95. HORRIBLE BOSSES.

I'm here to tell you about my Horrible Bosses moment.

Not my Boss, he’s not horrible- I have to say that, he reads this blog. Let me explain Mr Boss, if you are in fact reading this. I was talking about the movie “Horrible Bosses”. You see, I got involved in a spot of grooming for the Horrible Bosses Film Tour of Melbourne. Yeah I know what your thinking, me hanging out with Hollywood types like Jason Bateman, the charming Jason Sudeikis and the very funny Charlie Day is all soo glamorous. But to tell you truth, it was.

79. BRYAN FERRY- SUAVEST MAN ALIVE.

Bryan ferry came to me in a dream when I was about four years old. Well, perhaps it wasn’t a dream, perhaps I just fell asleep in front of the TV while MTV was on. He was singing that song “Let’s stick together”, my subconscious must’ve sharpened at that bit where Jerry Hall yelps and screams like a banshee. She looks like sex on legs. In the very next shot is Mr Bryan Ferry wearing a white suit, red tie, that amazing floppy hair and a pencil moustache.

I recall looking at Jerry Hall, I recall looking at Bryan Ferry, my impressionable little mind made the connection -If I looked like him I could get a girl like that.

The song itself resonates with me. I believe in the year 1976, the year the song was released my parents broke up. Here was Bryan Ferry, a father-like figure giving advice as to what a man should do. Or what a man should be. Well dressed, loyal and above all else, stand by his woman.

Enough of the sentimentalism. This blog is about hair and grooming. I’m bringing up Bryan Ferry because it’s all about Movember. You see, I’m one one those guys you see about town growing some questionable facial hair at the moment. And Bryan Ferry is the inspiration.

So unless you’ve been living under a rock Movember is an annual month-long event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November. The event has been claimed to have been invented in 1999 by group of Australian men from Adelaide.

Since 2004, the Movember Foundation charity has run Movember events to raise awareness and funds for men's health issues, such as prostate cancer and depression in Australia and in New Zealand. In 2007, events were launched in Ireland, Canada, Spain, the U.K and the U.S.

All The King's Men

Your shop has an excellent name. “All the king’s men”, In my mind it conjures up the infamous Alexander the Great, who made his soldiers shave their beards off for the purpose of gaining an advantage in hand-to-hand combat so that his warriors were able to grasp an enemy by the beard, while themselves were safeguarded in this method of fighting. Is there any correlation between this story and your shop? How did you come up with the name of the shop?

Wow! I've never heard that story before but i really like it! I came up with the name when i was at trade school in my apprenticeship. In fact my cousin and I came up with it. He was studying hospitality at the same tech and we had a hairbrained scheme to start a barber shop/cafe. It sounds completely bonkers to me now but back then it seemed like we had come up with the greatest idea ever.

It’s a great looking barbershop, the old movie posters, especially the 1949 movie of the same name. How long have you had the shop, and how long did it take to get all the memorabilia?

The shop opened in 2007. I have been collecting all sorts of bits and bobs forever really. The first thing I got were the chairs, they are vintage Takaras and are incredibly beautiful to me. The lines on them are so classic and so sleek. They remind me of the classic, huge American cars of the 50's. I had them for about a year before the shop opened and in that time i had them in storage. I used to go to the storage unit and visit them regularly, and really built the rest of the shop around them. The posters are all vintage Italian action movies and I have sourced them from all around the world. They are so dramatic and so visually engaging, and so old and creased. I love that old world aesthetic. Then the cut throat razors I've collected from op shops and antique dealers, and from friends who have found them in their shopping expeditions and also a few from clients who have had their grandpas razor floating around and don't really know what else to with them, and I like that they have all ended up together in the cabinets. All the other stuff has just turned up over time.

My research tells me you worked at Dr Follicles for a time. Was it hard to start your own shop? And what sparked the idea of going starting your own?

I worked at Dr Follicles for a long time, and it was a great place to work and I made some very good friends there. But my idea was always to open my own shop and that really started back in trade school. In the time between starting my career and opening my own shop, I had been involved on some level in a few different shops from early on in their operation, so when the time came to open my own, I'd seen first hand and learnt from watching what other people were doing in starting up their shops. Some were more successful than others and I think I sort of watched and listened as much as I could to what sorts of things worked and what didn't work. So when the time came to open my own shop, I had a really firm idea of how i wanted my shop to operate.

Where have you worked previously?

I started my apprenticeship in Canberra at Cataldo's in 1995. I did two years there, sweeping, shampooing, coffee making, colors and perms. Lots of perms. Then I finished my apprenticeship at a salon called Globe. It's no longer there. It was a crazy little shop with a great 50's kitsch, John Waters, Vegas, lounge bar sort of vibe to it. It even had a one-arm bandit poker machine in it. It was really different to all the other shops in Canberra at the time, and we had a lot of fun. It was like one big party for a few years. All the staff were really fun and we were like a gang. Then that closed up and my friend Mark Bayre (principal director and owner of Mest) bought it and he's still there and going great guns!

Then I moved to Melbourne in 2000 and started to move towards barbershops. My first job here was at Wax in the city. It was a great little shop. I worked there for a couple of years and then to Dr Follicles in Richmond and then to their Fitzroy shop. And then opened All The Kings Men.

How long have you been doing hair and when did you have your first hair “epiphany”?

Started in 1995. I guess the most important epiphany I had is that cutting men’s hair is where i wanted to end up. That was very early on in the piece.

For readers who want to be a men’s hairdresser…how did you become a barber, did you at any point in your career do women’s hair?

I did women's hair for a while, but pretty much two thirds of my career has been men’s hair. When i worked in salons I saw that a lot of the time they were catering predominantly to women and when most men came in they were obviously uncomfortable there. These were the guys that seemed to like me cutting their hair and it just sort of clicked there. And this is at a time when men really, REALLY didn't get into the grooming thing that much. Now guys are so much more savvy about using products, colors and even straighteners, but at that point guys just seemed to get haircuts to get the hair out of their eyes. But that shift towards men’s grooming is really why you see resurgence in barbershops now. Guys now not only want to have adventurous haircuts, they EXPECT it. It's great really. So now not only is there a market for cutting just men’s hair, it’s a really progressive and dynamic market, which is so awesome. It really has changed so much in that time, it's amazing.

Top five favourite tools?

1- cut throat razor! Easily my favorite!! It's such a wonderfully theatrical tool. And it’s a great symbol of barbers and barbershops. Like Sweeney Todd or that great scene in 'The Untouchables' where Al Capone is getting a shave and the barber nicks him. It's just such a great way of finishing a cut, tidying up the neck with a cutthroat. It just completes the whole haircut experience. And it's such a cool looking tool as well.

2- scissors. Obviously. I use 7'', great for scissor over comb.

3- clippers. We do LOTS of clipper work and i mostly use the good old classic Wahl Super Tapers, although i used to own a fantastic set of Oster rotary clippers, which I often remember fondly. They got broken when a client jumped out of my chair and hooked the cord around his foot and they fell onto the ground and smashed. That was a sad day.

4- Passion Razor. I have had this for years and i love it. Great for longer shaggy, rock'n'roll stuff. Such a simple tool, but I cant imagine not having it. And it looks cool too.

5- ipod. Music is so important in getting the vibe in the shop right. Its important to have some sweet soul tracks to start the day, but also to have some proper rock and roll to drive it home at the end of the day. Sounds silly, but I couldn't get through the day without the right music.

I really love the history of barbering and hairdressing, for example back in ye olde days your barber was your dentist and your surgeon. Another example is the red and white stripe barber pole to signify bloodletting. Do you feel any connection to that heritage?

I love the history of hairdressing, and especially barbering. The blood letting and tooth stopping and leeches and all that is so interesting. It's so kind of macabre and creepy to think that people just popped into the local barbers to get a boil lanced and a quick tidy up. I certainly wouldn't have wanted to do it.

What do you feel are the problems facing the industry right now?

The public opinion thing has ALWAYS annoyed me. I sometimes think people don't really understand what it is we do. It’s such a cliché, but at the end of the day, what we do is make people feel good. We make people feel confident, we listen to people and we form these unique friendships with our clients. That is very important. It's so much more than people like to make out it is.

What are your plans for the future?

I'm in the process of looking to expand the business into a second location. It's pretty exciting actually. I have the greatest staff ever at the shop and I have absolute faith in them looking after it so I can go and start all over again in another shop. From there, I'd really like to one day open a really big, really sleek shop. Still keeping the same philosophy of what we do now, but on a grander scale. And then from there, maybe a girls version, maybe.

All The King's Men

16 Errol Street, Nth Melbourne.

93285599

Born to be Mild- Neoclassic Man

This article called Neoclassic Man was originally written for The Hub Magazine. I thought I'd share this with you.

What’s a modern man to do? What with the weight of the world on his shoulders: interest rates, the global economy, duties around the house, baldness, rising trouser waist lines – not to forget ever-expanding waist lines – coupled with the compulsion to check the crackberry and i-phone at every given moment whilst keeping the trouble and strife happy. What’s a modern man to do in an age of rapidly changing expectations? Even the most rebellious men about town amongst us are questioning themselves.

“Am I suffering from change fatigue?”

It seems, the tide has turned for men’s hair and men’s clobber, now favouring a more groomed and slicked back, parred down approach ala Don Draper from the popular US hit TV show, Mad Men. Men, it seems, on the surface at least, have finally grown up. It’s the logical next step. Gone are the days of hogging your girlfriends straightening irons, or sporting elaborate multi-directional hair (I know you’re out there).

Thanks largely to the fashion world’s continued obsession with Tom Ford and his new muse actor Nicholas Hoult – star of Channel 4’s coming of age drama Skins, and Ford’s film A single Man – there has never been a better time than right now to neaten up and carry a comb in your back pocket.

If – like me – you followed the Milan men’s fashion shows from January in magazines and online, chances are you might have thought you were clicking through a casting call for Mad Men, or one of those late night war films. It seemed as though every model, fashion editor, photographer, stylist, and man-about-town caught on one of those hip street-style blogs was rocking a side parting and slicked back.

Modern man is neoclassic, he puts style over fad. This is quintessentially men’s hair at its best. Think of it like the backbone of male grooming. This is so refreshingly understated and unpretentious. Minimum fuss and maximum efficiency. Of course, the boys in Milan already knew that. Just check out the flagship Dolce & Gabbana Barbiere in Corso Venezia. The real question that modern man needs to answer is, where to find a decent barber?

Why not try the oldest barbershop in London, Truefit and Hill barbers who offer a close shave and a chat. Or across the Atlantic, VL Studio, 198 7th Avenue, New York, (212) 929-3039. Its where Scott Schuman, he of The Sartorialist fame, goes to get his locks seen to.

When in Melbourne, Australia, go and see Nick at All The Kings Men. A friend said it best, “They combine the unpretentious charm of an old-school barbershop with the reassuring artfulness of a ritzy salon, without all the hair tonic, herbal tea and unsightly fauxhawks.”

Speacial thanks to Rachael Oku from Creative-idle.

Images Dominic O’Keefe, Eddie Tucker from models.com, Jon Hamm depicted in Mad Men, street style photograph courtesy of The Satorialist, Dior Homme 2010 and Nicholas Hoult For Tom Ford.

Lock 'n' Roll

You probably already heard about a swatch of Elvis Presley’s hair, which was sold for $18,300 at a Chicago auction on Sunday, Reuters reported. The locks, believed to have been snipped from Presley when he joined the Army in 1958, were among about 200 items of memorabilia collected by Gary Pepper, who was president of the Tankers Fan Club for Elvis devotees.

Note: The hair was not DNA-tested, but authenticated by “an expert in celebrity hair".

Which begs the question, so how does one become an expert in celebrity hair?

Neoclassic Man - Redux

This is just to remind you all of a previous post i wrote a couple of months back

about modern mens hair titled

neoclassic man.

It is finally published at Cosmetiholic.com and an excuse to put up another photo of Morrissy

For the complete story please click

http://www.cosmetiholic.com/

Check it out.

Also if you have been in a coma for the last two decades

and not familiar with

Morrissy or his music please visit

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morrissey

http://www.myspace.com/morrissey

Neoclassic Man

I wrote this little piece hoping that it will get published in www.cosmetiholic.com.

The modern man is in a state of flux.

The weight of the world on his shoulders, interest rates, share portfolios, global economy, house duties, baldness, what to wear, rising waist lines in trousers not to forget widening waist lines and pleasing the little woman at home.

Thanks largely to the fashion world’s obsession with Morrissey and the Tv show Mad Men et al, there has never been a time than right now to neaten up and carry a comb in the back pocket.

Modern man is neoclassic, he puts style over fad. For the gent who is more fashion forward I suggest sporting a pompadour. This is quintessentially mens hair at it’s best. Think of it like the Ray Ban’s of mens haircuts. Gone are the days of hogging your girlfriends straightening irons, or sporting elaborate multi-directional hair (I know you’re out there).

Try Kiehls Creative Cream Wax (www.kiehls.com). It’s a mix of wax and cream so it washes out easily and holds your hair in place without it looking like your trying to hard.

Straight out of the shower, apply and comb. Effortlessly cool.