Hello Muddah.....

Ah, Mother's Day. In my day as a little kid that meant a race to finish a ceramic ashtray, yes 

that's what we were taught to make. Weren't the 70’s awesome? Or hoping the glue would dry 

on some sort of twisted tissue paper art (no, not twisted art... art made from little bits of twisted 

tissue paper) In my family there were no big brunches out or get-togethers but I served my share of those in many restaurants. 

What do you do? Family stuff? Breakfast in Bed? Cook a meal together? Presents? Tell me all about it! 

 If you are gift givers Here's a list of all the fun things I think you should consider for your well deserving, hard working mom: 

- A Silk Pillowcase so she can wake up with perfect skin and perfect hair. 

-Music for her Alone? A lovely relaxing CD of Piano and Harpsichord music by a local musician  

-The gift of frizz free hair! The DevaCurl try me kit is a perfect start! 

-Gift Certificates are always welcome, and you can order them online and have it emailed or pop by the shop for one. 

-Soap? Do we have soap! Some of it is on the website but there's a ton more in the shop. 

-Does Mom workout? Work too much? Have arthritis? Has she tried Muscle Mist? Magic in a bottle I tell ya! 

Does Mom love Lavender? We can make almost anything you can name in personal care in Lavender. Just ask!
If you want help picking something for Mom , just ask. We make lovely gift packages customized to your specifications and don't forget that Cleaning stuff is on sale until mid May.... Just in case you think cleaning mom's house, or kitchen or doing her laundry would be a nice gift. Don't you dare give her cleaning products as a gift!

Tell me all your Mother's Day Stories so I can live vicariously through you. Whatever you do for Mother's Day, be sure to count your blessings if your Mom is still here to celebrate with. My beloved Mummy died a few years ago and I'd love to eat some terrible brunch with her or make ugly ashtrays for her. 

Me and my Mummy 

 Happy Mother's Day to all of you loving, caring, hardworking moms out there

Are ya done yer Spring Cleaning? Great! Then you can come and do mine!

Spring Cleaning Supplies are still 20% off! To order on the website use the codeword "Clean"
Did you see my post last week? Have you thrown out all your ancient makeup? Have you heated the vinegar and tried the cool trick I taught you and cleaning all the gucky surfaces in your house? Here's a lovely stove top to inspire you.

Mine generally looks similar, if not worse than this stolen photo. No, I'm not kidding, but my fancy vinegar soap cleaner will get all this stuff off.
 

I told my son last night the only thing I want for Mother's Day is a clean kitchen. Maybe you should do that too! Find out what your Mom's biggest cleaning pet peeve is and get that done for her for Mother's Day. I can hook you up with everything you need!

The Bulk refill stock has arrived for the liquid soap I mentioned last week, so run in to get yours now! Bring your own bottle or grab one of ours! The Unscented Zero-VOC  Liquid Sunshine Spray and Wipe is back in stock too. This product is also refillable!

For more cleaning inspiration don't miss the post here by my blogger friend over at The Art of Doing Stuff.
 http://www.theartofdoingstuff.com/your-top-3-cleaning-tips-as-chosen-by-me/
I am using the toilet brush trick all the time now!

The no-touch, drip dry toilet brush technique to help avoid the puddle at the bottom of the toilet brush holder.
Please ignore the torn apart flooring and the hideous, pasted on with crazy glue wallpaper.



Happy Cleaning! Happy May Day!

Clean all the Things!!!!

Now, back to biz. This week, we talk about SPRING CLEANING! I am offering 20% off all cleaning products linked in this post. Click the links below for more info or pop into the store. To order on the website use codeword "clean"
Everyone from Canadian Tire to some of my natural perfume friends are talking about Spring Cleaning this week and we all have a different view on it.
My favourite way to clean is very natural and simple and I bet a lot of my natural food and skin care readers are getting into natural cleaning too. Let's be real, one of the best things about Pinterest is surfing though posts about weird household things you can use to clean things rather than buying expensive, nasty chemical based stuff from the grocery store.

In my house the things on the list below is what I use to clean pretty much everything. If you read this blog often I'm sure you can imagine that my house is basically unscented and there are certainly no synthetic fragrance laden cleaning products or nasty migraine inducing dryer sheet stenches anywhere.

This is my basic list:
Water
Organic Castile Soap and other lovely natural soap based cleaners 
Double strength cleaning Vinegar -regular will do too
Essential oils (We strongly recommend not using any large amount of essential oils for cleaning anywhere your cats mouth or paws might touch and do not use tea tree oil around any pets)
Toilet Bombs (link and recipe to come next week)
Microfibre cloths and occasionally Miracle Sponges
Steamer mop
Spray Bottle- 16 oz or larger
Wool dryer balls
Sports Suds 
I have a bottle of ammonia and a bottle of peroxide around for really heavy cleaning and stain removal.

My favourite cleaning blend is to measure out 1 cup of castile soap and 1 cup of vinegar. Heat the vinegar- I use the microwave because I'm lazy but you can heat it on the stove top if you're all old school like that ;)- until it's almost boiling and mix it with the soap in a spray bottle. Go to the yuckiest place to clean in your house. In my house the yuckiest places are either the stove top or the bathtub. Spray your lovely new natural cleaning product on the yucky, sticky oily or soap scummy surface and walk away. Yes, I said walk away. Come back in 15- 30 minutes or so and wipe with a wet cloth. Don't call me to tell how amazing it is, I ALREADY know! It's the best thing ever! Right? I got rid of all chemical cleaners a few years ago and have never looked back. Try it, you'll like it and you'll love how much money you save. Until May 4th you can buy Organic Castile Soap  here at 20% off the regular price OR bring in your own clean bottle with a good screw top lid and save even more when we refill it!

 My bathroom of course is full of all kinds of fun, clean, green and lightly scented bath products but you know what else my bathroom is full of? Old makeup! For many years I've trained my clients to stop storing their natural bath products and makeup in the bathroom because the heat and humidity from the stuff you do in the bathroom can make these things go bad faster. For some reason I broke my own rules on this one. The preservative systems in your natural lotions and liquid or waxy makeup (foundation, mascara, liquid eyeliner,lip gloss, lipstick) and such are not really meant to withstand a lot of heat. So, your second cleaning tip of the day? Go through all your bathroom stuff and look at dates if there are any, and sniff each and every thing! Weird? Yup! Trust me, it works. If something smells off, you know like the week you were on the diet and ate no butter, then when you gave up the diet and ate the butter that was sitting on the counter all week....? That kind of off. The fancy olive oil you stored in the cupboard above the fridge and forgot about kind of off.  Rancid oil off I mean.
I recently took a lipstick out of my bathroom and put it in my makeup case. Just last night in the car on the way home from Easter dinner I asked my son- aka slave boy in the passenger seat who is slowly learning how to hand me orange slices, pain killers and such in a way that I can see them whilst driving- to hand me my lipstick since my lips were really dry. Seconds later after I put some on I was begging for a tissue and some water since I had clearly put on lipstick that was so old it wasn't just rancid it was the most vile, putrid tasting evil and someone was actually trying to kill me with this horrible taste. I do not recommend this method for finding out you own lipstick that is older than your children. Honestly? If any of your makeup is older than a year it's likely you should throw it out. Some powdered makeups will be OK, but keep them out of your bathroom. If it goes in your eye, like mascara or eyeliner - 6 months is the longest you should ever keep it. Yes really.

So, there you have it, one spring cleaning post done. I do like to add images to my posts but all the cleaning images I found on the interwebs were of  a) people wearing rubber gloves which you don't have to do with these natural cleaning ideas, unless you have a fancy manicure to protect b) people who were all happy and smiley and sh**, and I really never wanted anyone imagining me happy cleaning anything.... so I got you this picture.

It's a Hard Knock Life?

Oh my. What a hard, hard few weeks it's been. Both Sarah's decision to leave the shop in search of love, and yet another front desk person's decision to leave are all coming to a head (to their deadlines, to an end, to fruition, to completion... you pick) this week. As of Thursday I am, once again chief bookkeeper, receptionist, senior hairstylist, cleaning lady, soapmaker, the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker.... or so it seems. In posts from last week you will see the details of the staff we are looking for. After much gnashing of teeth (Oh do be quiet, I am enjoying the over use of dramatic phrases!) and howling at the (bloody) moon in frustration, anger and other cruddy emotions I had a long, hard talk with myself and said..... Noëlle you idiot! (numbskull, doughhead, ignorant slut.. you pick) You, and you alone have dragged this business through way, way WAY worse than this!!! A simple change of the guard amongst the staff is seriously no big deal!
This week in fact is the 6th anniversary of the start of my chemotherapy. It might even have been on this very day, but chemobrain has relieved me of recalling all of those pesky dates and details. I went in to work the very next day. That I remember. Le sigh.

 I could reminisce for hours about all the unpleasant things I've been through while keeping this business open and how somehow as of now it's still going ok..... but I won't. 

Since this song, this character and this philosophy seem to follow me... I'll let you listen to this. 

 ... of course I picked the original Broadway Annie version! ;) 

aaaand again!

This post is about hiring a new stylist. It's almost time to expand the salon hours to better accomodate our clients so we need another hair stylist for the team 

Our salon, as many of you know welcomes everyone, with any type of hair but our speciality is taking care of natural curly hair.All of my stylists are required to have extra training in cutting curly hair. We are happy to provide training to the right person. Training in this method will involve some travel both in Canada and possibly internationally so when applying for this job please keep this in mind.
The right candidate for this job is either a second year apprentice or licensed stylist who is aware of the lack of care paid to curly hair in the hair industry and is interested in helping to change the misconceptions that exist in traditional salons. Ellënoire is one of the busiest locations in this area. We provide a generous pay and commision structure that will allow the right candidate to make a very good living. 
 I've listed some details in point form below. If you have questions, or would like to apply for this position please direct questions, cover letters and resumes to ellenoire@ellenoire.com

Second year apprentice or Licensed Stylist, (Barbering hopefuls may also apply) wanted for busy location. 
Natural Salon specializing in Curly Hair. Training provided for right person, Terms of Employment: 

Title: Hairstylist 

Terms of Employment: Permanent, Full Time, Weekend, Day, Evening, Part time apprentices will also be considered.

Salary: Hourly Wage $11.25 and up per hour minimum + Commissions+ Bonuses

Anticipated Start Date: As soon as possible

Location: Busy Salon in Dundas, specializing in Curly Hair & Natural Hair Care

Credentials: Hairstylist License or apprenticeship certificate

Experience: 1 years or more of recent experience in the Haircutting/ Hairstyling Field, DevaCurl training a bonus, Dry or Barbering cutting experience a bonus, straight razor shaving a bonus

Languages: Speak English well, Read English well, Write English well

Work Setting: Natural Hair Care Salon (no perms, no blow outs, no flat irons or chemical straightening,  sulfates or silicone used) with Natural Beauty Boutique attached

Hair Cutting Techniques: Scissor cutting, Hair washing, conditioning and setting, Men, Women & Children’s cuts, Dry cutting experience a bonus 

Hair Colouring Techniques: Bleach, Dyes/tints, Streaking/highlights

Additional Skills: Customer Service, Retail sales, Ringing in Sales, Attention to detail, Ability to follow instructions, Strong Communication skills, Comfortable teaching clients, Comfortable learning new skills quickly, creative thinking, Maintenance and clean up, presentation skills, ability to organize and schedule, Willing to embrace new thinking, Must be willing to travel for special training

Work Conditions and Physical Capabilities: Fast-paced environment, Repetitive tasks, Manual dexterity, Attention to detail, Hand-eye co-ordination, Combination of standing, walking, Standing for extended periods

Work Site Environment: Noisy, Odours, Fragrances, Non-smoking

Transportation/Travel Information: Own transportation, Public transportation is available nearby

Work Location Information: Small town setting, On-site customer service

Essential Skills: Personable, Good Manners, Reading text, Basic computer use, Document use, Numeracy, Writing, Oral communication, Working with others, Problem solving, Decision making, Critical thinking, Job task planning and organizing, Significant use of memory, Finding information, Continuous learning

Other Information: Excited, Hardworking, open-minded people will make the most money and have the most fun with the ellënoire team.

Employer: Ellënoire, Body, Bath Fragrance and Curly Hair Salon 104 King street west, Dundas ON. 

905 627 9379 www.ellenoire.com

How to apply: Please direct questions, cover letters and resumes to ellenoire@ellenoire.com

We are hiring again!

Hi! What a crazy few weeks this has been! The financial reality of running a street front business during a long, cold winter means we have to keep costs very low. A lot of time was spent looking out the window at snowflakes on the street rather than people out shopping. We had a staff person move onto a new career early in the year, so I was chief receptionist, shipping manager,marketing manager, dishwasher and more!

Now that the weather has turned a corner and the snow is likely to stay away (if it snows in May, then I think a lot of people will be moving west though) we can hire someone to help me with the day to day work in the store. Please pass this information along to friends if you think you know someone who can handle this crazy place.

Still from the 1940 film His Girl Friday with Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell & Ralph Bellamy
I don't think this movie is really about a Girl friday but the pic is fun! 

 Sometimes I think the dated terms "Girl Friday" and "Man Friday", "Jack of all trades" describes this eclectic position (FYI, this position was held by a male for seven years) or even "Curl Friday" as a nod to our Curly Hair salon..... but after asking friends and clients we came up with title to describe the job

 Client Services Coordinator

The perfect candidate will have the professionalism and friendliness of a Maître D or a Hotel Concierge and the ability to juggle clients at the register, ringing phones, have precision in communication with management, clients and other staff. To be successful in this position we seek a person who can roll with the punches with an open mind while remaining calm and professional. This is an eclectic position with an attractive salary and a happy, energetic workplace.

 Job details: 
1) “Running the front desk” Cash and credit card handling, Cash register/ POS skills, greeting clients, preparing coffee for clients,

2) Booking Hair Salon clients for appointments in a natural curly hair specialty salon, this require extra attention to detail.
3) Sales of Hair and personal care products for both men and women. Simple customization and packaging of personal care products (ie labeling, gift wrapping, adding a few drops of fragrance)

4) Light Cleaning duties and retail "facing up" and simple decorating
5) A Small amount of shipping and receiving and office paperwork will also be necessary. 

These are the key points we are looking for, although there may be extra hours available for someone who wants to learn light manufacturing of personal care products. 

Ellënoire is an LGTB friendly, nursing friendly, multicultural environment so closed minds need not apply. 

 Skills and experience desired: minimum of 2 years in experience in one or more of the following: High end retail Sales, Reception, Hotel front desk or busy restaurant hostess or server positions.

 Extra notes: Above all what we need is professionalism in both manner and dress, politeness, ability to follow instruction precisely, able to stand and walk for many hours with few breaks and not be shy in communication. The ability to learn the details of and comfortably sell a large number of products in our boutique, learn the details of booking a hair client in a specialty environment, and teach clients how to use products they may not imagine using themselves.

Job Location: ellënoire, Body, Bath & Fragrance and Curly Hair Salon104 King Street west, Dundas, ON 905 627 9379

Email questions, cover letters and resumes to ellenoire@ellenoire.com.  

Baby come back!

Sarah, Noelle & David in New York City on a night out after a training at the Deva Curl Academy

This week’s email is an announcement about one of our staff and some changes happening in the salon over the next few months. 

 In order to best care for our clients we at ellenoire take pride in hiring with an open mind and treating our staff as well as we can. We provide higher wages, extra time off when possible, and extra training programs when available. This month we have chosen to honour a request for an extended leave of absence from a staff member.

Our beloved stylist Sarah is off on a travel adventure for 3 months starting at Easter. She’ll be travelling to an exotic location and we wish her the best.  We will welcome Sarah back with open arms in July. We realize that this situation may be a challenge for Sarah’s clients to accept since they have become used to her constant presence here. Please rest assured that Victoria and I will be covering the shop and all the services at the salon while she is away.

Sarah’s schedule is filling quickly so if you would like to see her before she goes please call as soon as you can, 905 627 9379.