Yanai Van has spent the past two decades styling the hair of clients around the globe, working with a diversity of hair textures in a variety of climates.
These experiences, along with his own head of ringlets, have given him a passion for curly hair.
Van was born and raised in Jerusalem, Israel. He says his passion for beauty and hair is genetic since his mother was a well-known hair stylist in Jerusalem, and her brother was one of the biggest hair designers in Tel Aviv. Van remembers growing up in that beauty shop, looking at every move, cut and style. He knew that was the life for him.
He traveled to Europe to study hair styling. For 13 years, Van and his mother owned one of the largest salons in Jerusalem. When his mother died, he traveled to the United States and decided to settle in California.
These days, Van coifs the curls of Hollywood’s most demanding clientele in the heart of Beverly Hills. In a town where image is everything, some of Los Angeles’ curly trendsetters rely on Van to make them shine.
Van says his mission is to provide his clients with an effective, easy regimen to care for their curls.
To help with that task, he has created his expansive and growing line of curl-care products, which include shampoos, conditioners and styling products for all curl types, as well as the KiddyCurls line for kids.This month, Yanai is launching a new Color Retention System. The line includes a sulfate-free shampoo, leave-in protectant, daily conditioner and intensive treatment hair mask. All Yanai products are available in CurlMart.
Yanai’s How-To Guide for Mastering Your Curls
Step 1
Shampoo your hair.
Step 2
Condition your hair and brush it thoroughly. Don’t rinse the conditioner out 100%; leave some on.
Step 3
Apply some scalp moisturizing liquid and gel. Work it in with your fingers so it covers all your hair. The more hair you have, the more gel you should use.
Step 4
Comb your hair with a wide tooth comb.
Step 5
Take small sections of your hair one at a time and corkscrew them around your finger toward your face. The thicker your hair is, the more you can wrap around your finger.
Step 6
Work from the bottom of your hair up to your part.
Step 7
Turn your hair down and shake it out. With a dry towel, cup the ends of your hair and gently press in toward your scalp. Do this across all your hair.
Step 8
Let it air dry if possible. However, if you must blow dry, use a diffuser to minimize frizz. While your hair is down, dry it from all sides from the bottom of your hair up.
Step 9
When nearly dry, apply no more than three drops of Shine (depending how thick your hair is”>. Spread your fingers and lift hair upward to attain lift.
Step 10
Be proud.
