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Rachael Barker

'Picasso,' says the lady sitting to my left, her head a cloud of cling film and cotton wool, as she nods at the woman standing behind me. 'Picasso,' agrees the young man on my right. They nod sagely to each other as I look at my unkempt locks, lying forlornly on the floor.
The object of such high praise is  Lorena Severi, and while Severi is neither Spanish nor surreal, she is an artist of exceptional talent.
With a resume brimming with names such as Catherine Zeta-Jones, Cate Blanchett, Penelope Cruz, Carla Bruni and Sophia Loren, the word 'hairdresser' doesn't quite cover what it is Severi, a former world champion of unisex hair design, does. The Italian has spent decades honing her skills and passing them on in the worldwide salons that bear her name. 
I have come to the Philip George in Central to discover what Severi and the  Balayage colouring technique are all about. 
Developed in the 1970s, Balayage is a low-maintenance highlighting technique that is applied freehand, so there's no need for foil or  painful surgical-looking head caps. The concept is to give hair depth  and dimension, with a natural,  sun-kissed look, but the broad colour range has won fans among the neo-punk crowd, too.
Suitable for all hair lengths, Balayage is now one of the most sought after highlighting treatments. And Severi is a master.
She is a calming presence for the hairdresser-phobe who gives her free rein. In the hour or so I spend with Severi, she has sat me down, entered a brief trance while mapping the contours of my head (still hidden within the aforementioned mop) lightly with her fingertips, gone into a blur of scissors and combs, and transformed me. 
Gone are the lank frizzy locks and in their place a shining buoyant bob, which I am told will hold its volume as it has been cut to accommodate the shape of my head and the hair's natural curl, with subtle barley-coloured highlights that gently wave backwards. Through newly sun-kissed fronds, I see a face I hardly recognise: it is perhaps the first time I have seen myself genuinely smiling into a hair salon mirror.
The best measures of a new 'do' are friends' critiques, which in my case typically veer between the ominous, 'Oh well, it'll grow back', the desperate 'No, really, it looks fine. Don't cry', and the more pointed 'You paid for THAT?' Today, however, it's all ooohs and ahhhs, wows, and a consensus that I look 'SO much better'.  
Surreal indeed. 
Ladies cut and blowdry with Lorena Severi costs HK$1,300; Balayage costs HK$2,500. Philip George Salon, 23/F, 1 Duddell Street, Central, tel: 2524 3143



Balayage with Lorena Severi