Hairstylist Eva Scrivo's Best Tips From Her New Book

By Heather Muir, Allure magazine

Hairstylist Eva Scrivo owns a luxe salon on Bond Street in New York City, but her life wasn't always so glamorous. "I started doing hair 20 years ago in my fourth floor walk-up apartment in the East Village," she laughs. After working with both celebrities (Martha Stewart's a client!) and real women every day for the last two decades, Scrivo has a lot to say about hair. So she bottled up her greatest tricks of the trade (or "craft," as she calls it) and wrote a book, out this week, called Eva Scrivo On Beauty: The Tools, Techniques, And Insider Knowledge Every Woman Needs To Be Her Most Beautiful, Confident Self (Atria Books).

And while the book is chock-full of hair secrets, like how to give yourself the perfect blowout and finding the most flattering hair color, Scrivo also offers up advice on skin-care, makeup, fashion, and wellness. "I chose to pull together the whole picture," explains Scrivo, who's hosted a weekly radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio for the past six years. "The radio show is ongoing market research, learning what women want and their top beauty concerns." Some of Scrivo's best tips from the book:

Grill your hairstylist.
"When you choose a hairstylist, base it on a recommendation, not an online review. You never know who writes those. Find someone with a cut or color that you love, whom you identify with, and who has a similar texture. Then call and schedule a consultation. Treat it like an interview, because you're ultimately hiring this person. You want a stylist who listens and whom you have chemistry with."

Learn the lingo.
"Educate yourself on correct hair terms. Just because you ask for layers doesn't mean you'll be happy with them. Show your stylist photos or illustrations, so they have a clear idea of what you want before they even start cutting."

Get a dry-hair check.
"After your stylist cuts your hair wet, make sure they blow it dry straight so that they can check the lines. Even if you want to walk out with waves, have them do it straight first to be sure the cut is right."

Switch hands.
When doing a home blowout, most women hold the dryer in their dominant hand and the brush in their weaker one. But Scrivo says that "you need the dexterity and coordination" of the stronger hand to best control the brush.

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Photo Credit: Courtesy of Eva Scrivo