Bakersfield Life

Makeover

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It was a rough morning for everyone involved. The photographer who was expected at downtown’s La Dolce Vita to shoot three women’s transformation from plain Jane to super chic hydroplaned on her return to Bakersfield from San Diego and slammed into the center divider. Beauty expert and color specialist Gina Thompson – who was to make over these three women – was up all night with a sick child.

Then there was 41-year-old pharmacy technician Denise Seaton, who was sitting nervously in Thompson’s chair awaiting the photographer to begin the metamorphosis. “Honestly, I never let anyone touch my hair,” she said.

And the tension builds.

But just as gradually as the stress levels rose, they dissipated rapidly. The substitute photographer arrived and Thompson got to work. As the color was being applied to Seaton’s hair, 25-year-old Misty Melnyk showed up and Thompson’s eyes lit up with joy.

The reason was simple: the Starbucks shift manager’s beauty potential was like a blank canvas for Monet – simple and plain at the moment but the end result was no doubt going to be a beautiful work of art.

Seaton’s color was set, Melnyk sat down in the chair and the final of the three women arrived – 73-year-old retired nurse Carol Snyder. The final of three brought a kind happiness to the room, even as Thompson started to look frazzled trying to give new looks to three different women at all the same time.

The goal was to give each of these three women a fresh look with new hairstyles and makeup, all created from the mind of Thompson. Each of the women came from a different age range and each were open-minded to allow Thompson to do what she thought was best. And the results were nothing short of mind blowing.

In the end, Seaton appeared ready for a night on the town, Melnyk was emphasizing the point that she was single (in case any single guys were out there reading this), and Snyder simply couldn’t keep the smile off of her face. After about four hours of hard work by Thompson, the rough morning turned into a memorable – and enjoyable – day for all.

DENISE SEATON
41 years old
Pharmacy technician, Kaiser Permanente

Of the three, there’s no doubt that Seaton was the most nervous of the bunch. She doesn’t let anyone touch her hair at all, but she agreed to allow Thompson to do what she thought was best with her hair and makeup on this day – a risky proposition for someone who is so controlling over her physical appearance.

Thompson was understanding of Seaton’s worries, so she didn’t make any major changes but instead worked with what Seaton was already used to. Seaton also agreed to a more dramatic look, so an updo with more extensive makeup was in the works.

“Denise has really fine hair with a ton of layering – too much layering,” Thompson said. “So I took off some length and used a body-building cream to give her some thickness. We went with an evening-type look and all of her hair was one dark color, so I added some highlights to brighten her up a bit.”

The result was a simple update to Seaton’s previous ‘80s look. Instead of fighting Seaton’s fine, curly hair – which seems like the natural plan of action – Thompson worked with it to create a fun look that appears ready for a night on the town and will be simple for Seaton to duplicate on a regular basis.

“I’ve always loved makeup and hair, so this was really fun for me,” Seaton said. “Gina did an awesome job. I was open to her suggestions and they worked out great.”

For the makeup, Thompson spent the most amount of time on Seaton to complete the dramatic appearance. Smoky eyes highlight Thompson’s facial creation that left Seaton looking great for a night out on the town with her husband, Randy.

As she prepared to walk out the door, with a smile on her face that she simply couldn’t wipe away, Seaton had just one thing to say. “I like it. I like it a lot.”

MISTY MELNYK
25 years old
Shift supervisor, Starbucks at the Marketplace

As Thompson began to dry Melnyk’s hair and the gorgeous blond highlights began to shimmer, a handful of people watching these transformations all said the same thing: “Wow! That color is great!”

Thompson’s most drastic change came with the 25 year old who was wide open to any change. The stylist was already thrilled at the blank palette that Melnyk presented when walking through the door, but a comment when she sat down in Thompson’s chair really made her excited.

“I love going through a change,” Melnyk commented. “A lot of girls are really worried about their hair, but I’m not. It’ll grow out if I don’t like it.”

Perfect.

Thompson decided that it was time for Melnyk to be a blonde for the first time in her life. She added the highlights but kept both the hair and makeup within Melnyk’s personality – very natural and low maintenance – instead of trying to make her into something that she’s not. Once again, Thompson created a look that is not only stunning but also easy to replicate daily.

“Misty came in with mousy brown hair so I added some highlights to brighten up that brown shade, then I layered her hair throughout,” Thompson said. “She didn’t need much makeup, so I just went with a very natural look – iridescent blush, tinted gloss on the lips, natural mascara.”

Melnyk walked into La Dolce Vita open-minded and walked out with a completely new look that she was thrilled with. And while being a blonde might take come getting used to, getting a new look was easy to get accustomed to from the start.

“I feel like a new person,” Melnyk said. “I’m not used to being blond, but it’s definitely something I can work with. I love the makeup. Normally I just use cover up, mascara and eyeliner. I like how she did it natural – it goes great with my personality.”

CAROL SNYDER
73 years old
Retired nurse

Who says 73 year olds don’t need a fresh look, too? And not only was Snyder a perfect way for Thompson to complete showing off her skills for all ages, she also created yet another look that is simple to prepare each day while fitting the personality of her client.

Snyder is one of the few lucky people to have simply great hair – if styled properly, it will do basically fall into place each morning. And Thompson certainly gave her a great style. She started by ridding Snyder of all her gray and replacing with a rich chocolate brown color and continued with a chic haircut.

“Carol is pretty low maintenance and a cut like that pretty much styles itself,” Thompson said. “If you give it the right cut, it will do exactly what you want it to do.”

It was clear that Snyder wasn’t used to a high-end salon like La Dolce Vita – or the amount of time needed to spend in one to get the great results that followed. She appeared a bit uncomfortable while she sat with the color in her hair and actually found herself unconsciously touching her hair getting brown dye all over her hands.

But when her hair was being styled, Snyder kept peeking out of the corner of her eyes to catch a glimpse at her new look. The smile that crept onto the shy woman’s face couldn’t hide her overall happiness.

“The difference comes with the time and professionalism that comes with a place like this,” Snyder said, still unable to rid herself of the smile. “Gina really knows what to do. It takes time to show off the good features and cover up the bad ones – if that’s possible.”

Just like with Melnyk, Thompson followed Snyder’s personality and gave her simple, natural makeup, looking to “brighten her up but not overdo it.”

Seaton summarized Snyder’s new look, along with her already charming personality, perfectly: “Oh my God, she’s just so cute.”