Richard Kavanagh previews the Yogi Hairstyler
With the first day of spring just under two weeks away, it’s time to think about sprucing up lacklustre winter tresses with a fresh spritz of spring style.
Luckily for FashioNZ, celebrity hair guru Richard Kavanagh was in Auckland recently to celebrate TV Shopping Network (TVSN) New Zealand’s first birthday at the Hilton and to promote curling tool du jour – the Yogi Hair Wand.
We caught up with the Sydney-based Kiwi stylist to wax lyrical about hair and other things.
What are some of the spring trends we can watch out for?
We’ve recently had a real nod to the ‘90s – more of that slightly preppy, uptown ‘90s girl vibe rather than the grungy, late post-punk look we’ve seen over the past few seasons.
Hair is cleaner and softer and the texture and movement is effortless – almost nothing hair, hair that takes the longest to style. The ‘I’ve just washed my hair and gone to sleep on a silk pillow’ look is very tricky.
The length of the season is just sitting on the décolletage – a very lived in feel; not the rough, raw, ragged feel we’ve seen in the past. It’s when you’ve had a haircut, given it time to settle down and it’s friendly. Fringes are heavy and sitting just above the eyebrow – again, it’s had time to settle and looks effortlessly cool.
Women will be embracing the curl for spring/summer. It’s big and frothy – a little bit of ‘90s crossed with the ‘70s vibe.
You mentioned your favourite celebrity to work on is Kelly Osbourne but who’s your favourite Kiwi celebrity?
Lorde is definitely my favourite New Zealand celebrity. She knows what she likes; she’s strong and opinionated. And she has the most amazing mane of curls – nearly 4x the density of normal hair. She’s had a huge impact on the curl trend I mentioned before. I use the smallest barrel on the Yogi Hair Wand to style her hair.
How do we keep things under control during the shower-prone spring season?
The humidity is the toughest thing to combat. But the reason hair responds poorly to humidity is because it’s hydroscopic and absorbs moisture from the atmosphere – making hair revert to its natural state.
To control this you need to use a combination of things:
a) The Yogi Hair Wand has ceramic and tourmaline technology – it closes the cuticle and helps repel humidity for the longest time possible.
b) Hair sprays – use humidity control sprays such as Redken Fashion Work 12.
c) Prep the hair with a pure oil, not a silicone based oil. A lot of Argan oils are silicone based. Silicone coats the hair shaft and gives it a cosmetic feel of slipperiness to the hair but it doesn’t actually have any true benefit. It doesn’t really control the humidity. Products such as Redken’s Diamond Oil is 100% pure oil; there’s no silicone. It penetrates into the hair and encourages the hair cuticle to close because it feels like it has enough moisture, rather than sitting outside the hair shaft.
Failing that, a plastic bag on your hair always helps!
Do you have any plans to bring your talents home to New Zealand?
I’m always coming back to Auckland. I’ll be back in Auckland in a week’s time for New Zealand Fashion Week. Then it’s Maldives, Bali, New York and Sydney. Home is where my Yogi is!
The Yogi Hair Wand is available from TVSN for a RRP of $199.
– Natalie Brittan