One of the best things about living here in our country is that when it comes to beauty luxuries, it can be really affordable. Going to your local salon to have your hair, makeup, or nails done can cause minimal damage. And no, spending less wouldn’t automatically mean a lesser polished look. You really just have to find a really talented and inexpensive hairdresser plus knowing what you want and confidently articulating it will help wonders in the sort of service you get from your visit to the salon.

But having someone wait on you all the time can sometimes take a huge chunk out of your prep time. What if you woke up late and couldn’t make your salon appointment? What if something comes up and you don’t have time to go and get your hair, makeup or nails done? Or, worse, you’ve come to the point wherein even an inexpensive trip to the salon is out of your budget?

You then realise the good thing about DIY (do-it-yourself) Beauty.

One of the things that had fascinated me as a kid was hair styling. Of course, growing up as a tomboy, the mere act of brushing my hair more than once can be such a chore. I only let my hair grow long when I was going into my second year in highschool. Even then I hardly did anything to fix my hair but, yes, I had put a little more effort in brushing my hair though not as frequent as I ought.

Moving onto college, the concept of hair style was widened a bit and had accommodated some hair accessories. But I was still stuck with the common hair length and cut and would resort to juggling pony tails, half-ponies, and the occasional (now favourite) hair clip on top.

Having seen movies, tv shows and magazines along the way, I had nurtured a want. I had wanted to learn how to fix and style my hair in certain ways without having to go to a hair dresser. My allowance couldn’t afford it nor do I have to time to do that before hitting my first class which starts at 7am. How can I possibly do that? I had to leave my house before 6am and I was already up around 4am as it was.

Anyway, having traveled abroad had introduced me to ordinary ladies with awesome looking hair styles. I’m quite certain that they wouldn’t pay to have their hair done just to attend a house party in a suburb situated along the outskirts of Melbourne. So they must’ve fixed their own hair, which means this awesome looking hair I’m looking at is not a product of the hands of a professional. Even an ordinary girl like myself can actually do it.

I try to style my own hair whenever I go out but for special occasions like when I played bridesmaid to a friend’s wedding, I’m not too confident with my own hair styling skills, unfortunately, so I had my hairdresser fix it instead.

I face a personal dilemma though. On one hand, I really want to learn how to style my own hair but on the other, I despise styling products on my hair. I know I sort of grew up in the 80s but hey I was still a kid with no care about representation. I was never the kikay 10-year old. So while I look on as my sister (a teenager then) spray on sticky liquid from huge pink or blue cans of Aquanet on her teased bangs and sometimes roof-curled hair, I’d cringe or often times wonder what the big deal was.

What can I say? I’m a late bloomer. Heh.

This brings me to some of the basics of hair style. You will need a good styling brush.

I opted for a tufted styler brush because it’s a great tool for smoothing out curly or coarse hair and is ideal for updos. Surprisingly, the bristles are static-resistant. From polished looks to volume, the brush will prove to be quite useful. It can actually help as I fine tune my favourite hair style of late, the chignon.

I also appreciate the handle. The easy grip surface and pseudo ergonomic shape makes holding it quite comfortable. Anyway, I’m now in the market for a 53mm Ouchless Hot Round brush, also from Goody.

Goody, So Smart Tufted Styler Brush, Php 320.00 (Original price Php 399.00)

A can of Aquanet will help keep things in tact but the idea of my hair ending up smelling like some chemical, er, I think I’ll pass. Do they even stock these things still? Anyway, I’m definitely not the gel sort. I can accommodate the use of mousse but I know owning a hairspray will help move things along. Caved in and shopped for a bottle. I’m crossing my fingers that I won’t regret it later on. I’ve used Finesse’s mousse products and have been quite happy so I’m going to be optimistic about my relationship with the dreaded hairspray.

I’ll try to post a review as soon as I’ve put this baby to the test.

Finesse, Self Adjusting Hairspray Extra Hold Fresh & Clean Formula, Php 231.25

What about you ladies? Are you the wash and wear hair type or do you put stock in hair styling? Do you style your own hair or are you salon-dependent?

Photo © 2009 Sasha Manuel