Vanity House Makes Contessa 38 Finals in Canadian Salon Team Category

Vanity House of London, Ontario has landed a finalist slot in the Contessa 38 Canadian Salon Team of the Year category — the 38th edition of Canada's longest-running hairdressing awards — with an eight-stylist entry shot by photographer Paula Tizzard.

For a single salon to field a team entry at this level says something about bench depth. The credited styling team runs eight names deep: Aran Beattie, Anna Ackworth, Victoria Hatzenbuhler, Mic Teeple, Dharby Harrison, Finn Kirwin, Jayla Campbell and Liv Temple.

Who else is on the entry sheet?

Contessa team categories judge the full image, not just the hair, and Vanity House built its crew accordingly:

• Hairstylists: Aran Beattie, Anna Ackworth, Victoria Hatzenbuhler, Mic Teeple, Dharby Harrison, Finn Kirwin, Jayla Campbell, Liv Temple
• Makeup: Kristy Jantzi
• Wardrobe/styling: Brianna Gastaldi
• Photography: Paula Tizzard

The submitted collection runs at least five finished images, filed under lead stylist Aran Beattie's entry set.

What does a Contessa finalist slot mean for a working salon?

Team of the Year is the category where the salon itself — not one name — becomes the brand. Vanity House's entry credits eight stylists, one makeup artist, one wardrobe stylist and one photographer. That's eleven paid professionals on one shoot, which is the realistic production budget any salon eyeing this category should plan against.

It's also a staffing argument. A salon that can pull eight stylists into a cohesive collection is a salon with internal training culture and a shared visual language — exactly what awards juries reward and what recruiting conversations tend to reference.

The category is judged on the collection as a whole: consistency of finish, direction, and how well makeup and wardrobe serve the hair. Kristy Jantzi on makeup and Brianna Gastaldi on wardrobe mean the hair team didn't carry the images alone.

Why the photographer credit matters

Paula Tizzard's name on the entry is not a footnote. In team categories, photographic execution can make or break technically strong hair, and established awards photographers book out months ahead of submission deadlines. Salons planning a Contessa 39 run should lock their photographer before they lock their concepts.

Watch for the Contessa 38 winners' announcement — that's the next data point, and it decides whether Vanity House's eight-stylist bet converts from finalist listing to national title.