Well, here’s why and here’s how:

Client: Taylor
Stylist: Bash (VAIN Downtown)
The look: Cut to look good while growing out!

Bash says: “Taylor came in wanting to grow her hair out into a bob without having a “grow out” boxy look. We took some length off at the nape in order to let her already short sides catch up and did some texturizing and facial framing, but left a nice weight through the cut so it would grow out naturally into that nice bob shape.”

So there you have it, VAIN Blog readers. Transitional hairstyles can look both great and intentional with the right shaping. No more awkward in-between styles!

Want to grow your hair out and have it look great while you’re at it? Call VAIN downtown to book an appointment with Bash or any other of our other transitional cut specialists- (206) 441-3441. Not downtown? Call us in Ballard- (206) 706-2707- or West Seattle (206) 535-2595.

The sequined beret: crown jewel of the VAIN winter hat collection

Lose that ratty old beanie and get ready: VAIN’s mega annual winter accessories sale starts this Friday at all three VAIN locations (yes, including West Seattle)! We’ll have cozy scarves and hats, stylish head wraps, tons of gloves, jewelry and more at big discounts. Come visit us downtown, in Ballard, and in West Seattle to get in on the action. Sale runs through Feb 12. While supplies last!

Downtown- 2018 1st Ave
Ballard- 5401 Ballard Ave NW
West Seattle- 4513 California Ave SW

VAIN West Seattle: ready to make some hairstyling magic.

Our newest VAIN salon and boutique, located in the heart of West Seattle’s Alaska Junction, is now taking hair appointments! We’ve got an all-star roster of VAIN stylists ready to make your cut, color, and style dreams come true out West.

And those stylists are (DRUMROLL PLEASE)…

• Color queen & style visionary Carinn
• West Seattle resident & fine hair wizard Sam
• VAIN rising star & amazing volumizer Braeden
• Curly hair pro & dreads guru TT
• The one & only, VAIN legend, senior stylist Jenny Slay
• Short hair & barber cut champ Valentine
• Coarse hair tamer & VAIN be-weaver Dez
• Bold coloring & blonde specialist (& lifelong West Seattleite!) Janae

With more to come! Hope to see you all in West Seattle soon.

Call VAIN West Seattle at 206.535.2595 to book your appointment, or stop by during business hours (extended to M-F 12-8, Sat & Sun 10-6 starting Jan 19)- 4513 California Ave SW.

Client: Ryli

The look: winter white

Stylists: Bash (cut) + Carissa (color) at VAIN Downtown

Bash says: “It’s always fun to cut Ryli’s hair. She’ll come in with an idea like a sharp angled bang and we’ll take it from there.”

Carissa says: “Having clients like Ryli make my job easy! This extreme icy/cool tone works all year round, but it’s very fitting for winter months. It reminds me of a snowflake. You can even add more blue to a platinum toner to get a more silver effect. The more you add, the darker the silver, into grey/gunmetal hues. This look is easier achieved on those with naturally light hair.”

Want to winterize your look for the season? Call VAIN Downtown at 206-441-3441 to book an appointment with Bash, Carissa, or any of our other stylists. Happy winter, everyone!

And then there were three: VAIN West Seattle will open this Saturday + Sunday 12pm – 8pm for a holiday preview! Our latest addition to the VAIN family will be boutique only for now, with the hair salon opening in full gear early 2012. In the meantime we’ll have our favorite accessories and holiday gift items from VAIN Downtown and VAIN Ballard in stock (and yes, rumor has it the legendary sequined beret will be there) plus VAIN staff onhand to answer questions about our hair services.

Hope to see you this weekend at VAIN West Seattle! We can’t wait to meet our new neighbors.

VAIN West Seattle is located at 4513 California Ave SW in the heart of the Alaska Junction. Hours will be limited through the holidays; call us at 206-535-2595 if you’re headed our way!

UPDATE: VAIN West Seattle (boutique only) will also be open 4-8pm during the week.

Hope you will be able to make it to the Ballard Art Walk this upcoming Saturday (Dec. 10). Jamie Cox of Deuce will be featuring her collection of jewelry. For as long as she can remember she has always had a thing for jewelry; you can even call it a sort of love affair. Jamie explains that ” earrings always had to be big, rings stacked, and necklaces layered.”

Her jewelry design came from this love affair, she explains “a girl’s jewelry box can only hold so much! So with love, creativity, and a vintage flair Deuce was born.” Jamie’s collection is a mix of new and vintage elements. You definitely don’t want to miss her work, you will find some truly special pieces of jewelry.

Join us this Saturday from 6-9pm for art, drinks, and some treats – 5401 Ballard Ave NW.

This month we’re talking to VAIN stylist TT, who’s always taking a fresh approach to her own style expression and isn’t afraid to mix things up. What can we say- the lady’s got hair skills and style to match. TT rules.

Describe your overall style in 6 words or less. 
A hodgepodge of eclectic uniqueness. Yeah!

What +/or who are your style influences? 
I seem to pay homage to the 70′s a lot, even when I’m not trying to, so I would say pretty much a lot of stuff from that era. I also like to people watch and check out how other people are putting certain pieces together. I think also my kids and their carefree attitude about their style. 

How does your hair influence your overall style or vice-versa? 
My hair is usually ‘no muss, no fuss’ and most of the time my wardrobe is, too. If I have to spend too much time dealing with my hair or picking out an outfit then I will wind up worrying too much if everything looks good. If it gets to that point then I have to take a step back, look in the mirror and call it good…7/10 it’s good.

What have been your favorite hairstyles and why? 
I’ve had some good and bad hairstyles over the past years but I would say my absolute fav was when I colored my hair bright effin’ red with an orange streak! It was right after I cut my dreads and I wanted to do something that was completely out of the box… I would get complements from strangers driving down the street while I was standing at the bus stop…it was great. Now the worst hairstyle I ever had…a jheri curl…worst thing ever, lol.

Describe the first time you took a big chance/made a big change with your hair or overall style.  
That would have to be when I started my dreads. I used to do something…either color, braids, twists, something…to my hair about every 6-8 weeks, so going with a style that was pretty permanent was a big thing for me. It took me 10 years to finally decide to become a dread head because I loved being able to have the freedom of changing my hair style whenever I wanted, but right after I had my son I knew it was time to take that hair leap. 

Best hair of all time?
My mom…she always had her hair ‘styled to the nines’ as they used to say.  She rocked a ‘fro, braids, straight, curly, short and long. Diana Ross always had great hair…powerful hair for a powerful lady. And Portia De Rossi…her hair is always beautiful.

How does working at the VAIN influence or inspire your approach to style and hair?
The fact that I get to be myself and not having to conform to others standards is great. Everyone that is part of the VAIN beauty world has their own unique talents and creativity and the fact that it’s all encouraged is inspiring.

Scenario: you’re having a dance party. Who would be your dream guests and what would you wear? 
All my friends dancing to my favorite 70′s music and I would probably wear something that no one else would think of…like a zoot suit. But I might have to get back to you on that one.

What’s your advice to anyone in a hair or style rut? 
Do something small to make a change…for hair add a few low or highlights around the face, change your part from one side to the other, get bangs if you don’t have them. For style get a piece of clothing, like a blouse or scarf, in a color or pattern that you normally don’t wear, change up your wardrobe and pair different pieces together instead of always wearing them with the same thing. You don’t always have to do something crazy and drastic when you need a change. But overall have fun with it and be creative.

We agree! To learn more about TT, check out her stylist profile on VAIN.com. To book an appointment for a cut or color with her, call VAIN downtown at 206.441.3441.

VAIN assistant Dylan (l) + front desk mistress My (r): sequined berets haven't looked this good since Roseanne's mom.

Happy Small Business Saturday, everyone! Both VAIN downtown + VAIN Ballard are all set for shoppers looking for a little bling for their holiday shopping buck this year. We’ve got scarves, bags, sparkly accessories, jewelry by local artists + more, most for under $30. Plus gift certificates for VAIN hair + waxing services [Editor's note: yes I have been given a waxing certificate for Xmas before. And yes it was awesome]. We’ve also got our staff favorite item, the sequined beret (pictured above, $16 @ VAIN downtown), which has been delighting everyone who tries one on. Perfect party outfit topper.

But holiday gift + style supplies aside, we want to take a VAIN Blog minute just to say that we love seeing all the small business support out there this year. We’re proud to be part of Seattle’s strong and vibrant small business community, and we thank you, our clients and friends, for helping make it what it is.

♥s + best sequined small biz wishes,
VAIN

Stop by VAIN downtown – 2018 1st Ave, Seattle- or VAIN Ballard – 5401 Ballard Ave NW – to check out all the under $30 gift items we’ve got in stock. West Seattle, you’re coming up soon!

VAIN West Seattle will be located at 4513 California Ave SW, right by some of our fave local small businesses. Can’t wait to get your VAIN hair or shopping done? Visit us downtown at 2018 1st Ave or in Ballard at 5401 Ballard Ave NW. Check back here or follow VAIN on Twitter (@vainbeautyworld) for the latest on our big move out west.

Rosehedge / 30 Strong collection jar @ VAIN Ballard: ready for your donation

For the entire month of November, VAIN is joining forces with businesses throughout Seattle for 30-Strong, a series of events to mark the 30th anniversary of the first AIDS diagnosis. We’ll be collecting donations at both VAIN Downtown + VAIN Ballard to support Rosehedge/Multifaith Works, which provides housing, health care and other services to our low-income neighbors living with HIV and AIDS.

Click here to learn more about 30-Strong and Rosehedge, or stop by either VAIN salon to make a donation. Every dollar counts!

30-Strong donation jars are located at the front desk of both VAIN downtown- 2018 1st Ave, Seattle- and VAIN Ballard- 5401 Ballard Ave NW. Click here for a list of other participating businesses and 30-Strong events.

Gettin' zombified. Photo: JR Tarbox

In addition to masks, DIY makeup + wigs, VAIN downtown has special effects makeup artists on staff + ready to create horror movie-quality looks for all you zombies, vampires + other undeads this Halloween.

Take a look at some photos of our pros in action at EMP‘s recent Fashionably Undead Bash, which kicked off their Can’t Look Away: The Lure of Horror Film exhibit:

Slashed + decaying. Halloween makeup magic! Photo: JR Tarbox

A forehead wound never looked this good. Photo: JR Tarbox

Ok, I'm terrified just uploading this picture. Photo: JR Tarbox

Want some Halloween special effects makeup of your own this Halloween? Give us a call at VAIN downtown to book an appointment- 206.441.3441. Prices vary based on whether you want to go full ghoul or not. Big VAIN thanks to photographer JR Tarbox for taking such great shots.

Tiffany is a pretty busy lady so I was glad to catch her and get the low down on the wizard weilding all of this magic.

VAIN Beauty World: So, Tiff- what’s your hair-spiration?

Tiffany: Punk and rockabilly subculture, fashion and hair from the mid 1950′s to early 1960′s… it’s all awesome!

VBW: Who are some of your current style icons?

T: I LOVE Betsey Johnson and Kelly Osbourne! Marilyn Monroe is a classic that I will always hold dear to my heart- tried and true, you can pull from any variety of her and get a gorgeous example of beauty.

VBW: What’s your Point of Fashion this fall?

T: Leather and velvet jackets, Mad Men inspired dresses and all types of boots.

VBW: So now that we know that you’re clearly amazing, what can we expect in the area of hair expertise? Any specialties in that stylish sleeve of yours?

T: As a person with fine hair, I have a pretty strong affection for it! I love Razor cuts, asymmetrical ‘dos and creative color- especially veggie dye. Give me an ultra blonde and I can die happy- I absolutely love a good blonde!

Catch Tiffany while she’s still a steal! Call VAIN Ballard @ 206.706.2707 to book an appointment with her on Sunday or Monday. FYI- for a short time, Tiffany will be running a $15 haircut special on Mondays!