Jenni Gilbert Turns out I’ve been doing everything wrong by my hair forever. In spite of an amazing stylist (who, grievously, has just returned to her native NZ after a 12-year relationship – breaking up is so hard to do!), I have just discovered I was undoing all her good work between visits the minute I walked out of the salon.
After spending an hour last Friday with Richard Ward, hair guru to the Duchess of Cambridge (he did Kate’s, Carol’s and Pippa’s royal wedding hair in 2011, although they had all been longtime clients by then), I felt worthy of a hairdressing diploma, such was the richness of the tips he shared.
I was invited to experience his signature Chelsea Blow Dry (as coined by British media, much to Richard’s delight, because his salon is situated in London’s chic Sloane Square, Chelsea).
However, I asked my 22-year-old niece, Johanna, my sometime SPA+CLINIC helpmate, she of the glorious hair, to be the model while I got the lowdown from Richard as he worked in old friend Philippe Xavier’s salon at Sydney’s Four Seasons hotel.
Richard and his technical director Mario Charalambous have spent the best part of two weeks in Australia to spread the news about his bespoke Chelsea and Anti-Ageing Collections, launching into Priceline chemists from next month.
They worked as a tag team last Thursday and Friday to demonstrate on media invitees what constitutes a truly great blow dry and, of course, sample the appropriate products for their hair from the range(s) in the process.
Indeed, Richard and Mario – who are incredibly down-to-earth, warm and funny – have been an inseparable tag team for years, working with A-list clients (apart from the Middleton clan, of course) as diverse as Queen Rania of Jordan and actress-film producer Liz Hurley.
More of that later because it’s back to biz …
It’s a fact, like it nor not, that hairdressing clients (even more than skincare clients) are far likelier to buy their shampoo, conditioner, masques and styling products et al from a supermarket, chemist or department store than they are from you.
If you can’t convert them to the products you retail (whether it’s a matter of price, your lack of retail know-how, or those products simply don’t ‘do it’ for a client’s hair) they’re going to go somewhere else.
In that event, you’d be best served to guide them to products and DIY techniques that what won’t damage their hair, or compromise the colour and style you’ve given them, between professional treatments. This will amp up the trust and loyalty factor as well as protect their tresses.
Richard first developed high-end home care products in 2010, retailed only through select salons. Shampoos, for instance, sold at around $45.
“We just couldn’t sell enough product at the going price to make it a viable concern,” he says. “Then three years ago, the Waitrose chain of supermarkets [more than 400 in the UK] approached me to do a line for them.
“It’s been a huge success. We were offering products at a third of the price of the couture range but not three times lesser quality. Granted, we couldn’t afford to produce as expensive formulas of the couture products at that price, but we definitely did not compromise on quality.
“There are 22 products overall in the ranges stocked at Waitrose. Priceline will be stocking 14 at first and build from there according to market demand.”
So to the nitty gritty … what are the Duchess of Cambridge, her mother and sister like?
We’re reliably informed by Team Ward that they, too, are very down to earth, warm and funny, close knit and highly prize normal family life (and Prince George had his first haircut courtesy The Team).
The vibe of the royal wedding preparations (the dos were done at the Goring Hotel and then maintained for post-ceremony pix at Buck House) was to keep it as much a traditional British wedding as possible in the circumstances.
That is, the royal couple wanted it to be intimate and to celebrate family and friends as much as the newlyweds.
RICHARD’S TOP DIY TIPS
- People rough-dry their hair far too much. They need to start blow-drying from minimum 75 percent wet. This is because the structure of the hair is different when wet. Blow-drying too soon, or haphazardly (ie. “spraying” hot air randomly around the head instead of underneath and upwards when hair is rolled by a brush) will cause hair cuticles to separate, creating a dry, frizzy look, and potentially damaging hair.
- Then it’s all in product application. Tell clients to spend a few extra minutes sectioning their hair and applying product accordingly, from mid length to ends – don’t start at the roots. However, if time (or arm stamina!) is an issue, turn the head upside down and apply product that way.
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Mario takes over the Chelsea Blow Dry If using a serum or styling product, less is more. “People use too much product and put it on the top of their hair,” says Richard. “It’s all about applying it in the right way, it in small sections. Rub it in your hands till near-dry, section off the hair, and apply. If required, add a few more drops to the hands and apply again. If time is an issue, turn the head upside down and apply product that way, from the mid-length to ends only.
- “It is so important to have a good quality brush. I always say if you really want that frizz-free, glossy-looking hair you really need to have a boar bristle brush,” says Richard.
- It is very important when blow-drying to use the nozzle, he says, to facilitate “controlled” drying, to keep hair smooth and promote shine. Richard also recommends encouraging clients to invest in a high quality hair dryer such as a Parlux. “I have been using the one I brought on this trip for three years and it’s still going strong. I hasten to add this is not an official endorsement. Dryers sold in retail outlets such as chemists aren’t really up to the job; they don’t dry as quickly or efficiently and can damage hair in the process.”
Finally, the Chelsea Blow Dry is not just about long, luscious royal waves.
It’s about the finish of the hair, long, short or in-between, Richard stresses.
“It’s about the way you (or your client at home) dries the hair, and the tools and products you/they use, to get bounce and shine and that polished, lasting finish.”
Johanna decreed that her Chelsea Blow Dry was “the best ever” and that it lasted well into the next day.
