Tiptop Tips For A Makeover

"Like Madonna, hairdressers have to continuously reinvent themselves," says noted hair stylist Philip Ellis, as he snips away doing a makeover for 24-year-old Sandy Arellano.

Ellis, the creative consultant of Schwarzkopf, one of the world’s leading hair-care specialists based in Germany, was in the country recently to conduct a series of hair trends seminars in top salons.

During the makeover session held at the Top Style office in Greenhills – the exclusive distributor of Schwarzkopf in the Philippines – Philip shares insights on what to look for in a hairdresser and the latest on haircutting and haircoloring.

"Hairdressers should always keep abreast of the latest hair techniques and be bold enough to try them. And we have to dress the part, so to speak. We have to look good," he says.

After graduating from a two-year course in hairdressing where he studied everything from art and history to client reception and English, Ellis embarked on establishing a successful practice in his native New Zealand. "I love my job today as much as I did 40 years ago. I can work as a hairdresser 27 hours a day, eight days a week and look forward to it every day. Waking up not dead in the morning is a bonus," he jokes.

A good hairdresser should never stop learning and attending seminars, not to clone the techniques of others but to incorporate what he learned into his own style.

"Had I stopped studying, I would still be cutting hair in a tiny cell in a small village in my country."

Hair is constantly changing – from long to short, from natural to tricked up, from full to flat, from the classical to the romantic and then back again. Very few women are completely satisfied with their hair all the time. And the hairdresser is the key to achieving the style that women want. "That is why client consultation is very important. Hairdressers don’t just give clients the cut and color they want. Doctors don’t show you pills to choose from when you consult them; they give you proper recommendations. Hairdressers should also be like that," he says.

Here’s how Philip worked on the model’s pear-shaped face during the makeover using Schwarzkopf Professional products:

1. To give the model’s flat, shapeless hair texture, Philip used a hair razor to cut its edges, leaving some of the hair long and some short ("disconnected haircut," he calls it). The trick is to add volume and lots of texture. While cutting, he used Osis Hairbody by Schwarzkopf to give volume.

2. The face area was left with long, soft edges that can be left on the sides of the face or tucked behind the ears. Soft fringes were also applied at the edges.

3. He then applied four hair colors on Sandy’s hair: Schwarzkopf’s Vario-Blond Plus Bleaching Powder, Igora Royal’s Blue-Black and Auburn-Gold, and Igora Royal Fashion’s Copper. "Multi-shading is the in thing in hair coloring. It brings out the style and shape of the haircut," Philip says. Each color was applied alternately and wrapped in tin foil. Philip also mixed two colors for some strands to create extra texture. He then "spotlighted" (or painted) the top of the hair for a softer effect. He left this under the rotating heater for 20 minutes.

4. The foil was then removed, the hair rinsed, then blow-dried.

5. To style, Philip applied Schwarzkopf’s Osis Text It and Power Gelee on Sandy’s hair to achieve the "natural look." Osis’ Grip was used for the perfect finish.

6. With the use of Osis Stick Up and Mess Up, he changed Sandy’s look from corporate girl to glam queen using Osis’ Sherbet (champagne for the hair).

Philip then changed the look from party socialite to funky raver with the use of Osis Mess Up and Freeze Hairspray.

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One of the highlights of the make-over session was his talk on creative hair color techniques for particular face shapes.

"There are seven – oval, round, square, rectangular, heart, diamond and pear. The perfect shape is the oval and this shape is what the hair color should try to achieve by enhancing both the inner and outer colors of a hairstyle," he explains. The inner color refers to the hair that falls across the face, while the outer color is the silhouette that it creates.

Know your face shape and consult with your hairdresser as to the hair color that would suit you. Philip shares some of these pointers:

• The round-shaped face has a round chin and hairline. This face is widest at the center and is too short. To create the illusion of length, lighter shades should be applied on top, while darker shades should be applied on the sides to minimize the roundness of the face.

• For the diamond-shaped face, the widest area is the cheekbone, while the forehead and chin are narrow. To reduce the width at the cheekbone area, darker shades are applied while lighter shades are applied in the front area to create softness and at the jaw line to create width.

• A rectangular face is narrow and has little width, with the cheeks sometimes hollow and the hairline and chin square. Darker shades are applied on top to make the face appear shorter. Lighter shades on the front area and sides create width and soften the edges.

• Wide jaw lines and a narrow forehead characterize the pear-shaped face. Lighter shades across the forehead and temple regions and darker shades at the chin level and neck will give them the illusion of an oval look.

• A square-shaped face has strong square jaw lines and hairlines. To offset these, lighter shades should be applied on top. Keep sides and jaw line darker to give a narrow softening effect.

• A heart-shaped face has the greatest width at the forehead with the face narrowing towards the chin. To minimize width at the forehead, darker shades should be applied at the temples and across the forehead. Lighter shades at the chin area create width.

"Remember that hair color softens the face," he adds. "Don‘t be afraid to color your hair." For mature women, Philip recommends warm and soft colors such as Igora Royal Hot Chocolate and Desert Sand to hide unwanted lines. Teenagers would love vibrant, brighter colors like Moulin Rouge red while young professionals won’t go wrong with the use of more subtle colors like golden brown and chocolate. Sand beige and chocolate colors look lovely on Asian skin. To maintain hair color, ask your hairdresser to recolor the regrowths first and wait for 20 minutes before going through the ends to refresh the hair. A better alternative to combing through is using the Igora Royal personality demi-permanent color on the mid-length to ends. This is the perfect color refresher that will not only give hair back its vibrant color but also strengthen every strand due to its special formulation. Doing otherwise would over-stress the hair.

Products used were Schwarzkopf’s Osis Hairbody, Tex It Gel, Stick Up, Power Gelee, Mess Up, Grip, Sherbet and Freeze; Igora Royal Fashion Highlight Color; Igora Vario-Blond Plus; and Igora Royal Color Creme

Photos By Dakila Angeles
Makeup By Nemi Rafanan