Hello Lost Hairdressers, My name is Georgia Rew. I am not a hair fan, I am a fanatic, and I am very excited to bring you the Youth Cult series.
The Youth Cult series is about what influenced Editorial Hairdressers in their teens and her early twenties and what gave them the flare that makes them stand out in such a competitive industry.
For this segment I will be featuring Ramona Eschbach.
Ramona was born and raised in San Jose, California and moved to NYC in 1998, where she spent the next 10 years working and living.
She started out her training at Bumble and Bumble as a stylist and educator, then moved on to freelance hair styling assisting the incredible Eugene Soulieman in Europe and NY.
In 2008 she relocated to Paris and is basically a badass. She has a client list that, if it was my wardrobe, I’d be the best dressed woman in the world.
I asked Ramona a set of six questions and here they are.
Whether you are just starting out, or taking a walk down memory lane. I hope you get inspired.
What Youth Cult did you identify with the most in your early teens?
My first experience with style was as a tween at a preppy private school. I loved wearing Esprit and hanging out at the mall. When I was 16 I moved to Santa Barbara and started hanging out with the punks and the skaters and the goths. I didn’t identify with the beach bunny blondes and nor did I want to. My go to look was short hair baby tees and baggy old man pants!!
What Bands, Artists, Films or Writers most influenced you and why?
In my early teens I was a classic rock girl, I loved Bowie, The Beatles, and Queen. I have fond memories of going to the Santa Cruz beach boardwalk when I still lived in San Jose and watching cover bands.
When I moved to Santa Barbara it was in the height of the Alternative music scene. Liz Phair was my favorite, The Breeders, Elastica, The Pixies and Bjork were all on high rotation. The Film that stood out for me the most was Kid’s, the 1995 film directed by Larry Clark. It was the first film I had seen where people looked like her and where doing the same thing, It defined my generation. I felt like Chloe Sevigny and I were like twins. The series My So Called Life, was brimming with relatable teenage angst, may friends and I couldn’t wait to hang out on Thursday nights and catch up with all the characters.
Fashion magazines were my favorite thing to look at and Amber Valletta, Kate Moss, Kristen Mcmenemy, were my favorite models. The Vogue cover that most influenced my style and the style of many others was the Marc Jacobs cover with Kristen Mcmenemy and Naomi Campbell. This look really ushered in a huge change in fashion and made it okay not to be ultra glam. This was almost the permission I needed to just go for it and bring my take on beauty into the campaigns and editorials spreads you see in my work to this day.
Was there any article of clothing or accessory that once in your possession gave you the undeniable swagger. If so ,what was it and how did you acquire it?
My favorite article of clothing was this 60’s polyester Pucci style dress that I acquired at a store called Yellow Stone Vintage in Santa Barbara. I got my first pair of steel toed docs on Melrose, checkerboard pants and baby tees are still her go to. It was so hot walking around in those heavy boots.
Do you have any photos of you at this time in your life?
Do you bring elements of that scene or time with you into your creative work today and what did you leave behind?
At this point in my career I get hired because of the style I have developed over the past 20 years of hairdressing, so my personal style definitely influences my work.
Is there anything you’ve given up?
High heels! They are torture devices! I wore them to work everyday behind the chair in NY! It was that time! Ramona won’t part with them because she loves looking at them still,let’s face it heels are gorgeous.
How important is it to you to explore self expression through personal style as a creative?
It’s extremely important! We have all chosen this path of work, why not express yourself?! Getting dressed in the morning is part of the joy of waking up so why not put time and effort into it?! Why shouldn’t we express ourselves?!
Thank you Ramona!