Yah. I need a make-over. So?

I totally lied in my last blog post when I said in the footer I'd strive to be more humble in future blogging. There are many, many more important and interesting things in the world to write about than myself, and I always thought I'd be that kind of blogger once I'd gotten started. But back in November, two things happened within days of each other that I thought were kismet-esque. First, my husband texted me this photo of myself he'd taken that morning shortly after I'd stumbled out of bed. Sure, the cross-eyes were for comedic flare. But the hair was no joke. So when shortly thereafter I saw this post on Ignite's Facebook feed, I knew what I had to do!

This is not me.
I WISH my hair was this rad!
This is Alli, from reason #2.

10 REASONS WHY I SHOULD WIN 
IGNITE's MAKEOVER CONTEST:

1. I am not having a "bad hair day". I am having a bad hair LIFE! I was not born with good hair, nor with the gene that inspires one to DO something about it and stick with it. It's never smooth, always messy. Ends are split. Style is non-existant. All of this is the norm for me.

2. I love my dear friend Alli's hair. Along with another pal, I recently surprised her with a trip to Ignite for a birthday head massage and style before a big night on the town! Alli is a diligent consumer of products and services - she researches, asks questions, doesn't settle for less than what really works for her. She'd been shopping around for a hairstylist that gets her hair for almost as long as I've known her, and this past year, she found Ignite and hasn't looked back. If my hair could even remotely look a third as good, I'd be super stoked!

3. I just got married and I'm willing to bet my husband - who has been my beloved for over 10 years now - would like to see his new bride with hair out of the ever-present ponytail or twisted knot. Seriously. In an entire decade, he's probably seen it down (for longer than 5 minutes) a total number of times that could be counted on fingers and toes! Furthermore, we had an extraordinary wedding in New Orleans that was truly unforgettable...but that we'll be paying off for years. So there's not a lot of extra money in the budge for makeovers these days!

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Oh sure, I loved my hair on my wedding day.

4. I'm about to start my own business in the new year, and this would really help boost the confidence I need to get started, get clients and get excited about the new path ahead of me! I want to network, ask questions and promote myself, and this makeover would do wonders on all of those fronts, I do believe. 

5. I will write about the experience on this blog, and will take to social media to grassroots-style promote the good staff and the awesome experiences that await at Ignite. And you can see, I'm not too proud to suck right up. Imagine all the wonderful things I'll say! I can't guarantee anyone will listen...oh, but I'll try! I have no shame (obviously).

6. I like to do good things for the world, when I can. By that I mean, I try not to make it a WORSER place. I am not perfect and am no Mother Theresa. I am certainly mischievous and have likely not come this far in life without pissing a few people off, but I've also spent a good chunk of it volunteering in the DTES, delivering holiday hampers to families in need, and raising funds in numerous ways for music therapy, this being the most recent way. Anywho, all that to say, this reward wouldn't be going to some kinda lucifer, or anything. 

7. I will bring alcohol, and share.  Enough said? 

8. I will RETURN! And bring friends. The last hairstylist I had - who is an amazing person, but a total enabler of my perpetual do-nothing, care-not-of-the-coif attitude - received many new clients because of how highly I spoke of her. When I love a service, and the people delivering it, seriously - everyone I know hears ALL about it! My days with that stylist are over, and I now need a hair guru to show me the way.

9. Post-wedding self-esteem at a pretty low low. Typically brides look their all-time best come knot-tying time, getting fit and shedding unhealthy, unwanted pounds. I had every intention of joining their ranks. And I did, kind of, for a little while. I am active - I live for my soul-filling dog walks and yoga practice, and for a while in the months leading up to our big day I was doing pretty well at bringing the fit, healthy girl inside of me to the surface. But as the day drew near, and life's little stresses took over, I gained back much of what I'd lost, in time for the nuptials, and then the rest in the 2 months since. It's not all bad: I haven't subscribed in years to the notion that one needs to be a flawless stick figure to be beautiful. I love myself, I do (I just happen to also REALLY love food - both nutritious and evil - and I've had a few beers in my day, with a belly to prove it!).  As one is sometimes want to do, I'm in one of those phases where it's harder to shake off the societally driven bullshit than usual, where looking in the mirror is just a bummer. And I do also believe that there are times when we need to polish up the exterior so that the light within really shines through. The advent of 2013 will be one of those times for me. Winning this contest will help. 

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Think of how this could go!
Obviously I don't always look quite like THIS,
but often my hair is not much better.

10. Seriously - have you seen my hair? This photo is an exaggerated bad hair day, yes. But on any other given day, it is dull-coloured, thin and just plain wayward. Ignite my locks into something luscious (yes, groan, I wrote that...and I stand by it!). 
PICK ME! 
PICK ME! 
PICK ME!

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