In time for Valentine’s Day, the college’s spa and boutique encouraged men to treat themselves to a day of pampering at a discounted rate while being a model for teaching purposes.
Algonquin hair styling and esthetician students spent Feb. 11 to Feb. 13 pampering men with a variety of spa services, all the while practicing their skills.
Among those men was Mathieu Bertrand.
“It was my first time coming to the AC Salon,” said Bertrand. “Sarah gave me one of the best haircuts I’ve ever had.”
Bertrand took part in Men’s Week at the hair salon and got his hair cut in anticipation for Valentine’s Day. He was there being a model for his friend, Sarah Lepage who is a first-year hair styling student.
Lepage prefers working with men’s hair because she says it’s easier to cut than women’s.
“I’ve been cutting my own hair short since I was 16 years old so I’d say I’m pretty used to it,” said Lepage.
But the hair salon was not the only place offering men’s services over the three-day period. The esthetician students were also participating in Men’s Week, offering manicure and pedicure treatment for men as well as facials.
“It’s definitely challenging to work with men’s beards while doing facials and stuff like that because you can’t use any type of product in the beard or else it will just get stuck,” said Fatima Chenier, an esthetician student.
Men getting spa treatments is often thought of as a taboo subject and Chenier says she can always tell when it’s a man’s first time at the spa.
“When men come in they’re often nervous and scared,” said Chenier. “We have to be more descriptive with what we are doing in our service because they want to know what’s being done to them; in a way it helps us too because it’s like we’re thinking out loud and we can learn the steps better that way.”
Both Chenier and Lepage enjoy what they do and they believe they are helping their clients.
“I feel good about treating men because often they don’t know how to properly take care of themselves hygienically so when I do a facial on a man it’s a step in the right direction for them to better care for themselves,” said Chenier.