The Matrix Mannequin Mania competition has selected its first round of three semi-finalists in each of its four categories: stylist, salon team, student and Matrix friends and family. Modern Salon asked a semi-finalist from each category to tell us about their hairstyle's inspiration.

STYLIST

Alice Olson from Salon De Bella in Virginia Beach, Virginia
Mannequin Name: Arielle
"I went on a walk on the beach and was inspired by the waves, the sea shells and the jelly fish. The colors resemble the ocean and the sand."

SALON TEAM

Kelsi (Evelyn) Kennedy (team captain) and Charlotte Smith of JCPenny in Seattle, Washington
Mannequin Name: Eloise
"We loved the shape of Rihanna's hair in the "Rude Boy" music video. Rather than just doing it straight down the back we decided to add a little more interest with an asymmetrical look following the curves of the head."

STUDENT

John Louis from Knox Beauty College in Knox, Indiana
Mannequin Name: Sedna
"My niece loves the Little Mermaid, so I wanted to create something she would like and I found Sedna, daughter of the creator-god, Anguta. According to some versions of the myth, Anguta's husband got angry with her and threw her over the side of his kayak. She clung to its sides, whereupon he chopped her fingers off one by one until she let go. She sank to the underworld, becoming the ruler of the monsters of the deep. Her fingers became the seals, walruses and whales hunted by the Inuit."

FRIEND & FAMILY
Sandra Carr, from Sheer Professionals in Wooster, Ohio
Mannequin Name: Violet
"Violet's color technique comes from the fabric store. I have always loved the fabric that starts with a heavy saturation of color and then moves seamlessly into light colors until it is almost white. The cut is a simple, classic  shape but it's the color that makes it unique."