CLIP ART - Editorial stylist Nicolas Jurnjack fulfills his long-standing dream of turning hair clippings from the salon floor into art with the looks on these pages.

While on a trip to Los Angeles 6 months ago, Nicolas Jurnjack found himself sitting in a mall watching the windows of a salon. What he saw was a stylist frenetically cutting a female client’s long hair. The hair was flying! It reminded me of when I was an assistant in a hair shop, I was always looking at all that hair falling on the floor and thinking one day I should do something with that. I would put my hands inside and feel it – it’s very soft, like angel hair, he says. For larger constructions, Jurnjack suggests using something like polystyrene for support – he shaped the forms here with acrylic pillow stuffing-and advises that gels and firm holding spray are the best for creating the finer details. Working with the shorter pieces of hair can be challenging, Jurnjack continues. Being patient and going slowly is most important, it’s very delicate work; you have to spray many times, wait while it dries and spray again. If you go in there with huge fingers, it’s impossible to work.

I tried to make the texture very light, very soft to give it soul, to give it spirit, says Jurnjack. I like the idea of mixing some bright colors like pink, red, blue and orange along with human hair color. The colors give it life, because if you only work with the hair on the floor, it quickly looks like dead fur! Jurnjack used nylon and acrylic pieces for cutting up, spending as little as $5 per piece. They are light, easy to separate and have certain stiffness, which is easier t work with.

Jurnjack is adamant that clients are looking to stylist for new ideas, leaving room for looks seen here to be interpreted by the mainstream salons. In this story, I was extreme, but we can recommend a very couture-like chignon, very classic, but not sleek. A chignon done in this fashion would be like a little pom-pom, cuter and more sexy. This texture is not only for something extreme.

Models: Glenna, Brigitta, Ray /NEXT
Photography: Didier Malige
Stylist: Jacqueline Berthelot
Hair: Nicolas Jurnjack
Makeup: Gina Crozier