Bijou summer helper...

Us girls at Bijou were fortunate enough to have a young girl working with us to help at the front desk. Yeah yeah, I know nothing unusual, teenagers do that all the time. Well let me tell you, in my experience at Salons since I have first picked up shears...every and I mean every front desk girl I worked with (especially the teen age type or even slightly older) never ever could figure out what to do...they always have to have a list and if you didn't keep on them, they would just sit there staring into space, they never had an attention to detail and seemed to have a care less attitude! (I found that to be with most babysitters I had, hmmph, very annoying)

So when Victoria started, I just assumed that is how it would be, I made that assumption, only because of my consistent experiences before. Boy was I dead wrong! This girl needs to give lessons. All of us Bijou girls will confirm, this girl is awesome! The first week, I started her with a list, the basics: dusting, emptying trash, keeping towels stocked, facing product and restocking...the next week, I gave her another list with a couple of more added things..hmmm, that was really strange, I noticed she did everything right away on the previous weeks list, even though I had not written those ones down. Then the next week, I had 3 or 4 things for her to do, she (without the list anymore) did those things, PLUS the 3 or 4 from the week before AND the 6 or so from the first week. Honestly, if I would have given her 4 things each week, by the end of the summer, the girl would have had a daily list in her head of 50 or so things.

What I wish she could teach other young girls is...that she made herself indispensible in our eyes. There is no other Victoria, we all worship her and are so impressed with her. She never sat once and learned so quickly. I can't tell you what a great experience it was for us! She made us all wish to have daughters just like her. Her work ethic and moral code is to be admired, and she is only 15, imagine where she will go:)

Her mother is a dear dear friend of mine (in fact, when "M & M" were in the other day, I pictured ourselves in many years bantering and acting up like them) She grew up in a strict Greek household and often says, "I wasn't even allowed to have 2 eyebrows". Lucky Victoria, since she has worked with us, she IS allowed to have two eyebrows:)

Now the summer is over and this girl is an academic, not to mention athletic champ. She will no longer fill our days with sunshine, share our sandwiches four ways, clean our stations so meticulously, sweep before we drop the hair, straighten our small reception area and most importantly pick up smiley face cookies for us!  Our clients and all of us will miss her terribly, it was wonderful to see a young girl with such a distinct work ethic and we THANK YOU Victoria, you are the best!  Now go start to work on that class to teach other kids this fantastic work ethic!

The story...before and after...

This is "M", (looking a wee bit nervous, don'tcha think?;) she came with her friend "M", we called them "M&M"!

Dear friends they are, but both very different. Opposites attract, I would say. The "M" in the photo above, is very low maintenance, earthy, not fussy at all. The other "M" is always dressed to the nines, ready to hit a Paris fashion show or volunteer at the book exchange at our local library, she never has a hair out of place and boy can she shop (especially for a bargain)! Both women are wonderful, they are the type of women you want in your lives...the type to be influenced by, the kind of women that inspires you to do and accomplish what they have. I love to hear stories that have influenced them. I could sit for hours and listen to their banter....
Ah yes, banter..."M" with the Swedish blond hair (the one instigating the before and after transformation, the one with the mischievous grin in the background) she wanted a big change for lovely white haired "M"....she won! Persistence is her specialty!!

The afternoon was about compromise...so we went for a subtle change and although Swedish "M" would have liked an allover color, she settled for a low light...we pulled formerly white haired "M" through pretty heavy with the soft foam cap (no uncomfortable rubber caps here;) and low lighted her with a beautiful shade of natural and smoky dark blond! The results...were phenomenal and both "M&M" were happy, very happy!!!

It is a shame that everyday, everyone can't be in the shop, as the color came out beautifully (even better than the picture) and perfect in every way! A very subtle, yet noticeable change...what more can you ask for!!!?

It was a very fun afternoon, with a lot of laughs and old stories that we were all able to hear.

The whole afternoon made me want to call my best friend from long ago!

Thanks "M&M" for a fun and snarky afternoon, you guys are hysterical!

Look for Swedish "M" in our salon come fall, she will be our front desk coordinator and "cruise director", that is when she is not taking salsa lessons!! We can't wait for her banter in the shop, she is the kind of person that makes you feel wonderful about yourself when she talks to, she has been my biggest cheering section, encouraging me in many ways even outside of the shop, I know she will be a surrogate Mom to us girls here at Bijou, and we can't wait!!

Once again, I feel so fortunate and blessed.

Locks of Love...

Here is a brave little girl....
With a very big heart....
Ready to donate 10 inches of her silky long hair....
Not a moment of regret...
With a heart full of pride, she will make another little girl in need, very happy indeed!!

Our little friend, has grown her hair for quite some time, just for Locks of Love. Today was the big day, for the big change.

Here at Bijou, if you are donating for Locks of love, your cut is complimentary! You are donating, so we will too!

Thank you to the little girl for letting us help her get her locks to someone special!! It was very exciting for us too!

*click on the words locks of love to find more about the organization!

"Opps I Did It Again " Before and After Pictures

Hello!
What a great summer it has been here at Bijou Salon for me. Meeting new stylists, clients and area business owners.

Here in Skaneateles, New York it is a great drive from Auburn, for me seeing the trees starting to change and arriving at Bijou where it's such a relaxing work place (what more could I ask for).

Here is a picture of a Thermal Straightening. This service takes about 3 hours from start to finish and the results are just amazing!! I also provide a service called Cold Smoothing and that service is for clients that like their curly hair but wants less frizz and have more control.

Please call for a complementary consultation!!



Her hair is medium in thickness
and wavy!

Look at that shine!!

This girl just cut her styling time down by half in the morning!!

Here is one of my professional pictures taken by Laure Lillie Photography here
in Skaneateles . What a fun time we all had taking these pictures!

Click on her name up above and that will link you to her work!!

Enjoy the rest of August and check back with us, we have our 1st anniversary coming up in September (cool specials ).

Courtney

I've just read the strangest thing!

Imagine this, coming to Bijou salon in Skaneateles, asking for a pedicure and putting your feet in our pedicure tub, expecting bubbles, but receiving nibbles...tiny little fish nibbling your dead skin away....

Okay, don't get excited...or grossed out, little tiny skin eating fish won't be on the Bijou team, we are adding quite a few team members, but these little fishy friends won't be on the payroll just yet!

Click here and check out this (fishy) story.

Tip for the Week from Bijou!

The best advice I can give you if your hair seems to be dry and frizzy...Is a few things:

• Use quality conditioners, at one time I really thought that all conditioners and shampoo's were created equal. UNTIL, one summer I decided to use a name brand conditioner and shampoo, I won't say which one, but it is a bright green bottle and makes huge promises as to the condition of your hair! While I used the product for about 2 months, the first couple of weeks I thought, okay, seriously, my hair felt just like the bottle promised....smooth, shiny and healthy! UNTIL a couple more weeks passed by, my hair started to feel everything I didn't want it to feel and look...dull, brittle and lifeless...I felt a build up, and each day my hair felt more and more like it was going to break right off! What I realized after switching to one of my old trusted standbys my hair felt better after about a week and I vowed never again to go for the cheap stuff. The more I started to think about it and look at the ingredients..it made sense to me, it's simple actually, over the counter product lines promise big stuff, but they are super inexpensive, the only way they could deliver and in a quick fix sort of way, is to put a lot of wax, something that coats the hair and makes it smooth, shiny and combeable. BUT the problem happens when that wax is never removed and eventually builds up, creating a barrier and not allowing moisture to penetrate. I can always tell when someone is using one of "those" shampoo's and conditioners....as soon as their hair is wet, you can smell what they use, that should tell you that their is a major build up going on! Well enough about that, I may be completely wrong, that is just my personal experience to share, I'd love to hear yours too:)
• Another great tip is to take a comb or pick in the shower! This helps so much and I always have people coming back after I give them this tip saying how much difference it made! If you imagine a piece of crumpled paper, what happens to it when you dip it in some paint and then un-crumple it, all the places where it was crumpled are not touched by the paint...well it's the same for hair, when it's tangled and you apply conditioner, the places where the tangles are, the most driest parts of the hair, are not touched. Trust me, try it, apply your conditioner, comb or pick it out and feel the difference!

I would love to hear what works for you when you have dry hair, so drop us a line, or hit the comment button and don't worry you don't have to sign up for anything, just leave a comment under anonymous and you can just type your name there:)

Beautiful Bridal hair at Bijou!

First you have to curl, spray, curl, spray......
Then, twist, pin, twist, pin...

Somehow after all that curling and spraying, and pinning and twisting....something beautiful happens....an anxious bride relaxes....(one thing left to worry about for her)
I was so happy to do R, when she called, she was asking me questions in regard to bridal hair, and when she decided to book the appointment, she gave me her name....Her name is also a boy's name, not many girls have her name....I asked if she was R B and she said "YES!"

R had been my babysitter when my oldest son was 3, so 11 years ago, (she was in 7th or 8th grade at the time) today she sat in my chair, ready to be married....it was nice to reunite with her and be there on such a special day!! Good luck R, it was a pleasure to be a part of your day!

Jessica Simpson hair-do in Skaneateles @ Bijou

I had mentioned in a previous post, that we had Jessica Simpson easy hair extensions. They are great fun and if you want to have a different look for, oh say, just a day...no problem, just clip it in and take it out when your night is over!

The photos here were my little friend N, she was saying "I want to grow my hair really long, but I can't wait...I want it now!!" So I looked up at my Jessica Simpson hair extensions and thought...hmmmm, immediate satisfaction for a 5 year old! I was about to become N's Hero for the day!!

I hope you enjoy the delight in N's face as much as I did, she thought that was just the coolest thing to have long hair one minute and short the next! We finished her off, by straightening her slightly wavy hair and the smile on her cute little face says how much she loved it!

Haircoloring adventures at Bijou salon in Skaneateles

Here is a beautiful girl...her natural hair color is a lovely shade of brown and before she came in to visit Lori, I said, let's make sure we do a before and after shot of her! Lori thought she was just going to get a trim and the regular, but I must have been psychic today...When P came in, she said she wanted something different!

SOMETHING RED........

After a thorough consultation they decided together, with glimmer in their eyes, to go with a rich demi permanent shade of Brown red, from the Chocolate collection of color sync. Color sync is a choice for someone who wants to experiment, yet not commit to a color just yet!
How awesome does she look??? Notice how it brings out the sparkle in her eye....


If your feeling a bit down with all the rain we've had, add a sparkle with a quick fix, pick a demi permanent shade that will eventually rinse out.

Stop the press...here is another before and after photo!

Although her hair was beautiful before....B craved a short and sassy style...et' voila!! Here she is short and sassy!

Just a few updo's from our recent bridal party!

I have noticed that many brides and bridesmaids are opting for a nontraditional style...more of a half up and half down. Not this bridal party, opting for very traditional up sweeps. they walked out of here looking great and ready to march right down that aisle!!!

keratin complex

The above picture is the "before", the client had just gotten her hair colored and blow dryed, her natural state is a wavy/curly with a tendency to frizz.




The after pictures are above, the feeling is wonderful, if only through the internet you could touch and feel something...But let me tell you, take it from me, it feels fabulous!

This will be our first documentation of how it looks, these pictures are from the first day, check back with us on Friday when J comes in to get her first wash and blow dry, we are supposed to do the first washing with the special shampoo. Our plan is to document with a photo every other week how J's hair looks. Oohh, so exciting:) Oh one other thing, check out to see if J cuts her hair, with her new texture, she is thinking of going for a shorter cut!!

Here is what is supposed to happen:

The hair is prepped for the procedure with a special shampoo and dried.

The special keratin solution (which smells like coconut suntan oil) is applied thoroughly but sparingly from scalp to ends.

The solution is allowed to set and then is dried into the hair.

A screaming hot flat iron is used to meticulously smooth and polish each strand.

That’s it. You go home with straight hair and don’t wash it (or pin/clip it) for 72 hours.

The treatment lasts 3-5 months and will slowly return you r hair to its original condition.

We imagine that it it grows out and ages off at about the same rate, so we don’t anticipate an obvious regrowth of curly hair at the scalp like traditional relaxers.

"Are you a straight shooter or curl lover" by Courtney Conley

Ok I see I caught your attention!!
I have two new services to add to the Bijou menu. One is called "Cold Smoothing System", this service is for people who are crazy about their curls but want more control and less frizz. The other is "Thermal Retexturizing" for people who have curly hair and yet are dreaming of silky smooth hair.

The pictures you have viewed is a client that wanted straighter, more manageable hair. We decided on a NEW SERVICE called Thermal Re-texturizing System (aka Japanese Straightening).

After the service was completed she decided to do a new style. When she was leaving the salon she couldn't stop smiling "it was the first time in her whole life it was completely straight". She later called back because the product line I used, makes a 1/2 inch flat iron that works great at the root area when the curl starts to grow back and wanted me to order one for her.

The time and price are determined by your hair texture and length. Please call or stop in to make a complementary consultation with me! I will add more pictures as I continue providing these services. Hope to see you soon! Courtney

"With Fall Just Around The Corner" OPI launches New Fall Nail Polish Collection

La Collection De France is on its way to Bijou Salon!!!

The French have a word for it- Chic.

A combination of style, elegance and confidence, it is at the heart of fashion for fall 2008.

The new colors are:

"Louvre Me , Louver Me Not" (royal purple)
"Parlez-vous OPI?" (smokey purple)
"You Don't Know Jacques!"(trendy taupe)
"Tickle My Fance-y"(a naughty shade of nude)
"Bastille My Heart"(rich burgundy)
"I'am Fondue of You" (milk chocolate)
"A Oui Bit of RED"(brilliant red)
"We'll Always Have Paris"(rich coffee shade)
"Eiffel for This Color"(deep wine)
"Baguette Me Not"(swirl of cinnamon)
"Crepes Suzi-ette"(warm carmel)...AND...
"Yes.....I Can- CAN (a rich eggplant)