This past week, we hosted a color education class with Salvatore from John Paul Mitchell Systems who formally introduced us to Paul Mitchell's latest - Color Craft. What is it? It's pretty awesome, that's what it is.

In a nutshell, Color Craft is a conditioner that you take home, or as a treatment at Yaffa Beauty by Rica, that can refresh your color, and give your permanent, demi-permanent, semi-permanent, and fashion colors some additional longevity and longer-lasting vibrancy. It's not going to completely alter your color, but what it will do is buy you some time in between color services, and keep your regrowth blended from shampoo to shampoo. It can also enhance your color, keeping warm tones cool, and giving cooler tones added warmth - whatever you like. And it is completely customized by me, your trusty hairstylist.

The day started with a trip to Danbury, CT to Rica's alma mater, The Paul Mitchell School of Danbury. Ashli Albert, one of Rica's instructors, was aware of her efforts to provide support, care and services to the cancer community, and invited her to speak at Tuesday's "Pow Wow," or morning gathering, in advance of their participation in Cancer Survivor Beauty & Support Day on campus (taking place on Thursday, 6/8). All the Future Professionals gathered as Rica told them her story - from a corporate project manager, with no real health concerns, to a cancer-fighting bad-ass to her current status as a salon owner. Moved and inspired, Future Professionals took time after the morning meeting to let Rica know that her words motivated them further to take extra time and care on Thursday, and hopefully, for the rest of their career.

After, Rica jumped back into the swing of things, providing complimentary makeup, hair and nail services to cancer warriors. In between, Rica had a returning customer, this time bringing her lovely daughter, for a haircut. At the end of the appointment, her customer handed Rica a box - a wig. She had purchased the wig for her own use, but decided she wouldn't use it, but she remembered Rica's own fight with cancer, and that she provided support to others in the fight. One lucky recipient will get a beautiful, human hair wig, that will be custom fitted for them, thanks to Rica's generous client.

Supporting the cancer community doesn't end today. It continues. Through Rica's program, Beauty Through Cancer, she hopes to train dozens, if not hundreds, salon professionals to be able to give care and support to clients and fighters across the country. If you know of anyone who might be interested in training, please let us know. Fight on and LIVESTRONG.

Finally! The winter that never ended is over! I know, it's been spring for a couple of months, but it's starting to feel like spring, isn't it? And, with Memorial Day only a couple of weeks away, we can finally come out of hibernation and enjoy the sun.

So how do we keep our hair healthy and beautiful during summer?

1. Come in and get a haircut! This winter and early spring, I found a lot of my clients just didn't want to go outside. As a result, they skipped a trim or two. Because the weather was so dry and cold, and changed in temperature so drastically, many of my clients have been complaining that they are experienced more breaking than usual. Remember: Split and broken ends are like a run in a stocking. If you leave it alone, the more damage. In the case of broken ends, the split will continue up the hair shaft, and even though you think the damage is isolated to the ends, the split will run further and further up your hair strands. By trimming it regularly, especially during dry weather, you can eliminate the danger of a broken end to split more and more hair.
   
   Sun, salt water, chlorine and wind will cause damage to your hair, so your best combat damage from summer threats is to start summer off with the healthiest ends you can.
2. Paul Mitchell Tea Tree products. That's all that there is to say. Paul Mitchell Tea Tree products. First, Tea Tree is a natural antiseptic, so some of those little cuts and scratches you may experience will be kept clean. Second, insects tend not to like the smell of Tea Tree - including insects like ticks, a real hazard this summer per recent reports, and lice, a nuisance that can plague a family during camp season. Clients who have kids report that their kids tend to be the ones at sleep away camp and day care who do not get lice when they use one of Paul Mitchell's Tea Tree shampoos and conditioners. I often advice my clients who work outdoors, and participate in outdoor sports, to use Tea Tree Body and Hair treatment. Rub your feet with it, massage it into your ankles and calves before you put on socks or sandals before going outside, and you'll find you'll be bitten less than your friends. And if you want to cool yourself down in the shower without subjecting yourself to icy water, Paul Mitchell's Tea Tree Body Soap exfoliates your skin with dried parsley (biodegradable and fine for going down the drain) and the Tea Tree oil in the bar tingles.
3. Condition your hair. Even shorter hair needs some moisture. Make sure that you are using a good conditioner, and one that is appropriate for your hair needs. If you are going to spend time outside, I strongly recommend, particularly for longer hair, is a leave-in conditioner. Paul Mitchell just launched a new family member to the Tea Tree Lavender Mint collection - an amazing leave-in spray. I love it, and per note 2, Tea Tree is amazing for summer and outdoor activities. So you get 2-in-1. For my color clients, Paul Mitchell also launched an incredible conditioning treatment, Color Craft, in which I can custom blend your color, so not only will your hair be properly conditioned and treated, but your color will be refreshed in between your color services!
4. Get your color on! Now is the perfect time to add some sunshine to your hair with some highlights or balayage, or to add some bright color to your follicular wardrobe!

​Come in, have a consultation, and let's get your hair summer-ready!

As we move deeper into the 21st century, freedom of expression is ringing loud and clear in the way fashion moves.

​Classic and beautiful standards, like shiny curls, lovely updos with a Grecian twist, are still here to stay. But there is a certain freedom and wistfulness in what we are seeing on runways. Overly-done braids are making way to letting the braids and twists accent longer hair. Marissa loved the way her gorgeous brown hair cascaded down, with delicate twists intertwined with one another. And note her makeup - it's fresh, it's young, it's not overly done, but there is still quite a bit of sparkle with a gleam of iridescent glitter on her lids.

Kim Berney, educator with Cezanne, explains, “When people hear ‘straightening,’ people think they want their hair bone straight, or that a smoothing treatment will make a hair bone straight.  Cezanne is a smoothing treatment, but what sets us apart is putting the hair into the optimal condition, and then what comes is a softer curl, frizz free. It’s all about reconditioning the hair… Cezanne creates the perfect canvas, in keeping with the origin of the name.” This refers to Paul Cezanne, the French painter who paved the way for modern art. As Kim explains, the greatest artwork will fail if the foundation, the canvas, is compromised. “Most (treatments) are about making the hair straight. We are all about making the hair healthy and shiny, which results in the hair being smooth.”

“People hear smoothing treatment or keratin treatment, they assume pin-straight,” Erin Golas of Evolve Salon Systems points out.

Is this going to give you perfectly straight hair? There is absolutely no guarantee. But it will provide a smoother surface to the hair, reduce your dry time significantly (I personally saw a 50% reduction in time and effort on my own hair!) and shine.

Should everyone get this treatment? Not necessarily.* There are always risks involved with processing the hair with heat. But, if after consultation with your stylist, you are both confident this is an option for you, give the Express a shot! And if that works for you, go for the Classic.

To kick off the Cezanne Smoothing Treatments at Yaffa Beauty by Rica, we are offering a One-Year Subscription, which includes 4 treatments, for $750! That’s one treatment free! If you aren’t ready to commit to the full year, try a one-time Cezanne Classic or Express Smoothing Treatment for $290, which includes your Cezanne Perfect Moisture Shampoo & Perfect Moisture Conditioner to maintain your Cezanne Keratin Smoothing Treatment! Book now at Yaffa Beauty by Rica!

Stylists in the Fairfield County area interested in learning more about Cezanne, please reach out to Erin for distribution ering@evolvesalonsystems.com

* Word of caution: If your hair is overprocessed, overly dry, or otherwise compromised as determined by your stylist, it is not advisable to subject your hair to any smoothing treatment that involves chemicals and heat. There are high risk factors that can cause irreversible damage. Your stylist does have the right to refuse service, or request that you sign a disclaimer, if they feel your hair is too compromised.