The feature photo is of myself and three founders of Prime Women who are a prime example of the fun of doing business with friends, but this last segment of this three part series is about my hairdresser and his make-up artist.
A Tale of Two Men
My husband’s and my recent 50th-anniversary parties has been used as a vehicle for spotlighting the businesses of friends will feature Paul Labrecque and his make-up artist, Tamor. Because professionally done hair and make-up can give you confidence and help you in your quest to look your best for your spouse and friends, it also assists the photographer in taking the best pictures possible.
After telling you about and showing you the results of both men’s efforts, I want to share photos of many of the celebrants who joined us to make both occasions so memorable. You may see many familiar faces here or put names to faces for the first time. I hope you will enjoy this final installment.
Paul LaBrecque
I began my first part of this story with a photo of Brian Cantor, myself, and primewomen.com’s Hair Style Editor, Paul LaBrecque. Brian and Paul are married and work together as well. The pair nurtures a single career just as my husband and I did for 22 years. Don and I had entirely different skills and contributions to make to our business, so do Paul and Brian to theirs. Paul is all about the art of styling hair in creative ways which includes everything from the three c’s of coloring, cutting and conditioning to installing hair extensions, making wigs, and teaching a group of young apprentices how to become first rate stylists. Brian focuses on the business side of the operation and on keeping the four Manhattan and one Philadelphia locations of Paul Labrecque Salons and Spas humming along.
Parenthetically, in addition to the long list of services provided by his salons and spas, Paul does a tremendous amount of community outreach. His good works include the making of wigs for cancer patients, doing hair and make-up for residents of reduced means in NYC assisted living facilities, and having a party each year for women from a shelter who are faced with starting their lives over again as single heads of households because of domestic abuse.
This party, which is coming up on December 14, and will be held at Paul’s east side salon, which is at 170 E.65th St. N.Y., N.Y. 10065, is a high point of the holidays for these women and their children. Clients from this NYC sanctuary for battered women, will come and receive haircuts, color, and styling along with make-up sessions and instructions on how to best apply the products used and provided. Each will also get an outfit suitable for a job interview while their children are entertained and also given lots of good food and presents.
This is all furnished to the honorees without cost. Paul raises the money and asks clients and friends to donate new clothing, shoes, accessories and purses or new toys for the children. Anything and everything to help these women look and feel their best as they search for jobs as well as what it takes to make the holiday happy for their children.
As Paul says, battered women come from every echelon of society and exist in every size, shape, and ethnicity. I encourage you to donate either new clothing or any of the above items or send a monetary contribution to this very worthy effort. It is such a gratifying experience I can promise you that.
But getting back to what all Paul did to help me look my best the weekend of October 16 and 17, 2015, he has already done most of the work of telling you about it. If you go to his story of Oct. 13 in this magazine called, “When is Less More?” you will see the before, middle and after of the process of Paul putting extensions into my hair. More hair always looks better in photographs, and he added both inches and volume to my natural hair. On the days of each party, he styled it and made me feel brand new.
Read Next:
The Fun of Doing Business With Friends ~ Part One
The Fun of Doing Business With Friends ~ Part Two
Also, his make-up artist, Tamor, provided all the skill and products to make several of our friends exclaim wonderful things about my looking 20 years younger at the October 16 gathering! That was a compliment that I passed on to both Paul and Tamor on Saturday, October 17, as they did their magic on me all over again. See the above photo with Paul showing the final results.
Below, are some additional shots that give you an idea of what can be done with extensions and Paul’s expert attention. If you have a special occasion in NYC, call in advance and book an appointment with both Paul and Tamor at 212.988.7816. If extensions are in your plans, you will need to talk to Paul or one of his assistants about your hair color and the supplies he will need to have on hand. He may need a small sample of your hair and photographs for color verification.
Make sure to allow plenty of time and discuss the pricing of putting them in and maintaining them. All these factors should play into your decision about availing yourself of this added glamor option. The process requires 4 to 5 hours to install initially, and moving the extensions back up the hair shaft to the roots after 5 to 6 weeks of growth takes even longer.
Here is what extensions look like a week after the initial placement. Paul treats these additions just like he does your own hair and doesn’t give them any special handling whatsoever. He and his assistants, shampoo, scrub your scalp, condition, use regular products for styling, blow dry in the usual fashion and use a curling iron if it’s called for.
Now, I would like to end this series by sharing several photos of the wonderful people who came to NYC on October 16 and 17, 2015 to help us commemorate our big 5-0. We appreciate them all so much. I also want to recognize the beautiful photography of Julie Skarrat (212) 877-2604 or www.julieskarratt@mac.com at the casual event on Friday, October 16, at the John Campbell Apartment, Grand Central Terminal, and of Zoe Hiigli at the Core Club event on Saturday, October 17, 2015 (347) 293-8867 or www.nycwonderwoman@gmail.com.
