04 Feb Fashion & Style Magazine: Gina Rivera discusses the Pixie Cut
Could you tell me about Phenix Salon Suites?
I come from a long line of hairdressers. Our family heritage started in 1929 with the first hairdresser in our family and we still have people cutting hair and owning salons. So I come from the industry, I’ve been around it my whole life, and with my husband Jason, we started Phenix Salon Suites. We have over 50 locations across the United States and it will be 100 by this time next year. We have 1700 stylists across the country.
Phenix is the name of my first son. Jason’s dad thought it was really cool that I had such a long line of heritage in the industry, and he thought it would be neat to carry on the heritage, so that’s why we decided to name it Phenix Salon Suites.
How did you become interested in pixie cuts? You have one of your own, it’s really cute!
About a year ago, I had long hair and I saw the 1950s, Audrey Hepburn style pixie coming back and I thought, I’m in my 40s, I’m just going to go for it. So I cut my hair off into a pixie, and then I realized that as a hairdresser I was inspiring other women to cut their hair off. It gave those people that were in fear of cutting their hair off the confidence to do it.
Why do you think pixie cuts have gotten so popular in the past few years?
I think that every year, society is becoming more accepting of women having short hair. It shows a sexy, confident side of women, and an edge. And pixie cuts are so versatile that anyone can pull one off, you can make it longer or shorter or wear it in a faux hawk or Mohawk. I think it absolutely has been the haircut of 2013, and I think we’re going to see even more of it in 2014 and 2015.
In the past year or so, stars like Jennifer Lawrence and Jennifer Hudson have gotten a lot of attention for getting pixie cuts and even caused some controversy. Are there any stars right now who have pixie cuts that you love?
You know who’s always had one and can wear it so well is Halle Berry. She could not be more beautiful. And then you have your fun ones, your edgier pixies like Miley Cyrus’. And Michelle Williams always looks amazing.
What should people know before getting a pixie cut?
The first thing to do, especially if you’re taking someone who previously had hair to their shoulders or longer, is to pull their hair back in an extremely tight ponytail and look at their features. If they have smaller features, it’s a pretty sure fit that you could pull off a pixie. If you have larger features, a pixie could only make those appear wider or bigger.
Secondly, I strongly, strongly advise you to sit down with your stylist and really communicate. Even though a pixie cut is a pixie cut – and, by the way, who doesn’t fall in love with the name pixie? – there are huge, huge differences between pixie cuts. It’s not just one haircut. So you need to take pictures to your stylist to let them see what kind of pixie you’re interested in. It’s very, very important to communicate – I would highly suggest not just going in and sitting down and saying, ‘I want a pixie,’ because there are so many different versions.
Third, your hairdresser should take into account your face shape and suggest where you need layers and where you need length.
So, there’s three steps: the first is pulling your hair back at home, the second is talking with your hairdresser, and number three is having them consult back with you.
What are the pros and cons of a pixie cut?
Let’s start with the pros: they’re super fun, they’re super versatile, you can style them 100 different ways. You can wear them with headbands, you can wear faux hawk them, you can comb it straight for the Audrey Hepburn look. It can be very, very easy and quick styling; if you have wavy or curly hair you might need to work at it, but usually you can get ready in two minutes flat.
It’s not really a con, but when you prepare yourself to get a pixie, you have to prepare yourself for the grow-out. If you have a good stylist, the grow-out can be fun because you can get a lot of different styles as you’re growing it out, but it can sometimes be tedious and require a lot of patience.
Who would you like to see try a pixie cut?
I think that Sandra Bullock would be fun to see, she has a beautiful face, though it would have to be the right pixie for her. I would like to see Jennifer Aniston rock one. And I was looking at Kelly Ripa on the morning shows today and she’s so cute, it would be fun to see her do one.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
I think pixie cuts are fun and it’s the way hair trends are going right now. Some people are scared of going too short, but there are ways to cut your hair short and still have fun with color and length and different stylings without feeling like you got scalped.
From my end, having hairdressers in my family since 1929, everyone in my family has already gone through every era of hair. My dad has been teaching me how to do the pixie like they did in the ‘60s, so that part has been fun, to see how it goes around in my family. Like everything, it just circles back.