Salon Dew with Maia Otanez
By Rose Marie Bresolin
68 Scollard Street in Yorkville, Toronto
After following up on a tip to take my tired tresses to Salon Dew for a rejuvenating treatment, the results I came away with were amazing! Equally impressive was the friendliness of staff, so I asked if I might have an interview for the Spencer launch.
Particularly curious to learn how the young entrepreneur, Maia Otanez had come to start up the successful salon in Yorkville, she shared her experience:
I was in my early 30’s when the itch to break out on my own began. I was established enough with my clientele and had all the support and encouragement I needed from my then coworkers. So, when the opportunity for change arrived, it seemed like the perfect career move. After putting together the best team we could, Vicky Alexiou, Barb Mazzaserro, Craig Moir and I, set out to make Salon Dew a reality. With a loyal staff and dedicated clients, Dew has grown to be 15 years strong.
Maia suggested that I speak with her talented and acclaimed colour technician, Craig Moir. Getting swept up in Craig’s animated accounts of the A Listers on his roster, I asked him to share the stories that stand out the most:
“Let’s see,” Craig reflected. “The list is long, and each makes up a story worth telling.
I remember Rachel McAdams riding in on her bike dozens of times or taking the subway. I was sad when the house she rented in L.A. came up for sale, because I knew she really liked it. She ended up buying it and sold her home in Toronto to move there. Such a casual, down to earth person, I still miss seeing her in our salon.
Sixteen years ago, I was doing Hillary Duff’s hair while she was in Toronto for the movie, The Perfect Man. I found it hard to tell her that I would be leaving to start a new salon. But on the day we opened Dew, there she was, our first client! It was an amazing start!
Eva Longoria called me late on a Saturday after she had finished filming. She wanted a colour ahead of flying out, and I said yes. She hadn’t eaten all day so she asked if I could order something. Assuming she’d want something healthy, I suggested sushi or salad. What a surprise when what she asked for was a burger, fries and coke. I felt like she had read my mind!
Jared Leto – He was in the movie Suicide Squad, which was a spin off from Batman. He was playing the joker, so his hair needed to go green. The usual process is to bleach hair blond, and then move to the green. But there was a dilemma! He would be flying to Paris for fashion week the next day, and green hair would give away a secret of the movie ahead of opening. So, he ended up going to Paris with his hair bleached white. When Jared got to Paris, he was surprised to see Kim Kardashian bleached white as well. The press made quite a deal of it and thought Jared’s hair looked better! That felt pretty good.
Elizabeth Moss – I did her hair in the first season of The Handmaid’s Tale. I actually did half the cast. But, as Elizabeth’s recognition soared, she took to flying her former hairdresser in from New York. I was sad but understood the loyalty.
Viggo Mortensen – Viggo is a kind soul. He is a great person. His family moved from Scandinavia to Argentina as a child. He gave me a personally autographed copy of a book of poetry and photography he wrote. The book is in Spanish !!! That’s super cool.
