Area stylist has hand in 'Makeover' show

COLUMBUS - A local hair stylist will be paying particular attention to tonight's ABC television special, "Life After Extreme Makeover," a show that follows up on how people previously featured on the program are doing now.

Becky Micek, an independent stylist with Totally Clipz in Columbus, did hair and makeup for the segment that revisits Candace Sturgeon, a Lincoln woman who was featured on an Extreme Makeover episode last fall.

Tonight's special takes a look at how participants look now and how much of their new looks they've maintained.

They will also be reunited for the first time with the team of doctors and experts who originally worked on them.

Micek was tabbed to do Sturgeon's makeup and hair for the special while a California camera crew followed Sturgeon around for a day and interviewed her again.

"It was fun and exciting and interesting," Micek said. "There was a lot of hurry up and wait. That's what a lot of this work entails. It was pretty much just be there, just in case, so she was always looking at her best. I was looking at her hair and makeup all the time."

It's not the first time Micek, who has 20 years of experience as a stylist, has had a taste of Hollywood. About a decade ago, she got to work on the set of the movie, "To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar," working on 72 extras.

Producers of the Extreme Makeover program apparently found Micek's name and number on the Web site of the Nebraska Film Office when looking for a Nebraska stylist.

About five or six weeks ago, Micek received a message on her answering machine from someone who said they were with ABC and wanted to know if she was available. At first, she thought someone was playing a joke on her.

But Micek called the person back and learned it was no joke. A few days later, she was in Lincoln with the film crew.

"They filmed her doing everyday activities. Taking her kids to school, going to work, filmed her at work, working out at the YMCA," Micek said. And in the afternoon, they did on-camera interviews with Sturgeon, her husband and her children.

All along the way, Micek had to be ready to provide touchups when necessary, to make Sturgeon's hair and makeup look its best throughout the day.

"Time was very limited. We arrived there and she was dashing around getting her kids ready to take them to school," Micek said. "By the time we got in the house it was about 8:30 and she had to be ready to go by 9."

Micek said it was a fun experience and she learned a lot. Plus, she got to meet a lot of people and make new friends.

"It's an exciting experience," Micek said. "It was a broadening opportunity, it's a different aspect of our creativity."

Working on a television show versus a movie set has its differences, she said.

"Candace was very relaxed in front of the crew. She was kind of into it more. As nice as she was, it was more of a fun experience or more of an enjoyable experience," Micek said. "It didn't have the pressure of a director."