One of the more exciting parts of September’s Teen Takeover brings together a free makeover and the never-ending teenage quest for self-expression, and (not surprisingly!) creates a wild ride for everyone involved. Welcome back to Indulge, and today the spotlight is on two 11th graders reminding everyone of the fun of being a teen.
Jerome Cheung and Emma White are students at the Western Academy of Beijing (WAB). Cheung is an outgoing guy, big on fashion, and makes his own designs in his free time (check them out on Instagram @zhangjielangzuoyifu). He’s not scared to experiment with style and aesthetic, so he was a clear candidate to model this transformation. White is a chill, laid back lady who is part of the track team with Cheung. She likes to keep her hair au naturel (only here-and-there cutting her hair since she arrived in Beijing two years ago), and her long locks serve as the perfect playground for our miraculous transformation.
We headed over to Fashe Salon in Sanlitun, right by Guangcai International Mansion, to talk to Wendy Wang, the master stylist behind it all.
As with any hair transformation, it started with a thorough wash and a trim to remove any damaged hair. We had envisioned a balayage which would work with White’s lighter hair color. After trimming, Wang began to layer the hair, which is basically a beautifully-managed uneven cut with small snips to add more dimension and a twist to the final style. Wang then began to bleach the tips, wrapping them in foil for an even color. Next, she added purple dye to some parts to accentuate the brand-new blonde tips.
They pulled out a rotating ring-shaped thing straight out of a sci-fi movie (it’s actually an orbiting infrared hair dryer… fancy!) which apparently is used to heat and set the dye in place. A quick blow-dry, using a round brush to curl out the tips and some hair oil to help put flyaway hairs into position, served as the finishing touch. The end result was a pop of color style in an otherwise completely natural do.
The process for Cheung was a little different. Wang closely buzzed the sides of his hair for a fade effect. Then, they began to bleach his hair. For the dye, they wrapped Cheung’s hair in foil sheets for a while before rinsing, and repeating – Cheung’s hair was so dark that they had to do it twice to prepare it for dyeing, and after that, he had a bright blonde color which would be covered up with the dye. The final color was navy blue. She applied some dye to the tips of his hair and wrapped it again with foil. They again used the orbiting infrared hair dryer to work magic on his hair. It seemed a bit too dark to notice at first but with a blowout, brush, and a little bit of styling cream, they gave him a grunge look with an edgy Asian feel.
Cheung and White were shocked at their results. Of course, it was a drastic change to what they were used to. A change of wardrobe also changed the mood, and we began to take pictures. A lot of pictures. We included some candid shots, some fierce shots, some playful ones as well. I, the editor, almost felt bad that I didn’t volunteer because of how cool it turned out! The final verdict: they killed it.
Fashe Salon
Daily 10am-10pm. Guangcai International Mansion 18-3, Gongti Nanlu, Chaoyang District 朝阳区朝阳区工体西路18-3号 (8530 6505)
Photos: Uni You
This article appeared on p12-13 of the beijingkids September 2018 Teen Takeover issue
