An evening with beverly c at the goldwell academy

As a two time winner of British Hairdresser of the Year, former President of the Fellowship for British Hairdressing and MBE holder for services to hairdressing, Beverly C knows a thing or two when it comes to succeeding in the hair industry.

'An Evening with Beverly C' at the Goldwell Academy in central London was a chance for the audience to learn tips, tricks and trends from one of the leading ladies in British hairdressing, as well as anecdotes from her lengthy career (including a story about a model slapping a stylist live on stage after he tried to cut off her waist-length hair). 

Beverly demonstrated five different looks during the evening, starting with commercial styles and moving to more editorial creations later on.

Key advice when it came to short hair was to create a look that can be worn beautifully both flat and textured. To demonstrate this, Beverly dried each of her bold, androgynous cuts flat and sleek, before adding product and drying them again with a more textured feel (she advised product before heat for a more pliable finish).  She was also keen to stress that you should always be aware of colour when you cut  - "To me, colour without cut is like a black and white photograph," she explained. 

Beverly advised that texture this season should not be overly-polished. "It's nice to get an undone feeling - the style shouldn't look finished to perfection but almost like the wind's got it," said Beverly. "It can look a bit dated if you make things too neat and tidy."  

On another model with a sleek, graduated bob, Beverly revealed that she had removed a v-shaped section above the ears to decrease bulk. How, she was asked, would you persuade a client to go ahead with such a dramatic move? "It's never good to shock people," said Beverly. "With clients it's important to show them in the mirror the effect you're aiming for, then they're more willing to go ahead with any changes."

When it came to more avant garde looks, Beverly revealed her passion for homemade hair pieces. "I sit in the kitchen most weekends trying to work things out," said Beverly, saying she had spent up to two and a half months on a hairpiece before. One example she demonstrated to the audience was how to make lace hair pieces, which she then twisted and clipped into place on her final model. "There is no right or wrong way to arrange hair pieces, just whatever you think works with the model and the shape you're trying to create," explained Beverly.