How Exactly DO You Pick The Right Stylist For You???

...... this is a question people (women AND men) ask themselves on a regular basis.  A question not many know how to properly answer, or even go about answering.  Several factors fall into play when you begin your quest to find the right hair stylist for you, and more times than not, it turns into several bad decisioins before the right one is made.....  IF it's ever made.

These are not rules written in stone, but simply mere suggestions, and things to think about when you are ready to make that committment to a hair stylist.

Of course, experience plays a major role in finding a stylist.  Experience consists of a lot of things, and working with someone with a good history of experience is a step in the right direction.  However, the number of years a stylist has behind them doing hair does not necessarily determine their level of experience.  There are many stylists that have been doing hair forever, but when it comes to a high level of skill, the performance has been less than adequate.  There are also stylists that have not been doing hair for a terribly long time, but the experience they have gained in their short time behind the chair has proven that they can take on just about any challenge. A  good stylist has learned through being humble, with an open mind to learning in their time spent styling hair, that hair comes through our doors in many different forms and many different situations arise when we see someone for the first time.  Having the knowledge to handle each one of those situations and forms with the ability to produce amazing results, builds great experience.  This is something that you want your stylist to have.

Education...... 
While yes, as stylists we all went to school to learn the craft, our learning doesn't stop when we attain our license.  Every client has a different need, as well as a different want.  Situations arise every day where we are challenged to put our education to the test.  In school we are taught the basics.  The majority of our education begins AFTER we leave beauty school.  Trends are forever changing, techniques are continuing to change, and clients want what they see as brand new.  When you walk into a salon where education is continuous, it's pretty fair to assume that the work is going to be on the leading side of trend.  Stylists who feel like nothing they see or hear in a class will help them improve their craft, or those who think there's nothing more they can learn, are most likely on their way to hanging their scissors up.  Just like in any carreer field, there is ALWAYS something new that will change the way a stylist thinks about how a look is created.  With this being the age of internet and pictures,requests for brand new looks come to us all the time.  Hair color is ever changing.  Hair color can be great.  Hair color can be amazing.  It can also be disastrous.   Someone who has an extensive background in color education can give the finished product that  "WOW" factor that every client wants when they see themselves in the mirror.  .  A good stylist will  educate their guest on the things that are mandatory in order for the duplicate their salon look at home......  teaching to use a blow dryer. ..... teaching how to use a round brush with the blow dryer.  Little tricks that the guest can take home for them to practice will make that guest more confident about their hair.  We are educated as stylists, and as stylists, we educate you, our guests.

Communication is one of the MOST important things that are necessary when choosing a stylist.  While yes, we ARE the professionals, what looks good in our minds may be comletely heinous in the eye of our guest.  This is where that relationship either begins going in the right direction, or where a wall is immediately hit between client and stylist.  Our guests envision certain things when they've made an appointment, when it comes to a new look that they desire.   As the professional, it is a MUST that a consultation occurs everytime you see every client....  as things sometimes change inbetween the times they were last in and the next time they come to see us.  When choosing a hair color, it's extremely important to be on the same page, because one person's idea of a warm color could very well be something completely different from someone else's.  It's never a bad thing to tell your stylist how you feel about the work you're looking at in the mirror.  While, as professionals, we need to take certain things into account when designing a look (ie: skin tone, eye color, face shape, lifestyle), it's also really important to understand each individuals likes and dislikes, as well as wants and needs.  Amazingly enough, though we are often compared to magicians, we are also just plain human beings.  We are not able to read someone's mind.  Keep the lines of communication open and free flowing, while still keeping in mind that we are the ones creating your vision.....  we know what we're doing and we will get you to where you want to be!

Honesty and Integrity are two traits that are often overlooked.  So often you walk into a salon and the stylist starts to load you up with a million products after a simple haircut....  you get home with all of these products, with out a clue as to how to use them.  It's frustrating when you see a stylist and each time you go in, you're spending a couple hundred dollars.  This economy has taken in-salon services to the level of luxury, as opposed to neccessity.  We realize this and understand that sometimes it's just impossible for a guest to keep their look up and spend a lot of money on a six or eight week basis.  These days, we offer the opportunity to split up your services week to week, as sometimes it is a lot easier on the wallet.  It's also refreshing to know that when a look has been designed, the maintance of that look is rather inexpensive as long as it is kept up.  We know that everyone is struggling these days. A hair stylist that continuously raises their prices or adds on services without consulting first with their guest is being extremely dishonest.  You should always know how much your service is going to cost you before any work begins.  That way, if there needs to be an adjustment to keep the price down, that can be addressed from the beginning- and trust that there ARE always several options when choosing a look when it comes to the price.  You are never commited to the most expensive.

When you meet a new stylist, it's like begining a real relationship.  There has to be that level of trust and comfort between the two of you, or else it can be a difficult journey.  These are just some of the qualities we posess and live by at dsparada, as we have seen through past experiences with other stylists we've worked with, that it can be a really rocky and egocentric experience for the guest if these easy traits aren't practiced. 

If you're reading this and are a guest of dsparada, you understand how awesome it is when you finally DO meet that stylist!  If you're an outsider looking at this and wondering why you can't find hair happiness, then give us a whirl.  Come in and have a consult with any of us and see how our level of experience, education, communication, honesty and integrity are truly at the forefront of our passion, and see for yourself what it's like to have the hair you have ALWAYS wanted!

The Latest and Greatest at dsparada!!!!!

Hey everyone!!!!  Hope the beginning of the fall season has brought good energy and fun times to all!!!!  Life around the salon has been exciting and hectic, but that's how we thrive!!!!  There are so many new and exciting things that are happening that we are SOOOO  excited to talk to you about, I just had to blog about it, in the hopes that you will get as excited about some of these things as we are!!!!

As you all may know, we are a pretty small team, but we are one talented bunch.  The experience we all have in creating memorable looks for brides, designers, and clients alike in the past is bringing us together as a collective whole now, as we are becoming a force when it comes to being THE elite, most sought after salon in Raleigh. 

On Sunday, October 2, we were honored to create looks for Chapman Designs, a local clothing designer in Raleigh, for a fashion show that was held during the Wake County SPCA's 2011 Fur Ball.  The salon was filled with models and a make up artist that day and it was truly an enjoyable experience to be able to showcase a great talent of our's  that many people aren't aware of....... AMAZING formal finishes.  At the actual event (yes, we got all dressed up in tuxes and ball gowns!), the ladies we worked on were live models wearing the beautiful designs from Chapman.  As they graced the floors during the evening, attendees were in awe of the cohesiveness of the entire looks, and during the actual fashion show, our work was on huge HD screens for about 2000 people to see.  That red carpet quality was there, and it opened up a whole world for us that most people wouldn't associate with the dsparada name.  TONS of money was raised for all the little critters in Raleigh that need a little extra TLC, and to be asked to participate in such an event was a truly amazing experience!

Just this past weekend, we packed our bags and headed to Charlotte, where the national distribution company, Beauty Systems Group, held their annual Fashion Focus Show at the Charlotte Convention Center.  We arrived early and eager to get into classes so we could fill our minds with knowledge of the latest cuts, color trends, and styling techniques to bring back and stay on the front line for you, our guests!  On Sunday night, we were invited to a private show hosted by Goldwell where we saw their entire new collection, and the super star stylists that work for them shared some of their best secrets with us as well.

With holiday season approaching, you'll get the opportunity to experience some of these new things yourself, as we are eager to get started and really expose the WOW factor that we at dsparada are known for!  Also, make sure you mark your calendars, as we are hosting our annual Christmas party on Saturday, December 10.  Not only will we be celebrating the season, but we'll also be celebrating Don's (the 9th), Jen's (the 12th), and my own (the 14th) birthdays!  It's going to be a night packed with yummy food (catered by The Point), raffles for all kinds of GREAT stuff, for the second year in a row, live jazz tunes by The Kevin Van Saint group.  Last year they serenaded us with some great music that helped make the party a great success (even with the snow!).

Have you ever picked up a hairstyle mag and seen all the pictures of different looks?  Well, part of the reason we are SO excited about our new ideas is because we are going to start doing photo shoots right in the salon!  So the next time you open one of those magazines, maybe your face will be one that you see, and you'll be famous!  We're looking forward to showing our work on the global scale as we progress forward into the new year.

So yes.....  everything in our world is new, New, NEW!  We can't wait for you to come in and see for yourself what the buzz is all about!