With thick gel-coated hands, hair spray in the air and a lingering adrenaline rush, Emily Newton had accomplished her lifelong dream.

Newton, a senior stylist at Pavo Salon, has not been shy about her goal of styling hair for the “big four” global fashion weeks. During 10 days in mid-March, she styled hair for two designer shows in Paris Fashion Week. 

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Paris is one of the “big four” fashion capitals where the most prominent fashion shows are held, alongside New York, London and Milan.

Paris Fashion Week is a week-long semi-annual major fashion event where fashion designers and brands showcase their latest collections to buyers and the media. 

Pavo Salon owners Scot Robinson and Shawn McGhee have been looking for opportunities for Newton to style in fashion weeks since they hired her nearly 20 years ago. 

The Pavo owners have only sent one other hairstylist to a “big four” fashion week — in New York 15 years ago.

The two Memphis-based Pavo Salons are Aveda Salons, meaning the salon mainly uses Aveda products and has access to salon education, business support, and a vast network with growth opportunities. 

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When a nearby Aveda Salon owner was called to assemble a 24-stylist team, they contacted Pavo. 

They had the opportunity to send several stylists, but with the high expense and 10-day commitment abroad, the owners decided to stay back and send only one of their top stylists.

They immediately thought of their senior stylist with a French bob and a passion for fashion — Newton. 

“With the reality of what it all entails, you really want your top stylist going because they are the ones with the most experience, and Emily has always had such a flair for fashion and styling and all of that,” Robinson said. “We knew she would be the perfect fit for it.”

Since joining Pavo, Robinson said Newton has displayed an “incredible work ethic” and is committed to her clients' service, which is why she has always had an extensive waitlist. 

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They saw this as an opportunity for Newton to excel and expand her talent as a hairstylist and to open doors for other Pavo stylists to style at international shows.

Robinson asked Newton if she wanted to go when she was with a client, and without any details or questions asked, she was on board. 

A little under a decade or so into her career at Pavo, Newton had the opportunity to style hair at New York Fashion Week, but she had just had her twins. The timing wasn’t right. 

But this time, the timing was “perfect.”

Newton, whose kids are older now, left her home in East Memphis on Friday, Feb. 28, to fly to one of the world’s fashion capitals. 

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For a model to walk down the runway, they must have their hair, makeup and nails done and their outfits in place within a certain time frame. 

Hairstylists must juggle styling multiple models with different hair textures and looks, which Newton wasn’t unfamiliar with. 

During the decade that Pavo was the hair sponsor of Memphis Fashion Week, Newton became familiar with the show’s fast-paced nature and “adrenaline rush.” 

“Doing the Memphis Fashion Week so many times, it really did prepare me for what it looked like, sometimes in the moment, you just have to make a call and make it happen,” Newton said. “A lot of my coworkers would hate that pressure. For me, it’s really fun.”

Newton styled models’ hair for two shows, the Middle Eastern brand Louteh and a collaborative Hair Couture show that featured multiple designers; she was “pleasantly surprised” that her team of nationwide stylists was supportive and encouraging during the rush.

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“The (Louteh) show was pedal to the metal because we were a middle show in the middle of the day,” Newton said. “It was yelling and fast, and we ended up just going over and working with the hair, nails and makeup. Everyone worked together as a team.” 

Surrounded by professional and seasoned stylists from all over, Newton learned new techniques for sculpting and adding hair that she’d never heard of before. 

“A bunch of stylists were doing really cool stuff, so that was really fun to watch them,” Newton said.

Although she missed her Pavo team, she said the fashion week boosted her confidence to make definitive choices and inspired her to pursue more opportunities, such as other fashion weeks.

“I’m so used to having my Pavo team with me, and I love working with my team,” Newton said. “So to not have anyone on my team with me grew me a lot; it was nice to see very high-caliber stylists from all over and then be able to hold your own; it was a nice confidence booster and inspiring.”

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While in Paris, she couldn’t help but think of her clients back home who have supported and cheered her on. 

“All my clients are just so sweet and so excited for me, and I think that has been very kind of emotional for me, to see my clients I’ve had for years and years and years, for them to (act) like it’s happening to them. That is really sweet. It makes me feel very grateful for their support.”