#MySchwarzkopf Gave Me the Big, Beachy Waves I’ve Wanted (but Could Never do Myself)

Hair care big shot Schwarzkopf is known for its in-salon colour and care, but now the brand has released four new lines of colour, hair care and styling products with Schwarzkopf essence Ulté®me, styliste Ulté®me, color Ulté®me and Keratin Color. While the new collection isn’t a direct replica of its in-salon professional offerings, the whole point of the new line is to provide salon results, well, without the salon. Developed with former model Claudia Schiffer (the woman knows good hair), the entire line consists of 38 products (plus a whopping 44 colour shades) for those with fine, damaged or dehydrated or coloured hair and stylers to finish anyone’s look off flawlessly.

The #MySchwarzkopf event wanted to help us find our style alter ego and then help you recreate it in your own home with the new products, a daunting task for many women who can only curl one side of their head (me).

Unsurprisingly to me, my style alter ego was California Dream (not shocking at all considering I am constantly trying to exude Jennifer Aniston’s effortless Cali style while living in a country that has winter eight months out of the year), complete with big beachy waves. The only problem? My hair is super-fine and falls flat 20 minutes after blow-drying. Apparently it was no issue for my stylist, Shawna (duh, because she’s the pro), who took one look at my hair and said no problem, we got this, using the Schwarzkopf essence Ulté®me and styliste Ulté®me Biotin+ Volume line. My challenge to her: Don’t tease my hair, please. Not only will it never come out (trying to avoid a redo of the birds nest fiasco of 2014), but I wanted to see what kind of volume we could really accomplish with the new products.

So often we buy beauty products”especially hair”and have no idea how to use them, or use way too much. Shawna walked me through how to use the products and my flat, fine hair has never had so much height to it. What’s even more surprising is that it didn’t deflate, even after I walked and commuted around the city. She used the Schwarzkopf essence Ulté®me Biotin+ Volume Root Lift Spray to build up my roots, followed by the styliste Ulté®me Biotin+ Volume Dry Shampoo to nix any grime and give my hair that coveted texture before curling. To hold the waves that she created, she used styliste Ulté®me Biotin+ Volume Hairspray (specifically created for those with fine hair like me) so that we didn’t weigh down all of that volume. After letting the waves set in pin-curls”apparently the step I’ve been missing my entire life (Shawna’s tip: If you let the curls cool in the curled position, they’ll hold longer”who knew?), she added a bit more hairspray and then boosted my roots one more time with the stylist Ulté®me Biotin+ Volume Magic Volume Powder by massaging it into my roots and fluffing up my waves for a looser finish to make it more Blake Lively and less Annie. To top off my look, Shawna added a light flush to my cheeks and a peachy lip before sending me off to get my headshot taken”a necessary snap in the life of a writer and editor.

It’s more product than I’m used to putting in my hair on a day-to-day basis, but for a night out, it’s worth it to keep my voluminous style lasting longer than just walking to the car. To transform this for a more wearable look in the everyday, the essence Ulté®me Biotin+ Volume Shampoo and Conditioner will give me the gentle lift that I crave (especially with the Root Lift Spray, which can be massaged into clean, damp roots before blow-drying) without going too overboard.

This post was brought to you by Schwarzkopf. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Schwarzkopf.