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Suitability – Features and Body Shapes

Continuing from my post about face shapes I wanted to talk a little more about suitability in facial features and body shapes – 2 other important considerations to take into account when deciding on hairstyles.



Strong Facial Features:
Below are just a few ‘more extreme’ samples of how important features are when choosing hairstyles, the more experience the stylist is the more they can automatically access facial features as soon as they see the client.
(just in case you cant see the text very well, here they are again.)

  • Long fringes can accentuate a bigger nose.
  • A ‘Nefertiti’ style would accentuate a long chin.
  • A short style, particularly around the ears, will bring them out more.
  • A style with horizontal lines will not do justice for someone with a wide neck or double chins.
  • A short fringe will accentuate a protruding forehead.
  • A flat face is made flatter if the style is worked straight up from the hairline.
suitability



Height and Body Shapes:
These also make a difference to your choice of hairstyles. It is important for the stylist to see the client before she sits down so that you can take note of her body proportion.
If a tall, thin person had a hairstyle which is very short and close to the head, or very long hair that is straight and flat, then the body length will be accentuated more, whereas if the style had more width, the stream-line would be broken giving an overall better body proportion.

body shapes 1

On the other hand, if a person is small but in proportion, then anything that is not TOO wide would be suitable, but if the person was small, and wide in shape, then the situation would be different. To add a hairstyle with width would be adding width to the overall look, but if the style was very short and flat, this would also accentuate the roundness of the body. It is not always easy to reach a happy medium, especially if the client has a certain style in mind. The stylists job is to suggest styles which complement her all round. If the correct approach is used, most clients are willing to accept your ideas and styles, as long as you have a reason to back up your suggestions.

body shapes 2

Again, I am using extreme examples to show my points easier, it does not mean that all persons belong in any one category of body shape or that you cannot go against type but in general, we must remember to evaluate the body along with the face shape and features when choosing styles.

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Post Pregnancy Hair..

I wanted to write this post for you because I know alot of woman become frantic when/if they start to lose their hair after they have had their babies.

I wrote a post earlier about Hair during Pregnancies, and if you want a re-cap follow this link: https://jujuchan.com/2009/06/pregnancy-hair.html

Anyway, this one is to show how your hair will (90% of the time) grow back to normal thickness and healthiness. Here is Mina again 10months later when all hormones have settled down, with her hair looking thick and healthy again.

Before: (recap)
DSC05857

And here is Mina after: (looking all cute)
We cut Minas hair into an asymmetric bob shape, giving her lots of layers for body and fun, we didn’t use any razoring techniques as we wanted to make sure the hair didn’t end up looking too thin, so we used scissors to texturize the ends.

Thanks Mina.
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Japanese Straight Perms….

I know, there are so many straighteners, straight perms, relaxers etc on the market I want to make sure I cover them all.. I will write a future post on the differences between this Japanese Straight Perm and the Brazilian Straightener but for now I enlisted the help of Jodi Ninomiya, one of Dekko’s top- notch technician to help explain the technical side of what its all about…..


Japanese hair straightening, also known as thermal reconditioning, is a method of permanently straightening hair. The iSTRAIGHT system which we use at Dekko, utilizes 3 strengths of solutions to meet the needs of each individual’s hair texture and condition. The hair is treated with a soy based relaxer which is rinsed out after a 10-25 minute processing period. The hair is then blown dry, flat ironed, and neutralized for 5-10 minutes. The iSTRAIGHT formulas use negative ions to relax and positive ions to neutralize and, at the same time, keep hair healthy and vibrant. Ingredients include Ceramide, a natural resource, that is part of you intercellular bonds which aids preventing cuticle damage and keeps the hair healthy from the inside out.


Thanks Jodi…..
Here are some samples of the Japanese Straight Perm:

So, who would benefit from this?
People with coarse frizzy hair, People who spend alot of time blow drying their hair and finishing with a flat iron, People who love their hair very straight and flat,
How long does it take:
This process depending on how long and thick the hair is can take anywhere from 4 to 6hours, so be prepared for alot of sitting around.
How long does it last?
Once the hair has been straightened in this way, it stays straight for good, the hair will not go back to its original state, therefore the re-touch is only necessary or the roots. so if your is hair is not too curly/way, the re-growth is not so obvious and you could go up to a yea without redoing it, but it your hair is very curly and stands out when it grows out then it is advisable to have it done between 5 – 6 months also depending on how fast your hair grows.

Here is a photo showing the re-growth from the Japanese Straight Perm..


DSC00741

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Modern Curly Perm….Maria

Here we have another perm done by Jodi Ninomiya from Dekko Salon, this time we have a much curlier look.
Maria came in with wavy-ish hair, and wanted to have a change of texture. After the consultation, both Maria and Jodi decided that a much curlier spiral look would be better than a soft perm as Marias hair is quite heavy and thick. I would like to add that personally i think Maria looked so good with both hair textures because she wears her hair well with her style of clothing and confidence that Jodi had her job made abit easier because of this factor…
Here’s Maria before the perm..

As mentioned Maria has wavy hair already, her front area was a little bit too short to perm so Jodi wove it out to blend with the parts that would be permed. The perm solution that Jodi used was by Goldwell – Definition for Normal Hair. She used 2 different rods, white and orange colored and it was left to process for 20 mins. The perm rods were positioned in a downward spiral.

As we all know with curly hair, it is so important not to disturb the curls while it is drying, this will ensure you have a definite prominent head of non-frizzy curls. Use a curling cream of some kind and either use a diffuser or leave it to air-dry, the diffuser usually gives abit more lift.


She looks great doesn’t she? Well done Jodi and thanks to Maria for letting me post her looks to share with you all.

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The Brazilian Blowouts..by Jill

I wanted to update you with the latest product that we are using in Dekko Salon, (Thanks to Jill Tucci, one of Dekko’s fab stylist/technician for her big help in writing this article)


Brazilian Blowout is the name of the ‘keratin conditioning treatment’, (not to be confused with the Brazilian Straighteners that usually contains 2 –4% formaldehyde). This is a fantastic new treatment that is safe for all hair types and has become sooo popular I didnt want you to miss out on the news…

The BB not only smoothes, softens and de-frizzes the hair, it also adds alot of shine. It does not completely straighten the hair, it relaxes the wave/curls on curly hair , and it leaves you with volume and body on straighter hair. It is classed as a blow drying aid, which helps to speed up drying time. So with this treatment, you can either air dry your hair which will leave the hair wavy/curly minus the frizz OR because this treatment is heat activated, if you do blow dry your hair, you can do so usually without a brush in a fraction of the time it usually takes you and you can have straighter smother hair faster!
Once complete you can go about with your usual routine, tying your hair up, tucking them behind your ears and washing it immediately. It is recommended that you use a the BB’s own sulphate-free shampoo/conditioner and treatments to help extend the life of the BB, any salts such as ocean water will revert it back quicker.
Another great thing worth noting about the BB is that the technician has control over how straight or wavy the client would like the hair to be. This is obviously discussed in the consultation and by varying the tension and strokes used with the flat irons, hair can be left wavy or curly but eliminating the frizz only. The process still takes up to 2 to 3 hours(altho on finer hair 90mins is possible) depending on the hair thickness and needs and will last from 8 (on virgin hair) to 12 weeks before the frizz slowly comes back in.
It should also be noted that the more damaged your hair is, the more noticeable the results, this is completely safe to use on brittle damaged hair, in fact with colored hair it improves the health of the hair and by sealing the cuticle. The more you have the BB treatment the healthier the hair will be and the longer your results will last! WOW! What more can you ask for?
Dekko has been doing so many treatments and so far 100% of the clients have been happy. We decided everyone should be able to try it at least once to see, so the technicians at Dekko salon are giving $100 off your treatment for the next couple of month!!! (April May 2010) Woo Hoo!
Thanks to Jodi for posing with her BB:
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Face Shapes….

I want to talk alittle about face shapes and suitability, giving a rough guide to advise both clients and stylists when discussing hair styles for individuals. Of course, there are exceptions to the rules, people who like to go for character and fashion rather than being safe and being suitable all the time, but I hope it gives you a clearer general idea…
The perfect face/head shape is the Oval (egg) shape. It would be ideal for hairstylists if everyone’s head shape was a standard oval shape, unfortunately life is not so simple. Head shapes vary from square to triangular to rectangular. Here’s some examples I’ve drawn to show you:

face shapes 2

There are many other face shapes which are a mixture of the ones above. A stylists job is to create hairstyles which are as close to the perfect oval shape as possible., but you also should take into consideration other facial features egg. nose, ears etc, which we will go into in another post.

Guides to suiting face shapes:
Round face – People with round faces should consider a style which adds more height and less width. If the face is very round then length and softness can be added to frame and soften the edges, but still keeping the shape as close to the sides as possible – see below..

round face


Square face – This does not necessarily mean that the face shape is actually square but gives the appearance of a wide jaw line etc. With a square shape he style ideally should be made to frame the face and depending on the length of the face, height can be varied as long as there is not too much weight build up about the temple area. All lines should be rounded and not angular, see below…

Square face


Long/Rectangular face – With the rectangular shape, as you can see from the 2 face shapes combined, alot of width is needed to fill out the sides. Ideally hair shouldn’t be swept onto the face, as this will only crowd and make the face narrower. No height is needed here as this will lengthen the face even more, also try to keep some hair onto the forehead to help shorten the face, see below….

Long face


Triangular/Heart Shaped – The heart shape is one of the easiest shapes to disguise as it is very similar to the oval shape, only height is needed. Width at the temple areas should be avoided as this will create a wider top half. This head shape is sometimes quite difficult to assess. If the protrusion at the top of the head is minor, then it can be classed as an oval shape, see below…

Triangle face



Pear shaped face – also known as the upside down triangle. This is not a very easy head shape to work with, particularly if the shape is very prominent. In this case, the style chosen should be built out at the temples and preferably with hair working onto the jaw line to soften out the wider proportion, see below…

Upside down triangle face

The styles shown here are merely a guide to what can be done to counteract different face shapes, but obviously with the stylists experience and imagination, many other styles can be varied to suit the individual. Come visit again as I will go into more suitability details.

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Clippers versus Scissor Over Comb..

So what’s the difference and can you really tell?

The ongoing question that clients ask: Do you use the clippers or the scissor over comb technique? There is no right or wrong method to use but individual stylists have their own preferences and reasons behind using them, and clients too have a preference so there are some things that you might need to consider about both methods. Here I am going to outline the main basic differences between them, and trying my best not to favoritise !!

clippers Clippers technique:

1. Clipper haircuts done mainly in barbershops or fast moving salons.
2. Gives a blunter sharper look to short hair.
3. Follows the head shape so therefore is you have someone who doesn’t have a good head shape, this will show up more.
4. Fast to achieve, so more clients can be fit into the schedule.
5. Simple choices of clipper guards, depending on how short someone wants to go.

scissors-comb_full

Scissor over comb technique:

1. Takes longer to achieve as the shape is being built up
2. Can be controlled more when working around strange head shapes or bumps on the head, as the weight can be built up separately to hide flaws as the comb does not need to follow directly onto the head shape.
3. Hairlines can be abit softer and natural looking, blending into the rest of the hair.
4. Most medium high end salons will use this technique, opting to use the clippers to cleans necklines and edges only.

OK, I know, I know, I’m definitely into the scissor over comb technique as I can tell the difference in most cases, I know its great for young kids who want the fade or military look but for me, I prefer a style to look more natural and to have a nicer head shape and build up and to be able to work in a more detailed manner rather than just whipping the hair off. Hey but each to their own!

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Natural alternative Styling Products for Curly Hair…

I know alot of you are interested in products that are natural and chemical free, so with the help of Trusha, I wanted to share some product recommendations with you.

Trusha has ‘wild’ naturally curly hair, and before she came to see Joni in Dekko Salon, her hair was pretty big and ‘extreme’. Personally I loved it, but I guess when you’ve been trying to tame the beast for so many years, finding a stylist and products that do that is pretty exciting. You can see Trusha’s hair in these photos, that’s her on the right in the second photo!

Anyway, Trusha used to use normal styling products such as Bumble & Bumble styling cream or Aveda Be Curly but she popped into her local organic store Rainbow’s and found afew products that not only are 99% natural but combined together, works like magic in her hair to give it a soft, natural frizzless look.

The 4 products that Trusha uses throughout the week is:

Giovanni – Leave-In Conditioner – sprayed onto hair onto wet hair.

Alba Botanica – soft hold style cream – worked into the hair while the hair is flipped upside down.

Burt’s Bees – Hair treatment, mixed together with ……

Jason – Texturising Cream – again worked into the whole of the hair while the hair is flipped upside down.

DSC00266

Trusha doesn’t wash her hair on a daily basis, more like every 5days or so, but on the days she doesn’t wash it she just wets it down, and add these products to refresh the style. (Although not the leave –in again as this can make it too heavy)

Here’s Trusha’s finished look using all these organic products.

One more product recommendation from Trusha, A great sea-spray for a beachy bedhead look – John Masters Organic Sea Mist.

Thank’s to Trusha and Joni for their help in this post xxxxxx

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Headlice

Why would I write a blog post on Headlice I hear you say… Well I figured if I was covering all aspects of hair I should also mention the more serious stuff like headlice and alopecia (in another post).
Estimated between 12 – 25million cases per year in the US alone, most of us have/will come into contact at some point with headlice, whether we’ve had them as kids or our kids have had them etc. We, as stylists hope that we don’t come across them often, but part of our consultations are to look out for not only growth patterns and hair textures but also head/hair problems like headlice.
About Head Lice: (in brief)
Head Lice are human parasites that require human blood for survival and if they are away from their human host for longer than 24hours, they cannot survive. Lice is the size of a sesame seed and live up to approximately 30days and the females can lay up to 100 nits,(eggs).
They are spread mainly by direct hair to hair contact with an infested person and sometimes by sharing brushes, hats towels etc, which is why this is most common in children between 3 – 10years and mostly girls. Mothers can pick it up just from having longer hair. Head Lice do not jump or fly and actually prefer cleaner hair as it is easier for the nits to attach themselves rather than on greasy dirty hair. Nits take 7 – 10days to hatch and if the nits are off the head they will not hatch at all as they need human warmth to incubate.
Once infected treatment is necessary, lice treatment products are potentially hazardous to the health and should not be used as a ‘just in case’ a child or family member has lice. Salons are sprouting up offering non-toxic prevention and removal (one being Hair Spies, Burlingame, CA,US) but the best alternative treatment according to Headlice.org is still manual removal of lice and nits, using the nit comb (licemeister comb) Everything should be vacuumed and washed, whether at home or in a salon, but remember the lice does not live without a human host for more than 24hours.
Nits and Lice

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How to NOT look like a Japanese or Canto Popstar….

After living in Asia for several years, one of the things I noticed was how unattractive guys with longer hair looked. Now, don’t get me wrong, I have absolutely nothing against guys with longer hair, in fact I love it normally, so why is it I found these guys to be so unappealing?

After careful studies of haircutting and techniques and style in Asia I came to a conclusion that satisfies my query.

The method to hair cutting that is predominantly used in Asia is done with a razor, as we all know the razor is a great tool to use on thick coarse hair but the problem arises when the hair is OVERly razored…. resulting in a Japanese or Canto popstar look!!!! (Canto stands for Cantonese)

No offense to these popstars but in my opinion, one should aspire to look more like a ‘rocker’ rather than a ‘Japanese/Canto Popstar’. Overly thinned hair not only looks dated but also too ‘girly’ and ‘feminine’, the exact opposite of what is desired. In other words – Passion Killers!! See below for examples of what I mean……

Now in order to achieve more of a rocker look, the hair should still be razored but in a more controlled way. Hair should look piecey and not too wispy, unkempt yet not gelled looking, done yet not look done! There is such a fine line between the 2 that to some peoples eyes, I could be just talking a load of rubbish, but for those in the know, those subtle and slight differences in hair techniques make or break a look.

And for me,(and I’m sure alot of other women) they make the difference between: Rocker V Japanese Popstar, Cool V Cheesy, Funky V Feminine, Good V Bad and Sexy V Ewww!!!! As seen below……

So for all you guys out there, make sure you ask your stylist to give you a style that give you all of the positive traits and not wonder why women/men are not looking your way !! You have been warned!