Melbourne is a city that never sleeps and where cultures and creative’s collide. Whether it’s food, fashion, exhibitions or events, despite the various suburbs there’s a distinct ‘artsy’ vibe that infiltrates every street. It also means there’s a wealth of cool hair salons in Melbourne to choose from.
 
In fact it was the parallels with London living that drew stylist Simon Farrelly back to his hometown, in particular the Melbourne salon, Shibui (http://www.shibui.com.au) located in the eclectic southern suburbs. Taking more of a bespoke approach to cutting and styling hair, for him hair texture comes before trends, which is exactly the same ethos at Shibui.
 
“My approach is to try and always be as honest as I can and treat the hair with integrity by enhancing the natural texture so it still feels contemporary,” Simon Farrelly.

Turning the traditional hair cutting experience on its head, rather than sending clients straight to the backwash they’re encouraged to wash their hair the night before their appointment.
This means that when they arrive stylists can see how they wear and style their hair every day. It gives stylists the freedom to play and work with the hair in its natural state and decide which products they’ll use to help create and maintain their finished hairstyle. Some of Simon’s favorite KMS products are Sea Salt Spray that he dries in so hair looks natural rather than slept in and Molding Paste as a last step to give definition and separation. Watch the video to see how Simon uses the products in action.

Another thing that attracted Simon to Shibui was that it’s an eco-friendly hair salon. Shibui in Japanese relates to simple beauty and craftsmanship and as well as keeping this at the heart of hair cuts and hair color, it has been extended throughout the salon.
Part of the Sustainable Salons Australia program, Shibui is dedicated to reducing it’s carbon footprint, achieving zero waste and promoting sustainable work practices that boost the local community. This means everything from left over hair color is recycled into new liquids, cut off hair gets sent to wig making charities and any profits they make from recycling are plunged straight back into not-for-profit organizations. With green beauty and eco-friendly salons the subject on everyone’s lips, the Melbourne salon is the perfect prototype for others aiming to do the same.