Beauty Changes Lives

"Every day is new"

2012-03-02T07:57:00.002-08:00

Princess Julia Karolyi

You don’t need a royal bloodline to create a beautiful life, according to Princess Julia Karolyi, founder of Beautage Skincare and author of C.H.A.R.M. – How to Make Your World a More Beautiful Place.

Julia is a member of the royal family that fled Hungary in the 1920s when Communists overtook the monarchy. As a princess and a makeup artist, Julia understands how beauty can make anyone feel like royalty.

Q. How did you choose beauty as a career?
A. I started behind the Revlon counter in high school. After cosmetology school, where I studied skincare, I helped Revlon launch two youth lines – Almay and Bonne Bell. From there I worked with Clinique, Elizabeth Arden and Dior brands. I loved traveling the world and learning about the science of skincare.

Q. What do you love most about your career?
A. Every day is new. I might be working backstage at a music awards event or styling someone for a TV appearance., but I’m never too proud to get behind the counter and sell product. I love that too!

Q. What’s your best career advice?
A. Find the area you love— whether that’s hair, skincare or nails—and focus on becoming the absolute best at it!

Q. How does beauty change lives?
A. Beauty can provide great financial security, but what I love most is how beauty can not only help me look and feel my best, but help others too.

How does beauty make you feel like royalty?

"Doing something that I love"

2012-02-29T10:02:00.004-08:00

Alice Vitello

Beauty is my mother deftly applying red lipstick to my lips while I lay in the recovery room after surgery. It is also the striking figure of my Youth Dew misted Grammie as she stands beside my Papa, impeccably dressed and made up, at age 88. Beauty is the job I held at Sephora Columbus Circle in NYC, where I bonded with others who shared the same excitement over the newest glittery eye shadow or holy-grail concealer.

I went to University of Virginia for undergrad and double majored in English and Italian literature. At the same time, I was heavily inspired by Kevyn Aucoin's makeup artistry books, and I became known for doing makeup on my friends, or setting up spa nights for my sorority where we would do things like go to the Origins store for mini facials. I went on to UPenn to get my Ph.D. in Italian, met my husband, and got married. We moved to NYC for his job and the move was rough on me. I fell into a series of panic attacks that led to a period of depression, and I went home to stay with my family for a few weeks while I got it together and helped to look after my sick grandfather.

It was during that time that my life totally changed forever. I kept complaining about how school was killing me, and my brother suggested that I get a job "doing something that I love." It was soon after that that I started working at Sephora. I had a lot of great opportunities in NYC as a makeup artist, and that's where I met some of my celeb clientele, did special events at the Time Warner Center and a fashion show. We moved back to my hometown, Cleveland, where I began to work as a freelance makeup artist for Chanel, and I began writing the Cleveland Beauty Examiner column.

One of the most memorable experiences of my career happened the day of the miracle plane landing on the Hudson River, when one of the women who had been on the flight was brought into the store I was working at just hours after the landing. Her coworker had intuitively known that her friend was in need of nurturing and care, and of all places in NYC she brought her into the store for a makeover.

Tell us about a time in your life when a little pampering turned a horrible day into a good day.

"Our troops can stay in contact"

2012-02-27T08:29:00.000-08:00

A good haircut can make you feel like a million dollars, but a conversation with loved ones is priceless. Sports Clips is helping out on both fronts through its support of the Help a Hero program benefitting the VFW Foundation’s Operation Uplink Free Call Day Program.

Over the past five years, Sports Clips has donated more than $1.3 million to help deployed and hospitalized military members enjoy free “talk-time” with their loved ones. Their efforts to support our nation’s heroes doesn't stop in the salon, but extends to garage sales, bake sales, auctions and many other creative fundraisers.

Sport Clips is changing the lives of men and women in uniform and Beauty Changes Lives salutes them and the professionals who help them look and feel good!

Beauty is changing the lives of soldiers and their families.

How has it changed yours?

"Tapping into my passion"

2012-02-24T07:12:00.000-08:00

I clearly remember the time in my life when I would wake up in the morning, only to want to fall back to sleep. It was a time wrought with fear and frustration. I could not see my future because I wasn't happy. I had not yet realized that the key to finding a fulfilling career heavily lied in using my talents and tapping into my passion. Once I realized that connection, my whole world changed.

I now wake up in the morning with a clear purpose. I’m excited to touch the faces of my clients and transform them into the beauties they already are. When my clients say things like, “I love it,” “you’re so talented,” “I don't want to wash it off,” or “I wish I could carry you with me everywhere,” that is a priceless moment.

To know that I am contributing to the world by making my clients look and feel beautiful makes my heart soar.

Andrea Fairweather, Fairweather Faces

"You can’t always bring your makeup artist with you— it isn’t a reality. My makeup artist, Andrea Fairweather, created for me my own little to-go kit and took away everything I didn’t need. She drew me a face and did dots on the face so it was fool proof. Fairweather Faces Traveling Brush Kit is a system you cannot go wrong with this since it has only four brushes that are multi-functional. I can’t live without it!”

- Lara Spencer, Good Morning America

When did you decide to tap into your passion and change your life?

"Big screen, stunning transformations"

2012-02-22T08:14:00.000-08:00

With the Oscars right around the corner, have you considered how different movies would be without beauty? Beauty has, without a doubt, changed the movie industry as a whole. These big screen, stunning transformations inspire us to recreate the looks we see in our favorite blockbusters, and it often times dictates what's "in" and what's "out."

Celebrity stylist and former Beauty Changes Lives spokesperson Ted Gibson recently started an online petition to get hairdressers recognized in Hollywood. Read the New York Times article on him, published a couple of weeks ago. Ted's goal is to get 100,000 signatures to join his initiative in getting the Academy to recoginze the beauty industry in film and give an Oscar for hair.

What movie star has inspired your hairstyle or makeup?

"Making the world a prettier place"

2012-02-21T07:16:00.000-08:00

Gregorie Guillaume
Beauty editor, HueKnewIt

I always knew that I’d end up in the beauty industry in some capacity. Whenever I’d visit my mother at her cosmetology school I was always fascinated by the hairstyles she was creating on the mannequin heads.

My mother insisted that I go to college, and to her, cosmetology school was out of the question. So, I appeased my need to beautify the world one face at a time as a makeup artist by working as a beauty department manager while I attended college, and eventually obtained my degree. A couple of jobs later, I took my love for aesthetics a step further and went to school at night while I worked full time to get my esthetician license.

After I moved to NY and began working in the corporate offices of well-known beauty companies, I remained unfulfilled. When an opportunity as lead makeup artist for Seventeen Magazine came my way, I jumped at it. We did a nation-wide mall tour, and thousands of young ladies and their moms would stand in line to wait for a chance to sit in my chair to get a quickie makeover and a beauty tip or two. Once they looked in the mirror and I saw them smile, my heart was warm with happiness. I have to admit, there were times I’d get a little teary-eyed, seeing how I affected someone’s life in a small, positive way.

In an effort to reach women on a larger scale and help spread the word about beauty concerns, I started a beauty blog, HueKnewIt, a little over three years. While I loved treating clients as an esthetician and making the world a prettier place as a makeup artist, I will always rely heavily on my past experiences to share information with anyone willing to listen.

Beauty has given me the ability to reinvent myself time and again, and has opened up a new career path that I never imagined. It’s genuinely rewarding and definitely on the upswing.

How has beauty opened up an unexpected career path for you?

"I never could have imagined"

2012-02-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

Skyler Brooks
Founder, Drape Cape

Going before a judge can be unnerving enough, but what about when she’s at the shampoo bowl and it’s a former U.S. Supreme Court Judge Sandra Day O’Connor? Justice O’Connor was just one high-profile personality I shampooed as a hairstylist, but I worried about getting water on every client who sat in my chair.

Then an idea came to me in a dream—a cape that would work as a shampoo bowl and keep water from dribbling down clients’ necks or staining their clothes.

The Drape Cape is keeping clients dry and taking my career in a direction I never could have imagined. Never think your dream can’t be achieved.

How will you use beauty to dream up a new solution or even change your life?

"I could do it... in a chair"

2012-02-15T07:51:00.000-08:00

Lacy Jones, who appeared in the Sunday, November 6, 2011 Herald- Banner newspaper, graduated Friday, January 13, from Cosmetology Career Institute in Greenville, TX.

Lacy was a passenger in her sister’s car in 2008 when their car was forced off the road by another vehicle. Lacy was thrown over 200 feet and seriously injured. As a result of the accident and thirteen months in the hospital and rehabilitation, Lacy was eventually able to move forward with her dreams of becoming a cosmetologist--even though she was confined to a wheel chair. She graduated last month with more than 90% rates in both her academic skills and her rate of attendance.

Lacy had difficulty finding a school that would provide her with the ability to attend school. CC Institute provided her with the accommodations necessary to allow Lacy to pursue her dreams. As she told the Herald-Banner reporter, “You can’t let other people’s doubts and opinions cripple your dreams." Lacy also said, "the accident made me want to keep going just to show people I could do it … in a chair.”

As a graduate of CC Institute, she has the knowledge and skills of ABC-Cutting Hair the Sassoon Way, Nuts and Bolts Training Programs for business and Proctor and Gamble Beauty. Lacy is looking forward to her future and will have the chance to achieve the dream she has had since the age of 10--being a cosmetologist.

- Jenifer Howard, Cosmetology Career Institute

What type of challenges have you faced while pursuing your dreams?

"Beauty really does change lives"

2012-02-13T07:23:00.000-08:00

Melea Blakey
Instructor, Advance Beauty College

Most of the time when I ask my students why they started cosmetology school I hear the same response: “I have always wanted to do hair since I was little.” And I am happy that they are fulfilling their lifelong dream, but for me it was different.

It never once crossed my mind growing up. See, I was 100 plus pounds overweight, and extremely self-conscious. Doing my hair and makeup was a foreign concept to me. I didn’t know how, so I figured, why bother? I felt nothing was going to help me look better. If I could go back in time and talk to my younger self I would hug her and tell her how beautiful she is and how she is not always going to feel this way forever!

After high school, I had no purpose or direction for my life. I was like a boat sitting in the middle of a calm ocean waiting for the wind to fill my sail and take me somewhere, anywhere. When I was 20, I heard that there was a cosmetology school opening near my house and I thought “sounds fun, why not?” Little did I know that walking through that door would be the first day of the new me. This is the me that I always wanted to become. I finished school with honors and because I loved it so much, and I also became an instructor. I lost my 100 plus pounds and transformed into the person I am today. I now teach part time and am behind the chair part time. So, not only do I get to do what I love, but I am lucky enough to get to teach it!

Beauty really does change lives, it changed mine. It has been a blessing in my life and I have a duty to share it with as many people as I can. We are all teachers of beauty in one form or another and knowledge not shared is wasted.

Thank you, God for who I was so that I may fully appreciate who I have become!

Did school inspire you to become a teacher?

"A guiding force in my life"

2012-02-10T07:55:00.000-08:00

Wanda Mann
Founder & Editor-in-Chief, The Black Dress Traveler

Some of the most valuable lessons that I’ve learned in life are the beauty tips that have been passed on to me by my mother and grandmother. Growing up to their mantra of “if you look good, you’ll feel good,” I learned from an early age that making an investment in your appearance is one that always pays off. Even in my moody and awkward teenage years when feeling pretty felt like an impossible achievement, my confidence was buoyed by their encouragement. They knew that taking the time to get my hair done or to put on a pretty pair of earrings had the power to lift my mood and it still does.

Years later, I saw the real power of beauty when my grandmother was being treated in the hospital for cancer. Weak from chemotherapy, Grandma Bertha asked me to bring her nail polish and red lipstick. It didn’t matter that she was wearing a hospital gown and that her body was failing her in so many ways—she still loved herself and wanted to have a moment each day to pamper herself during her illness. Even the nurses would say that her positive attitude brightened their day and how beautiful she looked.

Grandma Bertha passed away in 2007 but her legacy of strength and beauty remains a guiding force in my life and, as a writer, I try to pass on some of her light and wisdom to my readers. Life is a celebration – don’t wait for special occasions to wear a favorite dress or to get dolled up. Make everyday a beautiful adventure.

What special person in your life helped inspire you to pursue your dreams?

"Understand who you are"

2012-02-08T07:35:00.000-08:00

Actor and heartthrob Taye Diggs told MyBabyBrown.com it took him a while to feel comfortable in his darker skin. He credits men like Denzel Washington and Tyson Beckford for paving the way for darker-skinned people to be “hailed” as beautiful men. [Read the full article]

Taye Diggs' book "Chocolate Me" helps kids feel more comfortable in their skin.

Who helped you feel more comfortable in your skin?

"I was excited to share my gift"

2012-02-06T07:23:00.000-08:00

Dre Brown, Makeup Artist/Stylist
Contributing editor, Beautylish

One adage I should have tattooed on my forehead is "When man plans, God laughs." Ain't it the truth?! My love affair with beauty owes its life to this piece of wisdom, because I sure gave the big guy upstairs a few hearty chuckles as I was mapping out my career path to go in a completely different direction.

It was kind of like music. Though beauty was singing in the background of my life for years, I was trying hard to drown it out with another tune. And the louder I belted out my ballad of a "buttoned-up business woman," the more the baseline of beauty aligned with the beat of my heart. There was no getting away from it! So, I finally gave in and sang along. And because I did, beauty has since changed my life.

Growing up I was surrounded by creativity. From my mother and father to my siblings, artistry was always within arm's reach – ranging from hair and makeup design to poetry and graphic art. This environment planted a fertile seed in me that grew into my own recreational expression. I'd write my own fairy tales in one breath and makeover my friends from head to toe in the next. I was blessed with several creative gifts, but couldn't see how they could translate into a livelihood. So, I buckled down in school and set my sights on a business career in communications. I figured beauty would just have to hop in the back seat for this ride ...

But, it wasn't long before it caught up with me. In college, when a dancer friend who admired my eye makeup requested that I bless her face for an upcoming performance, I was excited to share my gift. I didn't see it coming, but was so energized by the experience that I sought to make it a permanent part of my life. And though I continued to further my business/communications career pursuits by day, beauty soon grew to represent the "Superman" to my "Clark Kent".

Freelance makeup artistry would continue to fuel my passion for all things beauty and ultimately open up the door to an unexpected editorial career. Who'd have thunk it? The little girl writing her own fairy tales was now transformed into a columnist exploring the gamut of hair, skincare and makeup from a "brown girl" point of view. My story was shaping up to prove that everything that had effortlessly given me joy as a child had ironically transformed into the livelihood I once doubted it could.

But thinking back now, it should have been no surprise. Every damsel caught by Superman in the movies never looked at life quite the same again, right? I guess the same goes for me.

Did you ever think you'd be pursuing a career in the beauty industry?

"Seeing myself in a new way"

2012-02-03T07:20:00.000-08:00

The road to a career in beauty helped transform me from a tomboy into a beauty aficionada. Beauty allows us to manage what we like and don’t like about ourselves and to ascertain self-worth and greater self-esteem. Self-esteem is the essential ingredient to success.

Kristie Barge
Marketing Manager, Sultra

As the only girl in a male household, I lacked any knowledge of beauty before college. I thought wearing makeup was vain. I didn’t know how to brush my hair, so I let it air dry and left it alone. I imagined only two types of people – the few who used beauty products and everyone else. I thought using any beauty products would separate me from everyone else.

In college I lived with females for the first time. I began to feel that sharing beauty made me feel more connected to my roommates. I was shown how to highlight my natural features and how to style my hair without pulling the roots ’til they hurt. I was encouraged to try new products – from metallic eye shadows to brightly hued nail polishes and teeth whitening strips. I found the fun in it all. But more importantly, I found that I actually felt better about myself simply because I started seeing myself in a new way. I found some power in beauty and my self-esteem improved.

By graduation, I was hooked. I hit up reviews online for more to help me save more time and feel great. Ultimately, I left my first job at large global food company to join the ranks of marketers in the beauty industry, and I found my place in the world. I love everything about bringing beauty products to market. But what makes the difference is that we in the beauty biz allow people to make decisions about their appearance, who they want to be and how they want to look.

When did you first learn about beauty?

"The powerful voice of beauty professionals"

2012-02-01T07:15:00.000-08:00

You may know that February is Black History Month, but do you realize the role that black beauty professionals played in advancing civil rights? Dr. Tiffany Hill, a professor at Texas University Austin is the author of “Beauty Shop Politics– African American Women’s Activism in the Beauty Industry” and chatted with AACS about her book.

Q. Historically, how did black beauty professionals advance social justice?

A. In the early 20^th century, beauty shops were literally the place where women could "let their hair down” and not only make a living, but mobilize for social justice. In the early 1900’s Madame C.J. Walker traveled to the White House to lobby Woodrew Wilson and earned his support for anti-lynching legislation.

Q. What about civil rights?
A. Martin Luther King and Ella Baker recognized the influence of beauty professionals in their civil rights work. In 1967 Beauticians United for Responsibility in partnership with the National Beauty Cultural League used the powerful voice of beauty professionals to raise public awareness of civil rights.

Q. Were beauty schools involved?
A. Absolutely. Madame CJ Walker’s schools and conventions encouraged women to engage their clients in political conversations. A Durham, North Carolina school in the 1950’s added to its curricula “How to engage your clients politically.”

Q. Is the beauty business still changing lives?
A. Absolutely. The Moores Cancer Center in San Diego has teamed up with beauty salons to raise awareness of mammograms and other health screenings. A lot of beautiful change can begin right behind the chair.

Listen to NPR’s interview with Dr. Hill here.

How is the beauty industry shaping social movements today?

"An industry that truly changes lives"

2012-01-27T07:52:00.000-08:00

Alison Shipley
Editor, First Chair and Modern Salon magazines

Growing up, I always knew I loved hair and beauty. I’d spend hours poring through magazines—attempting to recreate the looks on myself and willing friends. I loved reshaping eyebrows and playing with make-up. I even borrowed my mother’s shears from her cosmetology years and chopped my own hair (including one time when I was six, before I was to be a flower girl in my uncle’s wedding, oops!). I remember late night trips to the drugstore to color my hair on a whim—and the early morning salon visits to fix what I’d messed up the night before (don’t worry, I know better now...). I knew I loved beauty, but didn’t quite know what to do with that passion.

After graduating college with my journalism degree, I thought I had come full circle when I landed a job in the beauty industry as an editor for MODERN SALON Media. Little did I know that, soon I would not only be an editor, but a cosmetology graduate! After I expressed my interest in going to beauty school, before I knew it I was enrolled. For almost two years, I covered beauty professionals by day, and by night, was becoming one while attending cosmetology school at Pivot Point International in Chicago’s suburbs—talk about the best of both worlds.

Throughout my education, I saw first-hand how beauty can change lives—and documented my entire journey on firstchair.com’s Beauty School Diary blog. From making over one woman who suffered from trichotillomania (constant hair pulling or twisting), to witnessing a 12-year-old’s emotional hair donation to Locks of Love, to watching students fight through Chicago’s rough winters eager to make it to school and not let down their client, to hearing of my friends making incredible financial sacrifices to make it through the cosmetology program—this is an industry that changes people and empowers people. This is an industry that truly changes lives—for both the client in the chair, and the stylist standing behind it. The most fantastic part about the professional industry is there are so many opportunities that can lead you to success. In addition to specializing in cut or color, you can be an editorial or runways stylist, travel the world to industry shows as a platform or guest artist, become a salon owner, manufacturer’s rep or educator—whatever you want!

Though it was certainly a tough two years—working by day, going to school at night (something many students have to endure in order to fund their education), studying for exams on weekends, traveling to hair shows and events, and trying to maintain some work/life balance—it was the absolute best decision I could have possibly made. I gained so much knowledge about this industry—knowledge that only could have come from years and years of experience as an editor—not to mention the amazing friends I gained and experiences I had at school.

Alison and her graduating class at Pivot Point International, June 2011.

Different life choices and paths have led each of us to a career in beauty. FIRST CHAIR strives to serve as students’ navigation system as they begin their journeys and pave their way to success. As they begin to build their book and develop best practices, MODERN SALON will continue to guide and inspire.

I am SO proud to say, FINALLY, that I am a beauty school graduate!

Are you a beauty school graduate? Brag about it!

We want to hear your story.

Will you be at ISSE?

2012-01-25T15:40:00.000-08:00

Will you be at the International Salon & Spa Expo in Long Beach this weekend?

Come by booth # 2422 in the Arena Lobby and share your story of how beauty has changed your life!

Select stories will be videotaped and aired at future Beauty Changes Lives events.

FEATURE: "I thought I'd never be accepted"

2012-01-25T07:30:00.000-08:00

Jerodelle Trinidad

I was born a healthy baby in France, but when I was 6-months-old my life changed forever. I was diagnosed with a disease called purpura fulminans, which gave me bone malformations and scars on my arms and legs. I also have one leg shorter than the other, which causes a significant limp.

My disability caused me to question my future, and I switched majors more than six times in college. By the end of my junior year, I was majoring in nursing/Pre-med. Growing up in a hospital, I guess I just figured that’s where I’d end up.

I always loved the beauty industry, but with a career path that’s often outwardly-focused, I thought I’d never be accepted. On a whim I visited the San Francisco Institute of Esthetics and Cosmetology, and for the first time in my life everything seemed clear. I knew this was where I belonged and I enrolled immediately. (continued below)

I wouldn’t change my decision for anything. This is clearly the path I was meant to take. I have been given so many opportunities working on photo shoots, fashion shows, and I even had the chance to be a makeup artist for the Golden State Warrior Girls for the 2010-2011 NBA season. I was also granted the opportunity to be a makeup artist for the Paul Mitchell Spring Style Show last year.

It doesn’t matter what type of obstacles you need to overcome. If you want it bad enough, you can achieve it. Going to beauty school changed my life. It gave me the opportunity to enjoy life, love my job and inspire others.

What type of obstacles have you overcome to be where you are today?

"Finding you can change..."

2012-01-23T09:28:00.000-08:00

Going to a salon for the first time can be a "magical" experience. The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique at Walt Disney World is changing the lives of little girls who dream of being a Disney Princess.

Do you remember your first salon experience?

"The sky is the limit"

2012-01-20T08:26:00.000-08:00

Need a reason to enter the beauty industry? Here's about a dozen.

How has beauty changed your life?

"Donating a nappy mess to Locks of Love"

2012-01-18T07:43:00.000-08:00

NFL superstar Pat McAfee, who plays for the Indianapolis Colts, made headlines when he donated 12 inches of his hair to Locks of Love, a non-profit organization dedicated to changing the lives of children suffering from long-term medical hair loss.

Click here to see Pat McAfee chop his hair off! Video provided by Indianapolis Colts.

Have you donated your hair in the past?

Comment below and send us your before/after pictures for us to post on the blog!

"A truly legitimate career to pursue"

2012-01-16T13:27:00.000-08:00

Chris Knudsen, Phoenix, AZ
Mane Attraction Salon

Being a third generation hairdresser, I was raised in a family with more than 150 years of experience helping customers with their hair needs. This career path has provided my family the means to live a full life and impact thousands of people one head at a time.

It’s an industry I never thought I’d be a part of. After graduating magna cum laude from the University of San Diego with a business degree in Management and Marketing, I proceeded to work with a marketing company until I got burned out. I never felt like I was making a difference. Most people never want to do what their parents did, and I fell squarely into that group. Although I witnessed my parents run a few successful companies, live an amazing life of travel, friends, fun and business accomplishments, I reluctantly entered the industry. I investigated numerous trades and realized my lineage was on to something great that I didn’t want to miss out on.

I entered the beauty industry four years ago, and now I’m a stylist, educator and manager at a prestigious salon in Phoenix, Arizona. As a stylist, I have the ability to positively impact my client by making them feel confident, energized and looking great. We are able to find the real beauty in our customers.

As a child I thought I would never be a part of this industry. Now as a young adult with small children myself, I could never imagine not being a part of this industry. I am able to provide for my family and simultaneously feel the intrinsic value every day and every year of doing something I know is making a difference in people’s lives. I have realized that with this single license I can pursue dozens of emotionally and financially fulfilling career paths. The beauty industry has unequivocally changed my life and the lives around me thanks to my family showing me it is a truly legitimate career to pursue. This is just the beginning.

Who inspired you to get into the beauty industry?

"It's OK to be bald"

2012-01-13T11:11:00.000-08:00

Beauty comes in so many packages. Having cancer can have a life changing impact on what makes you feel beautiful. Stylists, massage therapists and make up artists around the country work with cancer patients to help them in small ways still feel beautiful in the midst of medical treatments and physical changes. Check out the way some moms are trying to find ways for children with cancer to also still feel like they fit in and feel beautiful.

Will you join the movement on Facebook today?

"Living the life I always dreamed of"

2012-01-13T07:44:00.000-08:00

I was born in Poland and both my mother, Sophia, and my father, Szloma, were survivors of the Holocaust. I loved it there, but war in Israel began on June 6, 1967 and things began to change in my hometown. My father immediately insisted that I start taking English lessons in case we were to go to America. Around 30,000 Polish Jews, including my family, had their Polish citizenship revoked and were asked to leave. I didn’t know it at the time, but my journey on the road to success had begun the night we left Poland.

After a short stay in Italy, we received sponsorship to the USA and we were uprooted once again. We arrived in America on June 16, 1970, and settled in New York City. I got a job on Madison Avenue as a makeup artist.

When I met David, I knew that he was “the one.” We were married September 2, 1972, and a year later we had a very beautiful little girl. I wanted to provide my baby girl with everything that I had dreamed she would have. I knew it would take two incomes to provide her with everything I wanted for her, and after my maternity leave, I returned to the beauty business as an esthetician in Forrest Hills, Queens.

At night, after I would tuck my daughter in bed, I would see private clients at home. I worked 14 to 15 hour days in the salon, before coming home to work 9 p.m. to midnight. No matter how exhausted I might have been, I always looked refreshed, had perfect makeup, covered up any dark circles under my eyes and I never complained.

From my roots as an esthetician I was able to expand my trade into an international professional skin care company, Repêchage. Today we develop, manufacture our products and educate professionals. Repêchage is available in over 30 countries and on six continents. Now my husband, David, and my daughter, Shiri, have joined me in this business that has changed my life. I am living the life that I always dreamed of.

- Lydia Sarfati, Repêchage CEO & Founder

How has beauty made your dreams come true?

"It was just a dream and now it's a reality"

2012-01-12T07:49:00.000-08:00

Beyonce has fond memories as a child growing up in her mom’s beauty salon, which inspired her to change the lives of others by opening the Beyonce Cosmetology Center in Brooklyn’s Phoenix House.

What do you remember about the beauty salon as a kid?

"Here's a tip from the HARPO set"

2012-01-09T06:05:00.000-08:00

Getting Rosie camera ready is one of the things I love best about my job as a hairstylist. She’s so warm and fun to work with! Besides working with celebrities like Rosie, I love working with the production team on a set and learning what it takes to bring a show together.

Oh, and for those of you who like to video yourself getting ready for a night on the town; here’s a tip from the HARPO set. Never let hairspray come in contact with a camera– it just might break the lens.

- Michelle Forst, Chicago, IL, George the salon

What’s your “insider” beauty secret and how are you using it to change lives?

"Hairdressers touch lives"

2012-01-05T08:59:00.000-08:00

My cousin, whom I hadn’t communicated with since we were 16-years old, recently came to Santa Fe, New Mexico, for a visit. After many years and kids later, we finally had the chance to catch up on each other’s lives.

Jeryl E. Spear
Editor-in-Chief, HOT by Hair's How magazine

After all the niceties had been said and we caught up on family gossip, she turned to me unexpectedly and said, “I remember all the things that you did as a kid. You played piano and took ballet lessons. You were always a better student than me. To be honest, I never understood why you became a hairdresser.” Seeing my jaw drop, she quickly added, “Not that’s there’s anything wrong with that.”

I thought I was used to people saying this sort of thing to me, but honestly, her words made me feel as though I’d been slapped. Thoughts began swirling through my mind. I recalled all the stereotypical hairdressers that are played on reality shows and in movies, and just how much they misrepresent our business. Memories danced through my head about the wonderful life that hairdressing had afforded my family and how it continues to do so to this day. I vividly recalled doing clients’ hair for their weddings, their children’s first cuts and, for some, in hospices when they were just days, or even hours away from passing on. I thought about my time as a salon owner, educator, writer and editor. And finally, I tried to imagine what my life would have been like, if I had chosen a different path. Nothing came to mind!

After what must have been a very pregnant pause, I took a sip of my lemon drop martini, smiled at my cousin and replied with words that came straight from my heart: “Hairdressers touch lives; make great incomes; get paid for doing art; and have many opportunities that aren’t available in any other business. I wish you had considered becoming one; you would have loved being part of our industry.”

When people assume a disappointed tone and ask you why you became a hairdresser— thereby hinting that you could have been so much more—I hope that you speak from your heart too. If nothing else, I can tell you from experience that it will be good for your soul.

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