CheekyChicago

Getting your hair-did is the ultimate pick-me-up, isn’t it? There’s nothing that a quick trim, a few highlights, or a new style can’t cure.  But the true beauty of good hair styling is in its subtltey…that je ne sais quois only a really amazing hair stylist can give you. Luckily for the women of Chicago, we’ve got a master in the house.

For those of you who have yet ventured over to the beauty mecca that is ULTA on State Street, you honestly don’t know what you’re missing. Three sprawling floors embody every, and any product your cheeky heart could desire, plus a fourth floor salon that you truly must see to believe.  It is here where you can find Sydney Brown, master celebrity colorist, Frederick Fekkai alum, and now The Salon’s best kept secret.

Sydney’s specialty is the Bayalage highlight, a French technique in which highlights are hand painted on the hair in a way that allows a custom look for every hairstyle and texture.  This is a technique that is rarely used in salons, yet I must say that my experience with Sydney herself was the rarest of all.

We started my appointment off with a 25 minute consultation, where she not only examined the length, texture, style and complexities of my hair, but asked questions about my entire hair history, my ultimate dream look and what I absolutely wanted to avoid. By the time we were ready to begin the highlights, I could have very well told her my bank account number. Trust with your stylist is key, especially as a new client, and Sydney establishes this with ease from the get-go.

While she listens with the compassion of a therapist, she works with the diligence and studiousness of a painter at a canvas.  The entire process took over two and a half hours, where Sydney sectioned off my hair into three sections, layered my highlights not with foil but with plastic wrap. She then washed my hair out in three separate washes to ensure every strand had appropriate dye-time.

And while my glistening golden, caramel, and honey highlights were no doubt the finest I’ve had, it was the reaction I received immediately after that sold me.  “What’s different about you,  J?”, my friends  asked. “Oh, you know, just found a new way to do my hair,” I would reply.

I’ve also found my new colorist.