Hollywood Hair for Kids

It's not unusual for grown women to present their hairdressers with a clipping from Us Weekly and then cross their fingers through a haircut, but now they're doing it with their kids in the salon chairs. According to Anthony Simmons, franchise owner of Sharkey's Cuts for Kids, most of the celebrity style requests they get don't come from the children.

"The majority of the time it's the parents who want it, but you get your older kids who ask for it, too," he says.

To better serve these customers, Simmons keeps a portfolio of various celebrities behind the receptionist desk. Miley Cyrus' long layers, Selena Gomez's bouncy locks and Justin Bieber's comb-forward all get a nod, but the book doesn't forget about Jennifer Lopez, Gwyneth Paltrow and Halle Barry, either.

Most the celebrity cuts performed at Sharkey's are on boys, not girls. Simmons, a former NFL linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks, says the hottest cuts right now aren't replicas of Demi Lovato or the next "it" girl from Nickelodeon. Rather, the real in-demand celeb cuts are Bieber's and Spain soccer player David Villa's. The former is a shaggy look, the latter is a faux hawk. During and shortly after the World Cup this summer, kids couldn't get enough of the fake mohawk. Similar to racing through the house with a red cape, it was the closest they could get to the star soccer player's likeness.

Boys' cuts at Sharkey's start at $18.95, girls' start at $19.95. A style with no cut for girls is $16.95.

Even if the kids aren't crazy about the cut their mothers want to see them in, the atmosphere at Sharkey's can make them quickly forget. With bright lime green and hot pink walls, kids can sit in a toy race car while getting their hair done, watch a kids' movie on a flat screen TV or play Xbox video games. Stylists also use products such as Grape Hair Jam ($9), Zach's Wax ($6) and Circle of Friends shampoo ($9), which comes in chocolate, pineapple and blueberry scents.

And, at checkout time the impulse purchases don't consist of luxury hair products, like at Mom's salon. Rather, they have Doggy-Doo, self-adhesive mustaches and butterfly tea sets to inspire a few tantrums before going home.

Sharkey's Cuts for Kids is located at 10624 S. Eastern Ave. in Henderson, 434-5437.
Source: LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL