The Nanzinc.Com Glam-Over: Melanie “I Don’t Want Butch Hair” Lee

Nanzinc.Com writer Melanie Lee, self-proclaimed “non-dresser” and simpleton, was won over to the alluring side of hairstyling and make-up with a “Glam-Over” at Ooosh!, a new hair salon at Orchard Delfi opened by award-winning hairstylist Perry Goh.

I usually dread going to the hair salon because most of stylists I’ve met usually: a) pooh-pooh my helmet-like hair (my ego is quite fragile)
b) give me an unsuitable hairstyle (I was mistaken for a butch recently)
c) pressure me to get an array of expensive hair products (I don’t do complicated hair routines)

So when Theresa suggested that I go for a hair makeover with the “fabulous Perry”, my first reaction was “Don’t make me look like a butch!” (following an incident in which some guy thought me and a gal pal were “a couple”).

But as she raved on about how nice and talented he was, I became a lot more receptive.

Perry was trained by Vidal Sassoon in London and had won numerous hairstyling awards, including the coveted Golden Scissors. At the same time, his new establishment, Ooosh! is not just about giving customers fabulous hair, it also doubles up as a meaningful social enterprise with a training school that provides fabulous opportunities for marginalized youth to be trained as hairstylists.

I was a little intimidated when I met Perry because he seemed even more stylish than all the other hairstylists I have encountered over the years. Adorned in an edgy black tee with gold studs and shiny white Dr Martens, he ruffled my hair for a while, quizzically analyzing the strands while I held my breath for more “pooh-poohs”.

His prognosis? “Hmm, you have natural curls so it’s quite heavy behind. What I can do is to layer the back to give it more shape.” That’s it? Sure, I could deal with that!

Before Perry started work on my crop, I managed to get a quick cosmetic makeover with Make Up For Ever artist Cheryl Ow, who turned out to be just as pleasant and non-judgmental. In fact, when I told her I had a secret liking for blue eye shadow but never had the guts to put that on myself, she came up with a customized way of applying blue eye make-up suited for my more “conservative” taste. At the same time, she gave some good tips on applying eye make-up including using a creamy eyelid base to help the eye shadow powder stay, using a round eye brush for optimum blending and placing a piece of tissue under your eye when applying mascara on the bottom lashes.

After that, it was back to the hot seat to get my hair cut by Perry. And I must say, I’ve never met a hairstylist so analytical and meticulous with each snip. As Nanz had put it while she was observing him cut my hair, “He studies so hard for our hair! He wants to make sure our hair does well!”

The result? A stylish bob that makes me feel lighter, younger and a whole lot more feminine! *jump for joy* I think Perry was just as pleased with his workmanship as I was with my new look. Besides the fantastic end result, I also appreciate the fact that he made it a point to discuss his ideas in a friendly, non-imposing manner about what he wanted to do with my hair before and during the cut. In my books, it really shows he knows his stuff and has the customer’s best interests at heart.

I think I might have just found a regular hairstylist to go to!

Ooosh!
Delfi Orchard
402 Orchard Road
#01-05/06 & #02-10
Singapore 238876
Tel: 6733-1068

Make Up For Ever Academy
39 Stamford Road
#02-06 Stamford House
Singapore 178885
Tel: 6333-0678

WANT A GLAM-OVER? WRITE TO US at editor@nanzinc.com WITH A PHOTO AND TELL US WHY YOU NEED IT!