Sassoon salon seminar at salon international 2021

The Sassoon Academy team made a triumphant return to Salon International with a sell-out seminar presenting their latest collection, Sassoon Now II. “I’m sure you’ve all been on your own personal journey over the last 18 months,” said International Creative Director Mark Haye as he welcomed the audience, “and I want to thank you on behalf of Sassoon for giving us the privilege of sharing hair with you today.” Created to challenge, inspire and excite the audience, the collection united modernist purity with creative experimentation and demonstrated the Sassoon concept of shape and balance through cut, colour and style. Sharing both live colour applications and presentation models, references were as rich and inspirational as ever from Sassoon and included the Y2K trend with high-contrast barcode-inspired colour placement – perfect for enhancing long hair  – and the concept of ‘recycling’ colour by working with what’s already there and what remains from previous applications. “These are classic and approachable techniques,” explained Mark. “But they’re being used to create something new and super cool to keep things moving forward.” Finished looks included an irregular sequence of high-contrast creamy blonde and darker browns, contrasting lavender and silver shades paired with a natural base for contrasting depth and light and creamy, baby blonde. “We went through a phase of hiding colour,” said Senior Colour Director, Caroline Spencer. “But there’s been a revival of 2000s trends and now we want to see colour a bit more.” With clients being starved of salon appointments for so long, it’s perhaps no wonder that the demand is back for intentional colour that reflects the artistry of the professional. “It has been a new challenge to work with people’s natural hair from what we’ve been through,” added UK Colour Director Edward Darley. “But it pushes you in a new direction with your work.” Cutting was next on the agenda, with classic Sassoon shapes given a 2021 update. Assistant UK Creative Director Danielle Harvey shared a graphic, modern box bob – “there always has to be a bob,” she said, “but there’s always a new way too.” Her geometric cut combined a classic square shape with lots of internal interest and detail for a bespoke finish. “Clients are either going with their very long hair from lockdown or they’re cutting it off – which is really exciting for us,” she said. For those that are maintaining their lockdown length, Senior Creative Director Daniel McCourt showcased invisible internal disconnection to create undone, effortless texture on longer hair. “I’m obsessed with looks that are undone in appearance, but created with precision technique,” he said. With an archive as rich as Sassoon, iconic cuts also served as inspiration with a refreshed version of the mid 70s Mouche. “We are all very passionate about our heritage,” said Senior Creative Director, Silvia Salerno. “This is a strong, sentimental collection and it’s about how we collaborate with our muse to create something tailormade.” Retaining the silhouette of the original style, she showcased personalisation techniques to bring the look up to date for 2021. The show closed with a layered cut from Mark Hayes, building a variation on an Eton crop in a sombre colour palette. As he created the look, he explained not just positioning, preparation and technique but also shared more on his ethos of cutting. “You can’t make a haircut suit someone unless you can communicate with them,” he said. “Suitability and creativity are so closely linked. Creativity is about taking what an individual wants their hair to look like, having the techniques to create it and having the sensitivity to understand the person, because suitability isn’t just about physical characteristics. The artistry then lies in having the imagination, references and repertoire of techniques to create the cut your client wants.” Thank you to LWPR for reporting on this seminar.