Want to know why and how I invented and produced the WORLDS first Magnetic tool belt?
After working with a tool belt for many years I got frustrated that they were never long enough to hold a can of hairspray as well as my bushes and combs, so I pulled out a pencil and piece of paper and started to sketch out my dream hairdressers tool belt.
Once I worked out the size and the shape, I then made it up in calico and pretended to work with it.
THEN BOOOOOM!
I had my magnetic bobby pin band on and suddenly thought what if I could have a magnetic strip on the front of the bag that could hold the pins that I was not using RIGHT at that moment BUT would be sitting at my fingertips when I needed them next.
OMG I seriously could NOT SLEEP that night!
This really changed the way I set myself up for styling, the pins I was using were on my magnetic wrist band and then I could swap them for the next when I needed them, so simple but totally life changing.
After I had my design, we had a holiday in Bali and I had such a lovely time going back and forth to the bag maker till I was totally happy with the finished product.
Once we got home NOW THE hard work began, I had to find a quality bag maker who would make them consistently high quality.
We are super proud to say that we have been working with the same family business who make all our leather and vegan tool belts and wrist bands for over 5 years.
We now have them in 3 colours and in 2021 we added 3 scissor pouches to the belt and added a NEW tan leather colour.
I hope you LOVED my little story on how I invented our tool belt, it goes to show if you have a unique idea you should go for it!!
Never copy always create something new and exciting.
It’s clear from the pictures here that these New Zealand stylists and make-up artists have hit the ground running using my exclusive School Program and tools kit.
Mapped to the ‘Create Hair Up’ and the ‘Braiding’ units and only available through RTO’s, the Lorna Evans Education Exclusive School program has been rolled out to apprentices, VETIS students, make-up students and screen and media students.
We were over the moon that Weltec’s Head of Education, Wanda Menchi, thought outside of the box and found added value of the program to deliver it as a short course. A complete sell-out, she aimed it at full time hairdressing students, make-up artists and senior stylists who were given access to the online program.This short course was led by award-winning stylist, Angela Enoka, who patiently and professionally guided the students and gave them increased confidence to create some amazing work.Angela told me as the students were given their bag of professional styling tools on day one, the excitement in the room was ELECTRIC! They were keen to get started and went on to spend 15 hours over the course of five weeks learning how to prepare, practice and present classic Chignons and twists, vintage rolls, waves, braids and buns.Angela said she could have easily spent two full days covering and emphasising the importance of prep but as there was only a 3-hour window, this was condensed to highlight the main points prep but fully backed up by the tutorials in the online program.
“Having the full online library showing every scenario of preparation was fabulous” Angela said.So with the prep-work under their belts, the students were given homework to watch the video tutorials and download the head sheets and notes in readiness for the second session the following week. It was here when they would work together in class to recreate the looks.Over the course of the next few weeks, the students learned how to create beautiful looks easier and faster with the help of the right tools and my unique techniques.After the completion of each look, they uploaded their work into our assessment section of the program and in turn we sent them personalised certificates for each and every look – just imagine how full their portfolio will be!Wanda is keen to run a second short course soon which I am thrilled about.
“As well as using the Lorna Evans Education Package for our full time hairdressing students at both Weltec and Whitireia, WelTec ran a special Long Hair Short Course. The Short Course was aimed at current and past Make-up Artistry students, hairdressers and hairdressing apprentices in the community. Make-up Artists in New Zealand are required to have hairdressing skills so the course was a perfect complement to their learning.Angela Enoka led the course and was an amazing asset with her patience, professionalism and her own fine hairdressing skills.We received very good feedback from the participants and they all said how they learned a lot, even the make-up students who had not had much practice in hair. The students particularly liked being able to refer to the on-line videos at any time to assist them and loved the kits they received as part of the package. They also commented on how they enjoyed learning how to prepare the hair for each look and how they came to appreciate how important this is.We are looking forward to running the course again soon.”Nga mihi nuiWanda Menchi Programme Manager, Cosmetology Wellington Institute of Technology & Whitireia Community Polytechnic.
How to take long sections of hair? Have you ever struggled to control super thick long hair? Have you ever felt like you end up with messy sections and hair all over the place?
Here is my 5 steps to achieving a clean section of hair: 1. Using my Bigtail comb take a section only 1 to 2 inches from where you want to start 2. Pop your comb down and using your thumb and index finger run them down the section 3. Pinch your finger at the end and hold onto the hair between your fingertips 4. Roughly push the remaining hair away from the section that you are working on 5. Pick up your Bigtail comb again and using the tail like it is a pen straighten up the section you took with your fingers
This technique is also great if you want to learn how to section thick hair for curling
Click to watch the video
This was a snippet from one of over 80 tutorials in my COLLECTIVE library that will teach you Ponytails, Chignons, Waves, Braids, Bridal work, Editorial work and even how to plan your Business.
How lucky were we to have guest artist Brad Ngata on Instagram Live for our special occasion hair education to share his hot blow drying tips!
Creating a big bouncy blow dry is something I know many of you would love to achieve. Hence, here are some of his hot blow-drying tips.
Yet getting down the
basics can be really hard to master.
Fear not we have the amazing Brad to the rescue as he shares how we can achieve that professional finish without killing our shoulders and taking way too long.
Shampoo the hair twice with volumising shampoo
and only condition from mid length to ends.
Before blow-drying, work out the growth patterns
of the hair so you can plan the best direction to section the hair.
Using the Bigtail Comb section off the hair in
sections as long as the barrel on the Timesaver brush in a zigzag shape Tip: Sectioning in a zigzag motion helps get
deep in the hair and gives a great foundation.
Spray Sea Salt spray at the roots only. Tip: ONLY section by section DO NOT apply
all the way though the hair or you will find it hard to work on the last few
sections.
Using The Timesaver Brush take your long section
and give it a good brush to gather all the hair in the same direction.
Using the GlamPlam Hair Dryer, blow-dry the
section. Tip: To lessen strain in your
shoulders, blow dry in front of the client in the opposite direction. This will
also push the hair and gives more volume.
For extra volume clip the hair up to cool or pop
in a Velcro roller before moving onto the next section.
Apply texture powder only at the roots.
Use the Bigtail Comb to comb through and dress.
Apply a little hairspray to finish.
Hot Tips when Blow Drying
1. Blow dry the hair in the angle that the hair would sit working on in a base setting direction.
See the diagram for on base sectioning
Please note most stylists think over directing the hair will give maximum volume but this is NOT the case, to create maximum volume you need to work with on base sections.
2. Do not settle on one heat when using your blow-dryer. Mix between high, medium and cool to dry the hair. 3. Avoid over drying the hair as this will result in straightening the hair and it will also start to fly off the brush making it hard to handle. 4. Work in Zigzag sections of the hair rather than in straight lines. 5. Do not blow dry fast motions & allow the hair to cool down. 6. For a longer lasting finish take your time to set up in clips or Velcro rollers.
Blow drying can be hard. Yet, with the right tools and
products, you will be able to achieve a dream finish in no time.
After attending one of Lorna’s 4 day workshops, I knew I needed to get the magnetic styling belt, which has now been lovingly renamed in our salon as the ‘go faster belt!’
It’s a great tool that helps with hair ups and styling. Everything you need is on hand – priceless.
Picture a busy Saturday in the salon or doing special occasion hair education with a bridal party of 6 booked in with a senior stylist and myself. All consultations have been carried out and appointment have been allocated. Then your colleague calls in sick! I now have a bridal party coming into the salon and have to look after all of them in a small allocated time slot.
I get my magnetic styling belt on, arm my assistant with a wand and supplies, and we’re off!
The Magnetic Styling belt is a timesaver that puts everything at your fingertips.
Ideal for the busy stylist in the salon or on location.
Large enough to hold everything you need to create a magnificent upstyle.
Hairsprays, brushes, combs, clips and best of all its magnetised so all your pins are close at hand.
A perfect partner to our Magnetic Bobby pin wristband
The belt
enabled me to have all my tools on me, and cut down pinning time. The time
saving techniques learnt from Lorna helped me avoid disaster. Luckily the bride
was the last in and was none the wiser until she asked where my colleague was.
Thanks
Lorna – your amazing belt and techniques saved the day!
For hair stylists, when it comes to New York Fashion week, it goes beyond just the brands and fashion. I don’t know about you but the first thing I look at is the HAIR! I would even consider it the main event! And year after year, NYFW hair trends are trailblazing the hottest hairstyles and hair accessories that left us breathless and recreating straight away.
NYFW is definitely giving us refreshing and eclectic hairstyles we LOVE to see on the runway. And this year, it got bolder than ever as it features neon hair colours, graphic patterns and more. If you didn’t catch a glimpse, below is a quick recap of NYFW hair that are definitely a cut above the rest.
You can even call it the mane event. And year after year, NYFW is trailblazing the hottest hairstyles and hair accessories that left us breathless and replicating right after.
NYFW is definitely giving us refreshing and eclectic hairstyles we LOVE to see on the runway. And this year, it got bolder than ever as it features neon hair colors, graphic patterns among others. If you were not able to get a glimpse, below is a quick recap of NYFW hair that are definitely a cut above the rest.
Trend #1: Half-Wet Hair
Image from Stylecaster
Kim Kardashian stuns in her wet look dress, makeup and hair during the 2019 Met Gala but NYFW made half-wet hair a trend. This is the term coined by Justine Marjan, This half-wet hair style was featured by Hellessy for their RTW Spring 2020. What better way to pair their boxy blazers, shirt-like hems and layered shirts than a sleek hairstyle and half-wet waves.
My HOT TIPS on creating this look
Directional blow dry the top section with our curved comb
Blow dry the rest of the hair in wide thick sections
(this look is very organic so with our Time Saver Brush you will have it done in no time at all)
Using the black bungee tape wrap the top pony and loop the hair into a top knot with the tape (OMG how good is bungee tape)
Trend #2: The Micro Crimp
Image from W Magazine
The first night of NYFW really made an impact with Jeremy Scott and his hair metal meets glam rock runway for Spring 2020. It was as if we were transported back in the 80s filled with tacky prints, crazy bright hair, and ruffled lace among others. The eye-popping garments and hair surely made a bang and it is something we can definitely expect out from Jeremy Scott.
My HOT TIPS on creating this look
If you are wanting to work on a wig go chat to the lovely team at Amazing Hair Australia
Stylist James Pecis made Kate Spade NYFW hair look laidback and stylish. Thanks to its scarf-tied braided buns that best complemented Kate Spade’s garden setting and floral items. Many remarked the style as relatable and it is something one can do even on a daily basis.
My HOT TIPS on creating this look
Directional Blow Dry the hair using our Curve comb
Blow Dry the ends in no time at all with our best seller Time Saver Brush
Use the curve comb to scoop the hair into a pony and secure with Bungee Tape
Create a 3 strand braid and tie on your scarf
Trend #4: Greater Heights
Image from Vogue
Bigger is always better! Guido Palau created a totally amazing style that had everyone in awe. Hair pro Palau created a cartoonish cone-shaped style at Tomo Koizumi. This is something definitely regarded as extreme but I soooooo LOVED IT.
My HOT TIPS on creating this look
Mouse up that hair! No need to work from wet hair to prep simply work 1 section at a time and and load the hair up with mouse ( I personally like UNITE Elevate mouse) dry in with our Time Saver Brush
Before you set run the HTZ root volumizer over all the root area avoiding the outer edges so its hidden, set with a pencil tong
To mold the shape you will need to make a Hair Bat ( this is a wire coat hanger bent into a triangle shape and covered with a stocking.
Together with a hair dryer and hair spray it works a treat
Trend #5: Hair Accessories
Image from InStyle
Hair accessories were SOOOOOO cool during this year’s NYFW with almost every brand and fashion icon embracing an accessory or two. Sandy Liang featured a lot of silk bows tied throughout the hair, giving it more texture. Pyer Moss also came up with donned wigs and beads from its ponytails to buns. Prabal Gurung featured fresh flowers sculpted on their models’ heads, and combs for Tory Burch.
NYFW 2019 truly gave us hair inspiration that we can recreate in our salons right now.
If you’re after some beautiful accessories, we stock all the KELA charms and chains on our website.
You should also checkout what’s new (especially for hair inspo) at Urchin Collective’s website.
Have you ever had a client arrive in your chair with what she thinks is clean and dry hair? In that case, here are my bridal consultation tips.
But it’s oily at the crown – and let’s not talk about the nape!
Over the years, I can honestly say this used to happen to me way too often – and I made a decision that if it ever happened again it was MY FAULT!
Why? Because I didn’t educate or train my bride on how to prepare her hair during our consultation. Think about it: a bride comes to you and she has a file full to the brim of pictures of the dress, the wedding venue, the flowers, and quite often she even has a sample of her dress fabric.
But where in her planning folder is the hairdresser?
We need to be in this folder, because if you’ve simply just instructed her to have clean, dry hair when she arrives, you can bet she will either forget, or worse, plop a dollop of shampoo on the top of her head andstart to spread. By the time it gets anywhere near the nape there’s not enough left to remove any excess oils.
But where in her planning folder is the hairdresser?
We need to be in this folder, because if you’ve simply just instructed her to have clean, dry hair when she arrives, you can bet she will either forget, or worse, plop a dollop of shampoo on the top of her head andstart to spread. By the time it gets anywhere near the nape there’s not enough left to remove any excess oils.
We eliminate this by not only verbally educating them, but also by making our preparation instructions visual with our consultation sheet. We added in head sheets so I can draw the hot spots and explain to them how to shampoo properly.
HOT TIP:
Make yourself the expert! Be fun and firm in your conversation with a client. After all, I’d say hairdressing is 80-90% communication skills. Do you agree? (leave me a comment below).
So my conversation might go a bit like this:
Lorna: Sally would you like your hair on your wedding day to be amazing?
Sally: Well, YES! YES I would.
Lorna: Me too, that’s why I need you to follow my crucial preparation instructions to the T, so when I arrive, your hair is the perfect canvas for me to work my magic on. Are you up for that?
Sally: I sure am! So what should I do?
By having this conversation,
you now have your client’s attention and she is listening to her expert
stylist: YOU!
Now it’s time
to step her though what you’d like her to shampoo & condition with. I also
personally like my clients to apply a light oil (I use UNITE U oil) and apply
the first layer of mouse to her wet hair (I use UNITE Elevate Mouse). It’s
also the time to share with her how to get the most beautiful blow dry at home
with my Time Saver Brush.
You also need
to make sure that she knows NOT to put the straighteners through her hair after
she has blow dried it (you would be surprised how many clients think they’re
helping you by doing this).
The trial is
your time to shine, and time to make YOU the expert that your client will
listen to, respect and best of all: tell all her friends about! All because you
have gone that one step further.
Do you have a
unique way of educating your clients?
I would LOVE for you to share your bridal consultation tips in the comments below. After all, sharing what we do is how we learn!
Exactly how long to spend on a bride is a great question and one that really needs to be talked about. Why? Because time is money. Unless you’re styling hair for a hobby – and let’s look at the definition:
“An activity that someone does for pleasure when they are not working”
Then we need to make sure that, as a professional. you can earn what you’re worth!
Some of the mistakes I see stylists make again and again are:
· Failing to factor in the prep time for naturally curly or frizzy hair
· Say no (or even forget!) it’s okay, I won’t charge extra to prep all your hair extensions. By the way – we should also be the stylist ordering and charging retail price for any extensions that are needed. After all, we’re the professionals and we know exactly what colour, length and type is best. I personally LOVE Amazing Hair Australia. Tell them I recommended you and they’ll look after you!
· Not being honest about the fact that some looks just take longer to create. If you have a client with loads of hair wanting vintage waves, will this take you longer? HELL YES!
We also need to know when to stand back from your work and STOP!
If you’ve given yourself a timeframe, stick to it (within reason)! It’s so easy to keep fiddling, and my pet hate, adding more and more hairspray.
Have you ever noticed that when you stop, BREATH and stand back from your work, you can always see what needs to be tweaked?
Is your work balanced? Can you see ANY PINS? Are there flyaway hairs?
I can’t emphasise this point enough – SERIOUSLY. When you do this I promise you will turn your work from good to GREAT!
You also need to keep control of the wedding party. Make sure in your consultation time you make it clear that you need the WHOLE wedding party to have super clean, dry hair BEFORE you arrive.
Wedding parties are FUN and I personally love them, but WOW in the early days I had loads of nightmare stories: dirty hair, wet hair, Nana on the phone from overseas so I couldn’t start the hair for 45 minutes, bridesmaids in tears because they don’t want to wear the look the bride wants, Mum is late because she is BUSY, and so many more.
And if you’ve ever been confused on how to charge for your time and looking for online bridal hair courses then check out my NEW Build Your Business Planner!
Should I charge the same as the salon or stylist in my area? Exactly how much do you charge for bridal hair?
How about travel time and product, how do I factor that in? Do I charge for my time or my skill?
If you have ever asked this question (and seriously I have been asked these questions hundreds of times – you’re not the only one!) then you need to have a look at my NEW Build Your Business Planner.
It’s designed to work out what YOU should charge for a bride, bridesmaid, mother of the bride and flower girl. It will even help you work out how to charge for travel, how to factor in your skill level and you can even send your bride an invoice!
I have set a quick series of questions to help you determine what skill level you’re at in the industry and what you’re currently charging for your time. This helps us quickly determine the recommended minimum amount you should be charging to look after a bridal party!
Then it’s on to BUILDING your business! And like ALL businesses, it takes work and money to market your amazing services and continue your long hair styling training.
But how much should I spend on marketing and training?
Glad you asked! My program will guide you all the way and help you plan by giving you multiple recommended budgets based on your predicted income for the year!
But I’m not tech savvy! There is NO need to worry! I have made the planner SUPER EASY to use, and if you do have any questions please
Brisbane Hair & Beauty Expo really does have the most beautiful vibe!
We had a fantastic two days sharing our love of styling and demonstrating on our stand how our tools can help save time and make styling easier.
This year was a whole different education experience with all the education rooms being on the expo floor. Both our Look & Learn and Hands-On Workshop was a total SELL OUT!
I also had the pleasure of styling a wig for the team from Anniss&Barton’s live photoshoot workshop. The boys are fantastic photographers, and Charlotte Ravet’s makeup is flawless.
LOOK & LEARN
This was all about EASY LOOKS in 4 sections that you can create in 45 minutes or under.
Look 1 – Bubble Bun & Flowers
To create this look we used the Curve Comb and Bungee Tape to place the hair in a high ponytail. I then showed how to do the bubble braid technique which I turned and folded to make the bun shape. We’ve had so much fun with the bubble braid (click here to see the looks we created at Hair Expo in the Look & Learn Theatre)
Join me live on August 26th, or watch the recording, of our online class where I’ll teach you the bubble braid and 3 looks to use it with (plus a FREE copy of our new Build Your Business Planner valued at $49) OMG – this technique!
Lady Gaga’s hair stylist, Fredric Aspiras, popped a few hair flowers on Gaga at this year’s Met Gala and BOOM they are all over Pinterest and Insta again! I personally LOVE creating hair flowers.
So, I popped in a few that I made with Amazing Hair Australia wefts. I am always looking for a little something to stand your work out from the crowd.
Look 2 – Wave It and Roll It
Waves are always a favourite of mine, and the trick to getting them soft and sexy is all in the prep. I blow dried in UNITE ELEVATE Mousse using the Time Saver Brush to scratch up the hair. I then directionally set the hair and combed it out using the Curve Comb, BIGtail Comb and our extra-long wave clamps.
To control the base I used a secret scalp braid as a pin cushion, and held it all together with Bungee Tape before securing with a Kingpin.
Look 3 – The Kimono Chignon
This is one of the most in demand up-styles!
I pulled looks from Pinterest and broke them down using my Jigsaw Puzzle Theory.
The tools I needed were Time Saver Brush, BIGtail Comb, Secret Bands, Kingpins, bobby pins and my home made Loop De loop (a good old wire coat hanger and electrical tape to make a really sturdy topsy tail) It’s the bomb!
If you would like a copy of the step by step head sheets feel free to email me and I will gladly send them – [email protected]
Back stage team
Kyleen Phillips
Carmen Rodgers
Aimee Goleman
Teyanah Popik
Our beautiful models
Katie Jane Sharp
Sophia HarrisBrooke Caple
Amazing Designer
Claudia Williams – @werable_art_by_llanicreative_
Makeup
The incredible students from Brisbane School of Hairdressing
WORKSHOP
After lunch we had 20 students return for a Hands-On Workshop to put the looks together. It was two hours of pure styling fun!
Photos Courtesy of Bethany Rabl (Becky B Hair)
The real learning really does happen when you put your hands in the hair. I LOVED the concept of having the Look & Learn, and then returning to play later that day.
Monday
Our Main Stage show was a blast!
I invited three of my former students to do one look each, showcase their styling skills and talk about how they had used what they learned in my Master Class.
This still give me goosebumps! As an educator for special occasion hair education, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing students flourish. Great work!
Sandi O’Neill
Ash O’Neill
Elizabeth Neal
Back stage team
Kyleen Phillips
Carmen Rodgers
Aimee Goleman
Our beautiful models
Katie Jane Sharp
Sophia Harris
Allira Ashwell
Amazing Designer
Matcho Suba The Label
Makeup
The incredible students from Brisbane School of Hairdressing
The Queen’s Birthday long weekend really is a festival of HAIR! And we had a ball sharing our LOVE for everything styling.
I had the pleasure of comparing the Main Stage during Hair Expo Sydney. It was so great to watch all the fantastic talent backstage before each show. Then it was back to what I love the most: STYLING! At the Amazing Hair Australia Stage, showcasing their incredible extensions, I created a Kimino Chignon.
It’s such a popular look at the moment, so I wanted to break it down and show how easy it is for you to create this look with the help of clip-in extensions and my NEW Kingpin. A HUGE thanks to the people from KELA for supplying the beautiful pearls that draped this look. It’s such a popular look at the moment, so I wanted to break it down and show how easy it is for you to create this look with the help of clip-in extensions and my NEW Kingpin. A HUGE thanks to the people from KELA for supplying the beautiful pearls that draped this look.
SUNDAY
THE SECRET FORMULA TO BUILDING A LUCRATIVE BRIDAL BUSINESS.
It’s very unusual for me to arrive at a presentation with no models and only my laptop in hand!
Over the past few years you may have learned about
my formula on how to charge for Bridal Hair.
I decided to take this idea further during the Hair Expo Sydney, and with the help of a great friend of ours – Matt Bebe – turned it into an easy to use business program for hair stylists and makeup artists.
This was a great way to launch my NEW business planner!
The Build Your Business Planner can help you determine – in just a few questions – what styling level you’re currently working at. It then offers you advice on how to grow to the next level, or maintain your skill set.
The next stage guides you to work out exactly how much you should be charging, personally, for a Bride, Bridesmaid, Flower Girl & Mother of the Bride. We even help you work out your travel costs.
The planner then moves into budgeting and planning for education and marketing. Finally, we help you map your projected and actual earnings for the future – including an invoice template.
It was so exciting to finally launch our planner and what better way to do it than as part of the Business Program at Hair Expo!
We started the day on the Main Stage with Brad Ngata showcasing the GlamPalm hot tool range.
The 2 looks I shared were both from this year’s EVOLVE collection.
Makeup – Mariella Minniti
Designer – Adela Zemanova
Models – Kimbery Mclaughlan & Alana Quartly
Hair Extensions – Amazing Hair
Styling Products used – UNITE Elevate Mouse, UNITE Texturiza spray, UNITE U Argan Oil, UNITE GO365 spray
Now, onto one of the highlights, of not just the weekend, but of my education career:
Since February I’ve been making the road trip down
to Gippsland TAFE to mentor 6 apprentice hairdressers for Gen Next.
None of the students had ever been to Hair Expo or
even seen a hair show before. Our first meeting was sharing the storyboard
created by the AMAZING, talented Claudia Williams. She created a brief for the
garments she would design especially for the show.
From this storyboard we then started our own secret Pinterest board, and started to brain storm! We quickly recognised our theme was LIVING DOLLS (still gives me goose bumps). On my next visit I had a whole box of human hair wigs from Amazing Hair Australia (of course) and a box of styling products from UNITE. We
workshopped how to prep and work with the wigs; we also had to make sure the
looks were all different shapes.
Over the next few visits there was a mix of
excitement and nerves. I don’t know about you, but I think nerves are good
because it means we really care about what we’re doing! The students each
worked with a Gippsland TAFE teacher and worked many hours in-between my
visits.
Now let’s talk about the makeup – AGAIN the work of
Gippsland TAFE students led by their teacher. Their work blew me
away! They stayed to brief – and on the day, to time too!The models and show production was all the work of
the wonderful Sally Clark.
WOW – Sally really brought our show to life. The
models were all ballerinas, and with just a few rehearsals NAILED
IT! Thanks Sally, you are amazing! Before the show we did a full photo shoot of every
look with photographer Jason Lau
Now its show time – OMG the energy in the prep room was electric!!!
MONDAY
Look & Learn Theatre – From the Camera to the Salon – with Jason Lau
This is personally my favourite stage to showcase my work, as we have a whole hour with the audience.
We had 3 pre-done models that we shared in a live photo shoot. We also went though our HOT TIPS on creating your own salon collection. At the end of the session we shared all the class notes straight to the attendees Messenger. If you would like a copy of the notes click the link below and comment ‘camera’ in the comments.
Styling Stage – Deconstruct/ Reconstruct
This was a perfect way to end our Hair Expo Sydney presentations, showing how the 3 finished looks were created for the Live Shoot. I am totally in Love with the Bushels Braid at the moment and showed the audience how I created it.
Thanks to everyone who joined our Facebook live on preparation!
If you missed itWATCH NOWalong with the show notes for my prepping hair secrets unlocked.
These were the KEY POINTS:
Consultation with your client before she arrives is so important!
WHY?
Because the best hair secrets unlocked pre starts with shampoo, conditioner, Argan Oil & styling product.
You’ll also notice on my consultation form, there is a head sheet. I use this to educate my client on exactly how to shampoo their hair and not miss the HOT SPOTS a lot of people leave oily – the crown and nape.
I love and recommend the following products by UNITE
7 seconds shampoo & conditioner (sulphate, paragon and sodium chloride FREE)
So it’s not heavy on the hair, but leaves the hair feeling healthy, shiny and silky!
Add in a second layer of styling product. Don’t be shy with the amount of product you use! It’s better to have the hold prior to dressing, so that way your hairspray is only for finish.
Prep the root area with the htz Hot Teaze! It’s the best root volumiser I have ever You don’t even have to section the hair – there’s a dial you set to exactly how thick you want your sections. Soooo easy and quick!!!
Use a heat glove with your tong so you can smooth all the little ends, and also feel it when you heat the hair all the way through. I use the GlamPalm Magic Wand. It comes with a glove!
Always pin curl your curls until cool.
Glass clean finish
Another thing for my hair prepping secrets even during special occasion hair education would be to blow dry the hair with the brush on top of the section, and not your traditional blow dry with the brush under the section. I use my Timesaver Brush so I can take wide sections and get more tension to ensure I get a glass finish.
Texture
Take the time to do a good blow dry before you add your texture set. This will ensure you still have shine in the hair. Remember, there is a difference between messy and messy.
I suggest to print them out, hold a team training session and pop the handout on the salon notice board.
PREPARATION
SECTIONING
PLASTIC SLEEVE
WAVE CLAMP & TAIL OF THE COMB
SECRET PIN
TIP 1. PREPARATION
This truly is your golden moment and special occasion hair education to ensure your waves have hold.
If you like your client to arrive with clean dry hair, make sure you recommend what and how they need to shampoo & condition with – we have all experienced a client who turned up with oily limp hair and expects miracles 😂
It’s also important you recommend what products you would like in the hair from wet to dry.
– Ok your turn – on dry hair apply a second layer of product and blow dry in 4 – 5 sections using our Timesaver Brush – use the Curve comb around the hairline if needed.
TIP 2. SECTIONING
Refer to the head sheet
Divide the sections into two channels
Using a Glampalm Magic wand (I love the size of this barrel it’s 25mm and just seems to be a perfect size barrel for 99% of my work, oh and the hair always feels amazing because of the healing stone finish.
Set all of channel 1 forward, on base for maximum volume
Set all of channel 2 backward, on base.
Allow to cool
TIP 3. PLASTIC SLEEVE
Pin on a plastic sleeve under the set section, This is the easiest way I have found to be able to comb the waves into place without catching the back of the hair.
TIP 4. WAVE CLAMP & TAIL OF COMB
Using a curve comb and wave clamps secure the waves.
Use the Bigtail comb on each clamp to lift the clamp and push the hair up for a sharper wave
Secure the back section of the hair into a side pony using the ammmmmazing Bungee tape – To use the tape peel only a little corner of the hair and pop the tape under your finger, then simply wrap around removing the out side plastic.
Rouche out with the help of our Bigtail comb
Twist the hair and form your shape at the nape – secure with our all NEW Kingpins
TIP 5. SECRET PIN
Take out the wave clamps one at a time and using mini size bobby pins turn on there side and slip in the troughs of the waves to hold.
This was the 4th year that we’ve both educated and exhibited at Brisbane Hair & Beauty Expo and it’s been so great to see it grow to be such a great event. The exhibition floor was abuzz with a mix of education and live competitions – with over 500 competitors! It was such a pleasure to judge both the Vintage Bride and the Avant-garde sections. Congratulations to all the competitors and winners.
Traditional Up-styling
1st-Carmen Rogers-Art Hair studio
2nd-Debbie Schwenderling – Applebom beauty, hair and well being
3rd-Bryce Edwards-Fusion Hair & body
Avant Garde Up-styling
1st – Piere Taylor-Epic Hair designs
2nd – Luci Monaghan-Dimattia & co
3rd – Kim Astropalitis-Chroma Hair studio
So what did we get up to?
Sunday on the main stage we presented 3 of the looks from our Corde Collection. It was so exciting to showcase how our unique tools help to make styling easier and more efficient. Each look was prepped with our Timesaver Brush and we showed how our NEW BIGtail Comb works.
The soon to be released Kingpin is a total game-changer when it comes to holding long, thick hair and let’s not forget Bungee Tape – the NEW way to secure your pony tails with a seamless finish.
Chatting with visitors at our stand after the show is always a highlight for our team, and one of the comments we were over the moon to receive was:
“I love visiting your stand because you always have something new and exciting to use”
And to be honest, that’s our goal for every expo and every class: bring something new to keep both us and our students excited and up to date.
My models were dressed by Corde Macrame and the makeup was beautifully done by the students from The Brisbane School Of Beauty.
On Sunday afternoon it was an honour to share the stage with Brad Ngata in our “Runway To Reality” session. Brad showcased 3 amazing runway editorial looks with plenty of glitter and shimmer.
During the session I also presented 3 looks including loads of techniques to take back to the salon.
My models were dressed by Gabrielle Stephens from Collecting Pretty Boys, jewellery was from Jeannette Maree & make up for the Expo by The Brisbane School Of Beauty.
On Monday it was so great to see, among other visitors, bus loads of students! The future of our industry.
We showcased more looks from our Corde Collection.
Every minute the expo was open we educated stylists and makeup artists, showing them how easy our unique tools can make their long hair styling.
Our educators Kyleen Phillips and Aimee Golman were on fire. Lets not forget the child labour, with our daughter Holly at the stand who wore her high pony with Bungee Tape so well. If you have ever called our office you highly likely would have talked to Russell and he really enjoyed talking to you all too.
Hair Expo 2018 is held in Melbourne every second year and is an electric hub for hairdressers to visit for all over Australia & NZ.
Over the weekend we held 7 shows: 2 main stage, 3 styling stage, 1 Look & Learn Theatre show and 1 show on the Amazing Hair Australia stand. Putting these events on can never happen alone and every year I’m thrilled with the energy, support and love we have from our Back Stage Team, makeup artists, designers and of course the management team from Hair Expo.
Our aim over the hair expo weekend was to educate and inspire stylists and help them realise that styling doesn’t have to be difficult or complicated. We also showcased our styling tools that are all designed to make styling easier and faster. We also showcased our soon to be released KING PIN and we are soooooo happy to say our famous TIME SAVER BRUSH was such a huge hit we sold a brush every 4 minutes on the Sunday.
Main Stage – It was such a pleasure to work on the Main Stage for Amazing Hair Australia with international stylist Adil Jacques and winner of SA/TAS Hairdresser of the Year Sam James showcasing the best quality hair extensions by Amazing Hair Australia.
SUNDAY
Look & Learn Theatre – presenting my top 4 Modern Brides looks for 2018
Styling Stage – Inspired by the Met Gala in NYC
Styling Stage – How to get the best out of Hair Extensions from Amazing Hair Australia: international artist Adil Jaques & Lorna Evans
MONDAY
Styling Stage – Fast Easy commercial looks
Amazing Hair Australia Stand – Working with The Amazing Secret and stitching
I was also over the moon to be a judge at the 2018 Bride live competition. A HUGE congratulations to winner Tiarne Klimish from Chumba Salon and well done to Michelle Anthony for organising such a fantastic event. Tiarne will join me in Melbourne for my 3 Day Modern Brides class as well as enjoying our Time Saver Brush and NEW BIGtail & Curve Comb set – the styling trifecta.
Over the whole weekend of the hair expo my talented and beautiful educators Amber White, Kyleen Phillips & Bev Roberts showed how to create looks with our tools. It was such a fantastic buzz every minute of the weekend. We are a family business and it was amazing to have my husband Russell and both my daughters Kaitlyn & Holly to help.
Please make sure you check out all our designers that we had dress our models – seriously, they were just magnificent.
We’ve just come back from Beauty World Middle East in Dubai! It was the first international expo I’ve attended with my team and it was an amazing experience. Unlike Australian Expos there was a mix of hairdressers, makeup artists and distributors. Beauty World ME had over 1,700 exhibitors from 62 countries! Needless to say, it was a huge 3 days!I’m so proud to be an ambassador for Amazing Hair Australia and it was the beautiful Ariana who encouraged us to exhibit at Beauty World ME. I’d like to give both Ariana and her team a huge shout out and thank them for all their support – it was so fun having you there!
The most exciting thing for us about Beauty World ME was the launch of our soon to be released Kingpin and WOW – we were over the moon with the response we received. I started working on the concept of the new pin over 2 years ago and I’m thrilled to say we’re only a few weeks off being able to release it to the public so you can get this amazing pin in your hands.
Our aim in 2018 is to make your long hair styling even more efficient and professional – creating innovative products is just one way we help stylists like you achieve this. This year we’re making it even easier for you to access these products with a yet to be announced distributor for Australia and around the globe.
Long hair styling has been a passion of mine since I was in the first year of my apprenticeship over 34 years ago. It’s such a great feeling to find common styling problems and help to solve them by developing new tools that save you time and make your finished looks more polished.
Keep an eye out for Kingpin updates because this is a product you’ll definitely need in your kit!
In the mean time check out our store for products that will make your long hair styling faster and more professional from the Timesaver Brush to our latest BIGtail Comb.
Have you ever asked another stylist, “how much do you charge for special occasion & bridal long hair styling?”
If I had a dollar for every time I’ve been asked this question especially during online bridal hair courses, I would never have to work again! Ha – only kidding, how boring would that be!
You may not know this, but I have been a salon owner for over 23 years. At one stage we had 3 salons in very different locations: one in a boutique area on the Mornington Peninsula, one in a Myer store and one in a small shopping centre in Carrum Downs (mid-lower end market).
So when it came to pricing there were so many different factors to consider such as rent, cost of products, etc.
One day I sat down and worked out what we were going to charge for our styling by developing a formula that works around how much each salon charged for a haircut & blow dry. Here it is:
Salon A charges $85.00 for a cut & blow dry. They take 45min for the service.
$85.00 divided by 60 is $1.88 per minute.
For long hair styling, most stylists want a 60min service:
$1.88 x 60 = $112.80.
Over the past 17 years I’ve had the pleasure of educating some very, very talented hairdressers who are renowned for their cutting & colour skills. But they were terrified of looking after a bride! I came to the conclusion that styling is an extremely specialised area, and should be charged accordingly. Think about all the extra practice stylists need to be both confident and competent. Haircut & colour clients come into our salons every day so we have so many more opportunities to practice our skills and techniques on a daily basis. When it comes to styling you need be dedication to bring in a model or pull out a long hair doll in your own time.
That’s when I worked out my formula:
If Salon A is charging $112.80 for a 60min appointment, we add on an extra 30% for long hair styling. This equals $146.64, round this off to $146.00 and you have your price!
What if you’re a very confident and fast stylist, so you only need 45min?
My best advice in this situation is: charge for your skill, not your time. If you’ve learned and practiced so much that you can create the perfect waves that will last all night, finger waves that don’t droop, smooth chignons, sexy stitched up curls and fashion week ponytails – then you’re worth every cent!
I hope this helps you answer the million dollar question – how much to you charge for long hair styling?
Our world is full of beautiful looks. You’ll find stunning long hair styling created by talented stylists on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, Google and in every corner of the internet. But let’s face it, even the best stylists in the world sometimes create looks that just don’t look great and this can lead them to lose a little – or a lot – of confidence in their ability to do their job well.
If anyone ever tells you their work is HOT all the time, they’re lying (harsh, I know!)
Today I’m going to talk about what to do when styling goes wrong and share with you some tips I’ve personally found have helped me recover in situations like this.
Stay calm! Remember, you’re styling hair not curing cancer. Have you ever noticed the more flustered you get, the worse the look will be? Concentrate on your breathing, and keep communication open with your client at all times.
This tip is probably one of my biggest lessons I teach in my class. If you have pinned, pony tailed, stitched or placed a section of hair and
a) It didn’t work as well as you hoped or
b) Requires loads more pins to fix what you have doneDo yourself a favour – TAKE THE SECTION OUT and start again!
This sounds simple, but it took me years to feel confident enough to redo a section because I was worried my client would think, “she can’t do it – my stylist is in trouble!”
GET OVER YOURSELF (sounds harsh, but I had to give myself this pep talk).
It will both be quicker and look better if you take it out out and redo – I PROMISE. Your client won’t mind, all you need to say is “I’m just not 100% happy with how this section is sitting. It will take me less time to just redo it than try and fix it later.”
Now that wasn’t so hard was it?
Let’s chat about photo shoot work now. Many times I’ve spent hours and hours of prep time on a look that I want to shoot. It looks amazing on my doll but when it comes time to creating the look on my model it just does not work at all.
I needed to learn to NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR IDEAS! We’ve had many shoots where I’ve had to speak up and say to my photographer and styling crew, “sorry we need half an hour to redo this look because its just NOT WORKING.”
I also truly believe a good brief before you start prep is super important. It only takes 5 minutes and can set you up for a smooth and happy day together with your team. This was a hot tip I learned in my REDKEN days that has stayed with me for years. If something isn’t working, a good support team won’t just say “oh that looks nice”, a good support team will notice what’s not looking good and bring it to your attention. Nice means…
N – Not
I – Interested To
C – Care
E – Enough
If you set this rule in place before the madness of the day starts you will all be assured a successful day together.
Now you know what to do and what will work for you in the future, add it into your consultation process and team brief before you get started. That way clients know you’re only going to do what makes the hair look fantastic, not what makes you feel more comfortable.
I hope this bit of advice helps you in your world of styling and special occasion hair education – we are so blessed to have a career we love.
“ITS A BEAUTIFUL THING WHEN A CAREER AND PASSION COME TOGETHER”
So we launched our Back to Basics series on Monday and we want to give a huge THANK YOU to everyone who came along! It was so much fun and inspiring to see everyone live and learning. We always use live models who are dressed by the amazing Gabrielle from Collecting Pretty Boys and our makeup for the first two sessions was by the very talented Vanessa Harlem.
“Absolutely loved the first session & feeling so inspired” – Jane T
In our first session the looks we covered were a Glass Clean Chignon and the 3D Braid. We talked about the perfect preparation, what product to use and why – and of course which tools we need to take our long hair styling to the next level.
Here are some short highlights from our sessions.
One of the best things about our special occasion hair education is accessibility – you can watch live or in your own time. It’s so exciting to see students watching live and asking questions. And in our closed Facebook group there are always students asking questions and sharing work as they watch the sessions recorded in their own time.
In our next Back to Basics class we’ll be learning how to do the Perfect Pony Tail and Rope Braid & Chignon. If you want to join us and become part of our global community of stylists then click here to learn more about what you learn in our Back to Basics online education.
BACK TO BASICS SESSION 2
Session 2 of our Back to Basics online education aired on Tuesday – thanks to everyone who watched live! It’s so awesome seeing students asking questions and being engaged – interactive learning really is the best.
This time the looks we covered were the Perfect Pony Tail and Rope Braid & Chignon. These are really important looks for modern stylists to be able to create as they’re so popular when it comes to special occasion styling in 2018.
I love sharing my styling knowledge with students from around the world and seeing them share their work in our closed Facebook group. Without a doubt, after each session there’ll be students working hard on their own mannequins and sharing their work with us for feedback. It’s so inspiring to watch their skills and confidence improve ALREADY!
BACK TO BASICS SESSION 3
We had our third Back to Basics online education session on Wednesday! This was one of my favourites and a really important one because we covered Dutch Braid & Soft Bun and Red Carpet Waves.
Waves are becoming increasingly popular when it comes to special occasion styling so it’s crucial that hair stylists know how to create this look and do it well.
As always – seeing everyone live and asking questions was fantastic. I love connecting with my students, it makes the learning experience so much better. Check out what Domenica had to say about our Back to Basics course:
Thank you so much! I love these webinars and am learning so much from them. What means the most for me, is that they are engaging and I am retaining the info and that is always half my battle. Loving this! I am a sole operator of a skin clinic and just completed makeup artistry and wanting to add hair to my skill set and I couldn’t be happier with what I am learning! – Domenica C
It’s never to late to join Back to Basics – we’ve only got one more live session but we record every class so you can always access our educational content. And the closed Facebook group means you can connect with Lorna and other students no matter when you join us!
CLICK HERE to learn more about our Back to Basics online education today.