With the summer rush comes soaring temperatures, column surges and sticky clients which is why we’ve produced a cheat sheet to help you keep your cool…
Summer can be as chaotic as party season when it comes to beauty services with hundreds of clients booking in for look good improvements as they plan holidays, parties, weddings and extra nights out. And while we all appreciate the extra custom, tips and new beauty fans, it’s full on. Especially when the seasonal weather kicks in and we, alongside our clients, start to get hot under the collar – quite literally. Sweating while you work or treating customers who struggle with stickiness is less than helpful in the salon atmosphere so here’s your sweat-proof cheat sheet to keep everyone happy, however sunny it gets over the next few months. They also work well if you or your clients are suffering from the overheating effects of the menopause – something that’s all too often overlooked!
THE TREATMENT: SPRAY TAN
THE SWEAT-MENT: Hot bodies are the nemesis of faux glows, they can stop the tan from misting on correctly, mess with the shade selection and even cause unsightly rub offs. Try this tan plan and your handiwork should stay put…
- High temperatures can cause tan to oxidise when being stored. This is not good news as it can turn some solutions green and even stop the DHA from working. If you’re in a salon keep opened solutions in the fridge and unopened products in a dark, cool storeroom. If you’re mobile, carry your stock in a cool box when things heat up.
- Tanning machines get hot, the room you tan in gets hot, clients on their way to a tan get hot…and a clammy body will simply see the mist pool on the surface, or even run down the body. With this in mind before attaching your hose to the spray tan gun, allow it to blast out cool air all over your client. If the hose is already too warm and there’s only hot air coming out, fill your tanning pot with cool water and mist over the client first, this also encourages pores to close making the tan extra even, so it’s win, win for everyone involved.
- Post tanning, ensure you have booked in adequate drying time for your client, they need to be touch dry before re-dressing. Advise them to go bra less for at least an hour and if they do pop their bra back on, dust bronzer or translucent make-up powder under the boobs where the underwire sits. In fact, this sweat barrier trick can be used on any of your client’s typically sweaty areas. It also works after the guide colour has been rinsed away.
THE TREATMENT: BLOW DRY
THE SWEAT-MENT: In salons just one hairdryer can up the internal temperature so much so that clients, and staff, may feel like they’re already on a tropical holiday. Here’s some hair helpers to stop that heat getting out of control…
- When booking in stylist appointments try to avoid more than two blow dries happenings at once, even a five minute gap will help minimise the extra heat.
- If you can, set up dedicated blow dry stations by an open window or air conditioning vent to balance out the blasts of hot air.
- Why not offer heat-free alternatives to that curly blow? Curlformers by Hairflair (from £6.97 plus VAT, curlformers.com) is a curling tool that doesn’t need heat to set hair into various types of waves. You can wash the client’s hair, apply the Curlformers to towel dried hair and simply leave them to dry naturally. They give super impressive staying power and come in various shapes and widths so you can create everything from beachy to corkscrew.
THE TREATMENT: FACIAL
THE SWEAT-MENT: Hot faces in a facial make for red, stressful situations so it’s important to pay particular attention to keeping things at a comfortable temperature…
- Ice buckets are a facialist’s best friend when it gets to those summer highs; ensuring lids are fully screwed on, immerse your products into the icy waters to keep them as chilled as possible until you apply them to the face.
- Soak clean flannels in lavender water, roll up and then store in a mini fridge next to your massage bed. Use them at regular intervals within the treatment to immediately cool a client’s face and also prevent any heat-related inflammation thanks to the lavender touch.
- Using our fingertips can be hugely helpful at certain points of a facial, however the warmth from them can add to the over-heating issue throughout the warmer months. Enter the FOREO Luna 2 (£149, foreo.com), a hand held spa massager device designed specifically for facials. It avoids constant skin on skin contact and helps to plump complexions, banish blemishes and diminish fine lines to boot. Another option are the Cryotherapy tools that can be kept in the fridge then whisked out to cool warm skin (check out our article on page 61 to discover which ones we rate).
THE TREATMENT: WAXING
THE SWEAT-MENT: Whether you use warm or hot wax, you know full well that this treatment can heat things up whatever the temperature but these waxing tips should keep the thermostat down…
- Encourage your client to strip off! Regardless of where you’re waxing, a vest top and shorts can help regulate temps all over.
- Where possible get clients to place their feet in a cool foot spa or similar, this will give them a chilled grounding and reset overall temperatures. You could even suggest a pedicure post wax and transform one treatment into two.
- Chances are the waxing brand you use produces a post-treatment cooling spray to take the heat out of things. Really upsell this at this time of year, maybe as a treatment add on freebie that your client gets to take home with them.
MAKE LIFE A BREEZE
EXTRA TIPS TO GET YOU AND YOUR STAFF THROUGH A LONG, HOT SUMMER:
- Wear loose, natural fibre clothing – anything man-made will add heat to your already hot, hardworking body. Salon owners should carefully plan staff dresscodes and uniforms at this time of year.
- Always have iced water readily available to your clients and staff…a Kilner dispenser works well and looks attractive, especially if you add mint or lemon along with some chunky ice cubes…it’s one of the easiest ways to keep cool but is often overlooked.
- It’s easy to skip food and drink when you have back to back clients but dehydration is all too common in summer and can make you feel hotter than ever, so snack on things like watermelon, cucumber, celery and strawberries that all pack a super watery punch.
- Make ice lollies your summer specials for clients - they’ll love getting a freebie on their way in or out of salon. You can even get the packaging or the sticks themselves, branded to promote your business at bitemybrand.co.uk. Think of all those Instagram opportunities!