Love That Hair

high hair at Betsey Johnson, NYFW SS10

One of New Zealand’s celebrity hairdressers is making a big name for himself in the Big Apple – yes that’s right in New York City. Richard Kavanagh travels there frequently as part of the global Redken styling teams and is often seen lurking backstage with a hairbrush and can of spray in his hands, toiling at tresses; or with a video camera recording footage for TVNZ.

He’s a regular on Good Morning, cuts hair for a select few clients he’s retained from his salon days and plans hair shows and seminars around the globe (he’s soon to jet off to Malaysia and possibly Egypt after that).

He’s also the creator of styling tools which you will only find at selected salons. His Richard Kavanagh products are fantastic – they’ve been fine tuned and carefully considered to meet the needs of salon professionals and us amateurs at home.

We asked him five quick questions:

NYFW SS10 Betsey Johnson

1. You travel extensively – can you define a city by a hairstyle?

I definitely notice each city has it’s own fashion quirks. The two cities I think that have the most obvious hair trends are Sydney and Melbourne. Australian Stylista seem to have a very strong sense of fashion direction and are great adopters and followers of fashion. Sometimes I think to their own detriment because even though though look cool and current, they can sometimes date easily and also, don’t always look beautiful even though they look stylish.

Wellington tends to have more directional haircuts, and is similar to Melbourne it’s style sense. The current trend in these two cities is quite early nineties, pastels, bad prints, shoulder pads and dishevelled wedge cuts.

Auckland is really diverse and spread out and it’s hard to pin a style on the city.

New York is often very business like. The women there tend to define their look with their hair styles, and the manhattan blonde is still big business. Big, bouncy, shiny blowdried hair that looks expensive, well groomed and like you’ve just stepped out of a salon. Women in NYC like to look as though they’ve had their hair done, whereas girls in Auckland tend to go for a more homemade just got out of bed and threw my hair into a topknot look.

2. What should we be doing with our hair? Growing it out, cutting it….?

What we should be doing with our hair is taking really good care of it. There is no substitute for great haircare. Ask your stylist for the shampoo, conditioner, leave in treatment and in salon treatment that’s suited to your hair.

If you’re growing your hair longer, make sure you have a haircut that makes you look great at the length your hair is at; if your hair is short, have a great short haircut that suits you. Then, as it grows, have a slightly longer short hair cut that suits you; as it reaches midlength, have a midlength haircut that suits you and then a shoulder length cut that suits you, then a long hairstyle that suits you… In other words, whatever length your hair is, make sure the shape suits your face, the style suits your hairtype and also, that the care and maintenance of your style suits your lifestyle and haircare regime.

In terms of a look, what’s hot right now is pre WW2 glamour given a modern take with a romantic flyaway texture. Short haircuts with strong lines and lots of structure.

3. Are we behind, at the same pace, ahead of the rest of the world with hairstyles?

In terms of where we Kiwis stand in the global fashion scheme, we are right up with the pace. I think that we have a way to go with learning how to do our do’s. Kiwi women (and their hairstylists) could do with learning how to dress and groom their hair a little better, but as far as being on trend goes, I believe we are on par with the rest of the world. The whole trend game is a little bit cat and mouse, and I think what’s important is to factor in the environment, both physical and social when considering if a new trend fits or not.

4. Favourite hair moment lately?

My favourite hair moment lately was at the Betsey Johnson show at New York Fashion Week S/S 10. I got to create big crazy fun hair with a team of great stylists on gorgeous models in an incredible ballroom at New York’s The Plaza Hotel while a DJ was belting out Beastie Boys tunes really loud and we ate candy from bowls on rose petal strewn tables.

5. What will you add to your collection of styling tools in the future?

I’m planning to add dual voltage curling irons in a couple of different sizes as well as with the option of Marcel and spring handle style. And a 110v hairdryer as we have secured a major salon in NYC to stock our tools and use them both in salon and on all their shows and photoshoots.