New Year, New Look

Hopefully everyone had a wonderful holiday...are you ready for 2010? What happened to the decade?!?

In the spirit of the New Year, this blog is dedicated to changing your look.

It's so much easier than you think...just some make-up and important styling products and a few tips just in time for your New Year's Eve celebration!

These photos of stylist Leah Carlson are from our recent photo shoot with our friends at Snap! Photography. All hair and make-up descriptions include a few of the key products used to achieve the looks.

Leah did her own hair and make-up because, well, she can.

Look #1...Fresh and natural

Hair: Kerastase Oleo-Relax serum & Bumble and bumble Does It All hairspray

Make-up: Smashbox Halo Perfecting Powder, Smashbox Photofinish and Cargo blu ray High-Definition mascara

Look #2...Marilyn-esque

Hair: Bumble & bumble Styling Creme and Spray de Mode hairspray (and some hot rollers)

Make-up: Smashbox Camera Ready Full Coverage Foundation, Jet Set liner in black and Smashbox 'Legendary' lipstick...appropriate name when channeling a legendary actress!

Look #3...Rockstar and totally hot

Hair: Bumble & bumble Surf Spray and Classic hairspray

Make-up: Cargo Texas Lash, Cargo Big Bronzer and Smashbox eyeshadow Trio in 'Twilight' and some individual lashes...hey, we can't all be so lucky!

It's Allie! You might recognize her from the front desk/assistant role here at New Leaf...

Allie's 'Everyday' look:

Hair by Courtney Libby: Moroccan Oil and B & b Spray de Mode hairspray

Make-up by Amy Gonyea: Smashbox Halo Perfecting Powder and Cargo Reverse Lip Liner with Cargo 'Vermont' lip gloss

Allie's 'Party' look...

Hair by Courtney Libby: Lots of B & b Classic hairspray, some teasing and a fancy headband

Make-up by Amy Gonyea: Cargo Essential Eyeshadow Palette in Warm/Natural and a few individual lashes

Ashley's bohemian style...

Hair by Ashley Vierra: Kerastase Double Force hairspray and Lumiere Nutri-sculpt and a 1-inch barrel curling iron

Make-up by Amy Gonyea: Cargo Big Bronzer and Smashbox Eye Brightener

Hair by Ashley Vierra:B &b Blondish Hair Powder, Classic hairspray, a teasing comb, and an elastic band

Make-up by Amy Gonyea: Smashbox Eyelights in 'Smokebox' and Smashbox Blush Rush in 'Gingersnap'

It is truly amazing how the same person can look SO different with hair and make-up changes.

Need help?

Come on in and see Amy G. and/or sign up for one of New Leaf's styling classes. Reserve your 30 minute spot with me (Courtney) on January 17th for $25 (good towards recommended styling products). The 30 minute session is devoted to any styling help you need...unruly curls? No problem. Frizzy blow dry? Smooth in minutes. Want to learn how to do Allie's cute headband-ponytail look? Done.

We don't have magic wands, just some serious knowledge that we love to share. Call 401.254.9333 or email us at info@newleafhairstudio.com to book your private styling class!

When One Door is Closed, Another Will Open--the story of New Leaf's holiday party...

So we got a little snow...what of it? Sixteen inches of the powdery white stuff was not enough to keep the New Leaf girls from having a holiday party. Some shoveling, some salt, and we're good.

Apparently, the restaurant (which shall remain nameless, unless you ask us) that we were supposed to have our party at forgot that it was located in New England and that snow happens.

It was closed.

Yes, all 25 of us shoveled ourselves out, got all dressed up in our holiday best, drove to 'the restaurant' to find an empty, PLOWED parking lot...filled only with sad employees looking to have a good time. And no, 'the restaurant' never called to tell us that they were scared of some snow.

After a lot of laughing, phone calls, and text messages...Amy Silva, our resourceful and quick thinking owner, called our favorite local restaurant down the road--Chardonnay's in Seekonk, MA and they were happy to have us.

Hallelujah!

I'll let you in on a little secret...My husband and I were pretty psyched because we are there every Friday night eating the BEST nachos and grilled pizza you will ever try (and I consider myself an expert in both categories).

Here we are...

Amy G., Melanie, Amy, and Heidi

Jenn, little Jamie (Rego), and Yadira

Shaun (Michelle's husband), Pam, Michelle, and Ashley

Shaun, by the way, had the best seat in the house, sitting at the girls table. Well, we thought he was pretty lucky. Maybe he didn't. Maybe he should win my 'best sport of the night' award instead.

Mario, Amy's husband and New Leaf's very own Mr. Fix-It (thanks Mario!) and Jon, Melanie's husband and head chef at Castle Hill in Newport (We could have just had him whip us up something, right?)

Heidi and Courtney (me)

Our other halves--Heidi's Josh and my husband Ryan...

David and Pam

Chris and Danielle

And here come the silly ones...

Danielle: "Michelle, stop touching me."

Michelle: "I'm not touching you. I'm not touching you."

Girls: "Cheers to finding a place to have a party!"

Ashley: "Amy, I don't know if I am going to be at work tomorrow."

Amy: "What?!?"

Ashley has 'men' on the brain and little Jamie has just read her mind...

And finally, the men attempting to get a good shot of the girls...

Attempt#1.

Attempt#2.

Woo-Hoo! Eyes open? Check. Happy faces? Check.

Perfect.

The aftermath of a GREAT New Leaf Holiday...a broken table now missing a leg. Sorry Chardonnay's, we stayed one hour too long.

Thanks to Chardonnay's for taking in some lost little hairdressers and showing them to believe in Christmas miracles. Also, a big thanks to Amy for making it happen and reminding why we love working at New Leaf. xo.

Happy Holidays and to all a GOOD NIGHT!

Southern New England Weddings Magazine Revealed!

Southern New England Weddings magazine is finally here! This bridal wedding 'bible' was just released and it features our very own brides--Gretchen Babyak, Joanna Principe & Sarah Huse! Click on their names to check it out...

We went to SNE's annual holiday party and boy, do they know how to do it up! I guess that's what happens when you team up with such fabulous vendors.

Check out the Grand Ballroom at the Providence Biltmore...

We got to sneak a peek at the magazine and now you can too...stop by New Leaf and pick up your very own FREE copy of this beautiful publication...because, what is really free these days?

Winter Wedding Fun

New Leaf's 2009 wedding season closed out this past weekend with two fantastic brides. Danielle Bassi called last year to book herself, her mom, and 2 sisters. Her winter wedding at Linden Place was to be a destination for our Pennsylvania bride. Little did I know that I would be reminded of how small of a world we live in!

Imagine my surprise when I opened up the deposit to find that I graduated high school (year not-to-be-named) with her fiance, Aaron! Danielle lives in Pennsylvania and I grew up in Massachusetts so it's pretty rare that I run into people I know. I immediately found Aaron on Facebook (shamless New Leaf plug alert: Become a Facebook Fan, if you aren't already!) and we were reunited again. Ah, Facebook.

Needless to say, I was pretty excited to beautify my old friend's fiance on their wedding day!

Here are Danielle's girls: Krista, the "Official Sidekick", Mom, and Nichole, the "Bad Influence"..LOVE the snazzy tank tops!

We enjoyed hearing the 'loving' banter between the ladies all afternoon...1 mom + 3 sisters= lots of laughs (and teasing, of course!)

Danielle needed a tank top too.."Soon-To-Be Mrs. Dufour"

Aaron and Danielle met at school--they are both teachers--

proof of what nice people they both are.

Amy's fave action shot...

We told you that headbands were 'in'!

Checking out the rear view...

It's Krista's turn to be beautified by Amy...

Meet Tessa, Danielle's future niece. Too cute for words!

Trust me when I tell you that there was NO shortage of hair in the Bassi family. Here is Leah workin' hard.

You know I love to award people with things. A past bride, Gretchen Babyak, won the award for the Most Hair. Well, folks, that trophy has been passed on. Krista Bassi is now the winner of the Most Hair Award. Holy Moly, put your 2 hands together to form a circle and that was her ponytail. It was gorgeous!

Krista gets nervous getting her hair done because it's so thick. I promised her that I have been 'managing' my sister's hair for years and I was quite qualified in this department. I always thought my sister had so much hair but I called her as soon as I was done to tell her that she was not alone!

Leah's creation for Nichole...

Love the braid accents...

Aaron was a sweet (and sneaky) guy. He emailed me to see if he could drop off a gift for Danielle that morning so she could open it when she was finished getting ready. I told him I was really (really, really, REALLY) bad at lying but he assured me that I didn't have to. I simply had to present her this gift when she was all done.

I wanted to give her the gift before her make up was done because letters usually produce lots of tears. Boys just don't know these things, right? I couldn't make that happen so I just made sure Amy was on hand for make up touch-ups.

Doesn't Danielle look like Lacey Chabert from the movie Mean Girls and the old school show Party of Five? I thought so.

Danielle reading Aaron's love letter (which was 3 pages long which she decided was best to finish later...smart move).

Danielle's family was in on it too. I love how they are watching her...

Beautiful (real) diamond and pearl earrings for her to wear that day.

Danielle was hilarious in asking, "But what about my fake ones that I have?" Put those away, Danielle, you have the real deal now:o)

Just perfect.

Thanks Danielle, Mrs. Bassi, Krista and Nichole. You were SO much fun. We love when we can gossip about trash television (Jersey Shore anyone?) and just listen to sisterly love.

Congratulations Danielle and Aaron...we wish you a long life of love and happiness.

Feathers & Fancy Lips

There is nothing like a beautiful red lip...if you can pull it off. We see it in magazines. We see the celebrities wearing it on the red carpet. We all dream of doing it but it's just so darn hard to get it right.

Well then, your dreams of feeling as sexy as a vintage pin up girl can come true...Just find Amy, our make-up guru, and you too can rock the red lips for the holidays!

Who is our inspiration for the red lipped look? It's our November bride, Cassandra Deluca. She travelled from Providence to Bristol to be beautified by our team of Leah and Amy.

She was was working it!

Check out this hair ornament...The flower is adorned with fancy feathers to complement the Bridget Bardot look that Leah created for Cassandra. Love the volume and L-O-V-E the accessory!

With shiny long locks like this, it's pretty hard to go wrong on your wedding day.

Amy created this flawless canvas for Cassandra's skin. Don't you love the lined eye paired with the red lip? There is nothing wrong with looking sexy for your wedding (or any other day for that matter!)

Almond shaped eyes look amazing when they are precisely lined with black pencil or liquid liner. One must have a steady hand, otherwise you might look a bit more like you belong on a street corner, not at the end of a church aisle.

We love Smashbox's Jet Set Waterproof Eyeliner. This innovative gel-based waterproof liner stays blendable for 60 seconds then dries to a smudge-proof, budge-proof finish that lasts all day. Tears of joy are okay, girls.

Jet Set is perfect for lining the inner rim of the eye or as a stay-put traditional liner. It glides on effortlessly with an arced liner brush.

Don't you hate it when your liner that you so carefully applied in the morning finds its way under your eyes by lunch time? I don't know how this happens. You know...when you don't look in the mirror all day and then think of all the people who saw your raccoon look and didn't tell you. Boy that's the worst.

This liner withstands the New Leaf test. This test is working a 10 hour day...Lots of laughing, talking, sweating (ew!), and eye smudging take place in 10 hours at New Leaf. This liner stays put. REALLY.

We perform this scientific 10 hour New Leaf test for all sorts of things...We have tested shoes. Tall riding boots? PASS. Ballet flats? Fail, fail, and FAIL.

We test hair products, those wrap sweaters (look pretty but do NOT work for hairstylists), lint rollers, stain sticks (Tide to Go works color stain miracles), deodorant, hairdryers, and all sorts of make up (Smashbox Limitless Lipgloss really DOES last all day, because really, who has to time to reapply?), and everything else you can imagine.

You should ask us some time and we can tell you how something really works.

Our sincere thanks to Cassandra and all her girls. You were a hair and make up artist's dream to work with....your look was beautiful and unique, just like you...As always, thanks for choosing New Leaf!

Cupcakes, Cocktails and Clothing...Oh My!

We'd like to say thank you for making our first New Leaf Clothing Drive a smashing success!

Around the holidays, it's easy to get caught up in the commercialization of Christmas. The New Leaf-'ettes' (my newly coined nickname for our staff) wanted to remember those a little less fortunate.

We are proud to say that we have the most charitable clients this side of the Bay...well, it might be that AND they love to shop and it had been a while since they cleaned out their closets!

We collected over FIFTY, yes 5-0, bags of clothes! We donated the fantastic goods to Big Sisters (and Brothers) of Rhode Island.

Take a peek at the night...

Does our model look familiar? It's our very own Leah!

It's truly amazing how the right hair products and make-up can transform you...

Our holiday angels came dressed and ready for the clothing drive...

Love that winter wonderland feeling...

Our signature drink of the evening was a 'Blue Hawaii' and boy, was it a hit (even though it was more green-ish than blue-ish)! Pineapple, blue curacao, coconut rum and vodka...dangerously delicious!

Our hostess with the most-est, Danielle. Who wouldn't want to taste a cocktail when it's being served by her?

Clients loved the mini cupcakes by Nancy's Fancies on Federal Hill in Providence. The flavors were certainly fancy--S'mores, Coconut Cloud, mmmmmm....

They attracted quite a crowd...

This year, we have a fabulous 'beauty boutique'. Can't think of ideas for those pesky stocking stuffers? Come on in because, really....who doesn't love products??

Apple & bee bags...

Jo Jo has landed in Bristol! Jo Jo is a 26 year old jewelry designer out of Boston who creates fantastically fun finds.

Our accessory tree....

Jo Jo's famous for her 'Bling' earrings...buy them in any color and/or size....(I have them in clear, pink, brown, purple...for $20 or $28, who can resist?)

Sassy gold earrings...

Perfect for any holiday party...

This bracelet is a great bauble to spice up any outfit...

I want it. I must have it. It may not be here when you come in:o)

Smashbox has come out with the best 'wish' items that conveniently fit in any stocking...and in any budget. They even come wrapped. Check that off your list.

A beautiful brush set...

The award winning Photo Finish...

Now this is just plain unbelievable. SIXTEEN shades of eyeshadows, Photo Finish Lid Primer, and a book of 'how-to' for different eye looks. For $44? All the New Leaf-ettes have this!

Bronzer, Lip Gloss and Mascara for $20!

If you are like me, I have so many glosses in my handbag that the colors usually expire by the time I run out of them! Yes, lip gloss does expire. Lip gloss lasts the longest in your make-up bag (2 years) and then it's time to toss it because it's unsanitary. Yuck.

This is the answer. For $29, you get 2 full size glosses and 4 small ones. It's a great way to try out different colors without commitment.

These are too cute for words. Melange solid perfumes are only $15. They leave a fresh, barely there scent on pulse points and are perfect to throw in your purse. They were even just a featured 2009 Beauty Winner in InStyle magazine.

The Bubble Roome body wash, bar soap and hemp hand lotion. So pretty!

Butter London nail polish named bold British colors like Queen Vic, Snog and Tramp Stamp. Not sure what a snog is but I love to say it. I better Google that...

Butter London hand & nail creme...meow!

Polish-Mania!!

Hair dryers, flat irons, brushes...

Stuff the stocking...

Famous Bumble boxes...

The box comes complete with a 'button band' that you can adorn with anything you wish. Create your own original headband by sewing something on to the button...a vintage pin, sparkly clip, feathers, whatever...just be creative!

Feeling Smitten Bath Bomb Cupcakes were just featured in People magazine...

For $10, you won't know whether to eat it or use it! You just drop them in your bath tub to soften your water, moisturize your skin and add bubbles. Plus, they smell yumm-erific!

Morrocan Oil should be on everyone's wish list this year!

And, of course, a gift card is always appreciated by any New Leaf-er!

A few of Santa's reindeers stopped by to help out--Jenn, as Blitzen & little Jamie, as Vixen!

Melanie and Yadira, Bristol's best esthetician, posing for a picture...

Ashley, Leah, Amy G, and Jenn...errr, I mean Blitzen.

Vixen modeling her Jo Jo necklace...

The New Leaf-ettes!

Thanks for making our Holiday Preview such a success...

we hope you had as much fun as we did!