Texture: Curl Expertise from Top Stylists

by Michelle Breyer on Saturday, January 29, 2011

Top stylists offer expert tips

When a curly client sits in your chair, they are looking to you as the expert. It’s your job to educate them on how to properly care for their locks at home or on the road. Modern Salon asked its Proview Panel how they are helping their textured clients enhance/care for their natural curl. Here’s the tips and tricks they had to offer:

“I find that a diffuser and little mussing with the fingers, hands or brush are the best ways to enhance curls and eliminate frizz. Many product manufacturers have wonderful shampoos, conditioners and finishing products to work with a diffuser. My favorite would be a cream-based styling product with a light amount of hold within.”

—Pat Helmandollar, president of Savy Salon and Day Spa in Cornelius in North Carolina

“My clients who are embracing their texture are opting for reduced bulk. I am removing weight within a hair cut so the ends are not thin, but chunky with a more flat appearance to the style.”

—Tammie Terczynski, Matrix Artistic Educator of Salon Envie in Wausau, Wisconsin

“The focus has to be on proper home maintenance. Too often a client wants what they do not have naturally, and if texture is what they want, then practical techniques are paramount. From the proper cut, to the styling products and tools—make sure your guest is willing, ready and able to maintain her textured style!”

—Ian Marc Smith, owner of Imagine Salon & Spa in Bedford in Nova Scotia

“I have hosted special evenings for clients with textured hair in the education facility at the salon showing them styling techniques that can enhance or minimize their specific textural issues.”

—Steve Napier, Master Stylist/Education Manager of J. Bentley Studio and Spa, in Columbus, Ohio

“When my guest has curly hair, I show them a better way to bring out their curls by doing Ouidad’s Rake and Shake method. If my guest has fine hair, I disconnect the hair in order to achieve more volume for them.”

—Keri-lyn Cleaver, Director of Education/Senior Stylist of Salon Ya Ya, Nashville, Tenn.