Texture Big at 2011 North American Hairstyling Awards

by Michelle Breyer on Wednesday, May 11th, 2011

The Professional Beauty Association (PBA) announces the finalists for the 2011 North American Hairstyling Awards (NAHA)! As the most prestigious photographic beauty competition in North America, NAHA celebrates the creativity and skill of the professional salon industry. From avant-garde and editorial styling to recognizing the business savvy nature of salon owners, winning a NAHA award is a true pinnacle career achievement.

As always, textured hair is one of the highlights of the annual competition, showcasing some of the most dramatic artistry and latest innovations.

The NAHA Award’s Ceremony will be held Sunday, July 31, 2011 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas. An evening filled with high-energy, creative expression and artistic presentations by some of the industry’s leading figures including current Hairstylist of the Year, Tony Ricci, the 2011 NAHA Award’s Ceremony is the perfect place to salute rising stars and industry icons. NAHA 2011 is part of PBA Beauty Week, which also includes PBA Symposium, Beacon, Best Practice Club, the City of Hope Charity Gala, and is hosted by Cosmoprof North America.

NAHAs are given in 13 distinct categories, including: Hairstylist of the Year, Master Stylist, Avant-Garde, Contemporary Classic, Editorial Stylist, Fashion Forward, Haircolor, Makeup Artist of the Year, Salon Design, Salon MBA, Student Hairstylist, Salon Team and Texture.

In addition to winning the NAHA, the 2011 Hairstylist of the Year winner will also be flown to New York City for meetings with leading consumer beauty editors and appear on the nationally syndicated lifestyle television program, BETTER.

NAHA also salutes two professionals who have made a significant impact and contribution to the industry. NAHA 2011 is proud to present its top honor, the Lifetime Achievement Award, to Michael O’Rourke, an internationally renowned hairstylist, salon owner, educator, and businessman. NAHA 2011 is also pleased to induct entrepreneur and philanthropist, Stan Klet Sr., into the NAHA Hall of Leaders.

NAHA continues to draw from a diverse and internationally renowned list of hairstylist and makeup artists from the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and Switzerland.

Judges included Angelo Seminara, Kris Sorbie, Vivienne Mackinder, Tabatha Coffey, Ruth Roche, Mary Brunetti, Darren Bain, Bennie Tognini, Robert Lobetta, Kendall Ong, Jamie Carroll, Gary Sunderland, Heather Wenman, Antoinette Beenders, Dean Banowetz, Nicholas French, Sam Brocato, Anthony Morrison, Mark Hayes, Sharon Blaine, Eveline Charles, Leon Alexander, Jonathan Lovett, Damian Stoney, James Morrison, Damien Carney, Michael Baker, Will Bruder and several others.

Via a blind entry process, entries were narrowed down to five finalists per category, and one winner in each category will be chosen.

The NAHA festivities kick off with a Red Carpet Reception at 6:30 p.m., followed by a star-studded Awards Ceremony featuring special artistic presentations, live entertainment and special guest appearances.

ABS Texture! Panel with Top Curl Experts was a Huge Success

by Alicia Ward on Tuesday, March 15th, 2011

America’s Beauty Show was underway and thousands of stylist and salon owners gather to expand their knowledge, see top stylist and enjoy the entire “show” experience. Sunday March 13th was a huge day at ABS as it was the second annual “Texture” programming.

Texture! returned to ABS this year! This one-of-a kind free event showcased leading texture experts and educators in an intimate, interactive forum which included live hair demos. Texture! was hosted by NaturallyCurly.com founder Michelle Breyer and Modern Salon’s Editor-in-Chief Laurel Nelson, highlights of the event included:

Texture Trends: Fashion, Entertainment and Pop Culture Influences
Texture Cut, Color and Style: How-To Demos and Advice
Texture Opportunities: Make More Money Serving Curly Clients
Texture for Men: What’s New for Curly Guys?
Texture Q&A: Our experts, your questions!

Attendees were able to meet and greet the leading texture educators and brand leaders. The panel included the following:

John Benedetto, Director of Education for GK Hair: John has over 25 years of experience in the salon industry. In his prior role as Aveda’s Director of Global Hair Color Education, John was instrumental in creating Aveda’s Brands of Full Spectrum Hair Color and creating techniques for Aveda Collections at Video and Photo Shoots.

Shari Harbinger, “The Go To Curl Girl”: In her double-duty role as Director of Education for DevaConcepts and Color Director for Devachan Salon and Departure Lounge, Shari has both a loyal group of clients that rely on her for shiny, vibrant shades that are as modern as they are beautiful, and an enormous following in the salon industry for her eponymous training sessions.

Ouidad, the “Queen of Curl”: She is an internationally recognized stylist, salon owner mother, author and global educator. In 1984, as the pioneer of the curly hair industry, she opened the first salon in the country to cater exclusively to curly hair. Since then her trademarked cutting and styling techniques and specialized line of award winning products, have instilled confidence in curly and wavy haired people everywhere.

Anthony Dickey: He has spent the better part of his styling career—both on set and in the salon—trying to dispel the myth among women with kinky, curly and wavy hair that their texture is problematic or unruly. Touted as a “Style Svengali” by the New York Times, Dickey has mastered the mystery of textured hair to create iconic hair styles for designers, advertisers, photographers and celebrities alike.

Veronique Morrison: As Director of Education for MIZANI, a division of L’Oreal, USA, Veronique creates and manages the production of all technical curriculum, training programs, and creative trend presentations for a national salon audience.

Erica Grabczyk: American Crew’s International All-Star Erica Grabczyk certainly knows how to talk and cut men’s hair at the same time. She swiftly became the Director of Education at Groom Salon in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, specializing in male-specific design. Erica is top-rated in the City of Milwaukee for men’s hair (Milwaukee Magazine), having worked at Groom since 1999 as both a Lead and now Master Stylist. She trains nationally and internationally as an American Crew International All-Star Educator.

Ana Daniel, Artistic Director & Educator for Ouidad: This Dominican Republic native has spent several years working with Ouidad and loves ensuring that her clients not only have a style they love but also have the information they need to care for their curls at home. Ana’s work has appeared on the pages of many magazines and on the heads of numerous celebrities.

ABS Chicago: Day Two

by Megan Dorcey on Monday, March 14th, 2011

Our feet hurt and our heads are full of inspiration and new ideas to bring into our business. You could say that ABS Chicago 2011 was a success.  Not only did we fall in love with the platform artists at Farouk’s stage, but we found new and exciting companies that are going to be on our radar this year.

Yesterday was an amazing day, jam-packed full of floor time, the NaturallyCurly & Modern Salon Texture! panel, and spending some quality time with brands like Schedulicity.  We are inspired by this company that understands what a stylist needs as far as an online booking system, and wants to give you the information and tools to keep clients happy.  We will be sharing more on this new online booking company very soon!

The Texture! panel was a huge success, drawing a full crowd of curl stylists from across the country.  We were so happy to have Hair Rules, Ouidad, Mizani, Deva, GK Hair, and American Crew there to share their knowledge and host demo’s to give a little education to our stylist community.  It was definitely an educational day, allowing stylists to ask some of their own texture questions and learn more about the different styles and methods of cutting and styling curly hair.

We are so lucky to be able to participate in ABS Chicago and always walk away with more knowledge, inspiration, and new friends each year!

The Ouidad booth

People, people everywhere

Get Acquainted With Texture At ABS Chicago

by Megan Dorcey on Thursday, March 3rd, 2011

America’s Beauty Show is almost here.

America’s Beauty Show

America’s Beauty Show will play host to the NaturallyCurly, CurlStylist & Modern Salon Texture! panel for the second year in a row, which will showcase the most influential curl experts in the world.  We won’t lie—we almost can’t contain ourselves.

The high-power panel will include brands such as Hair Rules, Ouidad, Deva, Mizani and GK Hair.  This group of experts will also be hosting a demo where they style curls for you to see.  American Crew will also join the demo, showing us all how to care for our curly male clients’ curls.

This panel is comprised of the hottest names in curls, who will be speaking about how to make your business profitable in the curly niche market, the evolution of keratin treatments and smoothing systems and the latest cutting and styling techniques—just to name a few.  The panelists will also be available to answer any questions you may have about your own curly business.

Make sure to check out the Texture! panel at America’s Beauty Show in Chicago on Sunday, March 14, at 1:00 p.m.

5 Tips To Better Client Communication

by Alicia Ward on Tuesday, September 7th, 2010

We’ve all had clients leave our chair unhappy, and thought to ourselves “I wish I could have done that differently.”

Client communications is the key to success in this business—we all need to be great listeners and communicators. If you ask a client what she wants in a hairdresser, she will tell you “a stylist who listens to and understands my needs.” If you ask a hairdresser what happened when a client leaves unhappy, he or she will tell you “there was a miscommunication” or “the client could not explain what she wanted.” Veteran stylist Anna Craig of Trashy Roots Salon & Spa has five tips to better client communication. Anna, a Pravana Artistic Educator and DevaCurl Specialist, with more than nine years of experience, is extremely passionate about client communication and says if you follow her steps, your clients won’t ever leave the salon unhappy again!

Here are 5 easy tips to better your client communication.

1:Confidence! You are the expert, so take control of the situation. Be clear and confident. Never let the client take over the appointment by asking you to see the swatch book or the scissors you will be using. You need to keep the control during the appointment and assure your client that you know best. Make sure you sound and act confident. You know your colors, brands and supplies, so make sure you act like it. If you are unsure about something with your client consult another stylist in your salon, but always be in charge.

2:Consult! Always do thorough consultations prior to the appointment. Some clients lack good communication skill,s so it is your job to ask lots of questions to ensure you deliver the right results. Always ask clients to bring photos of the color, cut or style she is looking for. Ask her about her hair history. Make sure you are aware of what they have done to your hair. Talk to her about her expectations and make sure they understand the reality of the situation. Know their hair type and discuss it with them. Ask them about what products they are using. The more questions the better. The consult should range from 15 to 30 minutes for large changes and around 10 minutes for minor changes.

3:Document! Document your client’s history. Writing down everything you’ve done for your client will ensure a smooth appointment next time. Keeping records of your clients makes the client confident in you and your work. Not only does this allow you to be better prepared for their next appoint but it also helps you keep your clients happy and coming back. This is a great way to book you next appointment “I just noted everything we did today in your account so at your 5 week touch up we will get the same results “.

4:Educate! Educate your client about what you are doing. The more you can tell the client, the better your communication will be. Talking your clients through things helps her feel confident and part of the process, which enables trust. Keeping your clients involved is key because it opens the channels of communication, garnering better results.

5:Products! Know the products your client uses to ensure her results will last. Most clients are uneducated about professional products and the role they play in long-term maintenance. Talk to your client about her current products; recommend products and other maintenance options. You know the benefits of the right products, so do not keep your client in the dark. Share your product knowledge so she can love their hair longer.

Say goodbye to unhappy clients and client miscommunication—follow these 5 steps to get the better your client communication!

Texture: Salons Set Themselves Apart with Curls

by Michelle Breyer on Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

Learn more about Texture!, a collaboration between CurlStylist, NaturallyCurly and Modern Salon

High-profile salons like New York City’s Ouidad, Miss Jessie’s and Devachan have proven that salons can successfully focus on the curly niche. Their chairs are filled with wavy-, curly- and kinky-haired clients who flock to them from around the world for their stylists’ expertise in working with texture.

But this trend isn’t limited to the Big Apple. Salons from Toronto to Tucson also have proven that texture can be a powerful way to set themselves apart at a time when everyone is looking for ways to get the edge in a challenging economy. With a large population of people with wavy, curly and kinky hair — people willing to spend a lot of money to make their hair look its best — this trend is only likely to increase. And with more women embracing their texture than ever before, the salons that know how to work with it are likely to reap the benefits.

“There’s a salon on every street, but if you specialize, you set yourself apart,” Kim Wicks of Frontenac Salon. “Our salon chose to specialize in naturally curly hair. It’s been huge. It’s really helped us through this recession.”

Here’s a look at some standout curly salons—from a one-chair stylist to a salon that recently opened a second location to accommodate the demand form curly clients.

Curltopia, Smyrna, Ga.

Curltopia opened in Smyrna, Ga. in May 2008 as a salon where “it’s all about making peace with your hair.”

“We know how difficult it can be to find a stylist who can work with curly hair,” says Curltopia Flavia Medina who opened the salon with fellow curly Tricia Joyner.

Inititally, they envisioned a small salon with one chair. But demand grew quickly, and today they have seven stylists. All stylists must be licensed and experienced and must assist a senior stylist for six months before working on their own. During this training period, they learn what types of products and cuts work for different textures.

Curltopia sends clients home with a prescription of what products they should use and how they should use them—education that is especially important to curly clients. They like to see their clients two weeks later for a follow up.

“We want to make sure we’re teaching them about product use,” Medina says.

Curltopia, like many curly salons, attracts a diverse clientele, who travel to the salon from as far as North Carolina, Florida and Tennessee.

“There is nothing that walks in that door that we can’t handle,” Medina says. “We’re not a black salon or a white salon. We’re a hair salon.”

The salon’s decor mirrors this philosophy, with its black and white stripes.

Spirals, Tucscon, Ariz.

“It started small,” says Tonja Chagris, who opened the salon six years ago with two other people.

Chagris, who has curly hair herself, worked as a hairdresser for 17 years.

“I wanted to address curly and textured hair,” she says. “It was an immediate success, We had an article in the newspaper, and we were not prepared for the crowds. We couldn’t even let the people in. It was scary.”

Today, the Paul Mitchell salon has seven stylists, all trained in how to work with curly and textured hair. Although the salon does have curly clients, 90 percent of its clientele has textured hair.

Chagris believes the curly niche has helped the salon survive and thrive, despite tough economic times.

“It really has kept us afloat,” she says. “We consistently get new curly hair people, and they are willing to travel. It enables us to draw from a larger area.”

But the curly world does have some challenges, she says. The curly client tends to be gun shy, usually having had many a bad haircut in her past.

“Most people with texture have had bad experiences,” she says. “We focus on slowing down and making sure each time they’re there.”

The Curl Ambassadors, Toronto, Ont.

Curly tops Caroline Muir and Betty Di Salvo were frustrated by the difficulty they had finding stylists who knew how to work with their hair. They heard similar frustrations from other curly friends and family.

“We realized it was time to provide a place that specialized in naturally curly hair,” says Muir.

In October 2006, the duo opened their first location in downtown Toronto. They openend a second salon in the Toronto suburb of Vaughan in November 2009. The Curl Ambassadors’ clientele travel from as far away as Vancouver and Chicago,

“Our clients’ motto seem to be ‘Have curls, will travel,’” Di Salvo says.

For other salons considering focusing on texture as a niche, Muir suggests locating in a cosmopolitan, multicultural area.

“Are there a lot of people with curls?” she says.

One of the most important things, says Muir, is to recruit the right stylists for the salon. It’s not enough to be well-trained.

“We’re looking for those that will want to really care for curly hair with all their heart,” Muir says.

Hello Curls, San Diego, Calif.

Beverly Neeland learned how to do a wet set when she was 3 years old, playing with her stylist grandmother’s tools to create styles. She began cutting hair when she was still in grade school. She intuitively knew how to work with curls, perfecting her technique on her mother’s hair.

“My mother would come home from the hairdresser and her wavy hair, and I would fix her bad cuts,” says Neeland. “I had a knack for hairdressing.”

Although Neeland always wanted to be a hairdresser, her father convinced her to get a college degree. She gravitated toward the world of theater, working as a stylist, costume designer and wigmaker for professional theater companies for 15 years. While working on wigs, she would style them dry, cutting them based on what they need rather than any particular formula.

She never lost her desire to be a professional hairstylist. So when she had the chance, she got her cosmetology license.

At beauty school, she began externing at a salon and naturally gravitated toward curly clients.

Neeland said she initially hated salons because of her own traumatic experiences with stylists who would roll their eyes when she would sit in their chair with her thick curls.

“I started thinking, what if I opened a salon and just worked on curly people,” she says. “Having my own understanding of what it’s like, I thought I could make my clients more comfortable.”

She rented space at salons in Sacramento, specializing in naturally curly hair. Earlier this year, she opened a studio salon in San Diego and has teamed up with another stylist who specializes in curls.

Neeland says focusing on this niche has been a definite selling point for her

“When they find out I only work on curly hair—I don’t even have a round brush in my salon—they relax,” she says. “It’s a deciding factor for them. They feel comfortable before they come in. They know I talk the talk.”

She gets most of her clients through word of mouth, an especially powerful tool in the curly world. She recalled one of her clients who was stopped by a curly woman who wanted to know who did her hair. Suddenly, she found herself with 10 new clients who traveled more than two hours to get their hair cut by her.

But working with curly clients also has a downside, she says. They tend to go longer between cuts—an average of every 12 to 14 weeks rather than every six to eight weeks. Some of her clients only come in once every two to three years, she says.

“I feel like I have to have more clients than the average hairdressers so my book stays full,” she says.

Texture: The Season of Texture!

by Modern Salon on Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

Learn more about Texture!, a collaboration between CurlStylist, NaturallyCurly and Modern Salon

By all appearances, fall 2010 will go down in fashion history as “the season of texture.” Dozens of notable fashion designers have eschewed straight strands, embracing instead all manner of curls, coils, crimps, waves and teased clouds of hair on their catwalks.

Miley Cyrus

On the West Coast, style setters are also advancing the texture trend. Nearly every red carpet is adorned with sexy, romantic textures, made popular by stars like Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Kate Hudson, Charlize Theron and Beyonce.

“Clients today are requesting anything but flat hair,” says Lina Shamoun, a 2010 North American Hairstyling Awards Texture Finalist from Kitchener, Ontario.

And regardless of whether clients are starting out with natural curl, wave or pin-straight strands, everyone has texture options this season!

Natural Curl: Embrace and Refine

“Curly hair is coming into its own,” says Titi Branch, co-owner of Miss Jessie’s Products and Salon in New York. “Twenty years ago, we wouldn’t even be talking about curly hair because people straightened their curls.

Michelle Obama

“Now, women want to embrace their natural, healthy curl. Michelle Obama even wore curls to a state dinner recently— for her to do so really validates the beauty of the look.”

But curly can also be high maintenance, admits Branch, which is why the current trend is a smoother, looser curl pattern.

“This allows a woman to keep her curl,” she explains, “but refine it.” At Miss Jessie’s, this elongated curl is achieved with the salon’s proprietary “Silkener” service. The technique involves a sodium hydroxide relaxer and a method of manipulation that stretches, yet doesn’t straighten, the hair.

“The result,” says Branch, “is hair that behaves like natural hair when it’s wet—before it dries and shrinks. It’s wash and go—it cuts styling time in half.” To support natural curls, Branch recommends Miss Jessie’s Curly Pudding treatment—a perennial favorite that combines macadamia and almond oil, aloe and shea butter for shine, plumping and moisture.

Curl definition is also imperative for Shawna Parvin’s curly clients, and the most modern approach, says the Aquage educator, NAHA 2009 Texture Winner and 2010 Hairstylist of the Year nominee, is to mix it up—random curl sizes, directions and even amounts of definition. “I’m telling my clients to start with a gel on damp hair,” she says, and comb it through scalp to ends. “Then wind sections of varying sizes, in every direction, so they look like little snakes. Don’t touch the hair until it’s completely dry, then move it around and even pull a few random pieces apart so there’s some fuzz mixed in with the curl. That’s what keeps curl from looking like the ’80s.”

Options are important for women with any texture, and naturally curly clients will always want blowouts for occasions when their hair must look polished, says Dickey, owner of New York’s Hair Rules Salon and hair products company. What makes blowouts look fresh this season, he says, is a voluminous, soft, Mad Men-inspired look, with lots of flattering movement around the face.

“Bone straight doesn’t work for most women,” he comments. “Waves and curls look softer on anyone—it’s ‘instant youth.’”

Making Waves—Keep it Raw

When it comes to creating curls and waves, the perfectly formed curls are evolving into a rougher, more raw-edged texture, says Chad Seale of Salt Lake City, another 2010 NAHA Texture finalist.

“Waves will be more vertical, looser, less constructed than we’ve seen in past seasons,” agrees Darby Shields, Associate Artistic Director of ISO International.

When it comes to these vertical waves, there’s also a new silhouette worth noting, adds Seale, namely, a flatter crown with more volume through the midlengths and ends. Seale loves this texture and shape on shorter-length bobs—actress Charlize Theron has been seen sporting the look. To permanently create this casual texture on tightly curly hair, Shields steers clients to the ISO Maintamer.

“This formula gives stylists plenty of control,” she explains. “Leave it on for five minutes, and it eliminates frizz but maintains the curl pattern. Leave it on for 30 minutes and it straightens more completely.”

To produce loose, ropey, “Gisele” texture with a thermal iron, Shields first mists strands with a combination of ISO Color Preserve Thermal Shield Spray and Daily Shape Working Spray, then wraps sections of hair vertically around the outside of a curling iron, simultaneously twisting each section onto itself like a rope. Once the hair cools completely, she gently releases the twists, revealing “a spiral, vertical wave with lots of internal torque.”

The flat iron is another excellent tool for creating this type of natural-looking body and texture. Many of today’s irons feature beveled plates, which give them the versatility to straighten and shape hair. One of Lina Shamoun’s favorite strategies is to divide hair into thin, one-inch sections, place the flatiron at the root, wind the section once around the iron and draw the tool through to the ends.

“When you release it, the hair will fall into a soft, flowing wave,” she explains.

The beach trend—textured, separated, sea-tossed strands—has generated a number of beach spray products that are great for supporting these looks or for use as stand-alone body boosters.

Color for Curl

With celebrities like Sarah Jessica Parker and Jennifer Aniston leading the way, the hottest hair color trend of the moment is the graduated “I spent last month on the beach and now it’s growing out” effect. Characterized by deeper roots and lighter midshafts and ends, it’s a deliberate technique to approximate “vacation regrowth.” The look is perfect for the twists and turns of textured hair, as long as the technique is done correctly.

Seale believes baliage is the best strategy—this freehand hair-painting method allows the colorist to place the tint exactly where the sun would kiss each strand, namely, on the rounds and fullest parts of each curl and in an unstructured fashion.

“So if your client wears her hair curly,” Seale advises, “don’t blow her hair straight and do a color weave. You’ll get six different colors on one curl and that doesn’t work.”

Additionally, says Seale, opt for high-lift permanent colors when baliaging curls, rather than bleach. “Bleach tends to swell the hair and cause it to become dryer,” he believes.

This hair type is already susceptible to dryness, he adds, so it’s better to use hair color that tends to impart less damage. Shields agrees that baliage is the best way to achieve the dark-to-light look, and advises stylists to work with fairly large sections. “Apply your color to each section randomly,” she suggests. “And for your application pattern, let the trajectory of the waves guide you—dropping off of the crown. Try some ‘peek-a-boo’ foils under the surface, too.

“All of this will create a purposeful, grown-out look, which clients today love since it’s chic and it allows them to stretch their retouching dollars!”

2010 NAHA Award Winners

by Evelyn Ngugi on Monday, July 19th, 2010

Dimitrios Tsioumas won in the texture category.

The “Academy Awards of hairstyling” as some would call it, this year’s NAHA contest rallied hairstylists from around the continent for one night of creativity and innovation.

The award ceremony was held July 18 in Las Vegas, and more than 700 professionals entered the contest’s 13 categories, ranging from Master Stylist and Student Hairstylist, to Avant-Garde, Salon Design, Texture & Makeup Artist.

The contest showcased these categories in the form of high-profile photographs, and were judged based on criteria including concept, demonstration of skill, and harmony between photographer’s execution and stylist’s creativity.

This year’s NAHA judges included industry leaders such as Sam Brocato, Mary Brunetti, Tabatha Coffey, Ruth Roche, Sally Hershberger and Nick Arrojo.

Congratulations to the winners of this year’s North American Hairstyling Awards!

Master Stylist:
Wendy and Oscar Bond
Upper Montclair, NJ
Photographer: Trevor Owsley

Hairstylist of the Year
Tony Ricci
Edmonton, AB
Photographer: Ara Sassoonian

Salon Team
Salon Pure
Montreal, QB
Photographer: Ara Sassoonian

Editorial Hairstylist
Steve Elias
Berkeley, CA
Photographer: Tony Maesto

Student Hairstylist
Patrick Mathes
Indianapolis, IN
Photographer: Babak

Makeup Artist
Seong Hee Park
New York, NY
Photographer: Hyuna Shin

Avant Garde
Nicholas French
Westhampton, NY
Photographer: Roberto Ligresti

Contemporary Classic
Alain Pereque
Montreal, QB
Photographer: Ara Sassoonian

Fashion Forward
Antoine Vadacchino
Montreal, QB
Photographer: Ara Sassoonian

Hair Color
Chrystofer Benson
New York, NY
Photographer: Joseph Cartright

Salon Design
Vasken Demirjian Salon
White Plains, NY
Photographer: Stan Wan

Texture
Dimitrios Tsioumas
New York, NY
Photographer: Babak

Salon MBA
Lunatic Fringe
Shawn Trujillo and Angie Katsanevas
Salt Lake City, UT
Photographer: Douglas Carter

NAHA Awards Showcase Creativity, Innovation

by Michelle Breyer on Thursday, July 1st, 2010

When Mahisha Dellinger of CURLS signed on as a sponsor this year for the 2010 North American Hairstyling Awards, it was a no-brainer.

Silas Tsang

“NAHA is truly the pulse of American stylist’s artistry at its best,” says Dellinger.

CURLS joins some of the biggest names in the business—RUSK, Modern Salon, KMS California, Aquage, Joico, Pureology, to name a few—in supporting the annual competition, which has become a true pinnacle of career achievement for stylists. Many consider it the Academy Awards of the beauty industry.

This year’s NAHA awards will be presented at 6:30 p.m. July 18 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nev.

NAHAs are given in 13 categories, including Master Stylist, Hairstylist of the Year, Editorial Stylist, Student Hairstylist, Avant-Garde, Contemporary Classic, Fashion Foward, Haircolor, Salon Team, Salon Design, Texture and Makeup Artist.

Dimitrios Tsioumas

A favorite category for Dellinger, and many stylists who focus on waves, curls and kinks, is the Texture category, which draws some of the most creative and innovative entries. “Those contestants are going to receive extra CURLS love,” says Dellinger.

This year, the NAHAs will also salute two professionals who have had a significant impact on the industry. The Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Beth Minardi, an internationally renowned haircolor specialist, educator and salon owner. Freferic Holzberger, an entrepreneur, educator and philanthropist, will be inducted into the NAHA Hall of Leaders.

Chad Seale

This year’s NAHAs boasted a record-setting number of entries. More than 700 beauty professionals entered—up 18 percent from 2009 and a 35 percent increase from 2008. This is a testament to the growing prestige of the NAHAs, and the impact they can have on a stylists’ career.

This year’s NAHA judges include industry leaders such as Tabatha Coffey, Ruth Roche, Nick Arrojo, Mary Brunetti, Sally Hershberger and Sam Brocato.

Click here for more information about the event.