Romy Raves

With a name like Hairroin (get it?), I just couldn’t resist including the word addiction in the title of this post So here’s the scoop: I recently had the opportunity to visit the hip edgy Hairroin Salon in Hollywood, California and was treated to cut and color session with owner and celebrity stylist Janine Jarman.

Janine is a seasoned and established Los Angeles based stylist who has worked with many of Hollywood’s top stars including Britney Spears, Fergie and Scarlett Johansson to name a few; and she was also the official hair stylist for the Pussycat Dolls and has worked on many television shows, print campaigns, and runway shows. Janine also gained national recognition for her creative hair inspirations on Bravo’s popular TV series, Shear Genius.

With a plethora of expertise and credibility, Janine opened Hairroin Salon in 2005 to showcase the industry’s most talented, creative and in-demand stylists. Given the success of the salon, Hairroin recently moved across the street to bigger and swankier new digs at Space 15 Twenty Retail Center in Hollywood (Right next to Umami Burger and Urban Outfitters.) I love the new edgy urban chic industrial space, it feels modern and welcoming at the same time. Hairroin also has the distinction of being the only Sebastian Professional Flagship Salon in the Los Angeles area, hand-picked for its trendsetting work. Janine also currently serves as the West Coast spokesperson for Sebastian Professional and is a member of the national Sebastian Design team.

So with this glowing resume, I was more than thrilled to put my hair in the skilled hands of such a tenured artist. And let me tell you, she did not disappoint! Janine is adorable, spunky, confidant, DTE and a true artiste. I didn’t come into the salon with a preconceived idea of what I wanted, I just left it up to her (because honestly, when you are in the hands of a master, let them do their thing!) Janine wanted to shape up and freshen my style by giving me some sexy layers, and she also wanted to kick up my hair color with some warm natural Balyage highlights. I was super excited because I have yet to try Balyage, which is more of a painting/free hand style of highlights without paper or foils, where the stylist strategically paints highlights onto your hair the way the sun would naturally fall and lighten your hair. It may sound/look easy, but this is a technique that takes talent and experience to get just right. This is what Balyage looks like while it’s on (glamorous, don’t ya think?)

And here’s what my hair looked like afterwards (sorry for the blurry iPhone pics)

I absolutely LOVE it! The color is warm, sexy and much more natural looking than traditional highlights. Janine also told me that Balyage lights grow out much more naturally than traditional highlights which allows you to go much longer between touch ups, which saves you money in the long run. I love the sexy flattering color and the flowy movement of my hair, she got it just right!  (Note: I am thrilled with the way Janine’s Balyage lights have grown out, the natural color is so gorgeous and gets even better with time!)

I was beyond thrilled with Janine’s work, her easy going style and her masterful Balyage technique and I will definitely be visiting her again soon.  If you are addicted to hair like I am, I highly rec making an appointment with Janine at Hairroin for your own hair ‘fix’.

Hairroin Salon 1553 N. Cahuenga Blvd. Hollywood, CA 90028 (323) 467-0392

Disclosure: I was invited to Hairroin Salon for a cut and color service with Janine Jarman for editorial consideration. The sexy hair and opinions are my own.

On Tuesday, I was invited to a top secret location as one of a small group of hand picked bloggers to be among the first to learn the identity of the newest Proactiv Spokesmodel. All that I was told was that I would be “Glee-ful” about the choice and that I would have some up close and personal time with this celebrity. Well as you know, I am a huge fan of Glee, so I jumped at the chance to be part of this fun opportunity.

After arriving at the top secret shoot in West LA and signing the necessary NDA’s, we were escorted to a small stuido set-up and awaited the announcement. I was thrilled to learn that Naya Rivera aka Santana on Glee, was chosen as the newest celebrity spokeswoman for the Proactiv Acne Skincare line, and that she would be joining the star-studded lineup of current Proactiv celebrity customers-turned-spokespeople, including Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Avril Lavigne and Julianne Hough. Naya will appear in several new Proactiv television spots, debuting in spring 2012.

It was such a treat to being one of six bloggers who were granted up close and personal access to Naya and that we could ask pretty much anything we wanted!

First of all, IRL Naya is svelte, gorgeous, sexy and has really beautiful luminous skin. We quickly learned that she has struggled with acne on and off throughout her life, and that being on set and wearing a lot of makeup has caused her to suffer from adult acne. She sought out Proactiv to help her skin and was more than pleased with the results. While she really likes all of the products, her current fav (and a fav on the Glee set) is the Proactiv Makeup Remover Cloths because they quickly and easily remove makeup and refresh the skin.

Naya shared her feelings about becoming the newest Brand Ambassador, “I am excited to be a part of a show that encourages teens and young adults to embrace their differences and be proud of who they are as an individual, which is exactly why I am honored to represent Proactiv. Working with Proactiv will allow me to take that self confidence message a step further by helping individuals tackle their acne and literally put their best face forward.”

I found Naya lovely, genuine, honest and down to earth. Some other fun facts that I learned about Naya, and contrary to popular belief, were that she is a low maintenance girl and prefers staying in, ordering gourmet takeout, and wearing comfy sweats over being out on the town. Of course, I wanted to know her favorite beauty products/what’s in her bag and she is surprisingly simple and said she doesn’t have much in her bag and prefers chapstick over lipstick.

Being a Gleek, of course I also got some inside scoop about the Glee cast and set happenings: Lea Michelle is a product junkie and is always turning Naya on to great hair treatments; Amber Riley is the Santa Claus of the bunch, she brought a big bag of gifts to pass out to the cast and crew this season; she thinks the newest Glee cast member, Damian McGinty is a total cutie; she would pick Kevin McHale as the cast member she would choose to kiss on NYE at midnight; Gloria Estefan will be playing her mother on the show and she is excited to work with her; and out of all the musical numbers throughout Glee’s tenure, the one’s that she is most proud of are the Adele mash-ups.

As promised, I am sharing some of my favorite new product and brand discoveries this season, up next: Purses and Bags! I admit, I definitely have a thing for purses and bags because they really show off your personality, make a statement, and can really make an outfit. I enjoy carrying unique, different statement making accessories and I love when people stop me, compliment my accessories and ask whose bag I am carrying and where they can get one, there is no greater compliment than that! It gives me such joy to share my finds and turn people on to indie designers and lesser know brands. Behold my latest and greatest accessory discoveries-all from Los Angeles or California based companies (I LOVE supporting local brands!)-for your gift giving pleasure. . . .

Namaste Cali Collection Red Laguna Bag ($85)

This great LA based company makes a fabulous assortment of eco chic bags that are all animal friendly and PVC-free. I am totally digging this holiday worthy Red Laguna bag! It’s that perfect warm cherry red color (perfect for the season), it’s roomy, has lots of pockets, a zippered interior divider, a detachable shoulder strap, metal feet on the bottom and a strong magnetic closures at the top. Namaste bags are affordable, eco friendly, functional, and fashionable. Def a new fav bag of mine!

Stephanie Johnson Make Up Bags in Rodeo Drive Pewter ($30-35)

Stephanie Johnson is a Venice, CA based company that makes the most gorgeous sophisticated chic make up bags. Stephanie launched her namesake line of accessories after traveling extensively and noticing that stylish make up bags were sorely lacking in the marketplace. If you peruse the Stephanie Johnson site, you will notice a plethora of luxurious eye catching bags in a wide variety of great fabrics and textures. My current favorite for the season is the Rodeo Drive Pewter Collection, it’s the perfect luminous shade of pewter and I adore the Mini Pouch with a wrislet added, super cute as a festive make up bag or a small evening bag.

Jagger Edge iPhone Word Collection L.O.V.E in Emerald Green with 14K Gold Plating ($99)

These are the most amazing, show stopping hip and chic iPhone covers that I have ever seen! Every time I am carrying my iPhone in a JE case, I ALWAYS get stopped because they are so unique and different. I am absolutely in love with my new JE Emerald case with the gold plated L.O.V.E (FYI it was featured in People Style Watch this month), so fun and festive, and you can pick any color and plate combo you like. This fabulous case will make a very memorable gift for that special fashionista techie in your life.

Gigi Hill Zipped Brigitte in Tahiti Chocolate ($168)

These are fabulous, fashionable, sturdy, functional bags designed by two entrepreneurial SoCal moms. This line has a wide variety of bag styles in modern textures and designs and all of the Gigi Hill bags are made with an exclusive Signature Pocket Design, which ensures there is a pocket for everything in your bag from cell phone to water bottles. Each bag also has an inside secured zipper pocket, a key fob so you can find your keys instantly and feet on the bottom. The Brigitte is the ultimate fashion forward overnight bag with its zip-top closure, extra-wide straps, and side snaps to allow for extra space. I love taking this hip high quality bag on weekend getaways because it looks good and holds up really well.

Thale Blanc Lizzy Metallic La Pochette ($250)

This is a one of the most stylish brilliant little bags that I have seen in a long time. La Pochette is an inspired unique accessory designed by fashion designer and gemologist Deborah Sawaf (a fabulous fashionista herself!) who designed these lovely little bags especially to hold cell phones and other essentials close at hand. La Pochette is made from high quality leather and comes with a sleek chain and other chains and charms can be added on and are purchased separately. The Pochette can be worn a multitude of ways and can even be attached to your handbag as an elegant and functional accent. I adore the festive gold Lizzy Metallic La Pochette which is available at Fred Segal in LA and you can find many other wonderful styles on the Thale Blanc website.

Leoluca Winter Clutch ($229)

I recently had the opportunity to meet the founders and creative duo behind Leoluca bags and I instantly fell in love with them, their story and their gorgeous leather bags. Leoluca was created by 2 best friends and fashionistas from Ohio who moved to San Diego for a more urban lifestyle. These adorable fashionistas both design and sketch each contemporary bag together and make them using only the highest quality materials and labor sourced in the USA. The name Leoluca comes from the Italian Saint Leoluca as well as an Italian Mobster Leoluca Bagarella, and the duality of the brand name is meant to embody the essence of the line which is both edgy and classy. I really like the Winter white  envelope clutch with ostrich embossed leather and love the girlie pink liner inside. I also got a sneak peak of their spring collection and there are some lovely designs in fabulous bold colors (like a sunflower yellow) and super soft leathers, I was particularly fond of the yummy champagne gold leather

Happy Shopping!

Being a blogger definitely has its privileges, case in point: Being invited by Dove Hair Care (the official Red Carpet Sponsor of the shindig) to attend the star studded Hollywood movie premiere of New Year’s Eve. I have been totally excited about seeing this celebrity filled chick flick with a stellar cast and jumped at this coveted invite to attend the premiere and after party. I put on one of my best Hollywood sparkly glam outfits, grabbed one of fun party worthy girlfriends and off we went to Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood.

It was such a fun and lively event, Hollywood Blvd. was shut down to accommodate the large red carpet, paparazzi, and fans, and my guest and I hovered around the red carpet arrivals to get an up close glimpse of all the stars. It was so fun! I loved seeing the gorgeous female stars up close like Hilary Swank (so gracious to the paparazzi), Sofia Vergara (hoochie mama-sexy and gorgeous), Katherine Heigl (super fit and sporting and very attractive Marilyn Monroe look)

And being both a theater buff/Broadway musical lover and Glee fan, my personal favorite was Lea Michelle (BTW I saw her in Spring Awakening on Broadway before Glee and LOVED her), petite and gorgeous in a champagne colored Valentino dress reminiscent of old Hollywood Glamour

I got the inside scoop on Lea’s gorgeous vintage hairstyle, from Dove Celebrity Stylist Mark Townsend: “It was all about modern glamour for Lea’s look at the New Year’s Eve premiere. Her Valentino dress reminded me of Old Hollywood, so we wanted to play off that with a young, modern version. I started by adding a large dollop of Dove Body & Lift Mousse to her damp hair and blow dried with a large round brush, giving Lea a deep side part. Next, I took 3-inch sections of hair and sprayed Dove Flexible Hold Hairspray on each section, and then wrapped the hair around a 2 inch curling iron, leaving the ends just a little straighter. For loads of shine and beautiful texture, I took a quarter size amount of Dove Nourishing Oil Care Leave-In Smoothing Cream in my hands, rubbed them together and then raked my fingers through her hair for piecey-ness. I kept her fringe off her face by spraying Dove Extra Hold Hairspray on a small flat brush and brushing back and to the side.”

Now for the boys, for me it was all about the Glee cast! I adore this show because for me, watching it is like getting a little slice of a Broadway show in my home each and every week! I was fortunate enough to snuggle up to the adorably boyish sexy man Cory Monteith, so sweet and boy did he smell good!

Then I snuck past his publicist and got a nice pic with the uber talented and much more youthful in real life, Chris Colfer

And my favorite sighting and meet and greet of the night at the swanky after party was by far Darren Criss (aka Blaine). He was so sweet, charming and handsome IRL, he really took the time out to talk to me about being a blogger, shared that he is replacing Daniel Radcliff on Broadway in How to Succeed in Business and even wanted to see how our picture came out and if it met with his approval I think he is insanely talented and his star is just beginning to rise, definitely keep an eye on him! We make a cute couple, don’t ya think?

So now that the celeb gossip is out of the way (and what a treat it was to be up close and personal with so many hot stars), on to the reason you are reading this post to begin with, the movie! So how was it you ask? Fun, girlie, light, and enjoyable to see such a diverse star powered cast and how their stories intertwine. It will be a great GNO or date night movie, lots of fun storyline’s, with my favorite being the unexpected storyline with Zac Efron (totally adorable IRL and tough to take a pic with!) and Michelle Pfeiffer, very heart warming.

It was a super fab glam night and a special thanks to Dove for inviting me!  Here I am looking vintage fab at the New Year’s Eve Premiere After Party photo booth!

Greetings Beauty Mavens! This coming Monday, December 12, 2011 from 7-8pm PST, on behalf of LaserAway Tattoo & Hair Removal Experts, I will be hosting a fun and engaging discussion on the LaserAway Facebook Fan Page about laser hair removal, laser skin treatments, injectables, fillers, beauty trends and tips and any other beauty topics that may come up. Please come to the party with all of your thoughtful laser hair removal, beauty and aesthetics questions and I will moderate the discussion, answer questions/get answers to your questions and share information about this superb California based company. I have had a couple of treatments at LaserAway and I am really impressed with their top notch state-of-the-art equipment and highly skilled technicians, and I am excited to tell you all about this great local resource.

I hope you will take the time to join me for this fun Facebook event! And here’s the best part: Each registered participant that asks thoughtful and engaging questions will be gifted with a certificate for ONE Laser Hair Removal Treatment (valued at up to $300!) at one of the numerous California LaserAway locations. Plus other great prizes will be given out throughout the party including: One laser hair removal package valued at over $500 and 1  Latisse eyelash growth serum kit valued at over $100!

So what are you waiting for? Get on the list and RSVP right NOW for this not to be missed event HERE

I look forward to ‘seeing’ you at the party and chatting about all things Beauty!