles, fashions, makeup, and accessories. We are showing the world and ourselves that we are here to stay, that we will go on, and that we celebrate life each and every day.

So, where to begin? Simple—start from the top. Take a good long look at your hair, my dears. Are you happy with the style and color? Does it take too long to style in the morning, and can you make it glamorous in the evenings? Remember the Diva’s first credo: do your homework. (Photo courtesy of Clairol - copyright - all rights reserved 2002).

Work with the shape of your face to get the most flattering look, and be sure that your hair color works with your skin tone. If you haven’t already, go to the best stylist you can afford, and take the time to go over everything about your hair with them.

Let the stylist see your hair dry prior to shampooing, so that she/he can get a feel for what your hair does naturally. Discuss how much time you are willing to devote to hair care each day, and have an idea in your mind about the type of style you want. If possible, bring pictures. (Photo courtesy of Clairol - copyright - all rights reserved 2002).

Today’s smart, stylish, short-haired woman of any age wants a hairdo that will easily convert from day to night with a minimum of fuss. Here are some ideas for giving quick nighttime glamour to a daytime hairdo:

1. The Dimensional Shag: punch it up with some hard styling gel to get a more edgy look, streak with glitter gel, or accentuate with tiny magnetized hair gems.

2. The Classic Wedge: use temporary gel or paste hair coloring to streak thick or thin slices of dazzling color to the hair around the face, at the hairline, or on the ends of the hair.

3. The Short Bob: slick the hair behind your ears with a good gel to hold it. Add one of those thin, stretchy, glittery headbands to keep the hair back, then fluff the ends out behind your ears.

4. The Short-Short Layered Look: apply a hard gel throughout the hair. Put fingertips beneath the hair from the back of the neck, and firmly stroke the hair up. Your goal is to get the hair standing up on end, using the gel and a spritz or two of hairspray. You can do a total spiked effect and spike all the hair, or just the back. Tip the ends with glitter, or sprinkle tiny hair gems throughout.

5. The Tousled Pixie: apply gel to the roots of the hair at the crown, and gently blowdry the roots to give lift to the hair (don’t brush the dried gel out!). Rub your fingertips with glitter and run them through your hair. You can also use temporary gel or paste hair coloring to make some interesting streaks. Hot colors are bronze, gold, silver, platinum, and opal.

Of course, accessorizing adds a glamorous statement to short hair as well. With short hair, you can create a breathtaking effect with earrings and a necklace.

Forget that old wives’ tale about ‘short hair, tiny earrings.’ The Diva’s hair is quite short, and she wears everything from diamond studs to shoulder-dusting chandelier dangles! Here are some fashion-forward holiday accessories:

1. Short, dangly crystal beaded earrings on French wires (never fear, dear clip-wearers! There are earring converters available.) to give movement and sparkle near your eyes.

2. Diamond-cut or laser-cut gold or silver hoop earrings.

3. Chunky semi-precious gemstone or glass earrings. Hint: turquoise and amber are huge this year!

4. Large CZ studs or clusters. CZs are inexpensive and come in some great colors besides clear.

5. Glittery clip earrings from the 50’s—check the flea markets, rummage sales, and church bazaars.

6. Crystal beaded chokers to add some sizzle to your neckline.

7. Gold or silver Omega (curved collars in 4mm+ widths) chokers. You can wear them plain, or get enhancers studded with gemstones, pearls, crystals, or antique watchfobs to wear on them.

8. The classic and never-out-of-style black velvet ribbon choker. You can buy these almost anywhere, or make your own. They make a simple, stunning, and elegant look on their own, or they can be decorated with a glittery pin, cameo, or clip.

9. Take a long (32”+) necklace or pearls or beads, and double it around your neck. You can also secure it with a clip: drape the doubled-up necklace around your neck, and fasten both ends with a clip (many department stores carry these).

10. Get yourself a fabulous pendant, perhaps something you can call your ‘signature piece,’ and wear it long or short on a ribbon, chain, or Omega. Some suggestions: craft fairs always have jewelry artists, and some specialize in sterling and gold wire wrapped minerals and gems. The Diva herself owns a gorgeous golden rutilated quartz slice (about 60 carats), wrapped in sterling wire.

So, sweet things, there you have it. You now have an early jump on the holiday season, and plenty of time to get yourself ready to shine. Remember, we are getting into the glitz bigtime this year, both for ourselves and for others.

Seeing yourself prettied up gives you a lift, and believe it or not, it lifts others as well! Trust your Diva—as always, she is right!

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