The Style File

The Last Lecture...goodbye to Randy Pausch

I was sent a link to this amazing video by our business partner, Brian.  I have used it briefly for a class, but will be developing a longer class on Randy Pausch's nationally bestselling book, The Last Lecture.  One of my dearest friends, Gina has been battling cancer for 12 years now, so Randy's illness has touched and affects my life.  Randy passed away today from complications from his illness.  My heart goes out to his wife Jai and their sweet children.

I have a bi-line I always close my posts with,  not this time.

N.A.H.A. '08

Our school, Austin Kade Academy recently attended the N.orth A.merican H.airstyling A.wards , the Academy Awards of the beauty industry, at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and we had a blast!  As a school we are very interested in photoshoots and portforlio building so this event was exciting to the students and the staff! 

We charted a bus and 41 of us traveled to Las Vegas!  We only had 6 students that couldn't attend.

I left the photo documentation of the rest of the trip to the students and their cameras, but I took the school camera to the awards show.

One of favorite things the students got to experience that evening was meeting famous hairstylists.  Some their/my personal "hair heros" and mentors and their favorite (well maybe mine) TV hair heros!

Phillip and Mary Wilson

  Nina and Amanda with Vivianne Mackinder she has an amazing website you need to visit if you have any interest in hair!  HairdesigerTV.com

Tyler meeting Charlie Price (no relation) of Bravo's Shear Genius and winner of the coveted HAIRSTYLIST OF THE YEAR award!

Some students with Charlie and then Glen and Daniel also from Shear Genius!

Staff and Students with our favorite star-Phillip Wilson

Austin Kade with Eric Fisher nominated and winner of multiple NAHA's. 

Annie and Stacey with Nicholas French.

The amazing Babak with Ruth Roche!

My friends Brooke Sperry, business director for Taylor Andrews Academies and Amanda Maxfield, owner of Taylor Andrews St. George.

Jami G. from TAA with Chrystopher Benson, classic contemporary nominee

My homies, Mer and Nikki.

Classic Contemporary and Fashion Forward winner, Maureen Anlauf and guest.

We also got to see and chat with another mentor and friend of mine, Ann Mincey, V.P. of Global Communications, Redken 5th Avenue and I am so sad to say that I didn't get a picture with her, but she was the announcer of the Lifetime Achievement Award, awarded to Martin Parsons.

We had a fabulous time!  It was great too because we took Sammy my 14 year old daughter and her best friend Sidney (the daughter of my best friend, Gina) with us and they had so much fun.  It was so cool to see Sammy get excited about the beauty industry.  I think it made her understand more why her crazy mom loves hair, photo shoots, the school and her students so much!

"You don't have to be a star to have a stylist"... or to mingle with beauty icons!

TAGGED!

So Brooke my good friend from Taylor Andrews tagged me and as I am working on my big post about N.A.H.A. and all of the fun of Austin Kade's Las Vegas trip, I thought I would answer back her tag so there would be something new to read on my blog as I finish the NAHA post.  So here goes...

8 things I am passionate about…in no particular order:
1. My Husband
2. My Family
3. My School

4. My students

5. HAIR

6. Photoshoots

7. My Friends
8. Fashion
8 Books I Have Read And Enjoyed
1. Eat, Love, Pray by Elizabeth Gilbert

2. Seven Spiritual Laws of Success by Deepak Chopra

3. Get Glowing by Ann Mincey

4. How to become a Great Boss by Jeffrey J. Fox

5. Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz
6. The Book of Mormon

7. One More Day by Mitch Albom

8. The TWILGHT series
8 Words/Phrases I Say Often
1. "Hello Ladies" (to my students)
2. What level does that color live at?

3. It's a choice party, what's your choice?

4. I'm so grateful for...
5. Thank you so much

6. Text me that ,will you?
7. There's never a NEVER or an ALWAYS, life isn't absolute.

8. Love ya (I try to always tell all my friends this when I see them or talk to them, just in case.)

8 Things I Want To Do Before I Die (in no particular order)
1. Have a home near the beach

2. Travel the world to find other cool beaches

3. Have 3 reliable cars, one for me, one for Ty,one for the kids

4. Be a great, fun, kind, crazy Grandma, no time soon!
5. See my students succeed and "pay it forward"
6. Make more friends and be good to the ones I have

7. Have Gina cured

8. Kick butt at tennis again

8 Things I Learned This Past Year
1. I can do anything
2. I can help people see the good in themselves
3.  I love my family and want to be with them more
4. People will let you down, love them anyway (that's for Mary and Annie)

5. I love my staff and adore my students

6. Appreciate the people in your life…things happen

7. You can get all you dream for, then you have to find a new dream (that's harder than getting your dream!)

8. I am not my job
8 places I want to see
1. Switzerland
2. New York in the fall

3. Any beach, anywhere

4. Italy
5. Indonesia-I will have to take Brooke

6. Japan

7. Hawaii

8. Mexico (beaches again)                           
8 things I miss
1. Old students
2. My Grandma Brunt
3. My young face (I know this is stupid, but I am getting older)

4. My kids being 2.  I love 2 year olds and they love me!

5. The beach

6. The mountains

7. My young body (also vain and stupid, but hey I am nearing 40)

8. Old Friends

8 things I currently want/need
1. The school filled and us needing to expand
2. A new car for Tyler

3. My house to be clean and all the laundry done, without me having to nag
4. A great pair of beautiful, comfortable, fashionable black shoes (I know this is a dream!)

5.  Some nips and tucks ( I am sounding super shallow, I promise I'm just having a small body crisis)
6. Road construction around the school to be finished

7. School clothes for the kids

8. Gina to feel better
8 People I Want To Tag
1. Alison Beachem
2. Chelsea Grimmius
3. Julie Hally

4. Liz

5. Any of my students
6. Camie Balagna

7. Brandi Cornelison

8. Niki Young

"You don't have to be a star to have a stylist"... or to have fun answering a tag!

My Birthday...

My birthday was yesterday.  It was great!  But the best part of it was remembering all of my past birthdays and all of the people in my life that I am so grateful for, so to all of you-

"Thank you for the difference you have made in my life.  Thanks for all the support of my wild schemes and my dreams.  Thank you for getting my quirky personality and understanding the creative craziness that is me!  Thanks to my family who I am so glad that I get to see more, you are the reason for it all.  Tyler is the best husband and friend I could ever have!  My kids are amazing!  Thank you to my students, staff and mentors-who I consider all my friends- and my friends, you make my life joyous and exciting."

"You don't have to be star to have a stylist"... or to have great birthday with amazing people in your life!

AND THE WINNER IS... (da da ta da!)

US! 

So we were in the Idaho Falls 4th of July Parade, and we won the YOUTH AWARD!  None of us are quite sure if that means it was done by youth or liked best by youth, but who cares.  We won!  There were only a few awards given and we were lucky enough to get one!  To the right there is a link that has all of the pictures that I took that morning, the preparation, the almost gang war with another local school, the candy and flier passing out, the waving etc.  We had to be in line for the judging at 7a.m. which meant we had to prepare hair, makeup and wardrobe starting at 4:30a.m. Most of the models were at the school by 5:00a.m. including all of the dwarfs and my girls.  It was exciting!  A big HORRAY to Jovani, one of my awesome instructors for spearheading the float, designing and construction of the backgrounds, direction and help to the students for their characters and just plain rocking the casba!  We all appreciated her hard work! (She is the one in the sun glasses!)  And of course to all of the instructional staff!  Niki to you for walking the whole parade with me and the students!

The students rock!  They work so hard and have had so many projects and extra things since school started and they just keep doing a great job and being so happy and helpful!  Thanks so much to you!

Here are some of the highlights from that day!

"You don't have to be a star to have a stylist"... or to love a parade!

Zoe's Haircut

Zoe has always had what our family calls "pretty princess hair" ,long, wavy and blonde.  This summer she has been asking to cut her hair shorter.  I wasn't sure I wanted her to cut it, we did that 2 summers ago and she regretted it right after we cut it.  She finally convinced me, so we started talking about with 10 or more inches she could give to Locks of Love.  She was so excited about that!  So here are pictures of my sweet Zoe, she LOVES her new hair!  (She is still wearing part of her costume from the 4th of July float! She was a 7 dwarf.)

Photoshoot Link

I wanted to post the link to Alison's website (scroll down a post) which has our photoshoot slide show/preview.  I am so impressed with the vision and the follow through the students had with their very first photoshoots!  They are truely amazing! And as ALWAYS Alison rocks!  She really is a truely talented photographer and everything else she chooses to do!

"You don't have to be a star to have a stylist"... or to do an awesome photoshoot!