The French Legacy

As every French hairdresser, Olivier Crespel is conscious of the French heritage regarding the hairdressing. Indeed, the history of French hairdressers is old and dates back to the 18^th century. Legros de Rumigny or Léonard were the hairdressers of the French Royal Court and “styled” royal’s heads such as Marie-Antoinette, Madame de Pompadour and Madame de Matignon.

Marie-Antoinette 

painted by 
Joseph Ducreux

Madame de Pompadour 

painted by 

Francois Boucher

But the florescence of the French hairdressing really started in the 20th century with Antoine, also called Monsieur Antoine. This Poland born hairdresser moved to Paris in the early 20^th century, where he opened his first salon. Antoine was the forerunner of the shingle cut in the 20’s and created the iconic “garçonne” haircut and in particular, he styled Coco Chanel and Edith Piaf. Later, he opened a salon in New York which became the most fashionnable hair salon in the U.S.

"Monsieur Antoine"

A few decades later, Alexandre de Paris (born Louis Alexandre Raimon) became a famous hairstylist in Paris during the 60’s. Indeed, he took care of Elizabeth Taylor’s haircut in the movie Cleopatra. He also styled  famous actresses such as Romy Schneider, Audrey Hepburn and even Jackie Kennedy when the presidential couple came to Paris in 1961.

Alexandre de Paris  

           Elizabeth Taylor

in Cleopatra

Of course, this is just a brief overview of the massive and renowned French hairdressing legacy that every French hairdresser has in mind and does his best to represent it and to honor it.