We love hair makeovers at New Leaf.

That's why January is a great time to bring you the latest installment of New You at New Leaf. It's a time for still-kept New Year's resolutions (er...maybe), new beginnings, and a fresh start, if you will.

In celebration of all things new and exciting, our faithful New-Leafer, Marie, was ready to change her look.

Nothing gets a hairstylist's adrenaline going like cutting off 8 inches of hair. Unless of course Tabatha, from Bravo's Tabatha's Salon Takeover, walked through our doors. I think then, we'd feel our adrenaline pumping, nervous hands trembling, beads of sweat trickling and most likely, pure fear.

But anyways.

Here is Heidi, a stylist at New Leaf for over 7 years, explaining Marie's change...

For as long as I have known Marie, her hair has been long. When she came in saying she wanted something new, my creative juices went to work. You see, it's not every day this happens.

Marie's hair is fine, highlighted, and a bit dry (no wonder, really, it's a few years old!). With such a beautiful face, we needed to up the ante with her 'do. Sometimes beauty is hiding beneath long hair.

Here is Marie before...

And after cutting off Marie's 10 inch ponytail, here is her gorgeous graduated bob...after!

Disclaimer: We always advocate donating hair to Locks of Love or Beautiful Lengths. However, if your hair has been heavily highlighted, the organizations cannot use the donated ponytail.

I made sure to give Marie an easy style since she hadn't had short hair in a loooong time. We heavily texturized her cut to give it an edgier, more modern, young feel.

We decided to refresh her color because Marie is a natural blonde (I know, we hate her;-), and it's actually pretty hard to maintain a darker shade on light hair. Surprised? When the regrowth begins to show, it almost looks as if the hair is thinning! That being said, Marie is a perfect blonde, so we agreed to enhance it.

I foiled piecey buttery blonde highlights and golden caramel lowlights to add dimension. Clients don't always understand salon lingo so here is a quick lesson.

Highlights are when we weave or paint lighter tones or strands into the hair.
Lowlights are the same as highlights but in darker shades of color. People who have very light hair, faded hair, or need depth and more dimension, have their hair lowlighted. It's the opposite of highlighting.

Thanks Heidi for a fantastic makeover and also a big thanks to Marie for being so brave and kind for letting us snap a few photos... Oops, did we mention you would be on our blog:o)?

Marie should be catwalking the streets of NYC, but she settled for State Street in Bristol. Oh well. A girl can dream.

If you or someone you know would like a New Look @ New Leaf, please call us...
401.254.9333
or email...
(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Hi Y'All! It's Leah...with a little hair story for you.....hope you like it!! I'll try to keep 'em short...NO PUN INTENDED...Sort of!

Ashley A., a long-time "New-Leafer" ....(love when Courtney uses that term on this blog....hee hee) came into the salon a couple of weeks ago completely bored with her haircut but didn't want to change too much.

What did I suggest? Some bangs. Bangs you say? Yes.....bangs. The latest trends in bangs or fringe are not your typical 3rd grade-school-picture bangs....they aren't your "oops, I cut them myself, time to invest in some bobbi-pins bangs".....they aren't your "what was I thinking!?!" bangs.....and they are NOT your worst nightmare, but merely a way to change your cut/style without plunging too deep.

They're a good fix for some of you who may be stuck in a rut but are trying to get some length on your locks. Really. You don't have to go too short, and you don't have to have them so long so you're not able to see!

You can find your "happy medium" just by talking with your stylist (as Ashley did with me and the gals in the salon) and finding out what best suits your face-shape and your lifestyle!

So forget the "big bang theory" (there's that pun again). Bangs aren't as scary as you might think......Check out some of the glam shots of Ashley's new fringe.....

Side-swept and ready to go! Not too long, not too short...The perfect pick-me-up for your hair. YOU CAN DO IT TOO!

So, Jamie was our next stylist up for the challenge of a 'blog' makeover. She extended her expertise (and highly talented services) to Kristina, an at home, do-it-yourselfer, bathroom colorist. Here is Kristina before:

Jamie had a consultation with Kristina and found out she loves her long hair but would like it a little more updated. She wanted her great new look to be low maintenance...quite an oxymoron, but Jamie was up for the challenge.

"We decided to keep her hair warm, so we toned down the red into a chocolate base color with hidden peek-a-boo highlights, which are lo-to-no maintenance", Jamie said.

Jamie transformed her cut by adding textured layers. This gives Kristina more styling options and loads of volume. The face framing layers really open up her face, which Jamie made more beautiful with Cargo Cosmetics.

Call or e-mail us if you, or someone you know, would like a 'blog' makeover.

This is our start to a new series of makeovers. Every week one of our very talented stylists will ambush someone for a makeover. This week, our new talent sylist, Jenn, had the honors.

Erin, our "ambushee", had some purple highlights lingering from a moment of feeling outrageously trendy. She was ready to change her editorial style hair into something a little more modern and sophisticated. Jenn went to work with color...and more color. She added some highlights, color, then topped Erin off with a glossy red glaze.

"One of our biggest challenges is when clients don't want to cut off any length but want a new look", Jenn said. "We were definitely able to fulfill Erin's request without sacrificing too much length."
Jenn added some layers to Erin's hair while maintaining the length, which actually created an illusion of longer hair...perfect! To compliment her look Leah touched up her make-up for a glowing finish!

If you, or someone you know, is in need of a makeover, e-mail us at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) . We'll come to the rescue!