Advice from a Beauty Professional: At-Home Beauty Do's During the COVID-19 Pandemic
“Better Beauty Culture”
Hi all, my name is Alice Ezrow. I am the proud owner of Midwest Beauty House with two locations in Madison, Wisconsin. I have more than twenty years of experience in the beauty industry and have seen my share of conflicting advice, and even differences in opinions, from new and veteran industry professionals alike. So, I figured there was no time like the present to throw my two cents into the online ring of beauty advice.
My hope is that this advice helps both my fellow professionals as well as all you lovely people stuck at home who desperately miss going into your local salon/barber shop to receive beauty and grooming services. We miss you too.
BEAUTY BEST PRACTICES
DO reach out to your local salon/barbershop/stylist for advice specific to your hair or beauty needs during this time. Beauty professionals are at home missing their clients, so what’s the next best thing if we can’t be with you in person? Talking virtually, of course! Most of us are willing to provide consultations on the phone, through video chats or email to provide specific professional advice tailored to your hair and your needs.
Even though some online videos offer some great tips, we all have very different hair and beauty needs, and I guarantee those online videos aren’t specific to your hair type and style preferences.
PRO TIP: When in doubt, always consult a professional!
DO practice beauty self-care at home. You may not be getting a great facial or manicure right now, but you can keep up your hair, skin, and nail health even when you’re unable to come in for services. We’ll be sharing some skin, nail and at-home care advice on our blog very soon, so stay tuned.
This is another time for you to reach out to the professionals who support you! They can still give you advice during this time. And don’t forget to take care of yourself AND help your beauty professionals by supporting their local business. You can purchase at-home beauty products from them instead of impulse purchases online or at the local grocery store – it’ll be a huge help.
PRO TIP: A lot of brick and mortar businesses are offering pick-up orders for product or online sales of professional products. So, ask your local salon/stylist what they’re doing to help pay the bills during this time and help if you can.
DO take this time at home to learn tips and tricks for make-up and hair styling that you’ve always wanted to learn. There are a lot of great videos online that feature different make-up techniques and how-to styling tutorials. However, keep in mind that most make-up looks are very tailored to your personal eye shape and skin color, and some styles only work on certain hair types/textures.
Not all products are created equal either. Styling success is very dependent upon the right products and tools. Ask for virtual lessons from your professionals. This is a service we can provide during this forced sabbatical and many of us would be overjoyed to help. It’s a great way for us to service our clients while providing us with some income since we can’t see you in person.
PRO TIP: WE ARE STILL HERE! WE CAN STILL TAKE CARE OF YOU!
DO hold out as long as you can on cutting or coloring your own hair! Most of us are planning on being away from each other for at least a month, and possibly longer. I completely understand feeling desperate about your hair, especially during a stressful time. Trust me, I will not judge anyone who decides to shave their head just because they’ve always wanted to try it! I opened my first salon almost four years ago, and right after that I shaved my head. For me, it was liberating to own a beauty business with no hair on my head. So, if that’s your jam, go for it.
Just keep in mind that hair color and the condition of your hair go hand-in-hand and it’s a bit of a science to get the right outcome. There’s a good possibility that if you decide to try at-home color options, you could be spending many hours in the salon and lots of money to have a professional fix your shit afterwards. And there’s a pretty good chance that, due to a backlog of missed appointments, our schedules will be pretty packed when we get back to regular business. Accommodating large corrective color/cut appointments is going to be tough for us.
PRO TIP: It’s best to consult your stylist now with plans on how to get you through until you can get in for your next appointment!
DO take this time to support your local beauty professionals by writing positive reviews about our businesses online and sharing our social and online posts with your networks. Another important way for you to support your local beauty professionals is to purchase gift cards, buy products and offer to prepay for appointments during our forced closure.
PRO TIP: You can help support your favorite beauty/barber spot and ensure it’s still there when this global pandemic comes to an end.
ADVICE TO MY FELLOW BEAUTY PROFESSIONALS:
FIRST! Please listen to your state and federal government and all of our health professionals begging you to stay home! Hair will keep growing and all our clients will be there when it’s safe to practice again. Save lives by staying home! Make sure you’re reading information about best practices from credible health sources. For now, the best defense we have is to limit our interaction with the general public.
PRO TIP: Resist the urge to do any in-home services at this time.
NEXT, take this time to learn, lift up your beauty community and stay in contact with your clients and support them the best you can from afar. I know we’re all freaking out because we love what we do. We feel lost without our trade and the daily connections with our beauty communities--both clients and fellow artists. The badmouthing I’ve seen coming from this industry over the last few weeks is unnecessary and unproductive. Some stylists may choose to council their clients in ways that others may not agree with, and that’s okay!
If a stylist decides to walk a client through a bang trim virtually because it will make them feel better and help them during this time, back off. Those clients will still be here when you open again and will appreciate how you supported them during a tough time.
If a salon owner decides to sell professional color to a client with the disclaimer that at-home application is at their own risk, lay off. If done professionally (on a case-by-case basis) with the proper support, guidance and formulation, it’s still a professional service and way better than a client grabbing for that box color at the grocery store.
PRO TIP: Focus on supporting your clients and learning during this time. We are beauty professionals and artists…that’s why people pay us for our services!
FINALLY! LIFT EACH OTHER UP AND BREATHE! Take this time to practice, make art, grow your business virtually in the way you’ve always wanted. We are all in this together. Let’s all practice Better Beauty Culture—it’s more than just your chair.
Much love to you all,
ALICE EZROW