Big Reveal: 4 Epic Hair-Makeovers with Carlton Hair

When I came across some awesome hair makeover inspiration last year, I knew I just had to gather my favourite Joburg bloggers for a day of fun & makeovers. Getting four busy bloggers, four master stylists, a photographer & make-up artist together for a mid-week makeover & photo shoot is not as simple as it looks. It took some juggling to coordinate all the diaries, but when it finally came together it was really epic!

See for yourself….

The excitement on the day & leading up to the Monday of the makeover was palpable. In fact, we all agreed when Chanene from Tonic & Tiaras said that it was the very first time in forever that she wished for the weekend to be over quickly.

As the ladies, stylists & assistants gathered around, the salon was abuzz with chatting, posting, posing, & laughter. And in between, some still had to (tried to?) do work, send emails or edit videos.

KAREN KELLY, LOVILEE

For her make-over, my friend Karen was in the excellent hands of executive stylist, Kalpesh Dave. These two chatted like old friends & the results were amazing!

Karen has lots of hair, so Kalpesh used this as a guideline for the cut & layered her mane a bit for a modern, trendy style. He also gave her a long fringe for some softness around her face.

Her hair was then styled with a natural-looking beachy wave which is on-trend right now.

Before & After

CHANENE ABLETT, TONIC & TIARAS

Chanene is just as hilarious in real life as on her blog, Tonic & Tiaras. I couldn’t help but chuckle as she was telling the photographer (Hanneri) & make-up artist (Kirsten) how they should make her look much younger, with flawless skin, super skinny plus she wanted a ‘halo’! The new hair-do, the make-up & images all really made her look amazing.

Fatima Mohamed was in charge of Chanene’s new look.

“First I lifted out the dark to get it to an even base, then washed out the colour,” explains Fatima. She started with a deeper darker violet on the roots which is very trendy at the moment. A lighter violet followed for the ends creating different levels of colour.  “The reason I chose this colour is because it is new & daring & different. And it will bring out her eyes.”

Chanene’s hair was cut into a sharper more edgy bob “to make her look like a hot mommy!” said Fatima – who is also a mom of two & who clearly understands that moms need to look fabulous. The colour was followed by a Keratherapy colour locking & smooth treatment. Says Fatima: “This is the new ‘Botox for hair” as it defrizzes, adds shine & cuts your blow dry time in half.” The Keratherapy treatment lasts 4-6 weeks.

Before & After

BRONWYN ABRAHAMS, QUEEN OF JOZI

Bronwyn is all round fabulous & her hair is so amazing that she really didn’t need a makeover at all. But I was so keen to get The Queen of Jozi involved that I jumped for joy when she agreed. She is fabulous, glamorous & kind. I love her pizazz & her Beyonce-style.

“My hair is super healthy at the moment… It took me 2 years to get my curls so I don’t want to mess that up,” said Bronwyn who specifically did not want any Brazillian treatment or straightening done to her hair. This basically meant that the lovely Namhla Peter had her work cut out for her & she did an amazing job! Colour & some trimming was the way to go.

First, the base was done with root tint. After that Namhla used the flamboyage technique to apply colour. This was followed by an ammonia free booster which had to stay on for 45 minutes. Bronwyn’s hair then got rinsed, toned for 15 minutes & then she received a Bondplex treatment.

This was followed by some curling cream. Lastly, her hair was diffused, some Davines Oi Oil was applied & voila. Bronwyn was delighted with the colour!

Before & After

ME

For the last six-plus years, David Gillson (master stylist & partner at Carlton Hair Hyde Park) has been keeping my hair fabulous, on-trend & in great condition. Through pregnancy, moves across the country, changing jobs & styles, David has been there. My visits to Carlton are honestly some of my favourite me time outings every six weeks.

And in anticipation of this day, we decided (around November last year) that we were not going to cut my hair until the make-over. We also kept colour treatment to the minimum, so my hair was rather long & uninspiring to start off with.

I arrived slightly after everyone else (you know: life, work), so they had already started  with their colour treatments. David is possibly the fastest hair stylist in the whole country, so my hair was underway in no time.

The inspiration for my hairstyle & colour was a more edgy long pinkish bob. And I still wanted to be able to tie it up.

David created my new hairdo by using highlights & balayage together. Then pink colour was applied over everything, followed by a Keratin nourishing treatment from Davines. After drying off my hair, we felt that it wasn’t pink enough so I went back for some pink conditioner which made it a really vibrant pink! Love.

Before & After

A big thank you to David Gillson & his team for making us look & feel fabulous. All of our hairstyles were compliments of Carlton Hair. Book an appointment with Carlton Hair Hyde Park on +27 11 325 4916 or find the closest Carlton branch here.

Yolandi ♥

Images: Hanneri de Wet for aZestyLife

Make-up: Kirsten Maarschalk of Kirledlash.com