What a year for the colour trophy winners

It’s been a busy year for the winners of the L’Oréal Colour Trophy awards 2007. As part of their prize they travelled to New York to work on a Vogue photo shoot, styled the advertisements for this year’s competition, and recreated their original winning looks for the front cover of HJ. As hopefuls gear up to enter for 2008, Maria O’Keefe of Sanrizz, L’Oréal Colour Trophy award winner, and Sara Elhaj of Toni & Guy, who – along with her partner Abby Cooper – scooped the Men’s Image award, tell us about their year so far. What have you been up to since winning your award in June? MO’K: I’ve done a lot of work with media people for different magazines and a lot of shows for Sanrizz. I was also involved in London Fashion Week and have had lots of press coverage. SE: We’ve done quite a few shoots, including for L’Oréal’s own magazine Unique. Personally, I’ve been building up my portfolio and have worked with photographers to come up with new shoots. I also qualified for Toni & Guy’s Breakthrough Team. What was the Vogue fashion shoot like? MO’K: It was an amazing experience. They had a great photographer and the designer had won the L’Oréal Design Competition for Central Saint Martins. His clothes were fabulous – very red and very graphic. We worked from 9am until 10pm to get the shots we wanted. We looked to the catwalk for inspiration and the hair itself was very Cavalli – soft, big curls. Nothing was overpowering – the clothes and the hair worked to complement each other. SE: I found it quite overwhelming. They built a set from scratch and had a director who was in charge of everything. They had a whole story behind the set. It taught me a lot about how fashion shoots are put together. The theme was underground – very dark and electric. For the male model, the hair was quite choppy and messy and for the second shoot we did a sleek and tidy look. It was very much a case of delivering what the director wanted. What was the New York shoot SE: The New York shoot was more laid back than the Vogue shoot and they bounced around our ideas so we had a chance to have more input. The model we worked with had very strong features. His hair was easy to sculpt – we did a strong parting and gave him an old-school barber look. The second look we did was messier, but still quite structured. Have any new doors opened up for you since winning? MO’K: I’ve done more session work and different shoots since winning. It’s good to learn about how fashion shoots are not just about the hair, but the styling too. SE: Abby and I have been promoted in the salon twice. I’m now in charge of all the training and motivation in the salon. We’ve gained lots of recognition within Toni & Guy in general – people we didn’t even know come up and congratulate us. How did you find working on the front cover image for HJ? MO’K: Working on the HJ cover was great fun. I bought lots of copies of the magazine when it came out. It’s great to open it up and see yourself in it, being quoted and referred to in different articles. It gives you recognition within the industry and a massive confidence boost. What has been the biggest highlight of your year so far? SE: The New York shoot and the whole experience of going to New York was my favourite part. Because the trip took place after the Vogue shoot I was more confident because I knew what would be involved. The actual L’Oréal Colour Trophy awards held at Earls Court was also a long but amazing day. Has winning had an effect on business? MO’K: The salon has become noticeably busier. Having an advertisement in the window has had a major effect – people come in and specifically ask for the L’Oréal Colour Trophy winner. The award has definitely increased our client base. People worry about colour so they feel more comfortable now as they’re in the hands of a specialist. They’ve also started recommending me to their friends. SE: There’s been an increase in business and press coverage – we were featured in our local newspaper and people have come into the salon asking for Abby and me specifically. Our existing clients have also become more adventurous. We’ve displayed cards showing the Vogue photo shoot in the salon, which has really raised our profile. What’s your advice for those entering this year? MO’K: We used our house models and girls from the street, which shows you don’t have to spend lots of money to enter. It’s about the work you put in and the quality of the hairdressing. SE: If you decide on professional models make sure you get a contract to set the price for using the same models all the way through the competition. And, don’t let age or lack of experience put you off – Abby and I are only 22 and we had never entered a competition before. Just go for it!