Michelle Briones and A Hair Affair …
By Cindy Kitagawa

Los Angeles native Michelle Briones is one busy woman. As a successful freelance makeup artist and hair stylist, Michelle keeps her schedule full by working with a number of celebrities and models for television, film, and print. And she's still planning on doing more.

Michelle's career began after attending Parsons School of Design as a Fashion Designer. She immediately began working as a professional Fashion Stylist for Los Angeles Magazine. After a successful stint at the publication, styling countless cover shots, she left to work for Valley Magazine, where she became the magazines fashion and beauty editor. As Michelle excelled in her career her mother Martha decided it was time to start her own business. Martha Garcia, a hairstylist for 35 years, opened her own salon in Woodland Hills called A Hair Affair. Martha in need of some assistance in her shop asked Michelle to join her in running the business. Michelle left the publishing industry and immediately became the salons resident and most popular makeup artist. For over 10 years Michelle honed her skills as a business woman, makeup artist and eventually a hair stylist. A natural progression. During this time she was able to establish herself as a professional by networking and creating lasting relationships with a long list of clients. Sadly, A Hair Affair shut its' doors but both Michelle and Martha did not let that stop them.

It's been a few years since her days at the Hair Affair salon but Michelle, with an already established client base, has quickly made a name for herself in a very competitive and cut-throat field. She was recently featured on Good Day LA's "Hot List" and spends most of her days working long hours on sets and at photo shoots. She also still teams up with her mother Martha creating their magic for clients on special days like weddings, bar mitzvahs, proms and parties. Michelle enjoys the creative process of transforming her clients but her real joy comes from making people happy and feeling good about themselves. Michelle says, "When you look your best, you feel your best."

Although Michelle is a working, successful makeup artist she still has more up her sleeve. Not one to rest or quit pursuing her dreams, she still manages to have time to pursue an acting career and has big dreams of owning another salon someday while continuing to juggle around ideas of writing and producing. Talk about motivated!
For more information or to book her services you can contact: Michelle Briones/Makeup Artist at her studio at 323-650-8565.

You can also contact her mother Martha Garcia who is still styling hair under A Hair Affair at
818-591-1217.

Natural Beauty in a Bottle
By Pallavi Ganeshkumar

Put on your seat belts, close your eyes, and kick off those shoes. Sit relaxed and be comfortable. Wish you had hair so soft to touch and yet manageable without all those hair care products?

Let the magic of oil begin. Let the expert hand rub in some hot oil of your choice. And massage. Open your eyes an hour later and experience bliss. No one to do it? Doesn't matter! Simply do it your self.

Feel your muscles relax as you begin to rub the oil. Relaxed, refreshed and rejuvenated! That is the name for hot oil hair treatment.

Hot oil hair treatment is a very safe method to rejuvenate hair and increase the blood circulation of the scalp. What exactly is the process involved in such treatments?

It is not rocket science. But simple science! Oil dissipates the heat on the head and the scalp and makes it cooler. Massaging the scalp increases blood circulation.

Put the oil of your choice in to a container and heat it over the stove or put it in a microwave. Or you can put the bottle in hot water for about 10 mins. This process is to ensure that oil is more than warm yet not very hot. Take a cotton ball and dip into the oil. Comb hair with a wide toothed comb and start applying the oil along the partitions beginning with the roots. In an almost circular motion, repeat the process all over the scalp and the roots of the hair. Also, use supple finger moments to massage the oil into the scalp. Then rub some into the entire length of the hair.

To wash off the oil, simply shampoo it thoroughly about an hour or so. Now feel the difference! Clean, healthy and shiny hair in the most natural way. Traces of dirt and dandruff are bound to be washed off more effectively with such treatments.
Hair products used over a long period of time damage the hair more than protect it.

For hair damaged with coloring, chemical treatments, dyeing or simply graying, oil massage gives the hair instant protection from further damage.

Oil nourishes the scalp, roots of the hair and the hair itself. Different kinds of hair oils can be used for hot oil hair treatments-baby oil, coconut oil, olive oil, jojoba oil, or any aromatic oil.

Dry hair, frizzy hair, damaged hair or simply to have great luscious locks that will turn heads, one need to just try it once and you will be hooked on forever. Hair falling, dandruff can be largely controlled with regular oiling.

Are there any side effects for taking in such hair treatments? Taking hot oil hair treatments once every fortnight does more good than harm. Is your hair oily? And would it be good for you? Absolutely! Because the oil glands tend to produce more oil sensing the lack of oil at the roots. So once you begin such treatments, the oil glands secrete less oil and you would notice the difference it makes, from the roots to the tip of the hair.

How long have been people oiling their hair? Many East Asian countries still have this practice of oiling their hair, at regular intervals to beat the heat and dust.

Asian Indians are known to have long, jet black, and lovely locks and many would vouch for that hot oil hair treatment they had as a ritual every week end in their courtyards. Men, women, children under adult supervision can take such treatments with out a hair-raising worry.

Nobody knows exactly how Rapunzel got that lovely and lengthy mane, but in reality, it is just a jar of oil away. It is simply one of those things that helps you relax and eases your tensions away in the most natural way. Now natural beauty of the hair is just oil bottle ahead.