A couple weeks ago I saw an article on Austin Beauty Guide that national hair product company Bumble and bumble would be flying instructors from NYC to hold workshops here in Austin at a local salon.  They were holding an open-call for hair “models” — those selected would receive a free consultation, professional blow-out, and two full-sized Bumble and bumble products to take home.  I’m always down for a free blow-out (and most anything free, for that matter), so I applied & was accepted!  Admittedly, in the days leading up to the event, my husband and I had some fun playing around with the new “hair model” title I’d earned, sarcastically mentioning my upcoming “modeling gig” and sharing a giggle.  It was quite cheeky to think I could add anything with “model” in the title to my bio.  😉

The event was on Monday at L7 Salon and it was a unique experience I’d LOVE to do again.  “Round brush blow-day set” was the official name of the class, I think, and introduced a twist on your typical blow-out by combining the use of a round brush to blow-dry sections of hair with the stay-all-week curls achieved in a classic wash-n-set.  The result was fabulous, but I’ll let the before & afters speak for themselves:

BEFORE:

–As I’ve previously shared here on this blog, I have a thick mane that I mostly end up taming down into a bun or braid for everyday.  Washed the night before, this is my no-product, unstyled hair, as seen just after being taken out of the loose side braid I walked in with.

Participating the event as a whole was something fun & different to do…  It was cool to observe the teaching process:  the instructor reminding the stylists of what they previously learned in the slide show, the group collectively prescribing which products would work best on this girl’s hair vs. that girl’s hair, etc.  My stylist –a super fun chick who drove in for the workshop from San Antiono– began by picking my potion:  gentle shampoo, super rich conditioner, a foundation of Bumble and bumble’s tonic lotion and styled with thickening hairspray just on the sections at the very top of my head.  Once the individual sections were blow-dried, they rolled my hair to cool and set.  However, no rollers were used:

Once the pin curls were shot with a blast of cool air from the blow dryer, it was time to take ’em out.  In my opinion, the genius of this blow-out process is that once the curls were all taken down, the stylist only had to use a few swipes of a natural bristle brush to obtain the look we were going for:

I adored the big loose curls — a very Victoria’s Secret look, if I do say so myself.  After finishing with a little “does it all” styling stray, here’s the AFTER shot:

Fabulous, right?  It was a super-fun morning and I walked outta there feeling gorgeous.  Top top it off, it was all FREE.  Plus, since I referred two models for the other workshop later that day, I got extra products in my goodie bag.  Look at all this loot!

I can’t wait to try them all!  Anyone who knows me is well aware that I’m all about spreading the word about great opportunities.  SO…the Model Coordinator I work with is actually looking for candidates at upcoming classes, with the first available appointment in Austin on March 4th at 11:45 a.m. or 2:45 p.m.  If you’re not free then, no worries, because they will have about a class a month — it’s worth reaching out, even simply to get in her rolodex, trust me!  They also do workshops in Houston, too.  She told me that ideal hair is between shoulder blade to mid-back (think bra clasp length) and not too thick/not too thin (basically hair that can easily be styled into a straight or wavy style).  If YOU are interested in being a hair model for an upcoming Bumble and bumble workshop, here’s how:  email Roxy at  AustinModels@BeCreativeHouse.com with a picture of your natural hair and be sure to mention moi.  Mentioning my name is important because a.) it helps them spread the word out to new models by working off our referrals and b.) you get rewarded with free product for each friend you refer, what what!!!