WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WORKING WITH HIGH PROFILE CLIENTELE

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WORKING WITH HIGH PROFILE CLIENTELE

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WORKING WITH HIGH PROFILE CLIENTELE

Jay Birmingham brings us backstage at Fashion Week to share his advice for handling a packed calendar of clients.

Jay Birmingham at BRIT awards

Jay Birmingham backstage at the BRIT Awards with Maya Jama

“Fashion month is always a huge whirlwind. Going between London, Paris and Milan is a great opportunity to immerse yourself in the buzzing atmosphere of each fashion capital.

As a hairstylist deeply entrenched in this world, I’ve had the privilege of witnessing firsthand the magic that unfolds backstage, and now more regularly working with clients who are attending the shows. More than ever, all eyes are on those sitting front row, therefore it is so important to nail the look head to toe.

Managing your time effectively during Fashion Week, which is typically a fast-paced and hectic period, requires careful planning and organisation. I start by looking at the schedule well in advance and the timings of the bigger shows. This allows me to predict where the buzz will be. It’s also important to prioritise, as you can’t be in two places at once. This involves carefully planning my own schedule, as travel needs to be factored in, alongside extra ‘buffer’ time to account for unexpected delays or last minute changes. Doing so helps reduce stress and ensures that I arrive on time for each commitment.

Conversely, it’s vital to stay flexible for last minute bookings which can lead to great opportunities with new talent, some of which I might not have worked with if it wasn’t for Fashion Week. Behind all the glamour is a lot of prep and hours of travel, from prepping wigs to making sure my kit is stocked, so planning in advance is key.

This Fashion Week I worked with some incredible talent, including the wonderful Maya Jama for the Albert Ferretti show in Milan. Maya’s look featured a choppy cut with bangs and lots of movement throughout the hair.

I also had the privilege of styling Maya for the BRIT Awards, which fell during the Fashion Week craziness! Maya was one of the hosts for the night, and we decided on a style featuring the ‘butterfly effect’. This involved adding numerous layers to the hair to create a textured yet sleek look, which complimented her stunning black gown. I was on hand at the O2 Arena to help with final touch ups, both behind the scenes and on the red carpet.

Jay Birmingham backstage
Jay Birmingham's hair kit
Jay Birmingham doing wig prep

L-R: Jay with Blanca Soler and wig prep for Maya

London Fashion Week also saw me create one of my favourite looks for my client, Munroe Bergdorf. It was for the Self Portrait show and focused on crafting a playful style to showcase her new bold copper colour. I love to look at the client’s colour and shades and find ways to style the hair to complement the overall aesthetic. This season also saw me work with the amazing Blanca Soler for Burberry, Amina Muaddi for the Tiffany X British Vogue event, and Xenia Adonts for the Prada and Gucci shows. All were very different and contrasting looks to one another, but it’s great to experiment with different styles and get creative. After all, this is what Fashion Week is all about!

As a hairstylist, Fashion Week serves as both a showcase of our skills and a testament to the transformative power of hair in the world of fashion. Until next season, we’ll continue to push the boundaries of creativity and innovation, one hairstyle at a time.” 

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IN THE LEAD: RICHARD PHILLIPART’S DEBUT SHOW AT PARIS FASHION WEEK

IN THE LEAD: RICHARD PHILLIPART’S DEBUT SHOW AT PARIS FASHION WEEK

IN THE LEAD: RICHARD PHILLIPART'S DEBUT SHOW AT PARIS FASHION WEEK

Session stylist Richard Phillipart shares all about his debut show as a hair lead at Paris Fashion Week. A character study of each individual model, prepare to take notes.

Team Phillipart

Team Phillipart

Take one award-winning session stylist, 11 members of Team Phillipart and one unmissable opportunity to work at Paris Fashion Week, and what do you get? A hotbed of creativity and a true character study of each individual model and their hair texture at ABRA A/W24. In a show which marked Richard Phillipart’s debut as a hair lead at Paris Fashion Week, the 27 models who walked the runway with beautifully enhanced hair is testament to Richard’s attention to detail and true craftmanship.  

Chosen by Richard as his season highlight of A/W24, he says: “this was the first Paris Fashion Week show for Team Phillipart and a milestone in my career. Being asked to design the hair look my first Paris runway was a fantastic start to 2024.”  

The show itself centred on the theme of “Celebrating the extraordinary in the ordinary and the irresistible beauty of everyday femininity”. Models were treated as individuals with the beauty of their natural texture enhanced and celebrated. Longer hair was styled with a clean centre-parting and left cascading down over the shoulders, allowing it to move and catch the wind as models walked the runway in Paris. Shorter hair was swept to the side with an equally relaxed, nonchalant vibe. 

Taking place in Rue Philippe-de-Girard, models walked a runway which was styled to look like the backstage dressing area. The set compromised clothing rails, and packed full of bulging black ABRA garment bags and shoe boxes, alongside hair and make-up stations which split the runway in two. The areas included brushes, tools and products from MYORGANICS, which were meticulously placed by Team Phillipart to give the illusion the team had been working on these stations to create the looks just moments before the audience arrived.  

Richard Phillipart backstage at ABRA

Models backstage at ABRA. Photography by @_valentinrusso. 

Model backstage at ABRA
Richard Phillipart backstage at ABRA

Hair how to

All models had their hair prepped by cleansing and treatment with Supreme Shampoo and Miracle Mask, which was great for adding intense nourishment to the hair without weighing it down. 

Hair was drenched with Ocean Spray to add a pliable texture and hold. Sections of hair were twisted in opposite directions and dried with a diffuser on high heat/low power to enhance and control natural texture and waves. Where needed, Supreme Oil, Hydrating Glaze, Curl Revival or Smoothing Lotion was used on the mid-lengths and ends of model’s hair to tame, refine, or enhance textures as required. 

Hair was then rope braided and pinned to secure, which helped set the natural waves while models were in make-up and rehearsals. It also prevented frizzing or dropping of the texture. 

Finishing touches included the Water Moulding Wax, which was first warmed up in the hands and then smoothed across the parting to tame fly-away hairs. Strong Hold Hydrating Hairspray and Restructuring Shine Spray were used to set the look, which was then brushed out by Richard moments before the models walked the runway to create a clean, fresh bounce in the hair. 

Video by @saladxxdays.

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KNWLS A/W24 – A VOYAGE TO THE UPPER EAST SIDE

KNWLS A/W24 – A VOYAGE TO THE UPPER EAST SIDE

KNWLS A/W24 – A VOYAGE TO THE UPPER EAST SIDE

Promotion – Schwarzkopf Professional

Gossip Girl meets grunge was the aesthetic for the KNWLS A/W24 show at London Fashion Week. 

Mustafa Yanaz

Mustafa Yanaz

Bringing an Upper East Side flair to the runway, the inspiration behind the KNWLS A/W24 hair look was to follow a chic New Yorker on her journey from one party to the next. Mustafa Yanaz took the helm as lead hair stylist, delivering his alternative, cutting edge to match KNWLS’s bold fashion statements. Charlotte Knowles and Alexandre Arsenault, the duo behind the brand, are known for their assertive interpretation of femininity, blending elements of danger and allure. The brand adopts a rugged, practical approach, crafting garments that serve as protective armour while redefining contemporary women’s fashion.

“I didn’t use any brushes or combs,” said Mustafa backstage. “I always do everything with my hands because I want it as natural as possible. For the KNWLS look, imagine an Upper East Side New York girl with beautiful hair, she’s going to her second party and ties her hair in a knot – she looks like she’s partied already – but her hair is still shiny and healthy.”

Hair was tied in a knot at the nape, with strands escaping at the front to frame the face. Undone texture with an underlying chicness, the result was equal parts cool and sophisticated. The main product used backstage was THE MOUSSE from SESSION LABEL from Schwarzkopf Professional, which Mustafa applied on the roots, and a little bit through the ends for grip. At the end, he used THE FLEXIBLE, which Mustafa describes as a “really great hairspray.”

He adds: “I work in session styling, and it’s really important to have the right products backstage and that’s why I use SESSION LABEL – they’re beautiful products for every hairstyle.”

SESSION LABEL from Schwarzkopf Professional is a comprehensive, professional styling range that is specifically designed to meet the varied demands of session stylists. With fourteen versatile products – each with a multitude of benefits developed to help hairdressers truly #CRAFTTHEDIFFERENCE – SESSION LABEL empowers stylists such as Nick Irwin and Mustafa Yanaz to achieve any look, texture, or finish required for the runway and beyond.

Find out more about SESSION LABEL from Schwarzkopf Professional.

KNWLS
Charlotte Knowles and Alexandre Arsenault,

Charlotte Knowles and Alexandre Arsenault, founders of KNWLS

Quick-fire questions with Charlotte and Alexandre

Describe the KNWLS aesthetic. Is there something that represents your work aesthetically and has that changed throughout your career?
Charlotte: There are four things which sum up the brand – sportswear, craft, corsetry, and alternative culture.
Alexandra: We’re trying to create a new wardrobe for the woman of our time – a woman who lives both digitally and physically. We aim to subvert the idea of femininity through counterculture or taking old ideas and transforming them into new ones.

C: It’s always über-feminine but with an edge.

What were the top three references for this season’s collection?
C: We were inspired by power dressing and ’80s glamour, as well as understandable luxury, because that’s where we’re trying to take the brand.

A: We wanted the women to be kind of ready for anything. We had a lot of weight on our shoulders at the end of 2023, then we were quite hopeful for 2024 but it started with a chaotic energy, so we were trying to get women ready for this. That’s why there’s reference points of utilitarianism or snakeskin and camo – like a form of armour and protection.

Where do you look to for inspiration?
C: Everywhere and anywhere! I often get really inspired by objects and materials, as well as vintage clothes. I feel like Alexandra is quite inspired by culture and music.
A: We spend a lot of time on Instagram and seeing the girls wearing the brand. Even the girls around the studio wearing it, or friends and other people, it’s a thing that people maybe didn’t have that much access to in the past. Now it’s always bombarding us. So, the diversity is quite inspiring.

 We adore your signature pieces, such as the iconic separates, but how do you feel this collection has evolved from the last?
C: It’s just about refining and elevating the image of the brand and appealing to a broader audience. In the past, I felt like the brand had been associated with youth and appealed a lot to a younger generation, but this season it’s more elegant and refined.
A: I think the goal was to make it a bit more familiar as well, a bit more understandable as to what people perceive as luxury, using cashmere wool and more bold colours that are understandable to a wider audience. It is more mature – we’re growing up as well. There’s always going to be this connection with youth but we also wanted to show that power, strength, control and being confident is not exclusive to the new generation that’s connected online. It shows that KNWLS can appeal to different age groups, different cultures and different body types… it doesn’t matter who you are. It’s about power and strength.

You’re collaborating with people all the time. How do you stay true to your boundaries and personal style?
A: Every season we try to change it up, so that the clothes become recognisable to what the brand represents. Hopefully this is what has made it possible to bring in people, and that they understand it, in their own way. They understand the language of it. You know, like, Mustafa just got the brand.

Video by Tom Gorst and Alex Barron-Hough

KNWLS runway

What has the creative process been like working with Mustafa?
C: He was amazing to work with. He’s such an icon and it was an honour to be able to get to work with him. I felt like he just brought that kind of alternative grunge edge to the collection, which brought in more of that KNWLS energy. He really got it from the offset.
A: He’s very sweet. Immediately he said ‘let’s chat on WhatsApp. I’ll send you some tests!’ He’s the first hairstylist we’ve worked with who has brought in people and tested things beforehand, then sent us pictures. He was very involved and excited about it. It’s not a last-minute thing where you must decide in the hair test in 30 minutes. He already tested things out – some things didn’t work, some things worked. So, it was quite amazing working with him.

There have been some incredible accomplishments in your career to date, but what has been the one standout moment so far?
C: Probably the collaboration with Jean Paul Gaultier or dressing Doja Cat for the Grammys – she epitomises who the KNWLS woman is, and it was a pleasure working with her and her stylist Brett. Jean Paul was a big milestone for us, because he was such a huge inspiration growing up, and is one of the designers who inspired me to want to do fashion design. That was a ‘pinch me’ moment.

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THE IT LIST RETURNS WITH SIX TROPHIES WAITING TO BE CLAIMED

THE IT LIST RETURNS WITH SIX TROPHIES WAITING TO BE CLAIMED

IT’S BACK! THE ULTIMATE PLATFORM FOR FRESH YOUNG TALENTS

Calling all hair professionals aged 30 and under: the It List is on the hunt for six future faces of British and Irish hairdressing.

Miles Twist

Miles Twist – It List 2023 The One to Watch winner

There’s nothing like Creative HEAD’s It List Awards for young hair pros to showcase their talent and build their profiles. Now in its 14ᵗʰ year, the competition returns in 2024 with a mission to find the best young business-builders, creative forces, hard grafters, and game-changers – the names setting the barbering, session and salon spheres on fire!

Exclusively sponsored by industry legends ghd, and open to the owners and employees of salons, barber shops and other workspaces, as well as self-employed and freelance hair professionals based in the UK and Ireland – all aged 30 or under – there are six It List categories to choose from, collectively representing skill, vision, dedication and bucketloads of ambition.

It List Grand Final 2023

It List 2023 Grand Final

Entries will be judged by leading names from the worlds of hair, fashion, business, and media. Last year’s panels included digital creator Maddie Bruce; salon owner Errol Douglas MBE; talent agents from Art + Commerce and Streeters; and session stars Aaron Carlo and Leigh Keates. Finalists will be invited to attend the Most Wanted and It List Grand Final taking place in London on Monday 2 September. This hot-ticket event – hosted in the past by comedy giants like Russell Kane, Suzi Ruffell and Jack Whitehall – will bring together an all-star guest list to celebrate in style the stars of 2024.

Awaiting this year’s winners? A coveted It List trophy, a generous gift from ghd and an opportunity like no other to boost profile. Previous winners have gone on be signed by talent agents, work on Fashion Week teams in London, New York, Paris and Milan, present at industry events and even launch their own brands. It’s true: a place on the It List can be career-changing.

It’s free to enter the It List 2024. Entries must be submitted no later than 9pm on Monday 13 May.

For a full list of categories and entry instructions, click here.

It List Grand Final 2023

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OPEN FOR ENTRIES – CREATIVE HEAD’S MOST WANTED AWARDS 2024

OPEN FOR ENTRIES – CREATIVE HEAD’S MOST WANTED AWARDS 2024

RESPECT, REWARD AND RECOGNITION – ALL WRAPPED UP IN 16 MOST WANTED TROPHIES

Most Wanted 2024 has launched and the search is on to uncover Britain and Ireland’s most inspiring hairdressing talents.

Nash White

Nashwhite – Most Wanted 2023 Business Thinker winner

Creative HEAD’s Most Wanted Awards recognise the most outstanding, progressive and game-changing talents in British and Irish hairdressing. With 16 sought-after trophies available to the owners and employees of salons, barber shops and other workspaces, as well as self-employed and freelance hair professionals, the competition celebrates a multitude of disciplines, from creative skill to commercial acumen, education, the client experience and a commitment to sustainability. Most Wanted also shines a spotlight on the hairdressing business owners breathing life into the high street, the session artists setting global trends, and the individuals whose skills and smiles transform thousands of lives every single day. 

Now in its 24ᵗʰ year, Most Wanted is widely acknowledged as the industry’s most inclusive and respected competition – in 2023 it enjoyed a record-breaking number of entries. This year, all 16 categories will once again be judged by dozens of names working across hair, fashion, business, and the media – influential names like ELLE UK’s George Driver; broadcaster, journalist and entrepreneur Ateh Jewel; leading salon owner Andrew Collinge; and iconic session stylist Sam McKnight MBE. The awards will culminate in a breathtaking Grand Final, held at an awe-inspiring London venue (Tate Modern, Printworks and the National History Museum have all welcomed our star-studded guests in the past).

Most Wanted 2023 Grand Final

Most Wanted 2023 Grand Final

Naomi Brooks at Most Wanted Grand Final 2023

Naomi Brooks – Most Wanted 2023 Award for Innovation winner 

Says Creative HEAD editorial director, Amanda Nottage: “Hairdressing is a brilliantly diverse industry with a breadth of talent, innovation and originality that leaves you breathless – and that’s what Most Wanted is here to salute and celebrate. We look forward to honouring our entrants’ contributions in style.”

Win a Most Wanted trophy, and the recognition can be life-changing. Previous winners have gone on to represent global brands, lead Fashion Week teams across the world, launch their own workspaces and product ranges, get slots on prime-time TV and collaborate with the world’s most famous designers and publications.

Most Wanted 2024 is free to enter, and entries must be submitted no later than 9pm on Monday 13 May.

For a full list of categories and entry instructions, click here.

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