The new soccer mom

A large portion of our clientele here at Anita Kurl are Mom's just like me. Well, not exactly, but I have a unique insight into the world of Mom's hair. Almost every Mother comes into the salon at one time or another asking for a hairstyle that will not make her look "like a Mom"? When did it become a bad thing to look like a Mom? I know what these woman are afraid of looking old or out of date, but most of them don't. In the earlier days of my career, the bob was labeled "the soccer Mom look", which I learned was a very bad thing. What does that mean today, I wonder as I look around at the Mom's in my two year olds music class? The instructor has her wavy hair in a cute layered style reminiscent of a brunette Kate Hudson, the petite girl on my left has a trendy layered bob and me...well I spent so much time on my hair it is almost embarrassing, except that I am a hairstylist. The Mom's in the Boston area I meet are pretty hip, I think the only improvement needed is a better blow dry or a different hair product. On the other hand if you are asking for "chunky highlights" or you have the same hairstyle you had in your high school year book picture please come in for a consultation!

The only acceptable mustache

Facial hair or "face salad" as Derek here at Anita Kurl calls it, has been a hot topic at the salon this week. Derek, it seems is channeling his inner Tom Seleck and growing his own. A few weeks ago The Boston Globe's Wesley Morris wrote a hilarious story entitled, "Who took my 'stash?, The sad and curious exile of the American mustache."In it he says, "For most of the 20th century, the mustache was a serious option for follicular self-expression - an elastic emblem of masculinity", but now "As far as pop culture is concerned, the mustache remains trapped in the land of porn and irony." For the first week of Derek's mustache I had a difficult time making eye contact with him with out bursting into laughter, but if he continues to listen to Kelly's words of encouragement he should be in full bloom and ready for viewing by this weekend!

Am I the only one that thinks this is pretty?

Most people will remember this years VMA"S for a different reason, but hairdressers across the country noticed this beautiful "etch a sketch" hair do. This is one of the moments I wish I had a more diverse clientele and could draw designs on my clients scalps. I imagine this same look would probably look creepy on someone with a pale scalp, but if anyone out there wants to give it a try, I am the girl!

Another idea for the long haired gals

Someone told me to check out Carmen Electra's new look and I discovered a model named Alice Dellal (on the right) who may have inspired her new hairstyle. I guess it is a way to combine the femininity of long hair with the edginess of a punk look. What it reminds me of was the time my friend Amy, Marie and I skipped school junior year and did the same thing to the back of our heads. Our goal was to go school with our hair down so our parents wouldn't notice, but once at school put our hair up in a ponytail. We wanted to freak out the nuns and impress the girls who were more concerned with 80's style big hair with what rebels we were. So I guess it is a similar objective, and another idea for those long hair girls who have run out of new ideas on how to change up there look!

Urban Dictionary definitions

Check out these hilarious hair style definitions I found on Urban Dictionary.com:

Mufro:

Is a hairstyle that is a combination of an afro and a mullet.

I.G.U hairstyle:

Is a short mannish hairstyle that is typically worn by middle aged woman. By adopting this hairstyle a woman sends a clear message that "I give Up" on trying to look either stylish or attractive.

Faux Horn:

Is a hairstyle that occurs when a Faux Hawk goes wrong, and instead of imitating a mohawk, it ends up more reminiscent of a horn, giving the wearer the appearance of a unicorn.

What is a good tip nowadays?

It is a topic which can make both customers and stylists uncomfortable, but I will attempt to share our feelings on the subject here at Anita Kurl. The short answer to this question is that you should tip the same way you would in a restaurant, 15 to 20% depending on the quality of your service. We would like to say that we don't expect it...but, well that's not true. We depend on tips as a part of our income, and we set our prices with that in mind. It is however, important that we make you happy, and a good tip lets us know if we are doing a good job. We have a tremendous amount of pride in our work, and hair styling can be very creative and personal work. In in a perfect world we would be getting 20% tips from all of our clients and leave each day feeling like we did good work that made us both happy.

Eyebrow Bleaching, Really?

My friend Jen sent me an article written by William Van Meter from the NY Times, that recommends we, "Forget shaping and plucking. The newest trend in eyebrows is to get rid of them altogether, either by bleaching them into oblivion or by shaving them off." Well, I wrote this whole article off as a trend that would live and die in the pages of high fashion until I watched the season premier of America's Next Top Model. Tyra Banks apparently loves this trend because she had three of the contestants bleach their eyebrows during their makeovers. I can't imagine this look crossing over into mainstream culture, but for those of you who keep asking us for a totally new look but without trimming more than an eighth of an inch and with no layers, maybe this trend is for you?