http://www.minnesotamonthly.com/media/Blogs/Twin-Cities-Style/May-2012/Man-Makeover-First-Edition/ for my entire Man-Makeover article for this week’s Minnesota Monthly TCStyle Blog!

Man Makeover- First Edition

Subject: William Dohman—style geek, woodworker, dog-dad

Challenge: He’s overgrown and uninspired

Stipulations: needs low maintenance ‘do, but with some cool factor

Recently, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the handsome other half to MNMO’s own Katie Dohman! William is an ultra-cool crafty guy who left the architectural world to pursue his love of woodworking and acrylic art through Oh Dier, his St. Paul–based company.

William, like many men, decided that it was time to leave the “once a month” haircut regimen behind and let it all grow wild! After growing for many months without much cleanup other than his own bathroom clipper, he found himself near mullet status, in my chair at Root Salon.

I sat down and had a lengthy consultation with William. I think he was surprised to hear all of the factors that are taken into consideration when composing what I like to call the “blueprint for your haircut.” First I really listened to what William had to say both through word and body language. Most men will instantly grab the physical chunk of hair that is making their life painful. See, men are practical in the sense that it doesn’t necessarily have to look perfect. It is more about what is quick, comfortable, and achievable without a mirror. 

I wanted to hear how often he washed his hair, if he used product, dons headwear, as well as how summer heat affects his head, if his hair was a working hazard, and of course what he has loved/hated in the past.

I took a mental synopsis while listening to all of his answers. I weeded out certain shapes and haircuts from my imaginary library as he elaborated. We talked about his face shape, bone structure, and key facial features. William has a rounded-oval face shape, with great eyes and brows. I informed him that in order to accentuate the oval features we would create an elongated rectangular shape with his hair. This would in turn lift his eyes and appear to tighten the skin in the cheeks. Voila! It shaves a few pounds off the face in turn. 

Last, but definitely not least we talked about trends and suitability. He was willing to try something new and hip so we browsed for a few photos of what looks would work with his hair type; fine hair with medium density. The modern “Quiff” is all the rage right now, and he had just the right amount of hair for the style! (Guys who are too thick will have a problem keeping the hair out of their face.) We were inspired by The Great Gatsby, Boardwalk Empire, James Dean, and ‘90’s grunge. William’s hair is fairly straight with a little bend to it—just enough to mold into rockabilly-meets-Don Draper.

So we did just that. I used a scissor to cut the sides short and tapered for a nice clean hairline look. I left the top long and full, it is disconnected from the sides so that he can slick it back or wear it as 2nd day hair with more volume.

William and I talked pomades, gels, creams, and oh yes—hairspray. Basically, more is better. Clean hair does not demand shape. Usually the dirtier the better, as long as you’re working with a matte-finish product. William is using Shu Uemura’s Kengo Feather. It is a versatile cream that can be applied to the hair damp and dry for a perfectly coiffed shape. Finally, the secret ticket I revealed was hairspray! Yes, you guys can use it too. I recommended Nioxin’s Volumizing Reflectives Niospray to keep everything in place.

As if William wasn’t getting full service already, I sent him up to see the facial-hair queen, Rebecca, the esthetician at Root. Rebecca chatted with William about losing the “not-quite-a-goatee” look—due to working in a woodshop and not in an office—shaping his eyebrows and waxing the stray hairs on the upper brow bone and between the eyebrows. The result was more awake and younger looking skin!

William was in and out of the salon with a custom tailored haircut, relaxing head massage, facial hair review, and a take-home regime in a little more than an hour—pretty low-maintenance, if you ask me! He even booked his next appointment moments before walking out the door. Man Makeover conquered! Until next time guys…