| Ken Paves: The Man Behind The Celebrity Hairdresser's Chair |
| Karen Marie Shelton |
| Date: 11/17/06 |
Introduction
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Ken Paves
2006 |
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Courtesy
Ken Paves
All Rights Reserved |
I have been fortunate
to be given the opportunity to closely study Ken Paves
(virtually non-stop) for the past 4 1/2 years and have
exchanged many communications
with this brilliantly talented hairdresser during that
time.
I have watched him
create every imaginable hairstyle on a list of
celebrities that would make any human totally dizzy with
disbelief.
Although Ken is known
by the masses for his celebrated work with Jessica
Simpson, the reality of the situation is that Ken was
working with superstars like Jennifer Lopez and Heather
Locklear before he crossed karmic paths with the
beautiful blonde songbird.
In fact, at one point
I was surprised to read that one of Ken's very first
celebrity clients was super model Nikki Taylor.
Yes, he confirmed that he had in fact worked with the
gorgeous model and enjoyed the experience.
Many people may not
be aware of Ken's never ending list of celebrities that
he worked with before he met his most famous client -
Jessica Simpson.
Ken is very careful
not to publicize some of the celebrity names that he has
worked with unless they are comfortable with him talking
about their tresses to the media. He is also leery
of referencing his work with a celebrity if it is
limited to just a cover shot for a fashion magazine or a
limited run of hair style work.
Ken is very modest
and always more concerned about the welfare of his
clients than promoted himself. In fact, he is
often reticent to promote his great hair successes to
the media due to his never ending respect for his very
famous clients.
Always Giving 1000%
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Ken Paves
2006 |
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Courtesy
Ken Paves
All Rights Reserved |
Not only is Kenney
(as his close friends call him) one of the hardest
working people on this planet, he is probably the
absolute best hairdresser I have ever had the extreme
privilege to watch transform hair from average to
spectacular in record time.
Besides always giving
1000% to every client, he gives of himself every minute
of the day.
In April of 2006 Ken
invited me to visit him "behind the scenes" of the
HairUWear photo
shoot for the new Ken Paves'
HairDo
line which Ken and Jessica developed.
No other media was
allowed at the event which extended for two full days
and long grueling days of never ending camera shots.
I was stunned Ken had
arranged for me to be there "as his special invitation"
as a gift to me.
As usual Ken worked
non-stop for the entire shot creating lots of little Ken
Paves miracles along the way.
A Ken Paves Hair Miracle
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Ken Paves
2005 |
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Courtesy
Ken Paves
All Rights Reserved |
The first day of the
shoot was a typical hurry-up-and-wait grueling day and
lasted until the very late hours of the evening.
During the course of
the day Ken learned about one of the crew members whose
life had just hit several rough spots including the loss
of her beloved pet.
Even though it was
approaching midnight at the end of the first day, Ken
insisted the woman sit down in his chair for an instant
makeover.
Never mind that Ken
had been working nonstop since literally daybreak and
looked completely exhausted.
He picked up his
magical scissors and lovingly finger combed her strands
soothingly promising a fabulous new hair cut and style.
Channeling the
Energizer Bunny this amazing man instantly got another
wind - from where I will never know - and set to the
task of making this woman feel better. Indeed, I
was watching a Ken Paves miracle in action.
The woman visibly
relaxed into the chair. Ken turned up his normal
compassion setting to the top of the range and gently
yet expertly started carving perfect new layers into
this lucky lady's overgrown shag.
He talked to her
softly and then cracked a few jokes which turned the
lights back on in her eyes. It was almost surreal
watching this spontaneous hair event except for the fact
that the entire room was brimming with models, makeup
artists and other people packing up for the night.
Ken and his hair
client were lost in their own private bubble while he
lovingly, and on the fly, designed an eye popping new hairstyle just for
her.
As he explained to me
the very first day I met him "whoever he is working
with, whether a superstar or not, they get his undivided
attention".
Indeed, when Ken is
working on a client he turns off cell and is virtually
out of every communication loop. Over the
years I have never known Ken to break his Golden Rule of
giving his clients his absolute undivided attention.
A Ken Paves Hair Miracle
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Ken Paves
Operation Smile Gala
2006 |
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Courtesy
Ken Paves
All Rights Reserved |
He precisely snipped,
clipped and combed evoking memories of Edward
Scissorhands. Yet his client exhibited absolute
and total trust.
Less than 30 minutes
later this sad woman was completely transformed into a
smiling, laughing person with a brilliant new hairstyle.
Her custom designed
Ken Paves style was stunning and keyed perfectly to her
face shape.
She offered to pay
him for his work and this man who charges many hundreds
of dollars for his work waved her away explaining that
"it was his gift to her" because she was going through a
bad time in her life.
The next day the
female crew member arrived on set with her new shag and
it was hard to believe she was the same person from the
day before. She walked with a new spring in her
step and was laughing and smiling unlike the day before
Ken worked his hair miracle on her.
If this sounds
unbelievable, it is. Except for the fact that I
have watched it happen over and over again. Ken is
overflowing with love and compassion and is always
looking for a way to share his good fortune with others.
You might think this
would the exception to the rule. Not so. I
have witnessed this type of Ken Paves miracle hair
transformations repeatedly over the 4 1/2 years I have
been observing his handiwork.
What You See Is What You Get
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Ken Paves
& Jessica Simpson
2006 |
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Courtesy
Ken Paves
All Rights Reserved |
Over the past 4 1/2
years I have written many articles highlighting Ken's
work with his many "girls" including Jennifer
Lopez, Carmen Electra, Jessica and Ashlee.
What I have learned
about Ken is that while he expects me to provide the
most precise details about the styling aspects of his
work, he also wishes that I never include anything that
might make anyone feel bad.
A good example is the
time that Ken and Jessica were in the media during the
filming of Employee Of The Month. The producers
had decided to have Jessica grow out her darker roots
for the role.
When I initially
described Jessica's character I referred to her dark
roots and blonde hair in a way that might be less than
flattering to some people. Ken asked me to change any reference
that might be demeaning to anyone.
I was impressed he
had considered how everyone might react to the topic of
blonde hair with darker roots. It was a very small
detail but again it showcased his natural compassion for
people. This man has a heart that is as big as Texas.
Why Ken Paves Is Such A Smash Hit
When Ken was doing Carmen Electra's hair for her
nuptials he took me along via his cell phone. I
heard Carmen in the background say "she was not one bit
nervous about her wedding because her best friend - Ken
was there and he was taking care of everything for her".
Indeed, Ken devoted himself completely to Carmen on his
big day.
Ken will do the same for any bride, famous or not,
whose hair he coiffs. He will give any bride in
his chair
his undivided attention, which every bride deserves.
I know without a doubt that Ken will also not rest until
his charge is absolutely thrilled with her bridal hairstyle.
Ken hovered over Carmen until the absolute last minute
before she walked down the aisle and he will be right by
any bride's side smoothing loose tendrils until the very
last second.
In his own right, Ken Paves is a superstar. The
papparrizi follow Ken often ignoring lesser celebrities
in his immediate presence. Yet Ken is still
the hard working Ken Paves who struggled, starved and
paid his dues to ascend up the later of celebrity
hairdresser success. In the early years he worked
nights in clubs doing hair to make enough money to buy
food and pay his rent.
He completely understands where his celebrity clients
come from and what they have had to do to achieve
success. That's because he's been through the same
struggles himself for many years. That common
experience level that he shares with his celebrity
clients builds instant trust.
As he told me once he's "grown up with many of his long
time clients" like Jennifer Lopez, Carmen and Jessica.
Indeed he has and Ken is not only their celebrity
hairdresser making them look gorgeous 24/7, he is their
trusted best friend whose is there for them whenever
they need him to be.
Summary
Ken Paves is a very gifted hairdresser who has honed his
hairstyling skills to absolute world class perfection
due to many years of non-stop work with hair. He
has been making celebrities gorgeous for many years and
will continue to be the go-to guy for both celebrities
and non-celebrities that want the very best that the
hairdressing world can offer. |