Isaac Davidson: Take A Trip To The Totally Cool CyberParlor

Introduction

If there was a Twelve Step program for people who promise to do too many interviews, I would be the first in line to attend a meeting. When it comes to turning down the opportunity to chat with a hot talent in the hair or beauty industry, I just can't say no.

The results of my Interview Mania are not pretty. I constantly schlep around large white paper boxes that are overflowing with yellow tablets.

Each page on the pads are filled with all sorts of bizarre shorthand scribbled in a totally random fashion around the edges. If I ever manage to find a few moments of peace I can usually manage to reconstruct my eclectic scribbling, turning it into a reasonably cohesive article. That is, if I find my notes once I become distracted by the "next big interview gig".

(Photo above from Isaac Davidson's collection - all rights reserved).

Believe it or not, I often lay in bed at night hearing a jumbled mixture of different voices from a mishmash of past unpublished interviews. I don't see ghosts, I hear them, in my head. Sometimes the clatter drives me to undertake a mad search for my aging notes so I can finish my piece and get a few moments of relief.

Then it starts all over again as I start worrying about the next interview I haven't finished. Meanwhile I am merrily agreeing to do yet another ten interviews, whip out a few hair care columns with an article or two thrown in for good measure.

Meet Isaac Davidson

One of the recent unwitting participants in my Interview Disorder is the very patient Isaac Davidson from Cyberparlor in New York City.

I first heard of Isaac several years ago when I was writing about hair extensions. A mention in a New York magazine lauded the spectacular & much sought after work of Isaac, then working out of New York's Enve Salon in SoHo.

Even though I was unable to personally find Isaac at the time of my original article, I posted his name in a now defunct hair extensions page on HairBoutique.com.

(Photo from Isaac Davidson's collection - all rights reserved).

Out of the clear blue sky I received an email from Isaac in the Fall of 2002. He was writing to introduce himself and to let me know that he was no longer at Enve in New York. After exchanging a few emails we agreed to chat on the phone about what Isaac had been up to lately.

Talking to Isaac was a lot like talking to an old friend. At least it felt that way. Maybe because I had been aware of his work for some time. Or maybe because Isaac is good at making his many hair clients feel comfortable.

(Photo to the side from Isaac Davidson's collection - all rights reserved).

What I discovered was that Isaac had been up to a lot of things since my first mention of him on HairBoutique.com a few years ago.

In February of 2002 Isaac decided to spread his creative wings and open his own New York salon, known as Cyperparlor. He is "absolutely thrilled" to have his own studio which has been going strong every since he opened. Even better, his business is growing by leaps and bounds.

Isaac is sizzling hot because of his incredible talent for creating spectacular results with hair extensions, wigs and hairpieces. Receiving a lot of word-of-mouth referrals from new and past clients, Isaac also launched his Cyperparlor web site to showcase his various types of work.

Theatrical & Music Video Designs

Although Isaac still works closely with private clients at his salon, he has become very popular with the New York theatre and music video crowds.

Isaac's book of work includes his fabulous "wig designs for the Off Broadway production of the Rocky Horror Show".

(Image to side from Rocky Horror - courtesy Isaac Jacobson - all rights reserved).

He has also worked extensively on Broadway and spent time "creating hair looks with staged musicals as well as with a number of music videos".

Recently he has started to expand deeper into film and television work, which he loves. You might also spot Isaac's work in the fashion industry where he loves to create looks for the shows and print.

When Isaac is not busy designing theatrical or celebrity wigs, hairpieces or extensions, he can be found at home in his New York studio or traveling around the globe to work with his growing list of clients.

Isaac regularly "jets to London to work through various affiliates in Europe". He is constantly forming partnerships and affiliations that allow him to work on a variety of new heads. A good example of Isaac's partnerships is his close work with "Sonia and the renowned Hair Police extension experts."

Isaac explained that it is relatively easy to jet around and work with International clients because all that is required to take is his bags of hair and his extension toolkits. He can set up just about anywhere and go to work weaving his magical extensions and wigs.

Balance is important to Isaac and he finds that traveling to new places to see clients allows him to constantly improve his techniques and grow his craft. Moving around is not new to Isaac. Although he is currently based in New York, he has moved around a lot, studying and working in Miami and various other locations.

European Hair

Although Isaac has spent the last 10 years working with all sorts of both human and synthetic hair, he actually prefers to work with real human "European" type hair.

Why? Because according to Isaac the synthetic "might work okay for some extension pieces but overall it just doesn't look as good as real human hair".

Yes, the majority of today's mass produced wigs are made with synthetic hair and look very real. Definitely a major improvement over the wigs of the 60s that looked very fake. However, synthetic hair wigs and extensions "tend to be too shiny and not as natural looking as those made with real human hair".

Although it may not be obvious to most people, Isaac can spot fake hair "a mile away".

(Photo above from Isaac Davidson's collection - all rights reserved).

Isaac pointed out that for some people their budgets require them to select synthetic hair extensions which Isaac understands. However, if someone can afford real human hair extensions or wigs he highly recommends it.

So what exactly is European hair? According to Isaac, "European hair translates to human hair that is baby fine, regardless of where it originated from". When he is creating his wigs or hair pieces Isaac often mixes a rainbow of colors and matching them with a variety of textures to create a unique custom look for his customers and celebrity clientele.

Hand Tied Wigs

Even more interesting is the fact that Isaac crafts spectacular hand-tied wigs which make them more realistic looking. The bad news is that a manually knotted wig can contain 150,000 or more individual strands and can cost in the neighborhood of $5,000 when the highest quality of human hair is utilized. Not only are you paying for the very best human hair available, you are paying for the time consuming workmanship that goes into creating a one-of-kind wig.

Isaac explained that many of his clients recognize the difference that a real human hair wig can make and are willing to invest in the best quality available.

Other Talents

Although Isaac is famous for his work designing and creating human hair wigs, extensions and pieces, he is also very talented working with dreadlocks, Japanese perms or hair straightening and working with other hair techniques.

Isaac is very cool, very artistic and motivated to try new things that avert potential periods of boredom. He likes to experiment and work with new techniques.

(Photo above from Isaac Davidson's collection - all rights reserved).

One thing is for sure, if you desire the best hair extensions, pieces or wigs than Isaac Davidson is your guy.

Summary

For more information on Cyberparlor you can email Isaac at [email protected] or call him at 212-233-0908. The Cyberparlor is located at 11 Maiden Lane, NYC 10038.

Social Media Network Information

Please follow me on Twitter at: http://Twitter.com/HairBoutique. I look forward to meeting new people from all walks of Twitter and learning from their Tweets. Visit us at Hairboutique.com located at: http://www.HairBoutique.com, on Facebook, MySpace and YouTube.

Thank you for visiting us at The HairBoutique Blog and for leaving your comments. They are very much appreciated. We apologize in advance but must remove any direct advertisements or solicitations.

- Revised Publication Date: 03/09/10

If you want to talk more about this or other hair care articles on HairBoutique.com or anywhere else, please post a message on HairBoutique.com's Hair Talk Forums.