Filed In: Hairspray

Celebrity Edit | Hair by Félix Larivière

Several months ago when I first met Félix Larivière, personal stylist to some of the hottest names in Hollywood (Jennifer Lawrence, Hugh Jackman, Julia Roberts to name just a few), I was struck by several things: A) how drop-dead gorgeous he is (seriously, though), B) what fun he is to talk to (utterly charming), C) his vast wealth of hair know-how and D) how drop-dead gorgeous he is. Oh wait, I already said that. Moving on…

So a few weeks ago when I was invited to have a one-on-one hair styling session with him, trust me when I say that I jumped all over that.

Bio: award-winning stylist Félix Larivière who hails from a small town in my province of Québec, started off in this field at the tender age of 16. After stints in both New York as well as Paris, he returned back to [our] shared hometown of Montréal, where he quickly rose through the ranks in both the Fashion and Film industries, making a name for himself with regards to his innovative approach of merging cutting-edge trends with a deep knowledge base of how hair performs. Presently, Félix is the Canadian spokesperson for John Frieda haircare products, a range whose provenance hails from the UK with several of their products having achieved cult status (who hasn’t heard of Frizz-Ease?).

Upon my arrival and after a brief consultation, Félix got to work; with an armada of John Frieda products laid out before us, he opted for just 2 items to use on my hair: Frizz-Ease Moisture Barrier Hairspray and Frizz-Ease Miraculous Recovery Repairing Crème Serum (which also made Allure’s Best of Beauty List this year!) Beginning with an all over light spritzing of the spray, he then proceeded to take large sections of hair which were rolled up into giant curls, each of which was then held in place by just 1 clip. That’s it. The entire procedure took maybe 10 minutes, and while we let the hair set for a few minutes, we went on a zany selfie spree. In between all the fun, I was able to interview him about hair trends; according to Félix, we’ll be seeing a major return to sleeker and almost retro-looking hairstyles (think 40’s & 50’s glam), looks that he feels will be a driving force on red carpets everywhere come awards season. I can’t help but agree, as makeup trends appear to be pointing in the same direction as well, with matte vampy red lips having a total ‘moment’ right now. Not that a red pout will ever go out of style, mind you.

This event took place at Panache Salon located in the eastern end of Montréal, where a simple yet totally urban sign hangs above the door to one of the coolest spots in town; decorated with sheets of unfinished plywood, you’d be tempted to think that the place was under construction, but a closer look reveals how cleverly the entire look has been put together with the aim of keeping the focus on you, the client – and not the decor. Well played, I say.

After removing the “rollers”, Félix proceeded to explain how this one setting would go on to create four looks; if I hadn’t seen it firsthand, I would never have believed it. Gently shaking the curls out, Look 1 was all about that Bardot dishevelled just-rolled-out-of-bed hair (which I totally LOVED), but then grabbing a paddle brush, he proceeded to smooth everything out and within a minute, Look 2 was created: a side-swept Veronica Lake-esque wave that cascaded over one shoulder. So gorgeous. Moving on quickly, Look 3 was all about a messy updo, with pieces framing my face in front and the party in back – all held in place by just 2 strategically placed hairpins (and created lightning fast, I might add). Finally, Look 4 was full-on GLAM, with sleek waves on top and serious volume on the ends. Félix capped this last look off with a dollop of the serum that he then ran through my ends for some extra moisture, and a light dusting of the spray for a touch more hold. Four – count them – FOUR impossibly stunning looks created without the use of styling tools, and the insane part? The time span was about 6 minutes from look 1 to look 4. Like I said, unbelievable yet so true.

Panache Salon, 1126 Maisonneuve West, Montréal (514-509-1126)

Arrival … (and why is my hair so damn flat-looking?)

The John Frieda army … and my water served in a Mason Jar (cute, no?)

weapons of mass construction

let the games begin

Look One

Look Two

Look Three

Look Four

(and now you know where this look came from, as seen in my sidebar!)

I don’t care if this looks cheesy – just look at MY HAIR

A huge THANK YOU to the amazing team at Citoyen Optimum for making this magical day happen, to Panache Salon for being such a gracious host, and most importantly, to the maestro himself, Félix Larivière for making me look & feel like a major celebrity.

PS: So, does this mean that J-Law and I are now BFF’s by association?

Experience kindly sponsored by Citizen Optimum/KAO Group Canada using John Frieda products

Moroccanoil Luminous Hairspray – Strong and Medium Hold (trial & review)

October 18, 2012

I’m really very low maintenance … as far as my hair is concerned. Except for the fact that I need to go touch up my roots approximately every 4 weeks (pale champagne blonde – enough said), and that right now I’m desperately in need of some style/cut/shaping, I don’t do much with my mane. Even my cleansing routine has been pared down; shampoo & conditioner (currently obsessed with L’Occitane products, previously reviewed here). That’s it. Wondering how on earth I could realistically review hairspray, definitely posed a challenge for me – along came my clever & talented daughter to the rescue! Read on to learn how…

It’s no secret that I’m a hug fan of Moroccanoil® products (you can check out my previous reviews at the end of this post); there’s a reason why this brand has attained a cult following among celebrities and professionals alike, not to mention us regular folks: these products not only work, but work amazingly well. Then there’s that unique scent: I can’t pinpoint exactly what it is, but I know that I am totally addicted to it – I will be the first one to buy a bottle if they ever decide to market it as a perfume!

I have rare occasion to use hairspray, and I’ll tell you why: my hair is long, and while the individual strands are thin, I do have a lot of it – which makes it rather heavy. Before I began colouring my hair, it was naturally quite straight and would not hold a curl or wave if my life depended on it. Even now after colouring and with a slight wave to it, I still have difficulties in making a curl last longer than 30 minutes.

In the past, I really limited any use of hairspray, primarily because I hated that stiff and unnatural feel it gave my hair, not to mention the noxious fumes of the spray itself, and the rather dulled-looking finish at the end. To add insult to injury, any style I created not only looked rather “fake” but still never managed to last longer than a couple of hours – at best.

Moroccanoil® Luminous Hairsprays in Strong and Medium holds have revolutionized the way we think of hairspray; forget the helmet-head, shellacked formulations of the past – these are infused with the brand’s signature argan oil and work for all hair types. According to the company:
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“These advanced formulas can be brushed out easily without weighing the hair down, leaving hair manageable without sticky residue or build-up. Featuring Moroccanoil’s signature scent, they also provide a reflective shine shield that fights frizz and humidity”

Luminous Hairspray Strong:

finishing hairspray with extra strong hold
weightlessly locks style in place
soft and touchable feel

wide clog-free nozzle

information on back label

complete ingredients list on back label

Luminous Hairspray Medium (formerly ‘Luminous Hairspray’):

workable hairspray with medium hold
brushes out easily
won’t weigh hair down

information on back label

full ingredients list on back label

To perform my tests, I enlisted my daughter’s help: her talent combined with Moroccanoil’s amazing hairspray, blew me completely away. Using just a flat iron, my daughter first sectioned off my hair (approximately 3 layers in total) and starting with the underneath layer, she began “curling” small segments of hair. Once all pieces were curled (to her exacting standards, I might add), she then finished off the entire look with Moroccanoil’s Luminous Hairspray Strong Hold. I still had plenty of movement to my hair, a beautiful glossy shine and it smelled incredible!

*NOTE: the following photos were all taken by my daughter – she even added some artistic filters! My little girl is just awesome!

style in progress

pre-hairspray application

after hairspray application (you can just see the bottle in the mirror’s reflection)

the finished look, thanks to my daughter’s artistic hands!

The following photos (once more taken by my daughter) show how the style evolved and what it all looked like more than 6 hours later! To say that I was amazed, would be an understatement!
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NOTE: Even after sleeping on it, the next day I still had plenty of body and waves showing – an unprecedented feat in my hair’s history!

style – more than 6 hours later

Love both looks – nice to know I now have a choice!

Other Moroccanoil® reviews available on my blog:

Final thoughts: While I don’t need to use hairspray on a daily basis, it feels good knowing that I have something I can now turn to when I need to have my hairstyle last. When my daughter began spraying my hair with Moroccanoil’s Luminous Hairspray, I found myself leaning in to absorb the scent even better; after she was done, I was surprised by how much I COULDN’T feel this product on – that, plus how shiny my hair looked and how well the curls/style stayed in place hours later … I am a believer.

Available exclusively through all fine salons nationwide, both the Luminous Hairspray in Strong and Medium retail for CAD $23.80/330 ml.
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*The following photo also shows the original Moroccanoil® Luminous Hairspray – hence the 3 bottles!