Like most of my fellow women with PGH, my hair falls out in clumps in the shower (and I still have more than twice of the average person). Recently my drain has been clogged and I spend my morning showers ankle deep in water.

So, today I decided to brave the drain and take off the water stopper. What I found was a half pound of hair glob covered in old conditioner. I’m not over exaggerating here.

I put on my yellow gloves and uses a wired hanger to get the hair out. EW! It was by far one of the grossest things I’ve ever done.

Have similar stories? Email them to us at PremiumGradeHair@gmail.com and we’ll pick the funniest stories to post next Friday!

In the past 8 years, I have used Pantene Pro V Curl Defining Mousse almost everyday to tame my thick, curly hair. It really is the only mousse I’ve found that can hold my hair without making it too limp or too crispy and it’s found at every drug store (for those emergency situations).

Using about 1 bottle of mousse each week, averaging about $3.99 a bottle, I have calculated that I have spent about $1,660 just on mousse in 8 years. Unfortunately when Pantene changed their design and increased their prices,  came a new scalp condition. I became outrageously allergic to an ingredient in the hair product. My scalp has become itchy, dry, and disgustingly flaky!

I would have to say that  using Pantene Pro V Curl Defining Mousse is NOT worth the consequences. I am on a mission to replace my go-to hair product and help PGH women all over the world!

Let me know what products you love, so we can review them!

Until next time, the bigger hair, the better!

-Britt <3

As part of the PGH re-launch, we will now write a weekly post called “Choose This, Not That” where we put two similar hair products to the test and tell you which one we believe is better suited for big hair. The two products this week are Avalon Organics Lavender Nourishing Conditioner versus Whole Foods 365 Lavender Blend Conditioner.

And the winner is…

While both lavender infused products smell divine, in the end the Whole Foods 365 Lavender Blend Conditioner hydrated PGH better. Ingredients include aloe vera, vitamin B5 and lavender essential oil. No parabens, sodium lauryl sulfate, or artificial fragrance are used. Plus, you can’t beat the price. This 32 fl oz bottle cost me around five bucks and change.

When I was 13 years old, I celebrated my womanhood with my big, fat Jewish Bat Mitzvah. I stood on stage reading the Torah, looking like my mother had just thrown a bowl on top of my head and then cut around it.  It was the classic “bob” haircut.

After spending the majority of elementary school with some type of food or gum in my hair, my mom decided a “bob” haircut was going to have to do. So, I went through puberty looking like the 5-year-old girl in the Juicy Juice commercials.

My social life was screwed. How would I flip my hair to the boys in gym class? Or twirl a curl with my fingers in chemistry? A “bob” hairdo wasn’t ideal for someone with Premium Grade Hair, and it most definitely was not going to make me pass for 18. (How would I ever sneak into clubs?)

Thus, I made a vow to the hair gods (Pantene, Dove, Herbal Essences and Aussie) on my Bat Mitzvah day to embrace my PGH and grow out my hair. I am proud of my thick, curly, mousse-guzzling hair.

Welcome to the re-launch of Premium Grade Hair! I can’t wait to share my PGH stories and tricks with the world.

Until next time, the bigger the hair, the better!

- Britt

Our PGH even as children

We’re back! Bigger hair than ever before!

This time, I have brought along my frizzy ‘fro sister, Britt, who believe it or not may have bigger hair than me. Shocking, right?!

Life got busy. In fact, I left my hometown of Miami, FL (a.k.a. Humidity City) for new digs in Washington, DC. I’ve missed blogging and decided it was time to bring Premium Grade Hair back.

However, I can’t do it alone and that is why I have asked my sister to join the big hair party. We’ll be posting daily, giving our readers the scoop on new products, tricks, tips, trends and more.

Thanks for reading and aways remember, the bigger the hair, the better!

- Amanda & Britt

For the past two months I have been growing out one of the worst haircuts I have ever received. I have one word to describe this haircut…mullet! I promise, I am not exaggerating in the least. Half my head is short, the other long. And the short part is very puffy on top. What does this sound like to you?

So…how did this happen? I tried a new salon down the street from my apartment a day before I left for Vegas for a work conference. I asked for a trim, I left with a mullet. Simple as that. Oh, and I was also given bangs aka “face framers.” C’mon lady!! I have thick , curly hair. Bangs!?

Ok, enough ranting for now. This whole mullet experience has taught me a lot, starting with how to accept that yes indeed, I have a bad haircut, and how to deal.

1. Realize that it’s just hair, no one is dying, it will (eventually) grow back.

2. Call the salon to complain. Ask if there’s anything they can do to a) fix the cut or b) refund your money.

3. Understand that some cuts cannot be fixed, they just need time to grow out. Consider extensions if it’s really bad – and make the salon comp them.

4. Invest in a lot of bobby pins and learn how to perfect the poof. Great for disguising bangs or “face framers.”

5. Experiment with some new styles. Chances are your old styling ways won’t work for the time being. First things first, see how your hair dries naturally, then go from there. Perhaps add a headband or other hair accessory into the mix.

6. Keep hair pulled off your face in a clean ponytail or bun. I was using a large clip to create a simple twist and then blew dry the short pieces around my face that were too short to fit.

7. Give the salon and stylist honest reviews on Yelp or Google. In other words, slam them for giving you a mullet…I mean, bad haircut. This will make you feel better (I promise).

Another Emmy hairstyle how-to! Special thanks to Suave for sending these over. Here’s how to re-create Sofia Vergara’s hairstyle from the 2010 Emmy Awards.

1. Start off with a good foundation using Suave Professionals Almond and Shea Butter Shampoo and Conditioner. This will deliver moisture to the hair before styling.

2. Before blow drying, apply a small amount of Suave Professionals Healthy Curls Mousse to towel dried hair. This will help shape the curls and hold them in place.

3. Next, spray Suave Freeze Hold Hairspray onto small sections of hair before wrapping the section around a 2 inch barrel curling iron. For loose, voluminous waves, don’t close the tongue of the curling iron!

4.Finish off the look with the Suave Professionals Volumizing Finishing Spray. The lightweight formula will keep your curls intact without weighing them down.

As promised, here are the steps to re-create Rose Byrne’s Emmy 2010 hairstyle – styled by Harry Josh, John Frieda International Creative Consultant.

First you should know that Harry prepped Rose’s hair for one week before the red carpet by prescribing John Frieda Root Awakening Health Infusing Shampoo & Conditioner ($6.49 each). You can purchase this at your local drugstore or Target/Walmart.

Now on to the steps…

1. Luxurious Volume Bountiful Body Mousse was applied to Rose’s wet hair and then blew it out using a boar-bristle brush. The mousse helped Harry achieve high volume hair that would easily mold into the curls he was about to create—and the product gave a great texturized base, which Harry needed to create the look.

*Note to naturally curlies – you may be able to skip steps one and two if your curls are already defined.

2. Harry used a 3/4-inch curling iron throughout her hair and pulled a portion of the curls into a ponytail at the crown of her head.

3. He then pulled her hair into a high bun, pulling out individual curls for a Grecian-inspired style with a modern twist.

4. Harry secured the style by spraying Luxurious Volume All-Out Hold Hairspray to maintain volume and hold.

Emmy-nominated actress Sofia Vergara of ABC’s “Modern Family” teamed up with Suave Professionals to let America choose her red carpet hairstyle for the awards.

Her Glamorous Waves style by celebrity stylist Jenny Cho received America’s winning vote! If you have long layers, re-creating Sofia’s look shouldn’t be too hard. You will need a large round brush, blow dryer and lots of styling time.

Sofia’s entire award show look – the dress and Suave Professionals products used to create the winning look – will be auctioned by the Clothes Off Our Back Foundation to benefit children’s charities across the globe starting today!

Don’t forget – the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards are on tonight. Celebs are already starting to make their way down the red carpet so we thought we’d go ahead and give PGH readers a hair preview.

Word on the street is that Harry Josh, John Frieda celebrity stylist, will be styling Rose Byrne – nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Damages.

We hear that Rose has been following a prescribed pre-awards show hair routine so we can’t wait to see what kind of ‘do she’ll be sporting tonight.

Don’t worry – tips on how to re-create coming soon!