Shear Genius Season Three Contestants On Bravo/TV

Camilla Alves is the new hostess of Bravo/TV's third season of "Shear Genius."  When the first episode of the new season aired last night Camilla kicked off the show by saying "we searched the world for the twelve most talented to compete in a salon in Los Angeles.  Camilla said "this season, the show is bigger than ever."

And who are the contestants? They consist of six male and six female contestants including"

Adee, 36, from London, England.

Adee Phalen stared out by saying who he was and "I gave David Beckham one of his most famous hairstyles and it set me up in my career.  A lot of celebrity hairdressers wouldn't audition for this in England because they were afraid if they didn't do well, it would reflect on their careers.  But for me you've gotta gamble.  I'm a gambler."

In the first episode Adee wore a bold t-shirt and had small edgy glasses.  When Adee didn't do well in the Runway competition he threw a temper tantrum in the studio salon and kicked a few things causing a ruckus.

More About Adee

Adee, a fierce innovator in the world of hairdressing, began his career at age 25 and quickly rose through the ranks by developing his own unique cutting style.

In 2002, he joined forces with Nicky Edgeley to set up Strangeways hair salon in Leigh-on-Sea, England.

That same year, Adee styled David Beckham for the iconic GQ Magazine photo shoot just before the World Cup - work that won Adee the 2002 Image of the Year Award. He now runs his own salon in Covent Gardens, London, and his celebrity clients include Liza Minnelli, Piers Morgan and Sarah Harding from the pop group Girls Aloud.

Amy, 25, from Toronto, Canada

Amy from Toronto has gorgeous platinum blonde hair and for the first episode she wore little butterfly hair clips in one side of her hair.  I love a girl who loves hair accessories so she immediately got my attention.

More About Amy

Amy introduced herself as Amy Michleb.  She said she's originally English but she lives in Canada.  She said "back at home I own three salons and a scissors company.  Even though I'm the youngest one, I'm going to kick their asses out of here."

At the young age of 25, Amy is the owner of professional hairstyling tools, Kenchii Cutting Edge Shears, as well as three successful salons in Toronto.

Very active in the hair world, Amy is a member of Intercoiffure, Guild of Hair Design, was on the Creative Artistic Team for Farouk Systems for several years and served as the lead assistant to the Board of Directors.

She has worked on the sets of major manufacturer photoshoots, creating and designing their marketing campaigns, and has styled for Miss Universe, Miss USA, Miss Universe Canada, Miss Latina and Miss Lebanon.

Amy's work has been published in Vibe, In Style, and Salon Magazine among others, and she has performed in hair presentations across the globe, including Egypt, Italy, Puerto Rico and Uruguay.

April 42, from New York, New York

April Barton introduced herself by saying "let's rock.  I have a salon in New York City.  I rebelled against it all and said 'OK I don't need or want anything from the outside world.  It's just me and my shears in a little corner suite in The Chelsea Hotel."

April wore a black fedora style hat for the first episode.

More About April

April began her career in the late eighties at the height of the punk scene in London where she assisted in opening the first School of Hairdressing.

In the early nineties, April moved to New York and worked in various salons until she opened her current salon, Suite 303, in 1995. Nestled on the third floor of the Chelsea Hotel, April has committed her salon to artistic expression and has earned the nickname "Edward Scissorhands."

Her clientele consists of many A-List celebrities that include Jerry Seinfeld, Jake Gyllenhaal, Luke Wilson and Mary J. Blige, to name a few. April's work has graced the pages of Rolling Stone, Vogue, Elle, among other top magazines.

Arzo, 35, from San Franciso, California

Born in Afghanistan, raised in New York City and currently residing in San Francisco, Arzo Nazamy has a strong edge and understands that hairstyles shouldn't be generic decorations

More About Arzo

Born in Afghanistan, raised in New York City and currently residing in San Francisco, Arzo has a strong edge and understands that hairstyles shouldn't be generic decorations.

She is an all encompassing professional whose experience includes platform education, traditional hairdressing and editorial work. Arzo has styled the likes of Rose McGowan and Ally Hilfiger.

Editorially she has worked with clients that include Bed Bath & Beyond, MTV and Hood Star Magazine. Arzo has owned and operated Vogue Hair Studio in Pleasanton, California for fifteen years.

Brian, 37, from New York, New York

Brian Buterbaugh worked his way in the beauty industry from the ground up, earning a scholarship to the Pittsburgh Beauty Academy.

He moved to New York City thirteen years ago and has since established himself as a stylist to some of the biggest names in television, film, and music including Bjork, Keri Russell, Matthew Fox, Hayden Panettiere and many more.

Brian also worked as the key hairstylist on "The Tyra Banks Show" and "The Tony Danza Show," and is currently at Chris Chase Salon. Along with an interest in hair fashion, Brian is a songwriter and short filmmaker specializing in Super 8 film.

He is currently setting up a production company that shoots fashion promotional videos in the vain of the Andy Warhol screen tests dedicated to spotlighting "hair as art."

Brig, 33, Simi Valley, California

Brig established herself as unique when she told Camilla she was from "Simi Valley".  Camilla had a blank look and said "there you go."  Brig explained that Simi Valley is 30 minutes from Hollywood.  We just got a mall three years ago.  We've got horses.  You now, it's low key."  Brig isn't low key.  She has orange hair and wears very large hair accessories.  She also wears roller skates both while's she doing hair and when she isn't.

She said "I like to do my version of the celebrity.  The woman with the mini-van and four kids who also works full time.  Your underdog.  Just watch, I'm coming for the city folk and I'm going to take em out."

More About Brig

Owner of P!ay Hair Lounge, Brig Van Olsten has worked in the beauty industry for 13 years. After moving salons six times and growing frustrated with a traditional salon model that seemed to leave the stylists and the clients unsatisfied, Brig decided to change the mold.

She is known for providing honest opinions and helping her clients recreate a professional hairstyle at home. Brig stays current by attending monthly classes, including instruction at Bumble & Bumble University in New York.

She also spends time behind the camera photographing models and helping promote the work of other P!ay stylists. Brig has been featured in Life & Style Magazine, and her work has been seen in Modern Salon, American Salon Magazine, and on the television series "What Not to Wear."

Faatemah, 36, from Minneapolis, Minnesota

When asked by Camilla if the group was going to let Jon win the competition Faatemah said "No.  It's going to be a huge bloodbath.  Somebody's going home in a body bag and it's not going to be me."

Faatemah said "I don't live in New York, I don't live in LA, but I'm never out of my league.  I'm not afraid of any of the people in this competition.  I'm here for Faatemah.  They can call me when I'm famous."

More About Faatemah

Faatemah's formal training began at Aveda, where her talent was quickly noted, prompting founder Horst Rechelbacher to ask her to travel with his team. Faatemah accepted and for the past 16 years, has further distinguished herself with an impressive resume complete with runway, editorial, and on-air credits.

She has done campaigns for Target, Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom, worked on commercials for ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC, and in the print realm has styled for Metro Magazine, Modern Salon, Ebony, and Arizona Bride.

Faatemah's celebrity clientele includes Nicole Miller and Holly Robinson-Peete. Most recently, she was recognized as a North American Hairstyling Award (NAHA) nominee, winning the Fashion Forward category.

Most notably recognized for her innovation, she brings haute couture to hair in a way that's soft and beautiful. Faatemah is based in Minnesota, but travels the world speaking at events, doing educational seminars, and working to motivate hair students

Giacomo, 43, from Austin, Texas

Giacomo Forbes' love of beauty and spirituality manifested itself while growing up in Rome, Italy. He soon parlayed his passion into a successful beauty and hair care career. Giacomo has acquired an impressive celebrity clientele, having styled everyone from supermodel Claudia Schiffer to Oscar winner Marissa Tomei.

After opening successful salons and manufacturing companies in both New York and Los Angeles, he made the move to Austin, Texas. There, Giacomo and his team developed a new line of innovative hair and body care products, meant to heal "hair, body and soul."

Both his talent and products have been featured in national print magazines including Allure, Vogue and Harpers Bazaar.

Janine, 28, from Los Angeles, Calfornia

When she's not circling the globe running from photo shoot to fashion show, Janine Jarman can be found giving her clients their "mane" fix at her Hollywood salon, Hairroin.

She has been experimenting with hair design and technique since the age of 14 and enrolled in cosmetology school soon after graduating high school. Within her first five years, Janine had styled some of Hollywood's hottest stars including Fergie, Britney Spears, Scarlett Johansson and Christina Applegate.

She served as the go-to stylist for Carmen Electra and the sexy burlesque group The Pussycat Dolls, whom she styled through their transition from vaudeville act to MTV video vixens.

From 2000 to 2007, Janine worked alongside her two mentors at Sexy Hair products, assisting in the development and launching of new product lines, as well as in the role of elite platform and international educator.

In 2009, Janine joined the Sebastian Professional Design Team and now represents the brand on the West Coast.

Joey, 29, from Melbourne, Australia

Joey Scandizzo's affinity for luscious locks began at the age of 14, initially as a way to practice flirting with girls. But while sweeping hair at a family members hairdressing business, he discovered his passion for hair went deeper. He soon left secondary school and took the plunge into professional hairdressing - which kept him both out of trouble and in with the ladies.

Joey has since made a name for himself by directing hair for the Perth Fashion Festival, styling hair for "Precinct and Cream." He was recently honored as one of four finalists at this years' prestigious Hair Expo Australian Hairdresser of the Year Awards.

Joey is currently the artistic director and part owner of Rokk Ebony salon and has won accolades at several cutting competitions including Hair Expo, Wella Trend Visions and Star Search Collections.

Jon, 38, from Nashville, Tennessee

Camilla comment about the fact Jon still had his sunglasses on when the group first appeared in front of her.  Camilla asked Jon "you think you're going to make it to the end?"  Jon said "I didn't come here to go home empty handed."

Jon introduced himself as "Jon Steinick" and "I'm a large pill to be swallowed.  I currently have a salon in Nashville called Posth.  I've been doing hair for 19 years and it's all I ever wanted to do.  I think there's a huge error of arrogance about me.  You can suck it if you don't like it."

More About Jon

Jon discovered early in life that his future would be in hair. At the young age of five, he would watch in awe as a master stylist transformed his mother's hair during frequent visits to a Paul Mitchell salon. From then on, he was hooked. Jon went on to graduate at the top of his class from the Iowa School of Beauty when he was just 18.

Upon graduation, he quickly landed work with celebrities including Bette Midler and Janet Jackson.  Jon told the media Bette Midler "came out swearing and cussing, gave me a wink and slapped my ass."  Hmmm.  Sounds like Bette doesn't it?

Jon has also styled LeAnn Rimes. But it's his regulars that give him the most joy.  "The people who sit in my chair 6 days a week are more famous than the ones you see on TV."

Jon continued to harness his skills as a stylist at a myriad of notable institutions, including Bumble & Bumble in New York, Vidal Sassoon in Los Angeles and Jingles in London.

He spent five years working for famed stylist Oribe at his Fifth Avenue Salon in New York where he styled countless runway shows and honed his craft. Jon then moved to Nashville, his home for the past 13 years, and has styled the likes of LeAnn Rimes, Alan Jackson, Lisa Marie Presley and Poison.

Matthew, 38 from Denver, Colorado

Matthew Morris's career quickly caught fire after he was named "Editorial Stylist of the Year" by the North American Hairstyling Awards (NAHA) in 2005. In 2008 and 2009, Elle Magazine named the Matthew Morris Salon the Best Salon in Colorado.

Matthew has become a fixture at New York City's Fashion Week, having styled for numerous designers and supermodels over the last 14 seasons. He has style celebrities that include Rosario Dawson, Paris Hilton, Idina Menzel and the Scissor Sisters.

Matthew currently serves as the Fashion Editor for Denver's 303 Magazine as well as on the Editorial Board for New York's Launchpad Magazine, and his work has been featured in Allure Magazine.

More Information

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