Haircut above the rest
MANILA, Philippines - A good haircut highlights attractive peepers, chiseled cheekbones or an awesome smile, South Salon’s Vicky Sumbillo has learned from constant training. Through the annual hair seminars and workshops she and partner cum husband Henry attend in Europe and Asia, she has discovered that the lines of an excellent haircut are arrows to a client’s best features.
Totally sold on the South Salon approach, clients like celebrities Nikki Gil, Christine Jacob and many other fashionable women and men living in Southern Metro Manila —like Glo Garcia and husband Freddie — have become ardent loyalists of the salon located at the Westgate Tower on Investment Drive in Ayala Alabang’s Madrigal Business Park. Jacob discloses that she hasn’t had her tresses styled by any other salon for around five years now. Nikki Gil and her family have been having their trims and hair treatments at South Salon since she was seven years old.
Branching out to an A. Venue location in Makati, South Salon is no longer just an institution among trendy Alabang folk. In their spacious Makati studio, Vicky, Henry and their associate stylists are now also bringing out Makati clients’ best features using classic and innovative haircutting techniques picked up from leading edge hair academies abroad.
Below, she shares some of the techniques and guidelines that serve as the foundation of a good haircut. These practices apply not just to women and men with short hair. But also to those with medium-length and long hair, says Vicky who early in her career was chosen by Vidal Sassoon to style the do’s of the endorsers featured in its commercial that aired throughout Asia in the ’90s.
A good cut always complements the shape of the wearer’s face. A round face is tapered down by wisps or layers; a longish face is balanced by volume at the top and sides. These classic rules have since been reinterpreted in many ways, thanks to new cutting techniques, says the hairdresser who has studied in London — to master the classic geometric styles — as well as in Sta. Monica, California, for trendsetting innovations. In the past, a woman with a long jawline was always subjected to a short style that highlighted her eyes, and rightly so. Thanks to clever layering, her tresses can now be shaped to focus on her peepers yet remain long behind.
A well-executed cut stays in shape for months. According to Vicky, a good haircutter is like an architect. She envisions an overarching silhouette or shape, then builds on layers — some hidden — to achieve a look. Nevertheless, the construction of the layers also take into consideration the texture of the hair and hair growth patterns. A good cutter must work around factors like a high hairline centimeters above the neck or a patch of hair growing in the opposite direction of the rest of the hair. Because tresses have been cut to balance these peculiar traits and because they are supported by layers, the hair retains its shape for months.
A trained hairdresser studies the structure of your head. Before cutting hair, he will usually study your occipital bone, a curved protrusion that makes up the back of the skull. It is found right above the nape. Guided by the positioning of the occipital bone, he will then try to balance the shape of the head. If the bone tends to be flatter than usual, for instance, the cutter will use layers to create a rounder silhouette. South Salon cutters use the occipital bone as a good measuring point. Henry points out that since a man usually keeps his hair short, his haircut should always be guided by the positioning of the occipital bone.
The secret is in the layering. High layering creates volume at the top, says Vicky. Mid-layering can highlight the cheekbones or jawbones. The point is that current styles are all built on layering, which in turn is founded on how the hair is sectioned as the cut progresses. Fine sectioning means one has better control of how the layers are shaped. Haphazard sectioning leads to poor layering and untamed strands of hair. “Iwasan ang buhok na nagtitikwasan,” is Vicky’s mantra to her cutters. Needless to say, untamed hair strands are a sure sign of a bad cut.
A good cut is complemented by highlights and other coloring techniques. A great way to add texture and interest to dark hair is by clever highlighting. South Salon experts know that dying strategic strands of hair shades lighter than the rest emphasize its layers. “A good cut is complemented most of the time by great coloring,” says Vicky who makes it a point to update herself on new hairdye techniques. Organic hairdyes, for instance, are the norm at South Salon.
Ultimately, the goal of every South Salon cutter is to transform one’s hairstyle into a powerful and glamorous statement, says Vicky. No wonder, she keeps her clients.
