Chopping off a few inches of hair is a decision that most of us don’t take lightly. “After a bad cut in junior year of high school, I’ve strayed away from short hair for a long time,” said Megan, our latest real girl makeover subject and Daily Makeover’s own associate editor. “But I was finally ready for a change.”
Megan only had one request when she sat down with hair stylist and Aveda Global Styling Director Ricardo Dinis at New York’s Aveda Academy: no pixie cut. Dinis started with a consultation. “I try to look at you and tailor your haircut to your life,” he explained, as he compared a well-designed cut to a piece of clothing, such as a jacket. “How is hanging in the back? Is it droopy on the shoulders?” The goal, of course, is a perfect fit.
Dinis started by cutting Megan’s hair wet, then detailed the shape by point-cutting the style dry. “It’s a bob, but it has great layers,” he said. “I added looser layers throughout the shape and made the edges soft so the haircut moves.”
Megan’s fresh new cut called for a color tweak, too. Colorist Carol Wood applied a brown hair color that was slightly darker than Megan’s roots. “This will enhance the richness of her natural color,” Wood explained. “The deposit-only color treatment is conditioning her hair so it will look super healthy and shiny.”
Dinis, the stylist, finished by wrap drying Megan’s hair — a technique that involves brushing the hair over the shape of the head while blow drying. This method accentuates the face shape, he explained. He also added soft texture with Aveda Pure Abundance Hair Potion ($24, aveda.com), a loose hair powder that helps create volume. The final effect? “You’d want to run your fingers through it as much as she does.”
Finally, makeup artist Eva VanAnglen accentuated Megan’s new hairstyle with a colorful smoky eye. VanAnglen lined Megan’s eyes with Aveda Petal Essence Eye Definer in Wild Indigo ($16), then went over the line with Petal Essence Single Eye Color in Oceanica ($14), using a brush to create a V-shaped contour in the outer corner. She applied Bare Bellis shadow, a soft pink, in the center of the eye and blended for a smoky look. On Megan’s lips, VanAnglen blotted Nourish-Mint Smoothing Lip Color in Cana ($16) to create a stained effect, than dabbed on Golden Prism Lip Shine ($16) to add a pretty sheen.
The moment of truth with any makeover is the big reveal to friends and family, and Megan’s new look passed with flying colors. “I got a lot of positive reinforcement for the cut. Even my husband, who isn’t a fan of short hair, really likes it,” she said. “I’ve been told everything from, ‘You look older’ to ‘You look so edgy’ and even, ‘You look like a woman who knows what she wants.’ I feel like my haircut serves as a Rorschach test.”
And Megan’s own take? “It’s crazy how a new haircut makes everything feel new. Even my clothes look cooler somehow.”
