To Listen and "Make it So"

I went with my daughter, Alicia, and her family to get haircuts yesterday. My granddaughters are four and six years old and sometimes I tag along to make sure the girls don’t get into any trouble while their mom is getting her hair trimmed.

Also, the cosmetology school where we go, International Academy of Hair Design,

www.beautyschoolrocks.com is one of my public relations clients. I like to visit the school and talk to the students, instructors and customers to see what interesting developments are taking place. Also, the school is located at Fiesta Mall in Mesa, AZ. Right below the school is an indoor playground. This is a favorite spot for the girls to play – especially in the summer time when it is too hot for outdoor fun.

My oldest granddaughter, Rosannah, has long hair. It grows quickly, but occasionally she experiences the typical childhood hair disaster - gum in her goldie locks or a misguided attempt at playing hair stylist without a license. Fortunately, she enjoys going to the award-winning beauty school and often asks me about the staff and students there. She was recently a model for the school when the producer from KPNX asked for a segment on “Creating Princess Hair.” Now Rosannah feels like she is “one of the girls.”

Rosannah is kind and observant. She is generous with her compliments and is the first to notice when I sport a new manicure or pedicure. Due to her love of beauty embellishments I have become a little more adventurous in my taste. Rather than go the traditional route (pinkish polish or French tips) I have the cosmetology students at IAHD add glittery pizzaz to my nails. My only question is why did I wait so long? Life is too short to deny myself some sparkle.

Unfortunately, Briannah, my younger granddaughter, is more skeptical of the whole beauty process. Her hair grows more slowly than her sister’s. She didn’t even need a haircut until this year. When it became necessary to have a hair cut (and not just a little bang trim) she wasn’t too thrilled about the prospect. She suggested skipping the ordeal and spending extra time in the kid’s play area instead. On one occasion she vehemently refused to cooperate. Rather than take a risk, the instructor suggested we not force the issue.

However, this time our trip to the school manifested different results. Briannah was not only willing to get her hair styled and trimmed, she was okay with getting her hair shampooed as well.

Mother and daughters lined up at the shampoo bowls for hair cleansing and a scalp massage.

This got me to wondering, “Why is it women and girls enjoy going to the hair stylist?” Of course there is the obvious, to look better. This is no small thing. When we look better, we feel better. When we feel better we smile more and interact more sociably with those we meet. It creates a happy, harmonious cycle.

But it goes deeper. A good hair stylist (or cosmetology student) listens. Really listens. They pay attention to your vision of how you want to look and they do their best to make your beauty dream a reality.

My 4-year-old grandchild is a case in point.Briannah is a chatty little girl. Her cosmetology student stylist, Rosalinda, asked her preschool patron about her life. I didn’t hear the whole conversation, but as I observed from across the room I could see my youngest granddaughter enthralled in a gabfest. I’m sure she told Rosalinda about her Christmas presents, pets and even preschool. As Briannah talked, I could see Rosalinda smile and listen attentively. I’m sure the cosmetology student complimented my favorite four-year-old on her hair and beauty.

Briannah may only be four years old, but she was experiencing something so many of us crave – to be truly listened to. The preschooler came in for a new style, but she came out with more. A true test was in the final product. In addition to the haircut, Briannah had asked for a braid. The child’s hair isn’t long enough for a traditional braid, so Rosalinda created a halo-like braid around the back of Briannah’s head. This was not Alicia’s vision for her daughter (although she wasn’t opposed to the idea) it was Briannah’s idea. Rosalinda listened and like Captain Jean Luc Picard from Star Trek, the Next Generation, she demonstrated she could “make it so” and did. Needless to say, Briannah was absolutely thrilled with the results.

When everyone was coiffed and styled

(including daddy Greg)

the family went to a rock and mineral show at nearby Mesa Community College. I could see both of my grandchildren were satisfied with their new “look” and felt more confident. When they approached one of the rock booths they chatted up one of the vendors. I’m sure the cute little girls were a welcome sight compared to the old codgers like me who generally attend these events. Before we walked away the vendor gave each girl a free baggy full of rocks and explained what each one was.

“I go to preschool and these will be great for show and tell,” Briannah exclaimed.

Her enthusiasm earned her and her sister a couple additional stones. Later, Briannah would tell me that these rocks would be part of her “collection.” Although I can’t prove it, I think Briannah’s trip to International Academy of Hair Design in Fiesta Mall, increased her self esteem. Rosalinda treated her with respect and kindness (as did Digna who took care of Rosannah’s needs) and the cosmetology students who were assigned to Alicia and Greg. Together all of the future cosmetologists created a warm and caring atmosphere, and my daughter’s family was satisfied with the experience.

However, a visit to a cosmetology school may not be for everyone. One drawback (although it can also be perceived as an advantage depending on your perspective) is the cosmetology students take their time. Speed will come with experience, but while they are learning their trade they are motivated by quality, not quantity. That said, they do not operate in a vacuum. All students perform under the supervision of a licensed instructor to ensure quality and safety.

Something I gleaned from my experience was about mutual goals. Customers come in for a service. Whether it’s a trim, hair extension, relaxer, permanent wave, color or nail service, each person has a mental image of how they want to look. The cosmetology student also has a goal and vision. He or she wants to complete their education and launch into a satisfying career where they help people look and feel great. When you combine these dual purposes you have a bonding experience where everyone’s beauty-related wishes can come true. How awesome is that?

So what’s the take-away on this story? It’s not about our hair, it’s about our ears. If we can focus on talking less and learning to listen with an open mind and heart, there is no limit to the beauty we can create in our lives.

IAHD and its sister schools in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Florida are offering 40% off all relaxer services and 50% off all perm services now through Feb. 28, 2014. Prospective cosmetology students can visit www.beautyschoolrocks.com or call and make an appointment with the school’s admissions director.

Mesa Fiesta Mall – 480-820-9422
Mill Avenue in Tempe – 480-964-8675
Metro Center Mall in Phoenix – 602-944-0001
Desert Sky Mall in West Phoenix – 623-846-4000

Green Hair and Peeing on the Tidy Bowl Man

I remember the first time I saw someone with green hair. This was decades before punk rock, spikey hair and cell phones. It was the summer of 1968 and I was swimming at Kino Junior High School’s pool in Mesa, Arizona.

It was summertime and this brand new, Olympic-size pool was the city’s newest gem. I spied an athletic, female lifeguard. It seemed she was supposed to have blond hair, but her short, golden locks had a serious shade of emerald running through it.

I rubbed my eyes and looked again. I saw a couple other young men and women with jade-infused tresses.

“They can’t be doing that on purpose,” I thought to myself. “Was this part of a sorority or fraternity prank?”

I didn’t think too much about it until school started in the fall. Low and behold, one of the P.E. teachers, Miss Driscoll, had limey locks as well. I asked one of my friends (either brainy Beverly Berres or well-informed Janet Loughrey) and they set me straight. If you bleach your hair and swim a lot in a chlorinated pool it turns your hair green.

Who knew? I was saavy enough to acknowledge that if one urinated in a toilet with Tidy Bowl in it the water would turn green. My friend, Michele Fitzgerald's mom used Tidy Bowl in their commode. After I used their facilities I would exit and sing, "I turned the water green."

Why I felt I needed to sing this little ditty every time I peed on the Tidy Bowl Man, I'm not sure, but it became a tradition I kept up for years. It was much like my odd habit of donning an ugly curler cap even when my hair wasn't in rollers.

But I digress.

Decades have passed since that hot summer day at the pool, but apparently hair color catastrophes continue to be an unwanted experience by thousands of unsuspecting men and women each day.

Consider these true stories of wayward color gone bad.

• A young woman tried to color her hair and didn’t realize until it was too late that she missed a huge spot in the back that was obvious to everyone at the gym when she put her hair back in a ponytail.
• A truck driver let his new girlfriend color his hair but left the color on too long (they were drinking wine and having fun) and an hour later his hair was bright orange. Nothing to do but let it grow out for three weeks and keep on trucking.
• A minister wanted to appear more youthful and let his wife color his white hair. Even prayer didn’t help when his locks turned green.
• Linda Cobb, aka the Queen of Clean and author of numerous books on cleaning says the only safe place to color your own hair is in the backyard. Before focusing on the money you might save by forgoing the salon, consider the value and time of replacing your clothes, bathroom wallpaper and rugs, as well as the time spent scrubbing your sink and skin.

One of favorite clients owns cosmetology schools in Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Florida and Texas. I’ve learned a lot about hair while promoting their hair products and beauty schools. Apparently providing hair coloring services is a big chunk of a stylist’s business. Now that my brunette hair is turning grey, I understand why folks would want to use any methods to turn back the clock and restore their locks to their natural color, or experiment with other hues. However, it seemed there were only two alternatives.

1. Pay a bunch of money and have a professional stylist take care of the situation.
2. Buy a box of color and take a chance you won’t make a mess of things.

However, there is a third alternative. International Academy of Hair Design in Mesa, Tempe, Phoenix and West Phoenix is offering a 50% off discount on all color services at their award-winning cosmetology schools. The regular price of color services begin at $24 (long hair is extra.) and the special takes place Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday through Aug. 31. The same deal applies to ITS Academy of Beauty in Texas and Oklahoma, Olympian University in New Mexico and Hair Benders Academy in Florida.

All the locations, phone numbers, as well as information about services and student enrollment can be found at www.BeautySchoolRocks.com.

Looking back at my childhood memories of swimming and playing in the sun brings a smile to my face. So does the thought of my naiveté regarding chlorine and green hair. I think it’s great that we have so many options available to us for hair color.

However, if you want a change in color and style and don’t want to take a chance of a chromatic catastrophe, why not check out what services (or even career options) are available to you at Beauty School Rocks?

That said, I’d like to close with a quote from Frank Gelett .

“I never saw a purple cow; I never hope to see one; but I can tell you, anyhow, I'd rather see than be one.”

Who Says You Can't Have Your Cake and Eat it Too?

Cosmetology students at Olympian University, 4501 N. Main St. in Roswell proved you can “have your cake and win it two, three times and more” when the school brought home the 2nd and 3rd place awards at a recent Educational Forum in Fort Worth, Texas.
Sweet Surprise was the theme for the second place winning entry and Queen of the Wild captured third place, both in the team category.

Cosmetology students Maritza Perez, Deja Riddle, Daniela Loya and model Heather Satterfield (also an Olympian University student) had 55 minutes in the arena to construct the hair and make up for their entry.



Satterfield, clad in a zebra-colored outfit, appeared to spring from a festively decorated three-layer birthday cake. But the crowning glory was in the model’s neon-colored tresses. Perez, Riddle and Loya fashioned gift boxes, party favors and other celebratory objects and covered them in hair so they appeared to be a part of the model’s tresses.

The third place entry featured a Queen of the Wild theme that incorporated elements from Aztec and Voodoo cultures in bewitching earth tones. Jessie Cadena, Crystal Gage and Debbie Lara also used body paint to design bones and other fetish designs on Yasmin Estrada’s exotic headdress.

Lara also competed in the bridal mannequin competition and placed fifth. Her entry featured an elegant and clean updo accompanied by soft and sophisticated makeup that would be the envy of today’s stylish brides.
“All of our students did an excellent job and demonstrated they could not only create an awesome project, but that they could be graceful under pressure,” said Kristi Eaton, an instructor at Olympian University who helped oversee the students at the Education Forum. “Our school in Roswell has a reputation for winning big at the Forum and we are proud of all of them.”

The contestants in all the competitions, three-person team, fantasy hair and bridal hair, were encouraged to pull out the stops on their themed entry and create a project that would wow the judges, spectators and fellow students. Each entry was judged based on creativity, originality, innovation, color and theme.

The three-person team category was performed on a live model and included a larger backdrop. The fantasy hair and bridal hair categories were performed on a mannequin. Another challenge of the three-person team event is the students must work cooperatively as a team.

Olympian University in Roswell is a cosmetology school that provides students with a distinguished environment that mirrors many of the upscale salons that will employ the students after they graduate and earn their cosmetology license.
For more information visit www.olympianuniversity.com or call the Roswell school at 575-623-6331.