Photographed and interviewed in late summer 2017 in Washington DC at WeWork Apollo and The Apollo Apartments
Name: Coree Moreno
Social: @keepingupwithco
Does: Really good hair
Base: Washington, DC
MT: How tricky is it to stay focused as a creative with so many things stimulating you on a daily basis?
CM: It’s extremely difficult to stay focused but what’s important to me is that I lose focus because thats where the inspiration happens.
MT: Social media is a motherfucker. It’s hard as hell to not scroll down your feed and start comparing yourself to what a person you don’t know is doing in a city you’ve never been to. By the same token, it’s hard to decipher who is doing real work and who is just posting illusionary effort. How are you side-stepping falling into the black hole of social media?
CM: Celebrating other people (whether what they post is legit or not) keeps me in a good space. When I see a friend or a colleague winning on Instagram, I’m in that comment section rooting them on publicly. That’s another thing-celebrate your friends openly!
MT: You’ve worked in different cities with different clients. How does the current climate of DC hairstyling relate to other cities in the US?
CM: It’s no secret that DC is a very conservative town and that goes for the way women are with their personal style too. DC requires me to focus on the business side of hairstyling because I’m just not going to be able to push it here in terms of artistry. When I’m working in LA, I absolutely can get lost in the art and design of the hair and that shifts to the front so being at a very good salon that manages the workflow or having client assistance is key because it’s very easy to get caught up creating there. Hair in LA is for leisure. Girls will walk into a salon because they were out shopping and just thought a blowout would be a nice accessory to their day. That same girl in DC is getting a 7am blowout because she has a meeting at noon on Capitol Hill.
MT: Of course we have to know who your dream celeb clients are!
CM: Solange and Zoe Kravitz. I think they’ll really let me be the person to guide the vision and not vice versa.
MT:What is one thing you want the everyday girl to do with her hair to really push it to the next level stylistically?
CM: I want them to not care and have more lived in hair. This attempt at perfect hair is killing perfect hair! If you wake up with a slightly poofy root-thats volume! Just chill on trying to over style because it rarely looks cool.
MT: What’s your top “behind the chair secret”?
CM: The Moroccan Oil Hydration Mask is my all-time favorite treatment! Everyone can use a boost in hydration from time to time.
MT: Okay, best on-the-go hair product?
CM: Oribe Impermeable Anti-Humidity Spray. This is my #1 suggested product for all my clients especially natural ones who just had a blowout. It locks the hair in place and prevents it from expanding the moment they walk outside. Plus, It’s a weightless hair fresher (have you smelled Oribe?!) and a great bag filler for when you have no clue of what you’re going to put in that new top handle bag you just bought to make it looked lived in-fast!
MT: So what is inspiring you outside of hair right now?
CM: The people who live artistically through Street Drag and Afro Goth; and musicians like SZA, Syd, Jhene Aiko, Rhye and Jamiroquai
ManPeople
What do you think?