For many people who had to spend fourteen days quarantined in a hotel room, a trip to the hairdresser becomes less of a ‘treat yourself pamper day’ and more like a necessity. All that time spent indoors without a window that cracks open, eating waimai, putting up with slow WiFi while the kids do e-learning and you try to stream a home workout video takes a major toll on a person, both mentally and physically.

Dymling’s fresh out of quarantine ‘before’ look

Beijing-based expat mom, Mimmie Dymling, visited Laurent Falcon after spending two full weeks in hotel quarantine with her kids. Although still beautiful, the mom of three from Sweden was definitely ready for a fresh cut to launch her into Beijing’s beautiful spring season.

Stylist Felix at work

Strolling into Laurent Falcon with a headband on, Dymling’s short pixie looked as if it indeed needed some love and tender care from a professional. Felix from Laurent Falcon is one of the stylists that expats in Beijing adore. His attention to detail and years of experience with different textures of hair has made him one of our favorites when it comes to a fabulous cut and color.

Following a trim to refresh Dymling’s pixie cut that perfectly frames her face, Felix adds a touch of that springtime vibe to her beautiful blonde locks with some highlights.

A few hours later, a day of self-pampering at Laurent Falcon has this Beijing mom looking like a rock star, ready to take on the world. Looking stunning with her new hair, Dymling shows off her new look at Taikoo Li. Finally out and free, Dymling is ready to take her family out and about and enjoy the most beautiful time in the city.

Freedom has never looked so cool

During this COVID-19 period, Laurent Falcon maintains a strict sanitation standard and each person entering the salon must have his or her temperature checked at the door. The salon’s staff wears masks at all times and it’s recommended that customers only remove masks during their haircut. Aside from the new sanitation restrictions in place, Laurent Falcon continues to be a place of pampering, serving up fresh coffee and cocktails as you relax and unwind.

KEEP READING:  When the Twins Are Away, Mama Will Play

Photos: Uni You

This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 May issue

We see mommy and me classes and events a lot, but what about daddy and me? Let’s not forget about the city’s cool dads!

For one Beijing dad, spending time with his son, Evan, is the best bro time anyone can ask for. Henry Timberlake is a food consultant and a regular on the food and beverage scene. He’s not only known for being a genuinely awesome and down-to-earth guy with a vast knowledge of everything food-related, but also for his signature mustache that he’s been sporting for years.

The father and son duo spent a fabulous morning together at the Laurent Falcon salon in Sanlitun, nibbling snacks while getting a fresh haircut to look sharp and spiffy.

It’s no secret that during the past two months Coronavirus has drastically impacted local businesses, but here, we’re Beijingers and we can adapt to any situation life throws our way. Businesses like Laurent Falcon follow a strict sanitation policy and health and safety regulations for their team. So, with the salon disinfected on a daily basis and the team covering up with masks, business goes on as normal as can be.

Stylists Felix and Max set off to give the Timberlake men a fresh new look. Dad got a color and trim with a clean, crisp razor line before getting some attention to his signature stache.

With little man Evan sitting right across, this salon session turns into a fun day of daddy and son bonding. With their bedhead in check, the Timberlake men change into stylish sweaters and matching shoes and funky socks before taking a stroll around Taikoo Li with more tasty treats in hand.

While hanging out with your friends is great, spending some quality bromance time with your little man is more precious than anything in the world.

This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 March – April issue

Some of you might have experienced having a haircut nightmare in Beijing already. Whether it’s the language barrier, miscommunication, or just hair preference, getting a haircut in a foreign country is no easy task. Getting a haircut for yourself is difficult enough, but cutting a kid’s hair can be doubly difficult. But don’t worry! We prepared a list of some of our favorite picks of the most kid-friendly hair salons in Beijing. While some of them do provide English service; others speak little to none, so it’s also a good idea to carry pictures of your desired hairstyle if you don’t speak Chinese.

Hair Salons with English Service

Laurent Falcon 巴黎劳伦发艺工作室

Founded in 2007 by Laurent Falcon, hairdresser and French artistic director, Laurent Falcon hair salon has had a successful following ever since. After working on plenty of celebrities’ hair and being involved in musicals, Falcon now collaborates with French cinema. They have 30 percent discount for kids. The prices range according to stylist from junior to master level. For cutting girls’ hair, it’s from RMB 126 to RMB 406; for boys, it’s from RMB 84 to RMB 266, and if you want a hair wash, it will be RMB 100.

Daily 10am – 8pm. Bldg 43, Tongli Building, Sanlitun, Chaoyang District 三里屯路同里大厦43号楼底商 （135 0137 2971）
Daily 10am – 9.30pm. B1,China World, 1 Jianguomen dajie, Chaoyang District 建国门外大街1号国贸商城中区B1 （131 4667 9913）

Bangs Hair Salon Bangs 日式发艺工作室

Located in Central Park Compound, Bangs Hair Salon is a minimalist salon. The clean white walls keep the focus on hair styling, staffed by Japanese stylists versed in the latest Tokyo trends. The price for a kid’s hair cut ranges from RMB 260 (Chinese stylist) to RMB 300 (Japanese stylist).

Tue-Sun 10am-9pm. Stall 101, Bldg 4, Central Park, 6 Chaoyangmenwai Dajie 朝阳门外大街6号新城国际4号楼101号 (6597 0579)

Toni & Guy 汤尼英盖

A world-renowned UK hair salon, Toni & Guy has four locations in Beijing: Sanlitun, Lido, Wangfujing, and CBD. If you want a haircut for your kid, there are several different prices to choose, from RMB 260 to RMB 1080. They offer 40 percent discount for kids, if you bring your kid’s student card, or tell them the school name and student number.

Daily 10am – 8pm. N2-38, 11 Taikuli North, Sanlitun (6416 7728)
Daily 10am – 9.30pm. B1, Indigo. 18 Jiuxianqiao (8426 0788)

Julie’s Salon 珠丽斯美发沙龙

Julie’s Salon caters to women, men, and children, and staff can speak both English and Chinese. Walk-ins and appointments both welcome. Juice, coffee or tea also available for purchase. The service and prices are unbeatable for foreign stylists in Beijing. A cut for boys is RMB90, for girls it’s RMB 100. Washing hair is from RMB 20 to RMB 50.

Mon 1-8pm, Tues-Sun 9.30-8pm. Worker’s Stadium (Gong Ti) East Gate, Between Doors 9 and 10 朝阳区工人体育场10号台下, 珠丽斯美发沙龙 (136 0137 1790) 

Kids’ Hair Salons

There are some kids’ hair salons here in Beijing, dedicated to providing children a joyful environment with cute facilities that includes kids’ barber chairs, Lego, and cartoon on TV.

Luobotou Kids’ Hair Salon 萝卜头儿童剪发

RMB138 above for a haircut (including a hair wash). Daily 9am-7pm. Stall 171, Bldg 1, North Tower of Shangdu SOHO, Jinghua Beijie. 景华北街尚都SOHOB1楼171室 （139 1169 1324, 151 1021 6659）

Guaiguai Rabbit Kids’ Hair Salon 乖乖兔儿童剪发

RMB128 above for a haircut (including a hair wash). Daily 10am-8pm. 41, Wangjing Xilu, Chaoyang District. 望京西路41号（136 2130 5773）

Little World Kids’ Hair Salon 小小世界儿童剪发

RMB184 above for a haircut (including a hair wash). Daily 10am-7pm. Shunyi District. Room 304, F3, Euro Plaza, 99 Yuxiang Road, Tianzhu Town, Shunyi District. 顺义区顺义天竺镇裕翔路99号欧陆广场3层304（8046 1603）

Photos: Courtesy of Laurent Falcon, pixabay.com, dianping.com

The end of the year is a gala season and Beijing has no shortage of fabulous black-tie charity events for you to choose from. This month for Indulge, I’m excited to feature my good friend, and mom to three handsome boys, Elisabeth Kang, who essentially attends every gala in the city.

Already a Laurent Falcon regular, Kang met the beijingkids team at Laurent Falcon in Sanlitun for a makeover that’s worthy of any red carpet.

One of the things we love about Laurent Falcon is that their stylists will never try to push any current trend on their guests. It’s just a fact that the same hairstyle isn’t going to work for every person, and having a hair dresser who doesn’t try to convince you to get the most recent hair trend saves you a lot of stress and frustration.

What Kang asked for was unconventional, but Laurent Falcon was able to deliver exactly what she pictured. She asked for a blonde balayage color fade with no additional treatment to her roots so that her natural grey hairs could still visibly grow out. Not every woman is trying to hide their age. Some wear their grey hairs proudly.

Spending the day at Laurent Falcon watching her get her hair done was surprisingly fun! The hair salon has a brand new cocktail menu with delicious options for their guests (and guests’ guests) to enjoy, they also added some of the best salon furniture, so it was very comfortable for me to wait. Which brings me back to charity galas. It’s always more fun to attend these events with your closest friends, and getting ready together is one of the best parts. With a salon that will make you over from head to toe all while providing you with endless cocktails, more of us should make pre-party group pampering a part of our holiday gala tradition.

Following hair and makeup at Laurent Falcon, Kang showed off one of her favorite formal wear looks – a custom-made embroidered skirt paired with a simple gold top and handmade fascinator to bring the whole look together. Looking like a golden trophy, this beautiful mom is ready for any party this city throws her way.

Hair: Laurent Falcon, French Style Salon F/2, Sanlitun North Street South www.laurent-falcon.com (6409 4243) Wardrobe: Hat by Elisabeth Koch Millinery Location: Hulu by TRB

This article appeared in the beijingkids December 2019 Giving Back issue

Every woman deserves to look and feel her best. We couldn’t think of any mom that’s more deserving of a day of pampering than Marcey Sparenberg. Our monthly Indulge section usually features a before and after transformation of one of Beijing’s hard working moms, but this month we went in a slightly different direction.

Sparenberg is a mom of two who recently moved to Beijing from Canada with her family. After arriving in Beijing she received news that she’s been diagnosed with cancer. With the love and support of her family by her side， Sparenberg made the decision to shave off all her hair before starting chemotherapy.

On a beautiful sunny Sunday in Beijing our team met the Sparenberg family at Tuanjiehu Park to shave off her beautiful blonde locks together as a family. We watched as her husband Bill, son Wim, and daughter Syril each took turns shaving off her long hair. At times there were glimmers of tears in her eyes, but Sparenberg stood strong and not a single drop of tear ever grazed her cheeks.

Following an emotional morning at the park we met Sparenberg at Laurent Falcon Studio in Sanlitun for a total transformational make-over. The French-inspired hair concept salon are experts when it comes to coloring and styling, but what we love the most is their dedication to their clients. We’ve worked with this salon over the years and they’ve always taken the time to create a style and fine-tune a color that fits your skin tone, style, and occupation. This time Laurent took to styling one of Sparenberg’s chic new wigs, sharing their tips and tricks for attaching a full wig without using wig clips.

Moving on to makeup. Sparenberg has perfect bone structure and is already so effort-lessly beautiful that all we wanted to do was to accent her natural beauty. We went with an autumn palette to add a subtle accent to her eyes, and brightened her look with a thin liquid eye liner lined again with black eye shadow to create a slightly smokey look. We finished off her makeup with a combination of various shades of pink lipstick for a vibrant, but not over the top, addition to her look.

With makeup done and ready, Falcon fitted Sparenberg’s newly styled wig firmly on her head. One of 2019’s top hair color trends is the “mushroom blonde”. The silvery blonde locks have been all the rage this year in the US, UK, and have even been seen on the heads of China’s fashionistas.

Dressed in a simple summer dress and fitted with her brand new mushroom blonde wig, Sparenberg looked stunning, and dare we say, Coachella-ready.

We’re honored that this Beijing supermom decided to share her story with us and we wish this her a speedy recovery!

This article appeared in the beijingkids October 2019 Best Friends Fur-ever issue