In order to redesign digital media presence for a dutch beauty salon, I was asked to produce media for representation on a new web site. We discussed the business format the salon follows, types of clients that come in and the desired reputation of the brand.

Femke van Gaal, Salon Manager:

 “Your style matches the desired mix between a clean yet appealing vibe. Your result shows the professional reputation I want to strive for with my brand!”

Best compliment you can get. Below you’ll find an impression of the current website.

Interior shots

It’s important to present the space customers will be spending time. A fresh and professional look of the beauty salon.

Headshots of representatives

To fit the new look, I organised headshots of employees customers can expect to meet in the beauty salon.

Personal editorials

Single shots with representatives to introduce a personal story of everyone involved in the salon. Style of single shot editorials have a bite allowing for an improved personal connection.

The whole idea started when I found a large log slice in the countryside of the Netherlands. I took it home and dried it for 4 months in a medium dry environment, to prevent it from cracking.

Planning to saw it by hand, I started my investigation for my options and what to make of the log. I figured slicing it into slabs, such that I could make a table top out of it.

“Hand sawing a log slice into a table top with a Katana saw.. Contrary to western push saws, a Katana saw is operated by gently pulling.”

My initial research soon revealed there aren’t many manual ways to saw large pieces of wood with western saws. The Japenese woodworking tradition however offered me a solution. A Katana saw can take virtually any dimension – basically as long as the blade length. Since the blade is pulled instead of pushed, the saw direction follows the direction of pull automatically. Any western alternative is pushed, thereby naturally destabilizing the blade direction.

Think about that for a moment. Forcefully pushing into your desired direction will naturally destabilize the energy you’re applying. There is much to learn from a Katana blade, and the Japanese attitude towards energy clashes.

The next step includes a 48 hours of straight pulling the blade through a thirty centimeters thick slab. Once you went through that meditation session, the result is three nicely cut slabs, making up for almost a meter of tabletop.