Hairstylist says 'entitled' Marla Maples expected free Inauguration Day services in exchange for 'exposure'
Will tweets be the new currency under Donald Trump?
Tricia Kelly, a Washington, D.C., hairstylist, says she was shocked when an "entitled" Marla Maples, Trump's second ex-wife, suggested that instead of paying Kelly to do her hair on Inauguration Day, she would post about it on social media, giving her "exposure." When Maples' assistant passed the message along, Kelly was "stunned," she told The Washington Post. "I told them... I work for a fee, not for free."
A client had asked Kelly if she was interested in working with Maples and her daughter, Tiffany Trump, on Inauguration Day. After telling Maples' assistant she would charge $150 for travel plus the cost of services, "I was told they had a $300 budget for both of them for hair and makeup," Kelly said. Once she agreed to accept $200, the "exposure" word was floated around. Kelly says she was insulted. "There are people who make far less than they do who pay full price," she said. "People on staff — the incoming White House and the outgoing one — pay full price. It seemed like they were trying to see how much they could get for free based on their names."
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Kelly, who has prominent clients from both sides of the aisle, said she deliberately stays nonpartisan and would never want it to look like she was favoring anyone (she said she came forward to share this story only because she was so outraged by the request). She also said a nasty message she received from the client who set her up with Maples offers some insight into why the daughter of an alleged billionaire has to split $300 with her mom for hair and makeup: The client allegedly said Maples is worried about her finances, now that Tiffany is out of college and she no longer receives child support from Trump, and "she is used to a certain lifestyle and you don't understand that."
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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