A long time ago, a wise woman told me a motto she used for hair……”Stuck in hair, Stuck in life” This woman happened to be named Lori-lynn Mason, and she the mom of one of my BFF’s , T.

She happened to own a restaurant and coffee shop in Fremont, Seattle. The legendary Longshorman’s Daughter, and Espresso To Go, respectively. ETG was Seattle’s first Espresso shop. Pretty sure it was there before Starbucks and SBC. IT is the most charmingest hole-in-the-wall place to enjoy coffee or an exquisitely baked something or other in the City of Seattle.

I owe a lot of thanks to the eccentric, beautiful genius lady that is Lori-lynn Mason. She  kept my friends and I out of trouble by employing us as awful teens, simultaneously empowering us with a work ethic and some cash, and allowing us to get into our own kind of trouble. This post is dedicated to her today. The Bearded Lady Braid is her signature hairstyle. And, the DIY hair sticks were her idea. Also, she was the last person besides myself to give me a haircut. We were in the Restaurant after hours with kitchen scissors, and we gave each other floppy faux-mohawks, hers blonde and mine black. I totally loved that haircut.

Some other things that she taught me are that it is possible be poor and live rich, that avocados are kinda gross and shouldn’t be served in restaurants unless they are perfect, how to roast a chicken, the importance of good posture, how to wave like a beauty queen, how to pull a perfect espresso shot, and how to dream up a space to start a business and create a community. So Lori, this post is a thank you from me and all the girls who had the pleasure of working for you.You probably won’t ever see this post, but if you do, I’m sure you are perfectly uncomfortable taking the compliment.

Anyone else out there cut there working teeth in the Coffee/ Restaurant biz? Those were the days!

 DIY Halloween Hairsticks!

For these, you will need some beads of your choice. I chose turquoise sculls. You will need some wire posts, available at any craft store, and some hair sticks and some glue.
Start by determining the length of your posts. Put the post through your beads, and trim the end of the post so there is a quarter inch sticking out. Now put a dab of glue on the end of the hair stick, right where the hole is. ( If you purchase these wooden sticks, they come with a pre-poked hole!)

Poke the end of your post right through the glue and into the hole. Let the sticks dry in a jar so they are standing up on their points. SO easy!

Bearded Lady Braids

This hairstyle is awesome because it combines the sophistication of hair sticks with the country-girl of two braids. It is a good one for ladies that like a bit of height and also a bit of length.It is all lady in the front, beards on the sides.

To get the look, start by sectioning off the top half of the hair. Hair stick it! Here is how.

Now all the rest of the hair in the back is split down the middle, and braided on each side in a simple braid and secured at the end with an elastic. Pull those braids apart a bit to make em a bit looser. Bam! Bearded Lady.