Now Open
South Coast Conservancy
South Coast Conservatory students (L to R) Lulu De Leon, Lexi Blades, Avalon Shill, Lindsey Blades and Kara Dresser are among the more than 150 youth and adults learning dance at the conservatory’s new San Clemente location. Photo: Jim Shilander
400-C Camino De Estrella
949.367.0099, www.mvdpac.com
Owner Jena Minnick said with substantial numbers of San Clemente parents sending their children to South Coast Conservatory’s Laguna Niguel location for years, opening a location in San Clemente was essentially a no-brainer.
“When we started looking in San Clemente, 24 percent of our student base that went to Laguna Niguel was from the two San Clemente zip codes,” Minnick said. “There weren’t many dance training choices, so they looked further than their own community.”
Minnick is a San Clemente resident herself, so she said she’d hear about parents making the drive to Laguna Niguel all the time, both from those who made the trip and from those who may have been interested in the school but for the drive to Laguna Niguel.
“For a lot of kids, dance isn’t their only thing, so parents didn’t want to drive 12 to 15 miles away when I can do it here,” she said.
The conservatory’s location includes three dance rooms, two that are essentially identical and a third, slightly smaller, which is primarily used for classes for the youngest, often pre-school-aged, students, so parents can watch the class.
The parents of those students, she said, were the primary audience for the change.
“That’s the age where you don’t want to strap them in for a long haul,” Minnick said. At around age 10, more parents are looking to their children to decide on a single focus.
The studio opened in mid-November. Minnick said the process included bringing in professional-quality dance floors, which require special padding underneath to allow for less strain on dancers’ bodies. The San Clemente branch currently houses approximately 150 students, with capacity for 100 more. The studio is spread over two floors, with registration and a dance shop on the first floor and studios on the second.
The conservatory is involved in a number of local events, including performing at the San Clemente Ocean Festival and school fundraising events.
SHE
901 Avenida Talega, Suite 112
949.226.2961, clavelavery@aol.com
Master esthetician Clavel Avery said her 10 years of experience in the field and her science-based approach, allows her to provide a higher level of care. Avery often speaks on the subjects of skincare and focuses on non-invasive skin care techniques that produce results.
“I listen and do not tell people what they want to hear. I tell them what is actually needed,” Avery said. “My background in cosmetic chemistry is pretty thorough, so they trust me. I’m the one who’ll tell them ‘No’ if it’s not the correct procedure or could harm them.”
Avery said the majority of her customers come in looking for help with managing the aging process, and the way that skin changes over time. For this, she uses micro-channeling, a procedure which puts healthy serums into the skin to allow for greater penetration, and microdermabrasion. She also works closely with doctors who have clients going through laser procedures.
SHE has a French salon feel, Avery noted, which goes along with the origin of many of the products she uses, along with a small size that is geared toward providing individual attention to clients.