Michael Flores is the mane man in charge of the salon at Neiman Marcus’ flagship location downtown. He let us into his world and gave us the scoop on what’s in (prepare the scissors), what’s over, and what trends to try. (We’ll be popping into the salon soon to order up a soft ponytail.)
On the latest trend in cuts…
I think the latest trend is going shorter! Whatever that means to every individual client. Whether it’s flirting with shoulder blade or collar bone length, or just north of the bra strap, long one-length and long layered hair is not in vogue right now. [This editor is wondering if chopping one foot off her 50-foot-long hair counts as going shorter.]
On the latest trends in color…
The latest trend in color is a much softer ombré; not such a hard line between the two shades, and also just generally a lighter more blended tone. Also, going into fall, everyone should start adding more soft tone-on-tone lowlights and warmer, golden honey glazes.
On his favorite hair trends…
My favorite hair trends are soft, out-of-focus-like ponytails and braids that are not too controlled; almost messy. They have a DIY element, but much too intricate to do yourself. One trend I hoped would catch on for evening or formal hair was the use of gold leaf scattered into the hair. I saw it at the Lela Rose spring 2014 ready-to-wear show; it was ethereal. I’m not sure how practical it is, but it was amazing!
On styles he’d like to see less…
I would like to see less bold color on entertainers. We don’t see much in Dallas, but from Katy Perry and her kaleidoscope of hair colors to Nicole Richie and Kelly Osbourne’s lavender hair, I think we have seen enough! Kids attempt these looks and really mess up their hair. But, as anyone knows, I’m a classical hair colorist. I prefer shades found in nature, no more than two levels from your natural level.
On repairing summer-fried hair and the miracle product you need…
If you have sun damaged hair, the first thing you need is to do some rebuilding. In my salon, we have a product made by my mentor, Beth Minardi. It’s called Minardi Pre-Wash. It is made of fatty acids, proteins, lipids, and water, which is what hair is made of; not some synthetic oil. After some rebuilding, I suggest a glaze with a non-ammoniated warm, demi-liquid shade. In concert, these two treatments will make your hair look amazing.
