Wellness
Blonde Bombshell
Noemi Kubiak might be a Beijing mom-on-the-go, but she can certainly claim she is a citizen of the world. While her roots are Swedish and Polish, she has been traveling around the world since the age of 16 from Sweden to Poland, France, the US, Guatemala and now China. A year ago, she moved to the capital with her husband, who works for a British television station, as well as their 2-year-old son Julius and 4-year-old daughter Saskia. Kubiak speaks five languages fluently and in the midst of closing her events business in London, she has joined SmarTots as the Vice President of Marketing. This busy working mom confessed that her last haircut was two years ago, so she was eager to give her hair a much-needed boost. After going to the same stylist in London for many years, she left her blonde locks in the very capable hands of the salon, Toni & Guy.
More Than Skin Deep
While the dry Beijing winter may be behind us, that doesn't mean looking after our skin takes the backseat until November. Springtime ushers in fresh new allergens and skin that has been covered up for months is now especially sensitive to the elements. So, what can be done to help our skin look and feel better? Beijing United Family Hospital dermatologists Dr. Na Ren Hua and Dr. Yuan Shan, BJU pediatrician Dr. Melissa Varma, and the team at the World Health Store offered their tips for keeping your skin silky, smooth, and most importantly, healthy.
Home Safe Home: Five Gadgets to Keep You Healthy
Our homes are our sanctuaries, but in this city, a truly healthy home requires a bit more than just walls and a roof: We need something to keep our air clean and water pure. Fortunately, that doesn't mean we have to completely redesign our lives. With the right tools, a healthy home requires a minimal investment of time and energy. Here are some of the best gadgets for maintaining a healthy environment at home.
Blushing Pink
Michelle Hrabar hails from Memphis in the US, but this globe-trotting mom has seen her fair share of the world, with extended stays in Bruni and Perth, Australia - her husband's hometown. Michelle has four children, two adult sons in the US and Australia, respectively, and two daughters (ages 8 and 3) here in Beijing. Though she calls herself a stay-at-home mom, Michelle spends most of her time volunteering at the charity Roundabout,organizing clothing drives through her church, and working as the treasurer for the Beijing branch of Girl Scouts. It was time for this bubbly, outgoing mom to put up her feet and enjoyed an afternoon of relaxation and pampering. Hair stylist Larry and make-up artist Rabbit from Toni and Guy in the Sanlitun Village were just the people to make that happen.
Russian Doll
Russian Yuliya Mavletbaeva has a lot on her plate. Mom to 16-month-old Alessandra, she also runs her own kindermusik and baby massage classes. Dividing her time between traveling the world to obtain her teaching qualifications and caring for a newborn, Yuliya arrived at TATA salon truly exhausted. In addition to juggling motherhood and her new business, Yuliya has spent the past year working hard to get rid of her pregnancy weight and is only two kilos away from her goal. "I've been feeling much better this past year and I'm ready for a new look," she exclaims. Martin Harper, longtime Hong Kong resident, moved to Beijing over four years ago and has since taken the reins as technical director of TATA salon. His major concern was Yuliya's dry and damaged hair - the result of years of home coloring and chemical treatments. It was time for Martin and his team to give Youliya a fresh, fun look starting from the roots.
Perfectly Professional
Beijing-born Nancy Ding divides herself between two very important roles: a business manager at Microsoft and a mother to her son Andy (3). A self-professed "workaholic," Nancy admits she finds juggling the two to be rather difficult. "It's very challenging - I don't have a work/life balance," she confesses. When Nancy's not taking 1am conference calls, she's devoting her time and energy to her son who attends Ivy International Kindergarten. It's high time this mom took a break from her hectic schedule to relax and unwind. Thankfully, London-trained stylist Tom from The Cut Culture was on-hand to pamper Nancy and force her to put her feet up for a whole afternoon.
Brazilian Beauty
After leaving her demanding position as an insurance actuary, Marina Sieh Ho is now a stay-at-home mom. Her two daughters, Sophia (6) and Allegra (3), keep her so busy that she barely has time to dry her hair in the morning, let alone apply any makeup. Brazilian-born Marina, who had never dyed her hair before, was convinced that adding a touch of color was a bad idea - until she met colorist to the stars, Cat from Salon Vajra. After a lengthy consultation she decided to give it a shot with amazing results. To cap off the day, Dragonfly Therapeutic Retreat generously supplied Marina with a 90-minute massage voucher.
Simply Beautiful
Savvy Him, marketing solutions manager at Microsoft, manages to fit 6am conference calls and 10pm workouts around her little girl, Reina (3) and her school schedule. Savvy has an amazing life story. Adopted in her native Cambodia, Savvy and her family then moved to Portland in the US, which she now calls home. A passion for different cultures led her to live in France, Japan and Israel. Savvy speaks five languages, including Cambodian, and has plans to add Spanish to her ever-growing list. Juggling full-time work with full-time motherhood, this mom is used to pulling all-nighters. "I normally get five hours sleep," she says. Gavin Style Hair Salon in the Nalio Patio was there to make sure this super mom got the perfect makeover, and Taidian Massage Salon capped off the day of pampering with a blissful Japanese massage.
Pretty in Punk
Helen Stromme has lived in Beijing for over four years and doesn't have much time for herself. A Norwegian native, her children Kim (18) and Miriam (3) keep her busy when she isn't counseling patients at her psychotherapy practice, 2baware. "I spend 15 minutes getting ready in the morning. That includes a shower," says Helen. Despite her busy schedule, this mom has recently taken on pro bono work at the Phoenix Cancer Centre outside of Beijing. There, she helps six Norwegian families deal with the emotional stress of cancer treatment. "One patient is a little girl just 5 years old. It's so sad." Helen's idea of relaxing is having a good gym workout. "That's my nice thing for me," she says. beijingkids thought it was time for Helen to take an afternoon off with a pampering session at Toni&Guy, Hilton. In the capable hands of bubbly UK hairstylist Scarlet and resident makeup artist Simon, Helen was treated to a splash of color and fun.
Paint it Red
Laura Roark, from the Mississippi Delta in the US, has lived in China for over nine years. A full-time Montessori teacher at the Family Learning House and a single mom to Maia (7 months old), Laura rarely has time to dry her hair in the morning, let alone book an hour at the hairdresser. Laura's lusciously thick hair gave the Toni&Guy salon director a lot to work with, and she was happy to experiment with a new image. "I'm not afraid of color," Laura exclaimed. Because of her limited prep time in the mornings, Laura wanted to keep a style that could easily convert into an up-do or be pulled back into a bun. With this in mind, color was added to the under-sections of her hair to create a "wow" factor when it was pulled up. "The last time I did something nice was eight months ago when I got a gift voucher for a spa," says Laura. In addition to her new look, this busy mom recently had her braces taken off. She couldn't wait to flash her pearly whites for the first time in months.
