On Saturday around 100 young girls from out of home care who have had a really rough trot in life had the best day of pampering at BIBA’s Hair & Beauty Pampering Day. BIBA Academy hosted the day with heaps of their BIBA hairdressers volunteering and the event was covered by the Channel Nine News.

The day was to inspire, encourage and inform young Australian’s from residential units and others who are at risk as to the many opportunities that are available to them in the hairdressing industry; as well as provide some grooming and styling tips to help them with their personal presentation and success in the future.

Miss Universe Australia, Scherri-Lee Biggs spoke with the girls about confidence and presentation and Elise May, founder of Our Children; a campaign to drive awareness and support for some of our most vulnerable children; helped organise what was to be one of the most special days in many of the young girls lives.

“The response was incredible with community organizations delighted that we provided this unique opportunity for our children who are often forgotten and in desperate need of support. Many have been removed from their homes, abused physically and/or mentally, suffered poverty, neglect and hunger; and of course an absence of family and positive role models / experiences to make them feel important,” said Elise May.

“Our hope was that they would not only have a fun day out but also learn some valuable skills not only for their personal presentation but hopefully for their career and life,” said Hilda Santalucia from BIBA Academy.

A big thank you to Sugar Baby, Gorgeous Cosmetics, Wella, Emma and Toms and the Heat Group who all donated items for the gift bags, along with the fabulous hairdressers from The Academy of Makeup and Cameron Jane Makeup who donated their time to make the girl’s look and feel beautiful.

We flew a young 15 year old girl down from Mildura who has been in residential units for 13 years of her life. We had carers driving girls from Shepparton, Ballarat and Wangaratta to join the day.

“A carer cried and told us how much it meant to the girls. The two girls in her care had lost their mother last year. Some of them were really scared and left smiling and looking absolutely gorgeous,” said Lyndal Salmon, Artistic Director of BIBA Academy. “The girls were just beautiful and we all felt privileged to be able to give them a special memory of a fun day out and hopefully some confidence for their future.”

Check it out:

http://www.fashionising.com/pictures/s–Dark-Angel-FASHIONTREND-Magazine-issue-26-12922-1.html

An online gallery stocking a captivating selection of the world’s most original and exquisite jewellery, The Open Window provides artisans around the world an avenue to showcase their pieces to a wider audience than any retail gallery.

Images of its first Open Window collections that capture the original essence and the delicate beauty of each piece were lovingly produced by two of Australian fashion’s great teams; hair styling genius Frank Apostolopoulos and renowned fashion photographer Andrew O’Toole.

The duo has created some of Australian beauty and fashions coolest and edgiest new looks; from the global Fudge and Paul Mitchell campaigns to the 2010/11 L’Oreal Professionnel Color Trophy winning look and the recent seductively raw and sensual Ellery campaign.

“We want the website to be not only a store but a place where people can come and browse and be inspired by the imagery.”

Open Window co founder Rachael Hart

“Our inspiration for the shoot was Paolo Reversi – Lavish, luxurious and artistic yet with a raw edge to embrace the uniqueness and pure creation of art that is moulded to become jewellery.

Andrew worked with beautiful natural lighting that brought a sensuality and pure exposure to the shoot which only enhanced the artisans work to make this campaign visually inspiring.”

Frank Apostolopoulos

One of Australia’s newest model sensations, Sarah Tarrant Kuang’s original and natural look fitted the theme for the campaign.

“We chose to create something fresh and unconventional. We focused on Sarah’s unique beauty and features to evoke a sense of raw glamour. Amberlie imbues the campaign with a supermodel magnetism so we were careful not to over do her shots and keep them simple and organic.

The jewellery was exposed against the texture of skin and strong natural features; certainly not your typical jewellery shoot.”

Andrew O’Toole

“On the day of the shoot we worked pretty organically, which is really nice and how I like to work. If something is not working you don’t get hung up, change things and move one, its nice to be able to have a team that also enjoys working this way!

The team was amazing we are very lucky to have been able to work with them.”

Open Window co founder, Nicole Caras

An array of designers makes for a varied range however there is a common theme of delicacy. Each piece shows intricate craftsmanship and innovation.

The bold and sensuous images do their exquisite work justice.

www.theopenwindow.com.au

The Open Window – Credits

Photographer – Andrew O’Toole

Make-up – Kylie O’Toole

Hair – Frank Apostolopolous @ Biba

Model – Sarah Tarrant Kuang @ Luna Models

Model – Amberlie @ Chadwick

FRANK’S STYLE TIPS ON HOW TO CREATE THE LOOKS

On the shorter hair, I worked with gel to create something quite wet and summer looking that is both fresh yet textured in appearance.

I varied the longer hair looks from slick and clean to some dryer looks that were treated with sea salt spray before I dried the hair to create quite an airy and free falling look the moved with a lot of texture once touched by the wind.

I created a deconstructed French roll which worked beautifully with Joanie Lawson’s brooch that featured as a hair piece.

The fifth annual NAB Divine lunch was to raise funds to support the work of the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation to develop an early detection test. This test for ovarian cancer has the potential to save the lives of women for generations to come.

BIBA’s Creative Director Frank Apostolopoulos and BIBA Academy’s Lyndal Salmon; together with a team of our top stylists; donated their time and hairdressing finesse to create the ‘Divine’ hairstyles for the feature catwalk show.

The fashion show was a stand out of the luncheon; styled by Virginia Dowser and featuring designs by Kirrily Johnston, Dhini, J’Aton, Gwendolynne, Limedrop and Gorman.

Hosted by Network Ten’s Sandra Sully and Mark Howard, 400 women and a handful of men, including many well known celebrities and sports stars were present on the day and enjoyed a delectable menu designed by renowned chef, Guy Grossi.

Thrillingly, the NAB Divine lunch raised $105,028!

Thanks to our BIBA team for offering their support and volunteering their time to help produce such a marvellous result.

BIBA vaunted the kind of top notch talent synonymous with 35 years in the business of benchmarking at the recent IHS competitions – trundling home with 12 trophies. The BIBA brand shone amid the sea of 150 Victorian salonscompeting; blazing particularly bright with acceptance of coveted award, Educator of the Year 2011. “The awards give inspiring stylists the chance to showcase their work and gain recognition as ‘artists’ in the competitive arena of hair styling. For many, this is the stage where they will make their first mark in the industry,” said Frank Apostolopoulos.

CATWALK for a CAUSE was held at the Blue Diamond Club, Tuesday 23rd August 2011. A huge success with salons: Zucci, Xiang, True Colours, BIBA & academies showcasing the latest in high end hair and fashion.

Staged on an annual basis, the HBIA Educator Awards recognises and celebrates the outstanding educators working within the hairdressing and beauty industries.

The award provides an opportunity for today’s industry leaders to recognise and acknowledge our Educators and the impact they make on the future of our industry.

Lyndal plays an integral part in every Australian design award; as teacher, role model and facilitator, her students have been awarded with a myriad of prizes and recognition for achievement from notable Australian organisations including L’Oreal, Wella, Hair Expo, IHS and HBIA.

She has toured internationally as a mentor and facilitator for Wella and Goldwell and acted as an Ambassador for L’Oreal, along with organising and developing major fundraising events for BIBA and her students to get involved with and give back to the community.

“This award really motivates my students as well. It is wonderful recognition and great pat on the back for our Biba team at the Academy,” says Lyndal.

Australia’s most iconic hairstyling group, BIBA continues to lead the Australian hairstyling industry taking out 12 awards in the annual International Hairstylists Society (IHS) Australian Hairdressing competition.

BIBA Academy’s Creative Director Lyndal Salmon has also won again the coveted HBIA ‘Educator of the Year’ award for 2011.

The IHS Competitions are an opportunity for Australian hairdressers to showcase their creativity and expertise, while fashion forecasting for 2012.

More than 300 models and over 150 Victorian hair salons competed for the Awards to win recognition from the international judging panel and the coveted industry prizes presented by the IHS.

The Awards attract hairdressers from around the country; from students, apprentices and experienced professionals to compete for national industry status.

“The Awards give aspiring stylists the chance to showcase their work and gain recognition as ‘artists’ in the competitive arena of hair styling. For many, this is the stage where they will make their first mark in the industry.” Frank Apostolopoulos, BIBA Creative Director

For more than 35 years, Biba has set the benchmark for excellence in hair design.

Proudly presenting 12 highly acclaimed salons, 2 academies with a rich list of industry awards, BIBA continues to set new industry standards.

BIBA’s Creative Director Frank Apostolopoulos, L’Oreal Colour Trophy winner 2010 and Hilda Santalucia, recently named one of ‘Melbourne’s  most inspirational women in hairdressing’ from BIBA South Yarra, were both contenders for the award that represents the pinnacle of the Australian hairdressing industry.

As the longest running and most respected hair awards in the Southern Hemisphere, the Hairdresser of the Year sets the industry standard and helps to promote the outstanding achievements of the industry’s top talents.

Only six finalists were announced for the top prize of Australian Hairdresser of the Year from thousands of applications from around the country; ensuring a difficult task for the 20-strong panel of independent industry experts.

BIBA’s Mariam Enegd, also a L’Oreal Colour Trophy winner has been nominated for the New Creative Force – Judges recognition award.

Having 2 Hairdresser of the Year finalists is a coup for BIBA; the only salon group to have ever have 2 finalists in this major award and an achievement that BIBA has achieved previously in 2009 with Frank Apostolopoulos and Marcello Guerresi from BIBA Moonee Ponds both finalists for the award.

Links to collections:

http://www.hairexpoaustralia.com/en/photos/2011/Collections/Frank-Apostolopoulos/

http://www.hairexpoaustralia.com/en/photos/2011/Collections/Hilda-Santalucia/

http://www.hairexpoaustralia.com/en/photos/2011/Collections/Mariam-Enegd/