Colin Lively is a man in demand.
It's been more than 20 years since this high-society hairdresser left Ohio, where he "was the most talked-about stylist in Cleveland," he says.
He founded the local salon Today's Headlines and made the cover of Cleveland Magazine in 1984, before selling his business and moving to New York.
But through Facebook, Lively has reconnected with many of his former clients here — he has more than 4,000 friends at this writing — "and I've had a couple of hundred requests [to return]," he says.
So last month, Lively booked five days of appointments — about 100 in all — at Eddy's on Coventry, to try out a periodic return to Cleveland.
"So far they're treating me like I'm a superstar returning home," he says.
Given that star treatment, Lively predicts he could eventually spend as much as two weeks out of every six here, though he hasn't decided at which salon he'll end up parking his flat iron.
Those who can't get enough of Lively can see him in an episode of the new Bravo series Fashion Hunters this fall. It's a reality show centered on New York resale shop Second Time Around, and Lively appears offering an item for consignment.
"It's like a New York fashion Antiques Roadshow," he says. "Everyone in it are well-known in New York fashion circles."
Lively offered up an antique silver Byzantine cuff inset with carnelian that once belonged to Coco Chanel. He can't say how much the cast offered for the cuff — you'll have to watch for that — but "Coco Chanel would probably have been disappointed," he says.
Paltry price aside, "I never had so much fun," he says. "The cast were all creative and quirky. ... I felt like I was back in my youth hanging out in University Circle."
