This article appeared in the December 26th, 2006 edition of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Reprinted With Permission.
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For Debbie Dolan of Hebron, even a ponytail takes too much time most mornings. "I've got one (child) climbing on the counter now, and one in the bassinet, and I'm blow-drying with one hand," says the 35-year-old mother of Megan, 2, and Matthew, 2 months.
A little gel, lipstick and blush, and it's back to diapers and cartoons.
Three years ago, Dolan's husband, Chad, who works for Toyota, was transferred from Orange County, Calif.
The California native has adapted to the culture shock but needed a little help adjusting her wardrobe and beauty regimen to fit her new low-maintenance lifestyle - and the local humidity.
We started at Mi Salon Spa in Florence, where stylist and owner Idajean Moore explained how Dolan can maximize her style with minimal time.
Razored layers give more motion and plumpness , and the internal layers of a modified bob take less time to style and require fewer touch-ups as they grow out.
Moore then showed Dolan how to blow-dry for maximum volume: brushing the hair in all different directions, hitting the roots first and rolling the hair over a metal-barrel brush.
Color specialist Amy (Kansas) Putthoff then added honey-brown highlights and deepened Dolan's base color for more texture.
Moving on to make-up, stylist Erin Whitehead played up Dolan's full lips with a warm cranberry gloss and applied demure warm-gold eye shadow to match Dolan's hair.
We whisked Dolan off to B. Moss Clothing Company in Florence Mall, where we zoned in on empire waists, wrap shirts and drop-waist dresses with ruching.
"It can help to camouflage," says assistant manager Bonnie Lasita.
Although our focus was classy yet casual clothing, Dolan whizzed past the velour yoga-style track suits to a sassy burgundy polyester dress.
"Why not?" she said, looking at the price tag.
But it wasn't just the 40-70 percent off prices that had Dolan smiling and posing for the camera.
She plans to go back for a petite-zie pair of corduroy pants, which fit perfectly in the waist. And an A-line cord skirt - a flattering cut for any figure - paired with a chic brown turtleneck and a beaded macramé belt looked too good to resist.
Dolan took home the skirt and turtleneck, along with a boat-neck sweater, wool sweater, crewneck T-shirt and a new look and attitude -- all for $83 and a little change. |
A low-key look that works for a busy mom