Hair, Beauty and Barbering students benefited from the expertise and knowledge of industry professionals who visited Strode College for its 'Industry Day.' A broad and diverse range of workshops and demonstrations were held at Strode's specialist salons and students had the opportunity to see different techniques and ask the industry experts questions. Many of the professionals originally trained at Strode College and are now successful in their careers.

This year's hair and barbering line-up included former students Kieran Holdsworth and Ben Hewlett Barbers from Hewlett's & Holdsworth in Wells who presented a 'Burst Fade and Beard Shape.' Karen McWilliams independent hair consultant for event & wedding hair demonstrated 'Face Framing with Colour' and Erica Czerny from The Crossways, North Wootton showed a 'Hair-up Mermaid Braid' to be worn for special events.

A Barber & Co Barbershop in Yeovil, represented by Sam Williams and Paul Brooks, brought their own models, and presented a 'Mid Fade Crop' cut finished with a 'Fresh Heads Urban Mist Hair Tonic'. In a nutshell, the mid fade is defined by hair gradually tapering on the sides and back of the head. The hairstyle was sealed with the tonic to invigorate the hair and scalp, leaving the head and senses feeling revitalised and alive.

Special guest was L'Oréal representative Emily David who demonstrated a 'Balayage' hair colour technique in the college salon. She also demonstrated - how to use L'Oréal Professionel Tecni.ART Collection products creatively- in particular how 'Morning After Dust Invisible Dry Shampoo' is applied for best results to uplift hair, making it look clean and dry.

Emily also gave a few tricks on applying 'Art Liss Control Gel-Cream' which has muscle memory to control unruly and frizzy hair, returning curls to their original shape.

The beauty section included Wendy Winsor, based at Storm Hair & Beauty in Street, who demonstrated Dermaplane Facial. Becky Stokes-Stephens gave other beauty demos from Becky Beauty in Shepton Mallet; who covered brow lamination and chemical peel, Microblading, tattooing, and lip blush from Henna Brows. Students practiced on a balloon and learned to use stencils to get the correct angle on the eyebrow.

Becky Stokes-Stephens from Becky Beauty commented: "Education is a passion of mine. Every day is a learning day! It was a pleasure to demonstrate and talk about permanent makeup and Microblading at Strode College's Industry Day. I was happy to chat with students about how to retrain or upskill."

Aqua Sana - Center Parcs at Longleat representatives carried out three demo sessions. The first one was careers talk and a facial, the second was a no-hands massage (practiced with forearms) and the third was an Elmis superfood mini facial.

advertisement

Many of the speakers are former students, and seeing them return as professionals gives the college such pleasure. Speakers volunteer valuable time for their students by bringing the latest trending techniques, products, and equipment. Sandra Low, Course Manager-Barbering at Strode College said: "Industry day was a huge success! It was an opportunity to network and discuss careers in diverse industries with our guests. Is an inspiring day to gain new skills and knowledge providing further education and motivation for our students."