Today I´m going to show you one of the first sets I bought. It was this one.
I bought it from a Spanish collector´s website and it is one of the sets that were sold in Spain by the toy brand Bizak some years ago.As you can see it came with Nancy Waters.I was amazed at the cuteness and details of all the tiny accessorizes of this little set.
I know there is a Sylvanian beauty salon.It is a really nice building but as I don´t have it and I guess it´s hard to get I decided to set up a beauty room with a cardbox( not very glamorous, though).I handmade a few bits and pieces ( a magazine rack,a white piece of furniture,vases of flowers...)I also decorated the walls and turned the box into a beauty salon run by Yardley Walnut, known in Sweet Berry Vally as "The Queen of Pampering".
I wrote a story to show you a bit more about it and to introduce you to Yardley Walnut,a qualified hairdressers and beautician.
Hope you enjoy it. Just one warning. You might end up with an overdose of pink!! A bit too much but that´s the colour that first came to my mind when I thought of decorating a beaty room.
SATURDAY MORNING AT THE BEAUTICIAN´S
Saturday morning is a busy day for Yardley Walnut since it´s the day of the week that she has more clients.
At least, on Saturday there´s no school and her daughter Saffron can help her.
First of all, she checks the agenda to see the appointments for the day. "Let´s see who is first..."
Yardley wants her clients to be pampered and tries to create a relaxing and welcoming atmosphere as soon as you open the door. She finds attention to detail very important and the waiting room is a good example.
A well stocked magazine rack.
Fresh flowers that fill the air with a delicate fragrance.
And even tea and coffe served in the finest crystal cups.
The waiting room is all set up.
In the beauty room Yardley is getting ready all the lotions, creams and massage oils.
The make up dresser is filled with a good range of lipsticks, nail varnishes and lovely perfumes.
and a bed to lay down and unwind while Yardley gives you one of her relaxing massages.
Eleanor Bramble is the first client of the day. "Good morning Yardley" she greeted. "Hi , Eleanor.What can I do for you ?" Yardley asked. "Let´s see if you can fix this frizzy hair and do something with my fringe!, it´s so long that I find it hard to thread the needle. I can´t see properly with so much hair covering my eyes and I have to sew many clothes"
"No problem Eleanor, let´s get into the beauty room" Yardley said
"Good morning Ms. Buckley. Mum is just finishing having Ms. Bramble hair done. Take a seat, please.She won´t be long. May I offer you a cup of tea or coffe?" Saffron wanted to make a good impression on Ms. Buckley since she is the headsmistress of her school and her Arts and Crafts teacher too.
"Thank you Saffron, tea will be lovely" Agatha said and she sat comfortably to wait while reading a magazine and sipping a cup of tea.
After having her hair cut and dried, Eleanor Bramble is much happier with her looks. "Just a final brush and you´ll be perfect, Eleanor" Yardly assured.
"Your hair looks fantastic, Eleanor" Ms Buckley complimented. "Thank you, it´s Yardley´s merit. She makes wonders" Eleanor added .
"I´ll walk you to the door Ms. Bramble" Saffron offered. Yardley and Agatha headed into the beauty room.
After doing Ms Buckley´s nails, Yardly is about to apply a bit of varnish to make them shine. What do you think of this colour? Yardley asked. "Lovely. I like it" Agatha said quite pleased.
Once her nails were done to perfection Yardley offered Agatha a new perfume. "Would you like to try this perfume? I think it would suit you", Yardely offered Agatha. Yardley knows her clients´ preferences and she knows Agatha loves perfumes. " She sprayed the perfume on her wrist and agreed with Yardley. Mmm, you´re right, it smells lovely. I´ll get a bottle" she said without hesitation smelling her wrist in delight.
Just as Agatha was leaving she met her friend Lucy, the nursery school teacher . They greeted each other friendly and chatted away for a while.
Now it´s Ms. Fenton´s turn. She wants to treat herself to a relaxing back massage. "My back is kind of painful , Yardley. I think lifting babies and bending to adress to them is making me complaint about my back. Barker wants me to visit Doctor Murdoch but I suggested to try back massages first and he encouraged me to come to see you"
Lucy Fenton laid down on the beauty bed. " I´m going to use this oil for the massage. You´ll smell good enough to eat and your skin will feel as soft as a baby´s".Yardley said showing Lucy the bottle.
"I think I´m going to fall asleep, Yardley" Lucy said in a sleepy tone of voice. " Shh, just relax, now it´s your time" Yardley whispered.
"What about a foot massage? Yardley suggested. "You´ll feel as relax as ever, you´ll see"
Yardley was more than right. Lucy was so relaxed that she found it hard to get up. "Here is your dress, Ms. Fenton" Saffron said holding Lucy´s dress with care.
"Here is your bag Ms. Fenton" Saffron said giving Lucy her bag. "Sure you are a great helper Saffron. Your mum is lucky to have such a nice daughter". Lucy´s words made Saffron blushed. "Thank you, Ms Fenton"
She answered shyly.
She left mum and Ms. Fenton in the beauty room and as she entered the waiting room she met Cassandra Macavity , her daughter Grizabella and the two babies . " Look at these cute babies" Saffron loves babies and she would love to have a baby sister or brother.
"Have you got an appointment Ms. Macavity" Saffron asked . As far as she could remember they weren´t on the agenda for today.
" Not really. Today it´s Grizabella´s birthday and I promised her to visit the beauty salon when she turned sixteen but if your mum is busy we´ll come back any other day." Cassandra explained.
"Happy birthday Grizzabella" I´m sure mum will have some time for you". Saffron said kindly.
The two babies were already eager to get out of the push chair. "Hold on, I´ll get you out" her mum said reluctantly. She wasn´t sure if it was a good idea to let them free but before the crying started they were taken out the chair.
"Be good, you promise? "Cassandra asked her baby girl Skimble " Mummy,Skimble good" she said kissing her mum.
Grizabella and her mother were enjoying having a look at a magazine. Suddenly Grizabella turned her head and she spotted her baby sisters trying to get something from one of the dresser drawers.
"Skimble, Snowy!! What are you doing up there?" She said lifting her voice and making her mum jump out of her seat.
"What did I say to you a minute ago? Come here you two!" "Don´t touch anything, ok? Cassandra was mad at them. "
"Skimble good , Snowy bad" Skimble said blaiming her sister but Cassandra knew well that Skimble was the naughtiest.
Saffron left for a minute and came back with some empty pots of beauty products. "Here you are, do you want to play with them?" she offered the babies the pots and they started to play straight away.
"It seems they ´re having fun" Cassandra said keeping and eye on them. "I woudn´t mind a cup of tea now as they are playing quietly" Cassandra suggested. "That´s done! Ms.Macavity" Saffron replied and inmediatly she served her a nice cup of tea.
She also brought Grizabella some make up and perfume catalogues to have a look. "Aww, you´re so nice, Saffron" Grizabella thanked her kindness.
Ms.Fenton´s husband and her children came into the beauty salon. " Hi, Saffron, good to see you. Has Lucy finished" asked Mr. Fenton. Mr. Fenton was her music teacher and she loved his music classes. "She must be ready by now, Mr Fenton. I´ll go and check" but as soon as she said the last word Ms.Fenton and her mum were already there.
"You look lovely Lucy and you smell so good!" Barker said when he approached to kiss his wife. " I came for a back massage and Yardley insisted on a facial treatment too so I´ve been all pampered. This lady is a jewel" Lucy said cheerfully.
Lucy went to greet Cassandra and Grizabella, then she asked for the two babies. "Where are Skimble and Snowy? She was her nursery teacher. "Surprisingly they are playing quietly, you know them well" Cassandra told Lucy.
But when she turned her back to point to where they were she couldn´t believe her eyes. "Oh, my goodness!! They´re gone!" Cassandra cried . "Don´t you worry, they can´t be that far" Yardly said trying to calm her down.
And she was right, a few giggles coming under the table made it easy to find where they were hiding.
"Come out straight away!! We know you ´re there!" Cassandra commanded.
SKIMBLE!!!! Cassandra and Grizabella shouted at the same time
Snowy pretty!! Skimble said pointing to her sister with a pink lipstick in her hand .
"Where did you get this from? You´re a little naughty kitten, you know?" Cassandra scolded him.
"Don´t get that mad at him .It´s just a harmless mischief" her friends said trying to calm her down.
"I know, I know, but she´s always getting into mischief and sometimes I run out of patience." Cassandra replied.
"Let´s clean your face, Snowy" her sister said gently.
Ms.Fenton, her nursery teacher tried to comfort Skimble who was in tears. "It´s ok, come on, no more crying but you have to be a good girl and do what your mummy says, ok?"
Once everything came back to normal The Fenton´s said good bye and left the salon.
"Well, Cassandra now it´s your turn" Yardley said inviting her to get into the beauty room.
"Thank you Ms Walnut but I think we should leave. It wasn´t a good idea to come with the two babies." Grizabella said even though she would love to stay.
"No way Griz!, you stay. This is my birthday present for you. I´ll just go for a walk and I´ll buy a birthday cake". Her mother´s words made Grizabella´s face light up. "Aww, thank you mum, you´re the best" and she gave her mother a hug.
Cassandra was all excited. She´s been waiting for a visit to the beauty salon for a long time and there she was facing Ms. Walnut who was about to cheer up her cheeks with a bit of blusher.
"Now a bit of lipstick. Make sure you put it out of Skimble´s reach". Yardley said and they both laughed.
"Smell this perfume. It´s so fresh..."
Grizabella was enjoying every minute. Yardley Walnut was such a nice lady that it was a pleasure to be pampered by her.
She even gifted her with some lovely beauty products. "That´s all for you, it´s a present for your birthday" Grizabella was really gratefull and amazed at Ms. Walnut´s generosity.
She was over the moon and left the salon looking forward to showing her mother the bag of goddies Ms.Walnut gave her. "Thanks so much Ms. Walnut" she said once more as she was leaving.
Nancy Waters was the last client of the day. She just called by to get a face and a hand cream. "My skin feels so much better since you recommended me these creams" Nancy told Yardley who always knows what suits each of her clients.
When everybody was gone Saffron looked at her mother with admiration and said " Mum, when I grow up I want to be such a good beautician as you are"
"I´m sure you will, sweetheart, even better than me." her mother said with certainty and she added " Just keep something in mind. Beauty is not just about make up and looks.It´s how you are as a person and how you make others feel about themselves."
"I´ll follow your advice mum. Will you let me start practicing ? " Saffron asked eagerly.
"Go ahead, I like to be pampered too" her mother accepted gladly.
Tail brushing time. Your hair feels so soft...!
"Close your eyes mum"
"Go easy with the make up, Saffron. Sometimes less is more" her mother adviced wisely.
"And just a touch of lipstick to make your smile even nicer , mum"
"Look at you mum, you look fantastic!" Saffron complimented on her mother´s looks.
"Of course she does. She´s the most beautiful woman in the whole Sylvanian!" Yardley´s husband said giving her a kiss.
"Cedric! , you gave me a fright and you´re such a flatterer ! I didn´t expect you here" she said happy to see him.
"I wasn´t too busy at the barber´s today and I thought it was a good idea to walk home all together." Cedric explained.
"That´s great!. Let´s go then". And they all headed home willing to enjoy the weekend.
Aren´t they a beautiful family?
I hope you liked the story.
Lots of love
