TheBeautySaloon

I’ve always loved history and all things vintage, and after landing a job working for a professional beauty supply distributor in my early twenties, hairstylists and beauty professionals gained a special place in my heart. While attending several large national conferences in my role as a to-the-trade salesperson, I was introduced to the beauty industry’s top product manufacturers and saw the behind-the-scenes action of the professional beauty business. I loved my weekly sales route because I got to visit almost every shop in town and get a glimpse into the day to day operations of small independent salons. My favorite part of the job was visiting the older “beauty operators” in their little home shops, some of whom had been perming and backcombing clients since the 1940’s. By 2005, I’d been wearing vintage clothing and vintage hairstyles for a decade, but at that time, finding stylists who were familiar with vintage styles and techniques was difficult. I finally saw the place where my love of history and vintage style could converge with my love of the beauty industry. I decided to enroll in beauty school to learn fingerwaving, pincurling and the art of classic hairstyling, but also to eventually serve hairstylists and makeup artists to help them grow their businesses and thrive in the industry. Over the years since I graduated from cosmetology school, my path has led me many places, from working in a salon as a booth renter, to owning my own art and design business, to web design and blogging, to learning the ins and outs of branding and marketing for small businesses. Several years ago, I began using my design skills and vintage ephemera collection to create vintage-inspired products that no one else was offering to the industry, and in 2011, The Beauty Saloon store was born.