Getting your hair color right isn't a science. It's really quite simple: Stick to colors that complement your skin tone, figure out if you're best off with all-over color or highlights and then decide if you're going to pay someone else to do it or do it yourself.

Here are 11 tips and tricks your hairdresser knows, from how to avoid the wrong color to exactly how to do it yourself.

1.    Pick the right shade of blonde Some women look good in any color (remember Linda Evangelista?), but most women don't. Some rules of thumb for going blonde, according to Allure's Confessions of a Beauty Editor, which is my favorite beauty book of the moment:
Sallow skin with yellow undertones? Deep golds aren't for you.
Pink skin? Avoid strawberry shades.
Doing it yourself? It's best to go no more than a couple shades lighter than your current shade.

2.    The right way to go (or stay) brown

Here are more Allure tips for going dark: If you're pale, careful with the super dark tones, you might look ghostly and older. (Eeek).
Just as with blonde, it's best to start out just a couple shades from your natural color. In this case, avoid going more than a couple shades darker initially.

3.    To color or to highlight, that's the question. We find women with short hair look better with full color rather than highlights. If you have medium-length to long hair, highlights -- especially around the face -- can be very flattering. For the most natural-looking highlights, you can ask your stylist for up to five different shades of color, according to 'Confessions.'

Keep in mind that due to root growth, all-over coloring will need to be touched up every four to eight weeks, while highlights can last up to two or three months.

4.    Different types of highlights. There are basically four types of highlights: basic foil highlights, baliage or 'hair painting', chunking or 'piecing' and lowlighting.

5.    Doing it yourself? Home-color kits have come a long way in the past few years and are perfect for busy people and those who want cut the cost of professional colorings. (We know of a couple top fashion editors who color their hair themselves!). Some great hair coloring kits include:
L'Oreal Natural Match Hair Color
Clairol Nice and Easy

6.    Coloring newbie? Start with a semipermanent color. Semipermanent colors wash out after a few washes, whereas permanent colors have to grow out. If you are new to coloring your hair, you might start with a semipermanent hue UNLESS you want to cover gray hair or go two or more shades lighter or darker. For more information on semipermanent vs. permanent colors see this article.

7.    How to tell if you'd make a great blonde A basic rule of thumb: People who had blonde hair as children have the right skin tone to be blonde adults.

Some home hair coloring tips: rub Vaseline around your hairline as a protective measure before applying color. To remove after coloring, rub a small amount of cream cleanser and wipe off with cotton balls. Always wear gloves and wrap an old dark-colored towel around your shoulders. Rinse your eyes with water if you get color in your eyes. If you forgot the Vaseline and stained your skin, rub the area with a cotton ball soaked in alcohol-based toner.

8.    How to hide that gray Gray hair can be resilient to hair dye because of its coarse texture. If your hair is less than 15 percent gray, opt for a semi-permanent color that's a shade lighter than your natural color (or matches your color). The gray will blend right in. If your hair is more gray, colorist Rita Hazan in the November 2004 issue of InStyle magazine, suggests a permanent 'ashy' color, which will help your gray hair appear blonde. Permanent colors are really the only way to completely cover gray hair, according to InStyle's Getting Gorgeous.

9.    Don't like the color? Don't be afraid to go back to the salon and talk to your stylist. There are all sorts of ways to fix color that's just not right. If you did it yourself with a semi-permanent color, look for a shampoo with 'ammonium laurel sulfate' to wash away the color faster, according to Getting Gorgeous.

10.  After care. Once you invest money in a hair color, you should protect your investment with the proper after-color care. Refresh your color by using a color-enhancing shampoo and conditioner once a week. These products deposit miniscule amounts of color into hair. Check out this list of the 8 best hair products for color-treated hair.

Hair Loss and Its Causes

Your hair is your crowning glory. It frames your face and completes your appearance. You can talk with your hair, and there are so many things that a person can tell about you by simply looking at your hair. It is therefore very important for a woman to take care of her hair, to keep it clean, moisturized and trimmed, so that it would remain soft, shiny and neat.

Most women cut their hair to different styles in an attempt to enhance their looks. Some like their hair long and straight, while others like to wear their hair long and with abundant curls and ringlets. There are others who go for the minimum, no-fuss look and always have their hair cut short and simple, while others wish to strike a balance between femininity and practicality and keep their hair at mid-length. And there are still others who like experimenting on colour and highlights, not just with the length and cut of their hair.

Unfortunately, not everyone can wear the same hairstyle and look good in it. Some hairstyles look great on some women, but sadly look not so good on others. Many things can be taken into account as to why this is so, but mostly it is because the hairstyle does not flatter the face. The way you do your hairdos must flatter your face and enhance your best features. After all, that is what the hair is supposed to do. Whether a hairstyle will look good on you or not depends on the shape of your face.
There are many types of hairstyles out there, but not all will look good on you unless the hairstyle fits the shape of your face. Below are the different hairstyles that are considered most flattering for each shape of face.

AN OVAL FACE
The oval face is the perfect face. Almost any hairstyle will go with it, whether it is long or short, straight or curly. If you have an oval face, you will do well with having layers near your chin or cheekbones to draw attention to them. However, try to avoid hairstyles that add volumes to the top of your head - it will make your face look longer.

A LONG FACE
If you have a long or oblong face, you should create the illusion of width to balance it out. You can add width to your face by doing your hair with long, side-swept bangs or chin-length bobs. You will also do well with curls and waves that frame the face. If you have a long or oblong face, you should avoid letting your hair grow extremely long or having your hair cut extremely short. Such extreme hairstyles will take the width from your face and emphasize its length.

A ROUND FACE
If people with long faces need to add width to their faces, people with round faces need to take some of the width and bulk off by adding length. If your face is round you need to create the illusion of length, and to do this, you can have your hair cut just below your chin, or in graduated layers. Do not do your hair in short, one-length, blunt cuts, as it will only draw attention to the roundness of your face.

A SQUARE FACE
Having a square face means having an angular jaw. The hairstyle trick with having a square face is drawing attention away from that jaw. This is done by putting texture to your hair. Short curls do exactly this, as well as long layers that start just below the jawline. If your face has a square shape, you should try not to have your hair cut in one-length bobs or wear bangs that are cut bluntly. It will only emphasize the squareness of your face.

A HEART-SHAPED FACE
Heart-shaped faces are pretty Valentines, but the pointed chin draws attention away from the eyes. If you have a heart-shaped face, you could bring focus to your eyes by wearing side-swept bangs, a fringe on your brow or long layers at the top. Or you could let your hair grow and have it done with layers that touch your cheekbone.

If you have dandruff, do not worry about being alone with your problem. With one out of every two people in the entire world having, or having had, that same problem as yours, you are definitely not alone with it. Dandruff is a common hair problem. Embarrassing indeed, but a very, very common problem nonetheless.

What causes dandruff? Well, you see, our entire skin, from our scalps to the soles of our feet, sheds dead skin cells on a daily basis. We get a complete coating of new skin every 28 days or so, but we hardly even notice it.

Our bodies also play host to a lot of microorganisms like bacteria and fungi, feeding off on the sebaceous oils that our skin produces. Our scalp in particular is home to a kind of fungus called malassezia fungus, and its food is the oils produced by the hair follicles of our scalp. Dandruff happens when, for some reason or another, the malassezia fungus goes crazy and irritates our scalp, causing the dead skin to shed a lot faster. So, instead of shedding the dead skin cells of our scalp for a month, the shedding happens in less than two weeks, and the oil that our hair follicles produce cause these dead skin cells to clump together and become dandruff. Until now, the factors that trigger this phenomenon with the malassezia fungus are still the subject of research.

Dandruff is an embarrassing hair condition, and it can recur despite your best efforts. But with proper hair care, the recurrence of dandruff can be controlled. The best way to keep the flakes at bay is to shampoo your hair every day - picture perfect hair.

Dandruff can, of course, become stubborn, so if washing everyday with your regular shampoo does not stop the flakes from becoming haywire, the next best thing to do would be to start using anti-dandruff shampoos. Look for anti-dandruff shampoos with zinc pyrithione, selenium sulfide, salicylic acid or ketoconazole as the active ingredient. To keep your scalp from developing immunity to these shampoos, go ahead and rotate brands at least once a month.

For optimum results, you can lather your hair with the shampoo of your choice twice. The first wash will clear the scalp of the flakes and the oil buildup. The second one would let the chemicals in the shampoo get absorbed by the scalp - haute hair.

You can also try homemade remedies to wash the flakes away and to keep the dandruff from recurring. What is considered the best homemade remedy to dandruff is a vinegar wash. Mix two teaspoons of vinegar with six teaspoons of water and rub it against your scalp before you go to bed, then wrap your head with a towel. Apply the same solution to your hair once again in the morning when you wake up, then rinse it with water. You do not have to worry about the smell of vinegar in your hair, as the smell of vinegar does evaporate eventually.

Whatever you do, never, ever scratch the clumps with your fingernails. It will cause wounds on your scalp.

Dandruff is an embarrassing hair condition, but it is not unmanageable. Just take good care of your hair and the flakes will go away.

HUMAN HAIR Vs. SYNTHETIC HAIR

There are several factors that should influence your choice between human and synthetic hair at any given time.  Five distinguishing features are outlined below in this regard.

1. THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS

Human
It is natural hair that has been harvested then processed and coloured. The hair is then made into wefts or left loose for braiding.

Synthetic
Synthetic hair is a collection of artificial fibres that have been made to represent a true likeness of real hair. It is also made into wefts for weaving or left and loose for braiding.

2. COST

Human
Human hair is considered to be an investment since it is more expensive but lasts longer.

Synthetic
It is cheaper and doesn't quite last as long as human hair. Hence, It is ideal if you want to change your hair style very frequently. Technology has improved drastically and synthetic hair can look almost as natural as human hair these days.

3. MAINTENANCE

Human
Human hair should be washed and conditioned every two weeks and requires  styling everyday (i.e straight human hair). Permed or curled human hair will hold its style for the life of the weave

Synthetic
Synthetic hair requires low maintenance. It usually bounces back into shape after washing.

4. APPLYING HEAT

Human
You can tong and blow-dry as you would for your own hair.

Synthetic
Synthetic hair will melt or burn when strong heat is applied.

5. LIFE SPAN

Human
Human hair has a life span of 2 weeks to 3 months, depending on the style and maintenance routine.

Synthetic
Synthetic hair usually has a life span of 1 week to1 month.