VAIN Blog

Jenny Slay: puttin’ the senior in senior stylist, 10 years at a time.

This past week marked VAIN senior stylist Jenny Slay’s 10th anniversary with VAIN. Jenny’s unparalleled cut, color, updo, and Great Lengths extensions skills are legendary, and she has the loyal clients to prove it. She’s been the stylist behind more perfect highlights and haircuts, more bold color transformations, wedding day perfections, instant long lengths, and every hair service in between than any other VAIN stylist, and she’s helped make VAIN what it is today with her signature style and talent.

When asked to comment on her milestone, Jenny said, “I feel really satisfied to have been here for so long, to watch VAIN grow and help make it what it is. It’s been really really good to me.” Asked how she and VAIN have changed since 1998, she offered this: “We both have significantly less facial piercings now.”

VAIN owner + styledriver Victoria Thomas Gentry had this to say about Jenny:

Jenny is the queen of hair that’s been colored into a corner. She is fearless in her ability to take even a seemingly helpless corrective color problem and make it gorgeous! I’ve seen her stare down a fierce head of ashy mud-toned highlights and turn them into spun gold. She is the alchemist of hair!

Jenny also makes the fun happen at VAIN. She lifts our spirits by bringing her powers of sharp and witty observation to bear on our daily lives and activities. When you have your life experiences reflected back at you with such quick and funny commentary your day is always bound to get better. I love Jenny so much!

For 10 years of hard work, great humor and amazing hair, VAIN salutes Jenny Slay. We love you!

Jenny Slay works her hair magic at both VAIN locations. Call VAIN downtown at 206.441.3441 or VAIN Ballard at 206.706.2707 to book a free consultation or schedule an appointment. You’ll be glad you did.

For the 5th year running, VAIN is sponsoring The Bend-It Extraveganza, a free, three-day long arts festival this weekend for and by queer young people and their friends. Bend-It features a full lineup of live music, fashion shows, workshops, vegan meals, spoken word performances, drag events, and movies, and is always a good time. Did we mention that it’s all free?

As part of Bend-It, VAIN will be doing free quickie hairdos tonight from 7 to 9pm at Cal Anderson Park (on Capitol Hill between Broadway & 10th Ave). Come by and see us, get your hair did, and check out one of the most fun, creative, and progressive youth-and-queer-friendly festivals around.

The Bend-It Extravaganza runs Friday, June 27th through Saturday, June 29th at various locations on Capitol Hill. Check out http://benditbandits.org/ for a full schedule of events and venue details.

Good news for those summertime bikini lines: Belinda “Master Waxer” Leybold has joined VAIN as our resident esthetician! That means you can now get your brows, lip, legs, bikini area, and the rest of it waxed in the comfort of VAIN’s private waxing studio above our downtown salon. Hairy backs and chests also welcome!

Belinda is known for her speed (and if you’ve been waxed you know that’s a must), attention to detail (stray hairs = no!), and easy, comfortable demeanor (again, makin’ it quick), so we’re sure she’s going to be a hit. She’s already done some amazing brows since she started last week. Plus she’s good good VAIN style to boot.

We’re offering our VAIN Blog readers $5 off their first service with Belinda- just mention this post when you book your appointment. Happy waxing!

Belinda Leybold offers waxing services at VAIN dowtown- 2018 1st Ave. Call 206.441.3441 to book your appointment.

Photos by Sarah Joann Murphy. Check out the whole bake sale set on VAIN’s Flickr page.

Saturday’s “Hungry for Change” bake sale at VAIN dowtown was a huge success- we had baked goods donated by staff, stylists, friends, clients, and strangers, “mocktails” prepared fresh on 1st Ave all day long (pink pantydroppers are the new cosmo!), and raised a staggering $941.72 to support MoveOn.org and help elect progressive candidates this November.

With over 700 “Hungry for Change” MoveOn.org bake sales held across the country at the same time, this was by far the largest grassroots event VAIN has ever participated in and we couldn’t be me more proud to have been a part of it. From the $10 donation for a single cupcake to kids pitching in to share an entire rainbow cake (”My mom is electing Brackomama!”) and a few cases of a passerby donating their only dollar, it was truly an amazing display of generosity and community… and of Barack-alicious brownies. Thanks to our volunteers, bakers, buyers, and everyone involved.

A sneak peek at some of the vintage pieces at VAIN downtown’s art gallery. Open house from 4 to 9pm today, with a bake sale to support MoveOn.org all day long.

And her hair is rad, too.

Juliana “Superstar” Bradley, one of VAIN’s most beloved art studio tenants (we have two floors of studios above the salon, as if you didn’t know) is leaving Seattle for greener, San Franciscan pastures. Her departure is to our dismay but not without a bang: as part of VAIN’s art festivities this weekend, Juliana will be hosting a weekend-long studio open house Saturday and Sunday with libations and new + favorite art on display. She’s threatening to keep her studio open from noon till 10pm on Saturday and all day Sunday (with rumors of mimosas!), so don’t miss your chance to check out the artist and her art before they’re gone. Both are great, and VAIN’s walls will be a little less bright without them around.

Juliana Bradley’s studio is located on the top floor of VAIN, studio #16. Photos by the indispensable My Vu.

“Big Bowie” stencil on opera canvas and other awesome art by Michael Lane at VAIN’s art gallery open house this Saturday 6/21.

NWsource’s People’s Picks. Four years in a row. Thank you and VAIN love to all our clients who voted!

Small paintings + prints (and robot astronomers) by Christine Marie Larsen

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Always wonderful photographs by Peter Kearns

Plus walls of hand-picked vintage art and open studios above VAIN featuring art by Laura Cameron, Juliana Bradley, and others. Stay tuned for more…

VAIN art boutique opening party 4 to 9pm Saturday, June 21st at VAIN dowtown- 2018 1st Ave @ Virginia.

Bake sale at VAIN downtown this Saturday 6/21: the audacity of deliciousness.

In addition to our art party festivities this Saturday, VAIN will be hosting a “Hungry for Change” bake sale from noon to six to support MoveOn.org and help elect progressive political candidates this November. Possible baked goods include democracy donuts, votes ahoys, VAIN krispies, ore-oh-yes-he-cans and oatmeal-raisin-the-roofs.

Check out more bake sale details online- bakers and buyers both welcome. See you Saturday!

“Hungry for Change” bake sale at VAIN downtown runs from noon to 6pm this Saturday 6/21; art boutique open house from 4 to 9.

Art at VAIN: now with a party and cooler stuff than ever.

On Saturday, June 21st, the VAIN art gallery (adjacent to our downtown salon) will re-open as an art boutique with new + vintage art, photography, centerpiece-style jewelry, found items and high thrift for your art and collectables lovin pleasure. Open house reception from 4 to 9pm Saturday, June 21st with snacks, drinks of the fizzy variety and hair product giveaways.

We’ll also have artists in the studios above VAIN opening their doors to the public that evening and on Sunday, including a weekend-long open studio event on the third floor of VAIN hosted by outgoing local artist Juliana Bradley.

Check back here for more details on Saturday’s party and participating artists. We’re excited to unveil our new VAIN art boutique style!

Cool stylist, cool style: if you can dream it up, Roxie can make it happen.

When superstar stylist Roxie left VAIN and Seattle last year, you could practically hear the collective “noooooo!” from her loyal following of clients. Since then she’s had a baby girl, has continued to do hair in her new home state of Arkansas, and plays guitar and sings in a pop rock band called (you guessed it) The Roxies. Lucky for us she’s returning to VAIN for a limited engagement. So get your hair ready: Roxie’s back.

Stylist: Roxie

Specialties: very low maintanance cuts and colors that grow out really well and are tailored to the individual, and fun, imaginative fantasy color jobs.

Steel Magnolia: Roxie now has Southern big hair blowout skills to rival the best of them.

Roxie says: “My commitment to self expression and positive change through hair is stronger than ever after having a baby and having to work a little harder to maintain my sense of self and style. I truly see the importance of making hip and confident looks be effortless. ”

On coming back to VAIN: “This summer I hope to reconnect with the VAIN community that I have sorely missed, and I look forward to meeting new people coming to see me for their first time. I’m excited to bring my hairdos back to the streets of Seattle! ”

Roxie returns to VAIN downtown for six weeks only starting June 15th- call 206.441.3441 to book your appointment.