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The words beautician and magician are interchangeable
By Brenda S. Brown
Angela
has been my confidant and hairdresser for twenty years; almost as long as
she has been a professional beauty advisor/consultant. She knows mysteries
about me and my family that few others realize and is quite capable of
safeguarding confidences. I value our association and conversations so much
that over the years I have followed her career from one local beauty
emporium to another.
In another life I owned a jewelry store where the important rules concerning
diamonds and other precious stones were color, carat, cut, and clarity; I
submit to the notion that the prettification enterprise is founded on four
similar concepts, cut, color, curl and conversation.
When Nanny was a younger woman, Ms. Iris Lane was her trusted friend and
beautician, and the brand name “Toni” was the permanent wave that they
preferred. In fact it was so fashionable that Nanny forevermore considered
any permanent wave, simply a Toni. Because Nanny owned colorful plastic
curlers, and kept several packages of end-wrapping papers on hand, one never
knew when and where one of those waves was going to occur; on the back
porch, in the kitchen, or at a neighbor’s house.
Visiting the beauty parlor today is different from my Nanny’s days; in her
retirement years she had a standing appointment, every Friday, come rain or
come shine, to receive a shampoo and set, complete with light teasing and
lots of lacquered hairspray. Her gray hair was enhanced with bluing and
rather than enriching the snow-white color, as it was advertised; it turned
her do into a medium shade of indigo, but it matched the other ladies in her
circle so it was perfectly acceptable.
I prefer that those big clunky plastic-dome hair dryers of yesteryear stay
away from my head and tender ears, I favor the softer coiffure that result
from modern handheld drying and curling devices. But, I do not worry about
the style that suits my personality the best, Angela knows my preferences so
when I need a trim, I sit in the chair and let her work her magic. A
consumer could get lost in the myriad display of beauty products so I let
Angela experiment with them and pass along her findings.
I believe that the words beautician and magician are truly interchangeable;
so for all you have done for me and for your other clients over the years,
thank you Angela. Because you know that I am not one of those drop-by
persons, I will make an appointment and visit your establishment soon.