Winners of Davines' Eco-Contest!

You may remember in conjunction with this year's Earth Day, Davines launched an Eco-Salon contest where salons who were being environmentally friendly could complete an online application form, and enter the contest hoping to win two free five-star land packages to Davines' World Wide Hair Tour (which was Oct. 2nd and 6th in Berlin).

Well, the winners have been chosen! Are you curious to see what they said on their applications? Here's a peek:

SALON: ION Studio in New York, NY

How do you train your staff on how to reduce consumption of energy and waste? We hold education sessions for colorists to discuss reducing product waste with all color products. We also train every employee on how to recycle various items in the salon, reduce use of water and rely on natural light whenever possible. We also use all-natural cleaning product in the salon, including laundry supplies, dish washing liquid, bathroom and floor cleaners. We recycle hair for Matter of Trust which uses the hair to make booms for oil spill cleanup.

Do you use energy generated by renewable sources (wind, water, sun)? If yes, since when? We are a ComEd client, who offers us the option to use wind power for our electricity. We also have skylights to reduce the need for artificial lighting.

ION Salon

Inside of ION Salon

SALON: ArabellaSalon in Portland, Oregon

Do you have programs to decrease the environmental impact of your salon? If yes, please describe them in detail.

Reduce:

We reduce water by being mindful of the amount used in serving our clients. We also have an extensive rain catchment system on the roof and that water is collected for watering all of our plants. Our on-site washing machine is energy efficient.

Our rooftop garden, besides being loved by people, bees, and birds, helps to keep our building cooler and reduce energy. Electric energy is reduced by temperature controls and light sensors. The natural light that we get also really helps to reduce our electricity and enhance the salon environment. Waste is reduced by offering towels and durable dishes to staff and clients. We also collectively agreed to not use bottled water and therefore have a shared water cooler for fresh water.

Reuse: Our floors, windows, furniture, shelving and jewelry case are all reclaimed salvaged wood and materials from our local Rebuilding Center. This partnership allowed us to reduce costs, keep materials local and support a local business.

We collect hair separately and give it to Matter of Trust, which uses it to create hair booms for oil spill clean up. We also give local artists and client, Diane Jacobs, hair for her mixed media collage. We have showcased her work in our salon and you can see it at www.dianejacobs.net.

Recycle: In addition to curbside recycling of cardboard, commingled items and glass, Arabella Salon embarked on a comprehensive recycling program for hard-to-recycle items such as plastic film and bags, and rigid plastic lids and clamshells.

Offset: Our goal is to reduce energy through efficiency. What cannot be reduced, we offset through the Native Energy offset program and wind power purchase with Pacific Power's Blue Sky Renewable Wind Energy Program. New for us in 2010, we have an incentive program for customers to get a 10 percent discount reward for using alternative transportation to the salon.

Arabella Salon

Arabella Salon's Garden