What’s the story, crowning glory?

I have a love-hate relationship with my naturally curly locks. I hate it when they get frizzy because of the humidity. I hate it when they get dry every time I change my hair color. I hate it when they get damaged with all the chemicals I put on to maintain my Felicity-type hair in this tropical country. Sometimes I get fed up with my curls and the products I splurge on (from curly-hair shampoo to deep-treatment conditioner to anti-frizz serum to curly-hair gel) that I’m tempted to have them straightened. But I love my hair when people always comment on how nice, cute and unique it is since it is. And no matter the season, curly hair is always in fashion. Thank God, I am never in and out of style just like Sarah Jessica Parker.

Sadly, there are relatively few hairdressers who actually know how to handle curly hair and prevent it from being too poofy. Not for hair stylist and colorist Andrea Zulueta. Her advice to curly haired people like me is this: "I wouldn’t recommend straightening your curls but put a bit of regular conditioner, use a diffuser and leave your hair a little damp for the curls to form."

Drea is the creative director of Piandré Salon and principal stylist of the newly opened The Studio Salon at the ground floor of CSJ Building, Legaspi Village in Makati. She just came from an eight-month course at Vidal Sassoon School in London. Her mom Linda Francisco got into the salon business when Drea was just a year old. Linda began with just one Piandré salon and over the years they kept expanding and putting up more and more branches.

"Last year, I went to Singapore with my sister, and there, I met a colorist from Toni & Guy (another famous salon from the UK) and realized that I wanted to be like her," Drea says. "I went to London thinking I could be a colorist, but when I started cutting, I found out I was better at it."

She adds that the current trend abroad is "minimal romance" – hair is cut asymmetrically and patches of pink, blue, and orange shades are used to give off a modern and dramatic highlighted look. Drea says her specialty is classic and wearable styles.

During the opening night of the Studio Salon, models wearing Jun Escario ensembles paraded asymmetrical hairstyles with dapples of funky colors. A potentially boring bob-cut was turned into a Natalie Portman/1920’s/Vogue cover-girl look. And if you think that football star David Beckham’s modern Mohawk wouldn’t look cool with a light-pink shade, one model showed how that hairstyle and that hue complemented each other. Another showed off F4’s trademark pineapple haircut, which had an edgy bluish-gray allure. A girl sported an asymmetrical look with sleek highlights.

When she studied at Vidal Sassoon in London, she learned the intricacies of hairstyles and coloring. "I had a very rigorous training. I had to be in school by 9:30 in the morning because we had clients coming in at 10 a.m. I only had a one-hour break for three-hour classes in the morning and afternoon."

At London hair-shows and competitions, students are not allowed to participate. According to Drea, teachers were kind enough to volunteer the students in assisting top hairdressers. This was the perfect opportunity for them to gain experience by shampooing and preparing the models for coloring and cutting.

The Studio Salon has only four barber chairs and a wash area for shampooing and rinsing. A deliberate act, she says. "Our concept for the Studio is to have a salon where people could go to after work or on weekends. Since I train Piandré’s younger staff and existing stylists in the morning, after-hours is the only time I can work regularly."

The Studio differs from other salons. She notes, "Since it is by appointment only, I do hair consultations very thoroughly – the client and I have to agree as to what style (suits him or her). I want to position my salon as something not too commercialized but something with a more personalized service."

Drea is mainly into precision cutting. She says, "I do not use razors and cut with a pair of scissors only and a comb." This is probably because razors can sometimes be inaccurate. And she would rather work with the hair’s natural texture and advised me never to straighten my curly hair.

What’s the funkiest thing she has ever done to a beautiful mane? Get this: She gave a shampoo model an undercut. People were shocked and horrified at the hairstyle Drea gave the model since they wondered how she would find work with her abbreviated locks. But there was no cause for alarm since the stylist saw the model in a commercial just recently. Phew!

When it comes to a serious chemical change, Drea is very adventurous.

"I bleach a lot," she admits. "You can’t be too afraid of bleaching. I even bleach my hair so many times and it didn’t dry out because the products now are not that harsh just as long as it is done by a professional." She also prefers cooler tones like ash-blue instead of something reddish.

Her tips on how to have beautiful hair are simple. Drea says, "The rule is to shampoo everyday because it is so polluted in Manila. Condition only every other day from the middle to the ends. And never (put conditioner on) your scalp so as to prevent dandruff."

Hey, with proper care and help from a really good stylist, getting that glorious crown of healthy and beautiful hair isn’t so hard after all.