Baby-blonde hair may be all the rage, but it’s not for everyone. According to Marie Robinson, who counts Emma Stone, Naomi Watts and Michelle Williams among her pale-tressed clients, “It works best on women who are at least halfway there to begin with, and they need touch-ups every four weeks.”
That said, its brightening effect on the skin is well worth the effort. “It’s rejuvenating,” says Chelsey Pickthorn, the Orlo Salon colorist who coaxed the model Abbey Lee Kershaw’s locks to the perfect platinum.
“But you really need to assess the hair’s condition before starting and then proceed slowly, with great care.”
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These colorists specialize in natural-looking hues.
Zoe Wiepert/Bumble and Bumble
Wiepert — the colorist most requested by Bumble and Bumble’s own employees — is known for her blonde, which can run the gamut from low-brow (she colors a few of the New York Knicks city dancers) to high (literally: Wiepert bleached models’ brows for the fall ’11 Thakoon show).
Bb. Uptown Salon
146 East 56th Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 521-6500
bumbleandbumble.com
Reyad Fritas/Frederic Fekkai
The natural-looking shades created by Fritas using balayage has earned him regulars like Diane von Furstenberg and Heidi Klum and made him the go-to corrective colorist for a number of model agencies including Elite and Ford.
712 Fifth Avenue, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10019
(212) 753-9500
fekkai.com
Simone Pearl Magano/Serge Normant at John Frieda
Magano grew up in the West Village and trained under Marie Robinson. She comes from an art background (having attended Parsons the New School for Design for two years) but her specialty — platinum — calls for a decent knowledge of chemistry: “I’m one of the few colorists who likes to do double-process blondes,” she says.
825 Washington Street
New York, NY 10014
(between Gansevoort and Little West 12th Streets)
(212) 675-0001
johnfrieda.com
Joe Martino/Chelsea Pickthorn/Orlo Salon
Martino, who was responsible for Michelle Williams’s cut, color and extensions for “Blue Valentine,” mixes techniques, including “free-hand, hair painting, foiling, even applying bleach with fingers,” to a customized effect. His colleague Chelsea Pickthorn is known for her light hues, but is also a master of corrective color thanks to a stint working in the Middle East.
34 Gansevoort Street, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10014
(between Hudson and Greenwich Streets)
(212) 242-3266
Kimberly Cannon/Marie Robinson Salon
Cannon got her start working at her older sister’s salon in Philadelphia at just 14 years old. She’s since made the salon rounds, with stints at Ted Gibson and Serge Normant at John Frieda. Cannon colors using foils and balayage, and specializes in red, for which she looks to the many redheads in her family for inspiration.
155 Fifth Avenue, 4th Floor
(between 21st and 22nd Streets)
(212) 358-7780
marierobinsonsalon.com
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