Which hairbrush is right for you?

Brushing your hair is a ritual that's not only good for you as it helps circulation and brings blood to the hair roots, but relaxing, too. (Don't overdo it, though. The 100-strokes-a -night from our grandmother's day is an old wives tale that can lead to breakage and hair loss.) But you need the right tool—the perfect hairbrush.

Here's how to choose (and you don't have to be a stylist to keep several different kinds in your arsenal):

• Round Brush—This has 360-degrees of bristles in a circular shape and is a must-have since it suits so many purposes. This brush will help straighten (or curl) hair and give fine hair volume. A smaller version gives tighter curls and a larger version can curl just the ends. Or you can hold your hair straight while you blow. Make sure you can wind your hair all the way around the circle at least once—that way you will get the right size brush for your hair.
• Paddle Brush—This is a flat brush with a cushion surface and ball pins at every bristle's end. It is perfect for thick straight hair since it smooths out the hair shaft and makes it “longer” (or appear so) without pulling. This brush also helps massage the scalp. It's not the brush for short or fine hair (it doesn’t add volume and is no help in detangling.)
• Cushion Brush--This is a smaller version of a paddle brush and good for all lengths of hair. It helps distributes your hair's natural oils, which makes for shiny, healthy hair.
• Vent Brush—This brush has holes at its base (either only up the middle or all over the surface) which lets air pass right through the brush, speeding up blow drying. With bristles that are widely spaced, it also adds volume and helps shape the hair.
• Styling Brush--This one is super thin with just a few rows of bristles—it's like a rat tail comb --and helps shape lots of different styles.
• Ceramic Brush--This is a speciality brush and best to stay away from if your hair is treated with chemicals or damaged, as the metal center of the brush heats up, using the heat from your blow dryer. While this can add volume, it can also damage fragile hair. Best to talk to your stylist here at Believe before you buy it (and maybe have a quick lesson in its use.)

Classic Brush—These brushes have a half-round head with five, seven or nine rows of stiff nylon bristles. The head of the brush has a slightly round shape to create a slight bend in the hair—and it is good for creating sleek (but not perfectly straight) hairstyles.

What about bristles?

• Boar bristles--Are made from the hair of a hog and are great because they close the cuticle layer of your hair (helping up the shine factor.) Boar bristles are used on soft flexible brushes (good for kids) but are weak and are therefore sometimes mixed with nylon bristles to last longer.
• Nylon bristles—These can actually be made of rubber or plastic, too. The stiffer and more closely placed together the bristles are, the more control you can have of your hair.
• Porcupine bristles—No, they aren't made from a hedgehog, but tufted bristles are grouped together (usually boar and nylon bristles combined) making these bristles great both for pulling through thick hair and controlling fine hair.
• Metal bristles--Unless you are wearing a wig, you don't need metal bristles. Even if they have soft rubber tips, they are too hard on human hair (good for dogs, though).
• We've got a great selection of brushes at Believe. Come on in and we will be happy to help you select which brushes will be perfect for your hair. (And, while you are here, be sure to pick up your last-minute tickets to the “Dancing With Our Stars” fundraiser for the Hillside Food Outreach to be held October 15^th. Our own owner, Lisa, is one of the “stars” and bruised and broken though she is after weeks of rehearsal, she is ready to shine! Come cheer her on...

Dance! Get Your Blood Pumping For Healthy Hair

As you may know, Lisa, the owner of Believe, has strapped her dancing shoes on for charity and will be one of the featured dancers at “Dancing With Our Stars”, October 15 at the Matrix Center in Danbury, CT (tickets are still on sale: $65 buys you dinner, drinks and the show, ($100 and you can attend the after-party fun)—who we hope is Lisa! All money raised goes to Hillside Food Outreach, so stop by Believe to get your tickets now! Or visit www.hillsidefoodoutreach.org or call Westchester 914-747-0095, Putnam 845-225-3393 or Fairfield 203-702-4881 for tickets.)

Despite some aches, pains and even a sprain or two, Lisa is not only getting her body in better shape, but keeping her hair in good condition, too. There is a direct correlation between increased circulation and hair health. Poor circulation, especially to the scalp, can actually starve your hair and speed up hair loss (guys that have thinning near their temples usually suffer from poor circulation—sometimes a hereditary condition.) Age is a culprit too. Like everything else as we get older, our circulation slows down. Arthritis is another catalyst. If you have arthritis, have regular shoulder and neck massages to increase blood flow to the head.

High cholesterol may also be to blame (it thickens our blood and keeps it from reaching the smallest capillaries at the roots of our hair.) Sebum, too (the oil our scalp produces) can clog pores and choke off hair growth. Use cider vinegar as a hair rinse after shampooing to break through the sebum “crystals” that form.

 Poor circulation makes its presence known if a few ways—tingling in your feet, muscle cramps, wounds or sores that are slow to heal, a blue-ish tinge to the fingernails—even a low sex drive. If you have any of these symptoms you should talk to your medical practitioner, since good blood flow is vital to good health.

Once you get the go-ahead from your doctor, you can up your exercise to get the blood pumping. Not only will your body get more shapely and strong, you will notice a difference in your hair. It will get shinier, with more bounce (your skin will appear clearer, with better color, too.) Whether its dance, like Lisa (even just in front of your Wii) or running around your neighborhood or even yoga (inverted positions make blood flow to your scalp), increased circulation is one way to ensure healthy hair. Aerobic exercise strengthens the heart muscle and improves its pumping efficiency.

Some foods and herbs are believed to increase blood circulation, too. Give them a try and track if you notice a difference:
Garlic and onions may help prevent plaque buildup on the walls of your arteries (and lower cholesterol.) Garlic has, for centuries, been considered a blood purifier.
Dark Chocolate contains flavonoids that reduce high blood pressure and high cholesterol. It also may improve blood flow (and it even ups the serotonin in your brain—the chemical that makes you feel good.)
Olive oil not only helps lower cholesterol, but has antioxidants helping reduce the risk of heart attack and increasing blood flow.
Ginkgo is well known for helping to improve the circulation for the whole body.
Nuts (and sunflower and pumpkin seeds) help protect the heart from cardiovascular disease and help blood vessels to dilate—keeping the blood circulation flowing.
Chili peppers contain capsaicin and there is a whole school of thought that this chemical protects the heart, helps unblock any blockages and increases blood flow.
Hawthorn Berry is a well known herb for improving heart function and blood circulation. One good type of hawthorn to buy is as Hawthorn drops.

Other things you can do to improve circulation:
Get rid of stress—just like your muscles tense up when you are stressed, so does the tissue on your scalp. This squeezes capillaries and lets less blood through to the roots.
Use the right products on your hair. We do pile tons of products on our hair and sometimes we need to stop and clarify our scalp. Switch off between your regular products and use GL Shampoo and MUD MASQUE conditioner to keep the roots of your hair unclogged and your scalp free of sebum and debris.
Scalp massage is invaluable. To keep proper blood circulation for a healthy scalp, massage your scalp 5-10 times a day (Bonus: this will help with stress too.) Come into Believe for an evaluation of your scalp's health and we'll be happy to treat you to (and teach you how to give yourself) a perfect scalp massage.

While you are at Believe, don't forget to buy your ticket to “Dancing With Our Stars.” It's going to be a night to remember. See you soon!

Help Us Shake A Tail Feather!

We hope this post finds all our friends and neighbors in New York and New Jersey safe, sound and dry with nary a broken branch in their driveway...

Now that Hurricane Irene has finally headed out to sea, we at Believe would like to give you the next thing to get excited about...Hillside Food Outreach's 2011 Dancing With The Stars Benefit. This year, something new has been added..Lisa, the owner of Believe will be dancing as one of the “stars”!

The event will be held October 15th, 2011 at 6 pm at the Matrix Center in Danbury, Connecticut and the $65 ticket price includes a full catered dinner, plus free beer and wine.

Both a Judges Choice and People's Choice winner will be chosen (it costs $10 to cast a People's Choice vote for your favorite dancers.) Judges this year include Gina Bombero of “So You Think You Can Dance,” and former winner himself, Vincent M. Tamagna, Chairman of the Putnam County Legislature, who will be joined by other judges yet to be named.

“Stars” (besides our own Lisa) include Lillian Melchior of Mahopac Marina, cosmetic company owner Donna Berry, financial planner Jesus Lopez, Anthony Mirdita, CFO of Putnam Community Hospital, Allison Stockel, executive director of the Ridgefield Playhouse and Dr. Evan Powderly, principal of Armonk's Byram Hills Middle School. Jeweler David Yurmin is donating a gift of fabulous jewelry for the winner, who also gets a gorgeous trophy.

Since the stars aren't professional dancers, local dance studios donate studio time and three months of lessons to get the dancers in shape. Lisa also promises to give frequent updates on the Believe Facebook page about how training is going. Be sure to go “like” Believe's page here.

Last year's benefit raised $20,000 and Hillside Outreach is hoping to double that this year. The money goes to provide food assistance to families with children, frail, elderly, disabled and housebound individuals. Today, Hillside has brought together over 350 volunteers to home deliver to over 1650 Westchester and Putnam County residents in need and they continue to grow every day, but they need to fund that growth.

“I've been a great supporter of KathyPurdy and the work the staff and volunteers at Hillside Food Outreach do for those in need in our community. Looking out for each other, particularly in these tough times, is what makes living and doing business in this area so rewarding,” says Lisa. “True, I'm no professional dancer, but I will give it my best shot—and have a lot of fun doing it—because it's one more way I can help Hillside meet its goal. I hope to see lots of you come out to support me and this great cause.”

Tickets to the Hillside Food Outreach's Dancing With The Stars Benefit can be purchased on the website at www.hillsidefoodoutreach.org or by calling Westchester 914-747-0095, Putnam 845-225-3393 or Fairfield 203-702-4881or we have tickets here at Believe. Stop on in or give us a call at 914-747-0778.