I live in dresses...
I’m a women and I dress for it. Anything from great American vintage to Kate Sylvester. I also love Ellery, Comme de Garçons, Play, bassike, Acne T-shirts, Romance Was Born and Vivienne Westwood. My style has become a lot more relaxed since I became a mum.
I am so passionate about hairdressing and adore my 14 staff...
I work full time. I am always looking at ways to push myself or the salon. Sometimes it’s easier to go to work than stay at home. I don’t think I could ever be a stay at home mum. It’s just not me. You have to do what suits you.
Teddy has been going to Reddam House in Sydney’s Woollahra for the last few years...
They are amazing – the teaching methods are very progressive. We couldn’t be happier with him there. Our weekly schedule is very structured.
You can only do your best...
Sometimes, work is crazy and things don’t work out how they are meant too, but it’s not the end of the world. For me, taking an extra day off work and going to the country to see family is a lifesaver. I think balance does exist. I feel like I have enough family time, and enough work time. When you’re happy and you don’t feel like anything is suffering, I think that is balance, but it can’t always be balanced. It’s just not realistic.
For the first two years, I followed a routine pretty strictly...
I love the book Save Our Sleep by Tizzy Hall. Teddy was such a happy baby with the right about of sleep and right feeding times. It’s a must for all first time mums. I was always relaxed about it though.
I get a lot of clothes overseas...
Locally, Seed and Munster and anything from Kido Store in Sydney’s Surry Hills.
I love my little boy so much and he loves his Mumma so much...
I’m so proud of giving birth to my son and creating him with my gorgeous man Akira. Teddy has my lips. That’s the first thing I said when I saw him. He also has his Dad’s big feet! The love you have for your child is like nothing else.
Motherhood has taught me to be patient...
Well try at least! We never baby proofed our house. We just taught Teddy how to do things around the house and probably said NO a million times!
Teddy’s room is simple, slightly boyish, but not over the top...
Teddy has five guitars already so they are hanging on his wall with some great vintage mirrors. Teddy’s new bunk beds are awesome. I have to try not to fall sleep when I’m reading him books. We read a lot of books on the human body or dinosaurs. Teddy has all the classics as well. For toys, I like Koskela in Rosebery. Teddy just got a huge human body with the skelton and 45 body organs – he’s obsessed with it.
My mum put an announcement in the birth section of the newspaper when Teddy was born...
She then got it framed for us. It’s very old school but I loved that. My girlfriends, artist Jedda-Daisy Culley and Leah Fraser both painted artworks for Teddy, which is very special.
With Teddy, I had a natural drug free water birth...
I do have a high pain threshold, so it worked for me. Giving birth in the water really helped as it was a very calm environment. I had my doula and my partner Akira by my side. Now that I am pregnant for the second time, I think it’s a bit scarier as I know what to expect.
I’ll teach Teddy to be nice to others...
To treat people the way you want to be treated, and not to be judgmental.
For most mothers, regular manicures, pedicures, brow waxes and lash tints might be a thing of the past, but every busy mother knows that the secret to looking well groomed is a really, really good hair stylist. For Paloma Rose Garcia, great hair is part of her job as one of Australia’s leading hair stylists and Salon Partner at Oscar Oscar salon in Paddington. If you’re looking for someone to rescue your hair – she’s your girl (she styled the hair of fashion editor Carine Rotifeld while she was visiting Australia back in 2007) but you’ll have to wait a couple of months as she’s 30 weeks pregnant with her second child.
While every mother might be a working mother, Garcia is the ultimate multi-tasker. Juggling running a business with looking after her four-year-old son Teddy Alvarez-Garcia, she wouldn’t change a thing. “I am so passionate about hairdressing and adore my 14 staff. I’m always looking at ways to push myself or the salon. I think balance does exist. I feel like I have enough family time and enough work time. When you’re happy and you don’t feel like anything is suffering, I think that is balance, but it can’t always be balanced. It’s just not realistic.
Palomas little list of loves:
Spa treatments at the QT spa.
Acupuncture with Ross Penman to help with my morning sickness.
Fresh juices from About Life.
Sunday low key and relaxed family time with my boys.
Spring cleaning my house and getting ready for baby two.
Early dinner meals out with my boys.
Funny conversations with my four-year-old son Teddy in the car.
Photography: Julie Adams Makeup: Sarina Zoe Words: Georgie Abay