Blog Posts by Sarah Bernard

Most of us are on autopilot when we get in the shower, but there are dos and don’ts we should keep in mind to get the shiny, healthy hair we all want. In this episode Herbal Essences stylist Charles Baker Strahan lays out the rules for washing in terms of frequency, water temperature, application (shampoo and conditioner are not the same), and products.

It's OK to wash daily, but it's not necessary:  Depending on  your hair texture, it's OK to wash your hair daily if you hit the gym every morning or if your hair is fine.  Curly, thicker hair can get away with washing less.

Detangle your hair before you shower:  Wet hair is more fragile than dry hair, so detangle hair before you get in the shower. 

Personalize your shampoo and conditioner:  Choosing a shampoo and conditioner that correspond to your hair type and texture makes a big difference. Charles loves Herbal Essences Touchably Smooth shampoo and conditioner.
 
Use less product than you think you need:  Fine-textured hair requires onlyRead More »from Are you washing your hair wrong?

When The Thread hosted our first ever sweepstakes on Facebook we “met” so many amazing women who were in search of a new look. In this episode we’re extremely excited to introduce our three winners. We flew Lauren from Colorado, Miyo from Maryland, and Kathy from Michigan and treated each one to a Thread-style fashion and beauty transformation. See the super chic new haircuts and colors they got from the lovely stylists at Butterfly Studio Salon and the gorgeous, budget-friendly, figure-flattering dresses we chose for them— just in time for the holidays!

If you're a makeover skeptic, thing about this: Small adjustments to your fashion and beauty routine can lead to big change. When you have a new hair color or haircut, or an outfit that highlights your assets and takes the focus off your problem areas (we ALL have them) you feel a thousand times more confident. And when you feel more confident, you're more apt to make positive changes that affect every area of your life— from your

Read More »from Meet our ultimate makeover sweepstakes winners!

Tangerine Tango, an electric orange red, is the color of 2012, according to the Pantone Color Institute, and I for one am extremely excited about the news. It’s warm, uplifting, and energizing, and it happens to look great with almost every skin tone. The vibrant shade has already made its way onto fashion designers’ radars and surely there will be even more examples to come, as Pantone’s predictions influence all manner of consumer product manufacturers from cosmetic companies to paint suppliers. We’ve pulled together some fashion and beauty options that are already available to give you a jump on your 2012 style. Watch this episode and let us know what you’d like to add to your closet.

 

Each year the Pantone Color Institute forecasts the color for the year ahead and the due diligence is intense. Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Institute who spearheads the project, notes Pantone experts scour the world and consider what’s percolating in every possible industry.

Read More »from Orange you glad Tangerine Tango is the color of 2012?

A great holiday look is festive and fun but also reflective of your year-round personal style. If you’re drawn to classic, tailored looks, a flowy bohemian dress paired with a sleeve of bangle bracelets is probably not the look for you. Then again, simply wearing the same thing you always do, just with a little lip gloss, is not exactly fulfilling your fashion potential, is it? We’re here to help with some on-trend ideas—complete with hair and makeup suggestions— that correspond to five different style personalities. See what you think of these holiday looks and let us know which one you'd wear.

The holiday season is officially underway and, yes, that means lots of yummy food and hanging out with friends. But it also means creating new statement-making looks to wear to all those events. Admit it, don’t you have more fun dressing up to go out than you do once you get there? I do. To help you with your creations, here are some suggestions to go with five different style types. 

Edgy Bold

Read More »from Five holiday looks to celebrate YOUR style

Part of the fun of having long hair is changing the texture and experimenting with different styles. I love my naturally wavy hair, but I also love the occasional super straight look. Getting all of my hair—even the back sections— uniformly straight, glossy and frizz-free is not easy, though. In this episode our good friend Herbal Essences celebrity stylist Charles Baker Strahan shows us that with the right products and tools we can achieve the just-emerged-from-the-salon look at home. Watch how he customizes his technique for three Thread viewers, each with dramatically different hair types.

 

As Charles explained, the reason I wasn’t getting the sleek, straight results I was after on my own, was because I wasn’t using the right products and techniques. The blow-dryer does a lot of the work, but the prep and products make a huge difference in the end result. Check out his step-by-step instructions to turn curly, wavy, and fine hair shiny and straight.

Curly hair

This hair type

Read More »from How to get sleek, straight hair

We pay attention to what we eat when we want to lose weight, but as our good friend and "Today" show health expert, Joy Bauer, has been gently explaining to us, our diet is a powerful tool. You can use your diet to address all sorts of physical issues, from migraines to diabetes to creating shiny, healthy hair. If you want your locks to look as full and glossy as the stars', you must give your hair the right nutrient-rich foods. In this episode, Joy lays out the five items you should add to your shopping carts right now to get the luscious locks you're after.

It would be nice if gorgeous, shiny hair would just happen, but the truth is, even when it comes to hair the old saying "you are what you eat" tells the story. "Today" show health expert Joy Bauer recommends the following for great-looking locks:

Shrimp

This crustacean is packed with iron-rich protein, which helps to circulate oxygen to the scalp and to hair follicles. Order up some shrimp cocktail or make a stir-fry

Read More »from What to eat for shiny, healthy hair

The extremely sharp dressed singer-producer-designer Taio Cruz came by The Thread to talk about his music and his trademark “all black all the time” style. His new album, entitled “Ty.O” to make sure we get the pronunciation of his name right once and for all, officially drops on January 9th in the UK (but you can pre-order now in iTunes). See what the hit maker had to say about his line of Rokstarr sunglasses and RXTR watches (now available at Selfridges in the UK) and the crazy times in Ibiza that inspired his new single, “Hangover.”

 

Read More »from Taio Cruz talks Hangover and his all-black style

If you haven’t been following the career of Rooney Mara, let us introduce you. She is the star of the hotly anticipated screen adaption of “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” along with Daniel “James Bond” Craig. She is an East Coast girl who went to NYU. She’s the younger sister of Kate Mara and she played the small but memorable role of the annoyed girlfriend of Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) in “The Social Network.” For “Dragon” Rooney sported an extremely severe look with short, jet-black hair and practically translucent skin. She's kept the hair color and the waif style but her look wasn’t always so severe. Check out this gallery to see Rooney’s transformation from sweet Hollywood ingenue to It-girl.

Read More »from The dramatic style evolution of Rooney Mara