Product review: C-System & Deva Curl

Product review:  C-System & Deva Curl 
By Brianna Cross
          

          My name is Brianna Cross, I am 16 and just started working at adorn a few days ago. I have short, fine, multiracial, tight, curly hair. The biggest problem I find I have with my hair is over-drying. My hair tends to lose moisture and frizz-out, turning into a big 70's afro. While I like the afro, I don't appreciate the coarseness and needed a way to tame my funky hair. My coworker and I decided to do a product review for curly hair. We first tried the Mop C-system Curl Refreshing Spray.

You spray this product on damp hair to minimize frizz and on dry hair to revive curls. While the produce smelled fresh and clean and made my hair soft, it didn't define my curls that well. I've come to the conclusion the if your hair has looser or less coarse hair the product would work better, but on short, tight, dry curls it doesn't provide enough moisture to work to its highest degree.

         The second product we used was a product line by the name of Deva Curl. I loved this product line, the entire line is 100% sulfate free (sulfates tend to dry hair). The shampoo (no-poo) smelled amazing, it had a relaxing mint smell. Not only did it smell great, the shampoo made my hair incredibly soft even before we put conditioner in (and in my opinion is a great sign the line is good for your hair). The conditioner itself was an amazing moisturizer, making my curls bounce and become soft, it smelled sweet. The third part of this line was the styling cream. Just like the C-system Curl Refreshing Spray it can be used on damp hair for "targeting denser curls for ultimate conditioning" and on dry hair for individual curl definition. This product also smelled as sweet as candy and really made my curls big and pronounced. My hair feels soft to the touch and didn't become hard like most styling creams tend to do once they're dry. I believe that for my hair type the Deva Curl line is perfect, it provides moister and prevents frizz.

Holiday Hair Problems

The worst part about cold weather is the effect is has on our hair and skin. Adorn is going to feature and couple solution to common hair and skin problems in the next couple of weeks, but we want to hear from YOU! What problems do your hair and skin face in the winter months? We will tackle those issues and try and post about possible solutions. HELP US HELP YOU!

In case you missed it! Endless Deals For The Holidays!

Endless Deals For The Holidays Dear lovely and valued Adorn client, Happy Holidays!! As our gift to you, we have decided to offer countless deals on our products! 50% off all Broo products! made locally out of Highland Brewing Company's handcrafted beer, this shampoo and conditioner combo is bound to leave you wanting more. As they say on their website: "Lushes?No, Luscious!" broo.com 50% off Mineral Fusion Makeup Talc free, natural makeup that allows your skin to breathe. It blends easily, we enjoyed this line, but we have to decided to retire it. Get it while you still can!mineralfusion.com 10% off Level Naturals This is, hands down, our favorite skin care line. Handmade by Rebecca Hecht's brother in L.A. the company takes a lot of time to make sure that the quality of products they deliver go above and beyond. levelnaturals.com 50% off Davines 'Wizards' line Davines is replacing their 'Wizards' line with a brand new line of products, so it's out with the old and in with the new. We adore this line, but we're excited to see what they are coming up with next! davines.com 10% off Gift Certificates!!! C'mon, that's just like free money!  100% Free Hugs! just ask! Davines Launches New Line 'More Inside' THE NEW STYLING RANGE, THE VALUE OF A CRAFTSMANSHIP APPROACH, THE QUALITY OF FORMULATIONS CONCEIVED TO SHAPE THE CREATIVE EXPRESSION more inside

Client Feature: Scot Quaranda! Working with Dogwood Alliance to help save our forests

In past years, Adorn has had the opportunity to help Dogwood Alliance in their efforts to preserve our forests by involving our proactive clients (Way to go, guys!). We also get to stay informed on the issues surrounding our forests during the times that Dogwood Alliance's Campaign Director, Scot Quaranda, comes in to get his hair cut by Amy Grove, but we wanted to know more - we always want to know more! Scot agreed to an Adorn exclusive interview so we could really talk about this amazing organization and all that it has done, and is doing, to save our forests and improve our world.

Scot Quaranda

Scot explains how Dogwood Alliance originally got involved with Adorn:
Scot: The first time we did a project with Adorn was when we realized that health and beauty companies, like Unilever and Procter and Gamble, who make a lot of the products that you buy at drugstores, were using a lot of packaging. We were working to get those companies to change; to use more recycled paper, to use less packaging overall, to really reduce, and to make sure that everything else that was used in the packaging was done in a better way. So, that's why we first worked with Adorn. Then we realized that the number one [culprit of overuse] is actually fast food packaging.

Adorn was able to help Dogwood Alliance with their campaign to encourage KFC to change their practices towards packaging by having a box of postcards clients could sign that were eventually sent to the CEOs of KFC. There was also a pretty amazing kid named Cole involved in this campaign. He helped make a huge impact, you can watch a video about him here.

Here are some examples of the creative media strategies used during the campaign:

On Dogwood Alliance's triumph, Scot explains:
Scot: We first worked with McDonald's and convinced McDonald's to dramatically change their practices around packaging by increasing their recycled content and making sure there is no endangered forest in their packaging. The kind of big hold out was KFC - KFC owns Taco Bell and Pizza hut, they're a big signature company. We knew if we could move KFC, we could move anyone. 

Dogwood Alliance has had success in greatly influencing the companies they have stood up against. They have also drawn a lot of attention to the importance of preserving our forests. It has been that way since the beginning. Just a mere four years after they originated in 1996, there was a Southern Forest Resource Assessment to look at the impact that the paper industry was having on southern forests. This was the first ever assessment done in the south and it was a direct result of the effort of the members of Dogwood Alliance. This assessment opened the door to all of the changes that Dogwood Alliance continued to make over the years. From transforming the way that companies like Staples and Office Depot treat their paper production to traveling all the way to Europe to tackle Biomass issues. 

"Dogwood Alliance is about the people that make up our network," Scot says. "It's basically mobilizing the voices of the people of the region in order to make an impact," he adds. Making an impact is what they have done. These are the people that transformed the way that Staples operates around paper by writing letters, attending shareholders meetings, sending emails, and having days of action. One day they had over 200 protests in different Staples around the country. After that Office Depot and Office Max were quick to follow Staples' lead, not wanting to be outdone by their competitor.

The projects Dogwood Alliance is working on today:
The Carbon Canopy Project:
The basic idea is that 90% of the forests in the south are privately owned so basically, the future of our forests lies in the hands of literally thousands of small, private landowners and I think most of them want to do the right thing and manage them well or not manage them at all - depending on what their individual goals are. There's a lot of pressure to cut or to develop what we wanted to do is find a way where big companies who are buying those products from those forests actually have a way to invest in them being managed better. In this case, it was Staples and Interface Carpets who bought carbon credits from these forests as a way to pay those landowners to set aside the best parts of those lands to make sure that they're never cut and then make sure that the rest are managed to the highest standards of the forest stewardship council, which has a lighter touch on the land than the average forestry. They are able to measure, basically model, how much carbon will be stored in the landscape over a 3 year period. 

Biomass:
The new push is for big utilities to burn forests for electricity and the craziest part about it right now is that we're not doing so much of that in the U.S., but it's actually Europe that's buying most of our forests to burn. Basically, clear-cutting our forests, turning them into wood-pellets, sending them on big container ships, and shipping them over to Europe so that they can burn them in their mega-power plants. I went to Europe, I went to the UK, because the UK is the leading country that is doing that right now to meet with the department of energy and climate change. Then I went to Brussels to lobby the commissioner on climate change and the commissioner on the environment for all of Europe, as well as, met with a bunch of member of European parliament. 

Do you think the trip was successful?
Totally successful. I think we busted a lot of myths about, you know, people think everything is sustainable and certified with no problems. Now they know that there is a real impact from what they're doing and I think that bodes well for future policies that they'll send that hopefully will limit the amount that they're buying rather than dramatically increase like it's projected to.


For more information about Dogwood Alliance and how you can get involved, visit them at their website: www.dogwoodalliance.org 
 

Adorn Salon Welcomes Emily Rexford!!

Adorn has the undeniable honor of introducing our brand new stylist, Emily Rexford!

Emily was the free spirit of her family and her small town in Wisconsin. She decided to go on an adventure that landed her in Asheville. Having been inspired by the beauty industry at a young age, with a mother who was a stylist and two aunts who owned their own salons, Emily quickly latched on to the creative aspects of styling hair.

"I started teaching myself braids and styles at a young age.  By the time I was in high school I was cutting, coloring and styling my friends hair and I knew I had found my passion."

You have a favorite highlighting technique, what's it called? Where did you first see it done and why do you favor it?

My favorite highlighting technique is Balayage - it's a free-form style of highlights where the color is painted on individual sections (of hair) that give the most dimension and depth. The best part about it is you can make it as soft as a whisper or as loud as a shout, and everywhere in between.

I first saw it at a hair show in Minneapolis, M.N. and realized this is the perfect remedy for all those clients that love the highlighted look without the time for all the foils!

What is your favorite part about being a stylist?

My favorite part about being a stylist is seeing the transformation of each person that sits in my chair.  Everyone has a story, a soul and an image they want to share with the world and I love to translate that through their hair.

What do you like most about working at Adorn so far?

As soon as I walked into Adorn I felt like I had come home.  I've never experienced such a warm, welcoming into a family who I had never met, with people who shared a similar passion.  I am truly blessed to be surrounded by such creative, beautiful, artistic people.

What do you like most about Asheville?

I love hiking, yoga, local food and tasty brews, enjoying the many beautiful scenic walks in Asheville, reading and gardening. Asheville truly is a magical place.

Emily is booking up quick, so call now to make an appointment! Her bubbly personality and open mind, has made her blend rapidly into the Adorn family. We adore her! You will too!

Amanda Haircut to Updo

When the weather gets colder...

When the weather gets colder, we feel like...

we try to go outside but this happens...

Our hair doesn't know to handle the change in temperature....

So this happens...

But then we come to Adorn where we are taken care of and given hot tea...

Check out our friends at Paul Taylor making leaps and bounds!

There's a lot going on at the leather shop and we are so excited to show you!

Two years ago, Evar Hecht was handed the title to a shop that had been around for over seventeen years making custom belts and sandals. The shop also has one of the largest belt buckle collections in the country. Evar found his passion in his work and has enthusiastically renewed the shop. With his thorough knowledge he has seemingly made the belt buckles come alive...






Rebecca Hecht, owner of Adorn Salon, has just released a new line of baby shoes under the name Hungry Baby and the two have recently opened a new etsy shop under the name Cobblestone Leather. An example of the baby shoes can be found here.

Evar has been lucky to have a certain Brad Ford in his employment who comes from a background in welding. Being a true maker, Brad picked up the leather craft immediately and has just released a new line of saddle stitched wallets. You can find them on etsy here. Check out Brad working his handtooling magic below:

Help Us Choose The Best Pictures!

Help us choose the best 10 photos for our new website's homepage!

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