One on one with Melanie Dunn: Hair and Fashion Guru

Melanie was recommended to us by a friend to cut and style our hair. Lisa started seeing her first! Her hair always looked fabulous and she recommended Melanie to me. It has been a while since we have been seeing her to do our hair and we are always pleased with the outcome. Today we had the pleasure of speaking with her and she shared some of her styling tips, secrets, and recommendations.
Melanie has always loved styling hair and doing makeup since she was very young, it was one of her biggest hobbies. Her high school offered cosmetology classes and she attended the program there. While in high school she went to New York every year to attend the International Beauty Show.

Going to the show put me on fire! They made it known to me that their is a culture of hair and a whole new world opened up to me. It is really inspiring

After obtaining her license Melanie started working in a salon without having to be an assistant or apprentice. She has now been working as a hairstylist for eight years. She currently works at Salon Vivace and has been here for the past three years.

The most important thing about working in a salon is the environment, the people, and the education so you can progress!

Melanie has attended several beauty industry conventions which she believes are very educational and essential towards building and making one a great stylist. One of her favorite is Premiere Orlando, one of the biggest shows.
Melanie says that as a future trend for hair violent tones and pastel hues are going to be very popular. One trend that will be huge although there is no official name for it yet, will be highlights within the Ombré with main focus on the roots and color gradually lighter towards the ends, the highlights will blend everything together.
When asked where she will see herself in five years, Melanie said:

I would like to live in Europe with an events business such as fashion shows. My dream is to live in France.The most important thing is to have a goal and take steps towards it regardless if your plan changes or not, at least the steps you took will take you somewhere and not leave you where you were.

Melanie’s inspiration for hair and fashion comes from beautiful things that she finds every day! She always finds good tips in salon magazines such as “Behind the chair”. When it comes to styling she inspires herself from red carpet styles. She constantly educates herself by studying trends and learning from educators in the industry prior to the trend coming out! She was learning about the Ombré five years ago and about pastel colors three years ago.
Melanie has also been part of RVA Fashion Week for five years. She started with styling hair, assisted the lead stylist, became the lead stylist, and now became a partner.
Her advice to everyone that has big dreams is to start somewhere and let passion lead you. It is important to remember to not let anyone bring you down.
Melanie has had a history with bullying. When she was in middle school she recalls going from a private Christian school to a public middle school. She promised herself that she was not going to let the bullies bring her down and she ended up making friends with the people that made fun of her.

I killed them with kindness. I used bullying as fuel and it made me become successful.

Fun Facts about Melanie:
Favorite places in the world: New York and Austria top of the mountains (Sound of the music style)
Favorite color: purple
Favorite food: 1)Spaghetti 2) vegetables
Favorite movie: P.S I love you
When it comes to taking care of your hair Melanie saying the most important thing is to wash it as little as possible.
I hope all of her tips will help and inspire you!
You can find Melanie at Salon Vivace or on Facebook www.facebook.com/melaniesarah and Twitter or Instagram @mellsterdee