Would you clean your hotel room before the maid came?

Should I wash my hair before coming to the Salon?

We don't want to be gross or anything but we love dirty hair. Ok, there is a cut off point of  how many days you can go without shampooing, but you should NEVER (except one instance!) shampoo your hair before you come to the salon.

Coming for your colour done? Always come with dry hair (Professional Tip!) it saves time if you want to be out on time, and means that it won't need to be blow dried before hand!  Dirty hair (second...even third day hair is ok) makes it easier for the technician to place foils.  Oils secreted by your hair also form a type of protection against possible irritation by the colour!

With a haircut...Well having a dry cut is like going to McDonalds for a Salad.  You want the burger but you've cheated yourself out of it, and it costs exactly the same!  You have come to the professionals and it costs no more or less to sit back in our shiatsu massage chairs, and feel the stress of every day life melt away with every knot that is kneaded out of your back by the chair. Pair that with the KILLER head ritual that is done during your shampoo and you will wonder why you cheated yourself out of this experience for so long!

But you should come with your hair styled the way you normally wear it.  Makes it easier for the Stylists to see what you do with your hair, and see what kind of effort and/or style you put in yourself.

Hair Up and Curling appointments should always be washed and dried the day before, then just left.  No styling products...no oils...just your hair. Okay...Maybe a volumising cream such as Forme Fatale or Lift Vertige from Kerastase but nothing else!  It gives a great base for doing hair up and curling, and if we need to change the texture for any reason then we can always do that in the chair :)

And that exception when you should wash your hair....Chlorine.  Always wash your hair after being in a swimming pool...Chlorine reacts with colour, and the results can be...how shall we say...Interesting?  Also if you have put any lightening products such as SUN-IN or other type of thing, let your stylist know!  The results of that with foils and lifting agents can be very serious!

So if you haven't washed your hair when you visit us...Don't worry, it's going to happen anyway.  It's like cleaning the hotel room before the maid comes!

12 Easier than Check-in Holiday Hairstyles

You are on  holiday, you wake up and realise that you look like you have been dragged abroad.  Don't worry!  Here are 12 easy to do styles that will give you some easy inspiration, day or night!

1. Au Naturel - I know this thought may terrify you, but look how effortless Alexa Chung looks with her natural wave.  It honestly may not be as bad as you make out!

2.  Turban Headband - Eva Mendes wears it beautifully, and it can be a great addition to a hair up, half down, or all up style. Literally takes the thought out of everything!

3.  Flick out bob - We know it sounds ridiculously simple, but getting those curling tongs and flicking out the ends of your bob is a beautiful way to add texture and style to natural hair.  Follow with some refreshing spray to give it body.

 4.  Half up - such an easy style, that can be made as elegant or as simple as you like with twists, braids, and plaits.

 5.  Plaits & Braids - if you want a look that will see you through day and night, then think about plaits and braids.  Keeps the hair off your face, whilst still able to be as messy or neat as you like!

6.  Off your face - no were not talking about too many mojitos at the pool bar.  Use cute little plaits or pins to simply take your hair off your face and leave your hair with it's natural body.  Think about adding some subtle slices of blonde in your hair before you go on holiday, they will brighten in the sun and really add to the look!

 6.  Twist & Pin - This look here by Khloe Kardashian is literally as simple as it gets.  You can add as many or as little as you want, will go through to night, and if you've been in the sea, the salt will add some great texture to your long locks!

8.  The low ponytail.  This is a great look, can be back combed for texture, or made as sleek as you like.  We personally love the messy low pony, and you can take a section of hair and wrap around the bobble to disguise and add some sophistication to the look.  The great thing about this style is that you wouldn't even need to wash your hair!

 9.  Mid length curls.  People always think that you need to curl the whole length of hair when going out. Simply  blast dry the top with serum, grab sections and curl the bottom half.  It adds fab texture and style and simply add a good hairspray to finish off!

 The hat & the plait - What could be easier?  Invest in a decent trilby, side plait the hair, and then carry on with your holiday cocktail!  Backcomb the plait a little to add texture, or mess around with the plait style, fish braid etc.  Miranda Kerr carries this look off effortlessly.

11. Be blunt!  Don't even want to think about your hair whilst on holiday?  Your pre-holiday appointment (ideally about 1-2 weeks before you leave) Speak to your stylist and get a blunt style like Reese Witherspoon here. The straight lines will literally let you get away with hair murder on holiday.  It will hold it's shape, and the straight lines mean that no matter what it's shape it will give a great look.











12.  Refresh. Let's be honest if you've got hair like Penelope Cruz without a team of 40 stylists running behind you then you are going to be in trouble on holiday.  Want a tip?  Refreshing Spray!  Shu Uemura do a great depsea foundation refreshing spray. Pop it through the hair, blast back into shape and boom! You are ready again.  Great if you are in a rush or just want to revive a style!

Thank Blog it's Friday! Blow Dry Blues?

Saran hair is a beautiful thing a photo by *Saffy* on Flickr.

Ok so we have all had it.

You get to that point before your next hair appointment, and you just wake up, and do everything as normal when POW! Your hair feels, looks, and acts as though it has been replaced with the hair of Satan.

It's fly away, it's lumpy, it won't curl in the right place, or lie flat where it's supposed to. So what do you do? Back in the day, I used to start with a little water, put it on, lay it flat or curl it out and wait for it to dry... Into exactly the same position it was in before.

Secondly comes the product attack. We start with gels, seeing if we can somehow push it down, just to watch it... slowly... rise back up. As if in slow motion pushing up a hairy middle finger at you in the mirror.

Thirdly comes the all out surrender of washing your hair, and trying to make it work again, and again, and again.... And we arrive back at the start.

Well ladies, i'm a gent, and I can't begin to imagine the horror of having a bad hair day when my hair is over 6 inches long, so for you girls with meters of it... I salute you. However I came up with a solution and it worked for me and my short curly locks, so for you guys it's a sure fire thing. It's a three pronged attack, and it is amazingly simple.

Step 1. Switch on your Computer

Step 2. Sit in their chair

Step 3. Watch Camilla show you how to do it!

Here she is with hints and tips on how to blowdry your own hair....Thank Blog It's Friday!

Cheryl Cole... to bob or not to bob?... that is the question

After only just coming to terms with the fact that Katy Perry dipped herself in poor girls ginger juice, I open a web page and lo and behold...

Yes that's right... Cheryl Cole has chopped her hair off.  Let me tell you I am not jealous of the poor stylist (Lisa Laudat) that had to battle with her barnet, and be personally responsible for putting a new hairstyle on one of the nations most photographed Celebs.


But the Colourist Amie Wilson quoted it as the "smokey eyes of hair".  What I am shocked at is, how suddenly Cheryl has gone from a woman with 50 heads of hair to this 'inbetweenie' bob.  From this photo above it looks like it has loads of texture and a stunning shape, but when you see it from another angle ...

You get the full effect of the cut.  Now this will be week two that I have chucked my bag down in the Salon kitchen and literally shaken a stylist like a man possessed.  Let me tell you they don't react well to being man handled at 8am on a Tuesday morning.   This time Kristina was in the firing line, and she had barely tucked into her morning breakfast coffee, before I had her dragged by the hand behind me like some kind of human wedding trail. 


'Oh.'  Said Kristina after she had dusted herself down and stopped herself from choking on her breakfast that I'd catapulted her from.


'It's not really here nor there is it?'   Exactly my thoughts.... I mean... this woman is a National ICON.  What on earth is she doing?  I heard a young guest say that it looks like she has had her head trapped in a lift?


Obviously dragging Kristina away from her morning coffee did not do Cheryl's new style any favours... after stepping back she said " I'm confused.com..... husband... no husband... long hair... short hair, the girl just doesn't know what to do!"


After returning Kristina to the saucer of milk she had left in the kitchen, we discussed the new look as a team.  Obviously some social activity and a couple of more coffees, gave Kristina a new insight.  "It makes her look older... and it's very safe... pretty uninspiring really"


A-symmetric is nothing new, and I must admit, personally, I am very torn about this style.  The texture and the movement look really dynamic.  However from the front it looks like someones going for the bob and she's screamed "STOP!" before they had a chance to sort it out.  It's too long to be funky, but not long enough to be something more traditional.  But you've got to give the girl credit for having the guts and trying something new. 


The colour is just ageing on her, she appears to have lost that 'glow' that she once had, and now seems a little lack luster.  We're not saying it's a bad colour... it's just not for her. 


BUT it's popular opinion that wins out.  So what do you think?  Should she dig those extensions out or stay with?