#toritutorial

As you guys may have noticed, I've seriously been slacking on the tutorial front.  

So, imagine my surprise when I found one of my tutorials on BuzzFeed's "27 Gorgeously Dreamy Vintage-Inspired Hair Tutorials list.  I guess I shouldn't be that surprised.  Isn't that what the internet is for?  Recycling images from nearly two years ago in new and exciting ways.

Anyway, I wanted you all to see it.  And to know that my tutorial hiatus isn't because I don't love you, because I do.  It's because I started picking up more freelance work, and going to school for interior architecture (more to come on that!).

This is an excerpt from my pub slush​ Project Blogger feature.  Check it out, and read more http://bit.ly/1cs1gmW!!

One of my besties Amanda co-founded and is the Vice President of an amazing crowd funding platform for emerging authors and books.

So, I'm not going to lie, it has been a while.  We all know how the holidays go; eating until you no longer fit in your clothes, socializing with family and friends, drinking like a 55 year old man, and generally slacking on all your other life duties.  I, however, have managed to stretch the holidays into mid-january.

Sadly, they are officially over and 2014 is in full swing, which leaves me with countless resolutions.  Again, in the spirit of being honest, some of these resolutions will be abandoned before Valentine's Day (I'm talking to you 'exercise more'), but some I will fiercely stick to and transform from resolution to habit.  

One of the keepers is being more consistent with posting on here.  But, I can't do it alone.  I need inspiration, and that is where all of you guys come into play.  What do you want to see and hear? What questions do you have? What is generally on your mind? Do you have any beauty tutorials or tips of your own that you'd like me to post on here? Let me know and together we can make 2014 amazballs(sp?).  

Anywho, I'm going to kick things off with a simple braided tutorial for those days when you only have 5 minutes because you're so busy getting ish done.  

1) Start with soft blown out hair.

2) Use a comb to create a deep side part.

3) Use a teasing comb to tease the crown of your hair, as well as the both sides of your hair.  Be careful not to tease too much of the top layer.  Otherwise you will get ride of the smooth look that we are going for.

4) Take the side with more hair, and twist the front section.  

5) Secure it with bobby pins to the area right above/behind your ear.

6) Next, pull all your hair to that side of your head and begin dividing it into 3 sections so that you can braid it.

7) Braid away.  You can braid as far down as you'd like.  I chose to leave a pretty long tail unbraided so that I could tease it, but that is just my personal preference.  Do what your heart desires.

8) Secure the end of you braid. I used the ADORABLE crown jewel lux pony in cobalt from ShopKnotty. Then to finish the look, I teased the tail of the braid, and spritzed the look with hair spray.

If you have any questions let me know!

xoxo

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Gratitude is a key component to happiness. In an experimental comparison, those who kept gratitude journals on a weekly basis exercised more regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week compared to those who recorded hassles or neutral life events (Emmons & McCullough, 2003);

Head over to my Instagram and enter to win a bunch of hair goodies simply by showing your gratitude.

Entering is as easy as 1-2-3:

1) Follow @toritutorial and @shopknotty on Instagram

2) Post a picture of what you’re most thankful for this Thanksgiving season

3) Tag that picture with #toriknottygivethanks as well as @toritutorial & @shopknotty.

The winner will be picked on 11/29 at 1:00pm PST.  Enter as many times as you’d like!

So excited to bring you fabulous people some goodies, and celebrate gratitude at the same time.

I don't know if my lack of hair tutorials has tipped you off, but I've been in a hair rut.  Just feeling generally uninspired, and lackluster about it.

Thank heavens I found Knotty!  They've single handedly taken me from blasé to blown away.  They have a variety of great hair ties & accessories, but the one I am coveting most at the moment is the Classic Chain Headband/Necklace.

The possibilities are literally endless.  I was able to come up with 4 different styles with this one item.  The one above is the dressed up voluminous ponytail and it literally takes 5 minutes.

 You'll need:

-The Knotty Classic Chain Headband/Necklace.

-Day old hair

-Teasing comb

-Clear elastic hair ties

-Hair spray

How to:

1) Start with day old hair that has been brushed out.

2) Put the headband on and only push it back about an inch or so from your hair line.

3) Take your teasing comb, and begin to back comb your hair.  Start from where the headband ends, and work your way  to your crown.  The goal is to create as much volume as possible.

4) Pin your voluminous poof into place for added security and to ensure that when you pull your hair into a ponytail you don't lose any volume.

5) Use a clear elastic hair tie to pull your hair into a low ponytail.

6) Use the teasing comb to tease the ponytail.  Don't hold back.  The bigger the better.

7) Use a clear elastic hair tie to secure the bottom of your hair.  Leave a good amount of hair on the bottom.  This enables there to be a bigger contrast between the voluminous poofs, and the sleek bottom.  

8) Use a clear elastic hair tie in the middle of the two already in place in order to create the separated poofs.

9) Spritz the look with hairspray.