HOW SHE GOT FROM THERE TO HERE
I knew from a very young age that I wanted to be a hairdresser, and in fact, I entered beauty school at 15. By 17, I had graduated and started my career at a salon in Houston, where I had just moved, called Visible Changes. Two ex-New Yorkers, John and Maryanne McCormack, owned the salon, and I serendipitously just happened to walk into it one day and got a job. They were great friends with Leland Hirsch and Michael Mazzi, and they happened to be the educators on a company trip that I won. Leland introduced me to this brand-new shampoo that came out orange and frothed up white, and lo and behold, this was the first run-through of ARTec Shampoo.

We used ARTec in the salon, and when I came to New York to the John Dellaria Salon in Soho, I began working even more with ARTec. Then, about seven or eight years ago, I opened my own salon in Soho called Dop Dop: I became a platform artist for ARTec, and when L'Oreal Professionnel purchased ARTec, they got me and my team. It was a great transition for me to go from ARTec to L'Oreal Professionnel. I always say that God has me where I need to be at every moment, and if I don't fight it and go with it, I end up where I need to be.

MEN
I love male clients. They're so deliciously vain, and yet they don't want to be. They're punctual and appreciative. They give you gifts, and before they leave the salon, they book their next appointment. And they talk sports. I love to talk sports. About 40% of our clients are men, and of this, about 65% get their hair colored. We charge the same prices for men as we do for women, and we're very masterful with our men. We get them in and out quickly, and they appreciate this, because everyone in New York is in a huge hurry. People will pay you for being expedient.

HER PERFECT MARRIAGE
My career gave me the perfect background for opening my salon. I really had the best of both worlds. The McCormacks taught me how to set goals and achieve them. They were all about training and were very disciplined. When I was moving to New York to work for John Dellaria, John McCormack told me that he was one of the most creative hairdressers ever, and advised me to let him show me how to jump out of the box, to do crazy haircolor and take chances and make my palms sweat, which I did. So after over six years of incredible structure with the McCormacks, and over six years of unabashed creativity with John, I opened Dop Dop and married the two. I think of what we do as artistry with an edge. We're extremely creative but extraordinarily tasteful.

HER ONGOING CHALLENGE
Getting the perfect color and technique for the individual can be challenging. How do I overcome this? By actually looking at the canvas I'm working on. Even with repeat clients, I look at them as if it's their first time in my chair. If I get anxious or feel challenged, I breathe. Really breathe. A lot of people don't breathe consciously. I step away, breathe and come back from a different angle. Sometimes I'll even turn the client away from the mirror, or we'll walk away and sit somewhere else in the salon for a change of perspective.

THE BEST MOVE SHE'S EVER MADE
Moving to New York City was the best career decision I ever made- other than becoming a hairdresser in the first place. I was really clear that in Houston, 1 could be a big fish in a small pond, but I felt I wasn't growing. Coming to New York, I knew it would be sink or swim, and I wanted that challenge. You can't be mediocre here and make it- at least not the way I wanted to. You really have to do your thing and be exceptional to stand out in New York. You have to work your butt off, stay constantly inspired and creative. I worked seven days a week for years. It was a huge challenge to my skills, but it made me successful.

JOINING FORCES
People say that colorists compete against one another, but I say there is no competition. We're all on the same team. We're one colorist, and we share the same goal: to make our clients feel and look better than they did when they came in. Never forget why we're really in the business. It isn't to compete. It isn't to down one another. It's to make a positive difference in people's lives, and this is how we should look at it.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GOOD AND GREAT
Good haircolor looks good on the person who's wearing it. Great haircolor becomes part of the person who's wearing it.

Jo Blackwell-Preston won an Emmy Award in 2003 for her work on a public service announcement featuring Elmo and New York City firefighters, as part of a safety campaign for children called the Get Low & Go Campaign. Jo did the hair for all the people that appear in the commercial. She also was on the premier episode of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. At the start of her career, Jo was a guest artist on the New & Young Guest Artist stage at the 1988-89 HaircolorUSA show. She went on to do 10 subsequent HaircolorUSA appearances. She is a return guest yearly with the International Haircolor Exchange, and travels extensively as a color artist for L’Oreal Professional. She also received the "Educator of the Year" Award from the International Hair Color Exchange. Jo serves on the Executive Board of the Hair Color Counsel of Intercoiffure alongside notable colorists Gina Kitan and David Stanko. Jo is currently seated on the Board of Directors for Intercoiffure.