Mishi gets married

There are many ways one can choose to get married these days. Destinations, elopements, churches and theatrical events are all fair game! Match the event to your personal style, and you can't go wrong. 

When Mishi and her other half Earl were tasked with the responsibility, they chose Costa Rica for the big day. It was an absolute whirlwind 2 weeks filled with family, surfing, fishing, and of course, great food! They topped it off with a sunset ceremony and reception, where all the guests ended up in the pool! 

Now that Mishi has taken the plunge herself, she has some advice—on hair, planning, and chilling out—for all the brides-to-be out there. Sit back, relax and enjoy a Morphic wedding...

MISHI'S MUST-HAVE ADVICE:

Be seen! Think about where you're standing for the ceremony when styling your hair! Usually, brides are on the left, so if you're wearing your hair down, you'll want to part to the right to be seen. Though if you're feeling shy, maybe a left part is for you!

Rock your curls. Having your ceremony along the coast or in a foggy area? You'll have to embrace your curls. The weather surely will!

Plan!  If you're having a destination wedding, I would highly suggest getting a wedding planner. Ours made sure to secure all the details that we didn't even think of or could even take care of before we got there!

FOOD! Choose amazing food for your reception, because it makes everyone happy. Happy guests make for an even happier wedding.

Surrender! Hand your phone, email and book planner over to a friend for the day.  Enjoy marrying your one and only in front of all the people you love.

What about you? What's your best post-wedding advice for brides-to-be? Let us know!! 

The Road to Healthy Asian Blonde

Have you heard the news? Blonde hair color for Asian women is IN!

The time for adventurous Asian hair color has arrived, and as a hair stylist, I couldn’t be more thrilled. And while this is exciting news, I don’t want us to rush going blonde too fast, and forget about hair health. When taking Asian hair to a blonde color it can take two to four sessions to get the color just right. Think about it this way: on the hair color spectrum platinum is 10 and black is 1. Asian hair tends to range between 1 and 3. When you process, you should only go up by 3 to 5 levels in the spectrum so that your hair remains healthy. Of course, there are amazing hair saving products like Olaplex that we can add on to your color service, but it’s important to not forget your basics of coloring.

I have a wonderful client, Janice, who has been with me since June 2014. She started out with black hair on the spectrum at a 2, and her goal was a golden blonde ombre. Here's Janice before we started:

To accomplish her brilliant blonde, I did 6 color services over the span of 3 months. We built the color up over time, and trimmed her hair every other session.  We have finally gotten to our golden destination, and now we just upkeep her hair with partials and mini express services.

The proof is in the picture! Just look at that beautiful, healthy, blonde hair! It glows! You’ve got to trust the process, and not rush it so that your hair remains healthy and vibrant for the long haul. Give us a call if you are interested getting your blonde on!

More on Janice’s Formula:
Blue Platinum 40 vol
Toner- 10.12 + 9.11 Dia Light  6 vol
Olaplex 20 mins

Credits:
Hair by Mishi Nova
Makeup by Emi Navas
Photography by Christina Campbell

Style story: Morphic + Tooth-n-Nail

Recently, Morphic had the great pleasure of working with the amazing Adrienne Moore, jewelry designer behind San Francisco's own Tooth-n-Nail. Adrienne is known for her distinct, whimsical, and one-of-a-kind designs rich with boho, seaside, and 70′s glam. These naturalistic wonders have something for everyone, ranging from the tiniest of treasures to the boldest of bad-ass belly-length armor.

Adrienne’s distinct style inspired a shoot drawing from the elements of the world being bonded together through sisterhood. Check it out! 

Credits:
Hair: Mishi Nova
Makeup: Emi Navas
Jewelry: Adrienne Moore (on Instagram and Facebook)
Photography: Christina E. Campbell
Styling: Jasmine Guerrero
Models: Charis Briley, Hailey Dittman, Deena Tallo
Assistant: Marleen Moore

Holiday Beauty at Morphic!

Seasons Greetings Morphic Beauties!

The Holidays are finally upon us, and do you know what that means? Holiday parties!

Let us make you and your girlfriends the belles of the ball with customized hair & makeup. If you need a little inspiration, check out these looks Mishi and Emi created!

MORPHIC BEAUTY: KESNIA

Emi was inspired by Kesnia's fair skin to create a flawless complexion. Even winter skin can have a sun kissed glow, just in a softer version! On her eyes, Emi went for a smokey sultry in a palette of matte blacks and grays highlighted with pale blush tones. It's high impact, without being over the top. To add a little holiday spirit, a pop of light silver shimmer covers the almond shape of the lid, and in the inner corners of the eye. It's paired with a cranberry red lip to really give that festive touch. 

Bolder makeup called for simpler hair, so Mishi polished off Kesnia's look with a great natural-looking wave that'll look great all night. Fabulous, don't you think? 

MORPHIC BEAUTY: ADITI

On Aditi,  Emi wanted to create something more toned down. This look proves that you can make a more natural version of a smokey eye! Her amazing full lips are finished with a berry mauve. 

To balance the more natural tones of the face, Mishi took the great texture of Aditi's long and dark locks into full-curl mode, creating a full head of thick, amazingly touchable ringlets. 

INSPIRED YET? YOU SHOULD BE! 

Bring in your holiday inspiration and we’ll create a version of makeup that is customized to you.

Let Morphic make you beautiful for your special event this holiday season! Can't wait to see you! 

INSPIRATION: GOOD Hair!

FABULOUSLY GOOD HAIR! 

For our last Hair Movie Night, we featured Good Hair, the documentary narrated by Chris Rock. Naturally, my challenge was to commit myself to learning about black hair. While doing research, I loved getting the chance to talk with people about black hair. After giving it some thought, I decided to share what I learned about black hair that makes it different, how I like to cut and shape afro hair, tips for afro sheen, and where I got inspiration for the shoot!

I'm loving pro-natural afro movement. Morphic’s very own resident photographer, Christina Campbell says about her own hair, “Its a rebellion against what young people’s moms were saying about straightening your hair with chemical relaxers.” She sees it as loving her culture by not assimilating to the most mainstream way to wear your hair.  

So, let's get technical for a second. What gives black hair its characteristics is that the cross section of the hair fiber itself is more of an elliptical/flattened shape than other hair types. This is why it takes on a helix shape. It also has extra surface area and therefore the texture is easier to damage.

I approached our model Thea’s hair by first taking a large hair pick to it and starting at the bottom and brushed the hair out until it was at maximum expansion. As a long time hairdresser, I was able to feel the areas that were uneven and I started in the spots that needed the most length cut. I then went back and trimmed the whole thing around, from one side to the other, in a round shape, keeping it a little shorter at the nape to keep the hair off her shoulders and more in the air.  

For color, I mixed up some non-ammoniated Platinum and applied the solution on the foil and used the old-school “shoeshine” technique. I went around with freehand brush strokes and spread it evenly. The idea was to create a halo light effect even when its not backlit. I rinsed, shampooed, and conditioned and afterwards spread around the Bamboo Kendi Oil to nourish the hair. We finished with Rene Furterer Gloss Spray. It retained a really gorgeous sheen!

My inspiration, I looked to 70s trends and Pam Grier's great hair in the film Foxy Brown. Solange Knowles is also doing a great modern take on this right now.

Credits:
Hair: Mishi Nova
Makeup: Emi Navas
Photography: Christina Campbell