Introduction

About Adrian

Adrian Elwell is an independent contractor hair stylist and colorist, located 1 block from Union Square at Au Top Coiffure, 305 Grant Avenue (at Sutter Street), San Francisco. Click the images above to navigate an introduction to Adrian.

A Methodical Approach

The Client, Style, and Color sections of this page introduce Adrian's methodical approach to hair design. With 18 years experience cutting and coloring, Adrian is solidly grounded in both consultative skills and solid technical skills. He is constantly refining his technique through regular advanced education, and through daily creative inspiration that comes from working with his clients. His technical training includes 6 diplomas from Vidal Sassoon in cut and color, and he is planning another in 2010. A Bachelors degree in counseling contributes to exceptional consultative and listening skills. Adrian takes pride in careful consideration of his client's preferences, and in his technical skills to consistently deliver what he promises.

Great hair design begins with the Client.

Adrian is client centered, and if there is one aspect of his work that engages him more than another, it is the complex and subjective topic of suitability. Factors affecting a suitable style and color include facial shape, natural coloring, hair texture, and lifestyle. For every rule that attempts to define suitability, there will always be an individual whose lifestyle and personality will overrule what is considered to be physically 'suitable'.

During your consultation, Adrian will ask lots of questions to determine your individual tastes and sense of style, and will help you, if necessary, express your hair "likes" and "dislikes". After listening carefully and observing you to gain a sense of your personal style and preferences, Adrian will repeat back the information he has gathered to begin to translate this into ideas for your cut and color, and check with you for understanding. The cut and/or color will always be a mutually understood course of action.

The cut is the style.

Adrian uses the Vidal Sassoon "wash and wear" cutting technique, because looks that stay modern move naturally and are easy to recreate day after day. This precision method has a solid foundation based on pure geometry: Adrian cuts the shape into the hair so that you don't need a lot of styling products to hold hair into a style. So you can shake your head and run your fingers through your hair as often as you like, and your hair will always fall back into shape. An added benefit is that the cuts keep their proportions longer, so even as the style grows, it continues to look good for weeks and even months.

Small scissors are used for all cutting and finishing. Thinning shears and straight razors are not used in the Sassoon method. Adrian's preferred method of drying is either air drying (wash and wear) or a simple blow dry wrapping technique (see image right) with a non-bristle brush (such as a Denman or Vess brush), and flat ironing if necessary to smooth or slightly round the ends. Curly hair may be dried straight or left to dry naturally, with heat lamps, or with a diffuser. Curly hair can may also be flat ironed for a different look entirely.

Color is an extension of personality.

Warm tones of gold, copper, and red accentuate a natural sunny look, while moonlit tones of raven, ash, pearl, cool reds, and beige enhance the tonality of individuals who wear silver better than gold. Chocolaty auburns can be formulated to be enhance warm or cool tonality. Creative color placement with panels and highlights in contrasting values and tones expand the range of self expression to near limitless possibilities.

Adrian believes that color should never compromise the integrity of the hair, and that it should look as good as possible for as long as possible between salon visits. For this reason he uses Schwarzkopf Igora Royal products. He specializes in gray coverage, featuring the new Igora Royal Absolutes designed especially for gray hair, in creative color placement, and multi-color, natural looking highlights. Adrian takes pride in his multidimensional approach to covering gray, carefully examining the tendencies of white hair to distribute itself unevenly.

Adrian never "pulls" permanent color through the ends of the hair, in favor of color-balancing the ends with a demi-permanent shade if necessary. He rarely uses bleach, especially in highlights, because a more natural look, with less noticeable re growth, and that is less stressful to the hair can usually be achieved with Igora high-lift shades. Adrian is very mindful of what roots will look like as the style grows, so when a lighter effect is desired requiring bleach, he carefully places bleached slices for impact and so that these foil packets minimally cross the parting, if at all. Adrian believes a highlight should look great for 3 months.

In addition to his comprehensive In-Depth Chemical training at Vidal Sassoon Advanced Academy in Santa Monica, Adrian has earned 2 Vidal Sassoon Advanced Academy diplomas in Creative Color, in Toronto and San Francisco, each inspiring him over the course of 5 days with roughly 7 live demonstrations, and hands-on execution of 7 complete color transformations on 7 of his own models. With a solid foundation in classic hair coloring and highlighting, his most recent focus has been the precision placement of foil panels to dramatize a variety of haircuts and hair textures from every angle.