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Discover The Winners At The IHF Hairdressing Championships

Discover The Winners At The IHF Hairdressing Championships

Discover The Winners At The IHF Hairdressing Championships 

A hat trick of wins sees one stylist entering the Hall of Fame 

by AMANDA | INFORM

Left Laurna McGrath, Vanilla Hair Design, and Martha Galvin, Allure Hair & Beauty copy

Laurna McGrath, Vanilla Hair Design, and Martha Galvin, Allure Hair & Beauty

Martha Galvin, owner and stylist at Allure Hair & Beauty in County Mayo, is the IHF Hairdresser of the Year for the third consecutive year. 

Her hat trick of wins earns her a place in the IHF Hall of Fame – and she also scooped trophies in four other categories, including the Creative Colour trophy. 

“What Martha has accomplished is nothing short of extraordinary. To win and enter the Hall of Fame is a huge honour, and it reflects her unwavering commitment to excellence,” said IHF president, Lisa Eccles. “Martha’s passion, creativity and hard work over the years have earned her this well-deserved recognition, and she continues to set the bar for others in the industry.”

It was a good night also for Vanilla Hair Design in Carlow, as Laurna McGrath won IHF Irish Trainee Hairdresser of the Year, and Samantha Byrne scooped both Hair Up and Fantasy titles. Menspire’s Patrick Browne was also celebrating, as he took home first and second place in the Barber Technique category. 

IHF Star Team 2025

2025 IHF STAR Team

The 2025 IHF STAR Team was also revealed, welcoming Emma Killeen (Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo), Jade Hennessy (Albert’s Hair Design, Wexford), Ellie Purdy (Brown Sugar, Dublin), Danielle O’Sullivan (Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow) and Caitlin Smith (Hair Creations, Dublin). 

Three IHF Icon Award recipients were also celebrated – Cats Hair Salon’s Ian Brady, Reds Hair Salon’s Carolann McGuirk and an honorary award for the IHF’s first president, the late Robert Byrne. 

Hosted at Lyrath Estate in Kilkenny, the event showcases exceptional work from leading stylists across the country, judged by a panel of national and international experts.  

Hair by Martha Galvin

Hair by Martha Galvin

IHF president Lisa Eccles and IHF Icon Award recipient Ian Brady, Cats Hair Salon

IHF president Lisa Eccles and IHF Icon Award recipient Ian Brady, Cats Hair Salon

And the winners are…

IHF Irish Hairdresser of the Year (sponsored by Wella Professionals)

Martha Galvin, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

 

IHF Irish Trainee Hairdresser of the Year (sponsored by ALFAPARF Milano Professional)

Laurna McGrath, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow  

 

Newcomer of the Year – Trainee (sponsored by Davines) 

1st Rhiannon Black, Brown Sugar, Dublin 

2nd Laurna McGrath, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

3rd Rebecca Donegan, Olivia’s Hair Studio, Wicklow 

 

Creative Colour – Trainee (sponsored by Image Skillnet) 

1st Tiegan Neary, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

2nd Sara Gilhooly, Our Salon by Derek & Fergal, Meath 

2nd (Joint) Danielle O’Sullivan, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

3rd Ella Clarke, House of Colour, Dublin 

 

Trend Upstyle – Trainee 

1st Tiegan Neary, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

2nd Laurna McGrath, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

2nd (Joint) Leah Caroll Byrne, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

3rd Mia Massey, Ashleigh Kelly Hairdressing, Dublin  

 

Fantasy – Trainee (sponsored by EasyDry) 

1st Danielle O’Sullivan, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

2nd Emma Killeen, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

3rd Laurna McGrath, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

 

Creative Colour – Senior (sponsored by L’Oréal Professionnel Paris) 

1st Martha Galvin, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

2nd Nadine Brady, La Mode, Dublin 

3rd Anthony McNally, Ross Adams, Dublin 

 

Hair Up – Senior (sponsored by Phorest) 

1st Samantha Byrne, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

2nd Martha Galvin, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

3rd Amanda Ryan, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

 

Fantasy – Senior (sponsored by Schwarzkopf Professional) 

1st Samantha Byrne, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

2nd Samantha Byrne, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

3rd Lisa McGuiness, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

 

Barber Technique – Specialist (sponsored by Remi) 

1st Patrick Browne, Menspire, Dublin 

2nd Patrick Browne, Menspire, Dublin 

3rd Sandra Keegan, The Academy Barber, Kildare 

 

Textured – Specialist (sponsored by The Tattooed Accountant) 

1st Saoirse McDermott, The Hair Space, Galway 

2nd Samantha Byrne, Vanilla Hair Design, Carlow 

3rd Patrick Browne, Menspire, Dublin 

 

Salon Social – Specialist (sponsored by LanaiPro) 

1st Caitlin McCarthy, Salon Anu, Dublin 

2nd Mark Sherwood, Zeba Hairdressing, Dublin 

3rd Aishling Moriarty, Rustiq, Kilkenny 

 

Extensions – Specialist (sponsored by Hairtalk) 

1st Emily Whelan, MD Hair, Carlow 

2nd Kelly Murray, Cut Social, Dublin 

3rd Martha Galvin, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

3rd (Joint) Martha Galvin, Allure Hair & Beauty, Mayo 

Magic Moments From The Most Wanted And It List 2024 Grand Final

Magic Moments From The Most Wanted And It List 2024 Grand Final

Magic Moments From The Most Wanted And It List 2024 Grand Final

Get closer to the action from the MWIT24 Grand Final with a curated gallery of highlights from the night

by KELSEY | CONNECT

Over 650 guests, 22 winners, one Legend and countless glasses raised to toast all our wonderful finalists and winners. See what went down at The Beams London…  

 

 

Creative HEAD’s Most Wanted And It List Winners Have Been Announced

Creative HEAD’s Most Wanted And It List Winners Have Been Announced

Creative HEAD’s Most Wanted And It List Winners Have Been Announced

Who took home the coveted trophies? 

by JOANNA | CONNECT

It’s Creative HEAD’s biggest night of the year, and the 24th Most Wanted and It List Grand Final, held last night at cultural hot-spot Beams in East London, did not disappoint. All our favourite people in the same room together for one glorious party? Hell, yeah! There was champagne. There was dancing. And as expected, every guest looked the part, with each fit as big as the next. 

Of course, the reason for this annual get-together is to celebrate the very best talents in our industry. Last night we unveiled the 2024 It List in association with ghd – six sensational trailblazers aged 30 and under. And then came the 16 artists, activists, innovators and business leaders who each took home a Most Wanted trophy. And a standing ovation for Lisa Farrall, who was awarded Most Wanted Legend status for her work with textured hair.  

 These hairdressers are breaking glass ceilings, setting new standards (including sometimes in ways we don’t expect) and overhauling our industry bit by bit to steer it towards a newer, more exciting future. Things are changing in British and Irish hairdressing. Take a look at our winners to find out why.   

Who won the 2024 L’Oréal Colour Trophy?

Who won the 2024 L’Oréal Colour Trophy?

Who won the 2024 L’Oréal Colour Trophy?

New venue, new era of the UK’s longest colour competition

HeadUp X Calm

Gee-Kent Ho is celebrating a L’Oréal Colour Trophy win, scooping both the North Eastern region and overall prize at the 2024 grand final at London’s Old Billingsgate.

It was a big night also for Brooks & Brooks, with the salon’s Marlon Hawkins winning the London region and second place. Trevor Sorbie celebrated huge success too, as its Covent Garden salon winning third place, and its Brighton salon winning the Southern region. Its artistic director, Giuseppe Stelitano, also presented one of the event’s two hair shows, introduced by Trevor Sorbie MBE himself, who described the young talent as “a visionary”.

L’Oréal Colour Trophy – first place: Gee-Kent Ho, Newcastle upon Tyne

L’Oréal Colour Trophy – second place: Brooks & Brooks, London

L’Oréal Colour Trophy – third place: Trevor Sorbie, Covent Garden

It was also a major night for L’Oréal Colour Trophy itself, celebrating its 68th contest by switching it up a notch with a tech and innovation powered final at a new venue in London’s Old Billingsgate. Around 1,000 attendees enjoyed installations from fashion designer Jack Irving – as seen at On|Off – with hair by Jack Merrick-Thirlway and the Neville’s team during the pre-show reception.

Fashion design by Jack Irvin

The show itself – hosted by Clara Amfo, with help from DJ Lisa Snowdon, Vogue’s Twiggy Jalloh and make-up influencer Hannah Martin – played out on a circular stage with a jaw-dropping video wall. This proved an impressive backdrop particularly during the art team shows, immersing the audience further in the hair artistry presented on stage.

Host Clara Amfo, with Lisa Snowdon, Twiggy Jalloh and Hannah Martin

The first show – MetaBall from Giuseppe Stelitano and the Trevor Sorbie Creative Team – was a breath-taking affair, fitting for a salon brand that’s celebrating its 45th birthday. An amplified display of texture and wig artistry – cherry cola lengths, high pompadours and neon yellow shags – the presentation kicked up into high gear when dancers decked in feathered headpieces, neon green mullets and more took to the stage in a celebration of New York’s ballroom scene, soundtracked of course to a remix of Madonna’s Vogue.

MetaBall from Giuseppe Stelitano and the Trevor Sorbie Creative Team

Robert Eaton and the Russell Eaton Art Team later shared Luminaire, with all models dressed in white bodysuits as the perfect canvas to spotlight the sumptuous hair creations, and for light displays to play across their faces and bodies. This was a fusion of thigh skimming textured lengths kissed with indigo, two-toned precision bobs in lavender and aubergine, and fuchsia and candy pink. With a voluminous cube of textured sunshine yellow and blonde juxtaposed with bleached-out close crops, it was a masterful display of creativity.

And once all the winners had been revealed? It was on to a barn-storming set delivered by TikTok DJ twins ALTÉGO, a properly fitting high-energy climax to the night.

Luminaire from Robert Eaton and the Russell Eaton Art Team

And the winners are…

L’Oréal Colour Trophy – first place: Gee-Kent Ho, Newcastle upon Tyne

Second place: Brooks & Brooks, London

Third place: Trevor Sorbie, Covent Garden

North Eastern: Gee-Kent Ho, Newcastle upon Tyne

North Western: Saks Hair, Newark

Scotland: Jason Hall Hairdressing, Edinburgh

Western: Zoe Hodgkiss – Hair Artistry, Holsworthy

Eastern: Strictly Xtended, Bishops Stortford

Northern Ireland: Peter Mark, Lisburn

Southern: Trevor Sorbie, Brighton

London: Brooks & Brooks, London

STAR Award: Peter Mark, Belfast

Colour Specialist Award: Amelia Hall, Frances Marshall, Sunderland

Afro Award: Headmasters, Soho

Moving Image Award: Lauren McNeela, Stripe Colour Studio

Future Talent Award: Alex Doherty, Brandon Marchant, Elsie MacDonald, Francesca Bay, Isla McKelvie

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Rosser Hairdressing Wins Big at Great Lengths GLammies

Rosser Hairdressing Wins Big at Great Lengths GLammies

Rosser Hairdressing Wins Big at Great Lengths GLammies

Salon scoops three trophies at extensions brand’s 12th annual competition

Which salon is knocking it out of the park when it comes to extensions? The answer would seem to be Rosser Hairdressing, which won three awards at this year’s Great Lengths GLammies.

Roseer Hairdressing nabbed the UK Hair Extension Salon trophy, while Beverley Rosser grabbed the Body & Bounce award, with the salon’s Lydia Henderson winning Best Newcomer.

HeadUp X Calm

Also celebrated for its extension excellence was Melanie Richards Hair and Beauty, which won the Great Lengths Trophy, given to an extensionist who has “demonstrated outstanding work”. Katie Hemming enjoyed a successful night too, winning two awards for Captivating Colour and Longer Length.

All the category winners have also scooped a trip to Rome, which includes a tour of the Great Lengths production factory there.

And the winners are…

Longer Length – Katie Hemming, Love Hair

Avant Garde – Jack Trafene-Little, The Little Salon

Bridal Creation – Kirby Blythe, Hair by Kirby Blythe

Captivating Colour – Katie Hemming, Love Hair

Body & Bounce – Beverley Rosser, Rosser Hairdressing

Best Newcomer – Lydia Henderson, Rosser Hairdressing

Customer Service Award – Green & Co

Sustainable Salon of the Year – Butchers Hair Salon

Most Charitable Salon of the Year – Jade Searcy

UK Hair Extension Salon – Rosser Hairdressing

Great Lengths Trophy – Extension Excellence – Melanie Richards Hair and Beauty

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