Hi! I’m Jamie, balayage & blonding specialist in Alexandria. Let me share my story with you!
Hi Jamie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
Hi! I’m Jamie, balayage & blonding specialist in Alexandria. Let me share my story with you! I had never really thought about being a hairstylist growing up. Now thinking back though, I was probably pretty destined.. I do remember quite a few of my Barbies having pixie cuts or marker in their hair from makeovers I’d given them.
My junior year of high school is when cosmetology somehow popped into my head and from there I was dead set that’s what I wanted to do. I honestly to this day don’t really know why I even chose it. I think it was basically because I didn’t want to work outside, at a desk, or go to school for very long.. so I checked out my options and here we are!. I researched schools and decided Model College of Hair Design (in St. Cloud) was for me.
My first salon job after school was in St. Cloud, but it was pretty short lived since I decided to move back to Alexandria just 3 months after starting. Since moving back to Alexandria, I’ve worked at a few different salons in town. I’m currently at a suite rental (Salon Panache) and love the freedom it gives me to set my own schedule and run my own business how I want without having to run a whole salon.
In the 12 years I’ve been doing hair, I’ve always been weirdly passionate about the industry and the business side of things. And honestly, that has at times made me feel like I don’t quite fit in with other stylists around me. I started using Instagram about 2 years ago to help promote my business and build my clientele. It’s been a great tool for finding new & trending styles, and marketing my business. But most of all, it has introduced me to other like-minded stylists all over the country. I have found great educators that I never knew existed (and have actually been able to attend some of their classes). Some of these other stylists from Instagram have been a great support system, whether we’re sharing business ideas or bouncing color formulas off of one another. And you know what, they’ve actually become my friends.
Since finding these new educators and stylists in the industry and building my business through Instagram, I’ve actually become very passionate for modern, lived-in color trends. Just this year I decided to take a chance and redirect my business to solely specialize in these colors. It was super scary for me to make this transition but I can already feel it was a great decision for me. After 12 years of doing hair, my heart just wasn’t into some of those other services anymore and I wanted to come to work to something that sets my soul on fire. To me, that’s balayage and blonding.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Just like any new hairstylist, when I first started I had zero clientele. Four years into my career I was actually thinking about quitting doing hair. I was at a salon that somedays I would sit there with no clients the whole day and it was just so hard to build up a solid clientele. I was thinking about going back to school (I had no idea for what!) and waitressing to get me by for a while. I remember a lot of mornings sitting in my car in the parking lot crying because I was so miserable and didn’t want to go into the building.
Around this same time, I actually had the owner of a different salon reach out to me for a position they had open. I was very nervous about switching salons, but I decided to take a leap of faith and went for it!
That job brought my spirits up and helped me rediscover my love for the industry. It made me learn that, even though change is scary and may feel a bit uncomfortable… that’s where all of your growth happens: outside of your comfort zone. If it works out, you grow because you know you’re moving in the right direction and get re-inspired; if it doesn’t work out, you take a step back to focus on why and better yourself because of it.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m an independent hairstylist at a suite salon in Alexandria. This basically means I rent a room in the salon, but I am the owner of my own little business (Jamie Evans Hair, LLC) within the salon. I use and carry the products I want, set my own schedule, do my own marketing, and take care of my clients how “I” want to.
I’ve always been very interested in the business part of the industry and have a hard time having people tell me what to do. So this is the perfect set up for me! I love having total control of the way my business is ran from the aesthetic of my brand to what services I provide and how I execute them.
I specialize in modern, lived-in hair color. Basically, all of the beautiful blondes and balayage you see on Instagram and Pinterest these days is totally my jam! I just think these colors are so gorgeous and I love the challenge they bring since they are more technical than traditional coloring.
When these trends started becoming popular though, they were actually very frustrating for me. They were new styles that I had never learned before. I wasn’t confident at all to begin with, but that challenged me to really branch out and find education on how to achieve these looks. I spent endless hours on Youtube watching new techniques and practicing on mannequins and clients. Somewhere along the way of my search for better education, Instagram started becoming popular. I used it more as a personal account to begin with- just searching for other stylists/educators to get tips and inspiration from. As Instagram became more of a marketing tool for businesses and entrepreneurs, it opened up a whole new world to me. For the first time, I was finding like minded stylists out there that had a similar passion and drive for the hair and business they were creating. I started to learn all sorts of new things and make connections with these other stylists. I found educators who were teaching the exact looks I wanted to learn and could actually take real classes online with them; Or better yet, I found educators right here in Minnesota I could easily travel to!
As my confidence built, so did my drive to do and be more. I wanted more experience in these colors I was beginning to love and I was seeing how Instagram was helping others to build a specific clientele. I started learning tips about Instagram and figuring out how to take photos to showcase my work. I switched to a business account, started to post more, and connect with others to help bring my business to light.
Now it’s definitely not all rainbows and butterflies… Even though I love the connections I’ve made and the clients it has introduced me to, it’s basically another job on top of my job behind the chair. Sometimes I don’t have time to get content or post; sometimes I’m in a slump and don’t have any motivation to even open the app. It’s easy to get consumed by all of the comparison and the demand to keep up, but I just try to balance it out as best as I can. If I have time and motivation to post and connect..great! If not, that’s ok too! I am just happy with all of the great people it’s introduced me to and the support it’s given my business.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
Every client that sits in my chair is not just a client…they’re a friend. I want to hear their story and what’s going on in their life whether it’s that nasty divorce they’re going through or that dream job they just landed.
I also know that clients aren’t coming to me just for their hair to look good…but to also feel good about themselves. There’s definitely something about how you look on the outside affecting how you feel on the inside. I’m unquestionably a perfectionist.. so I always try to give my clients the best experience I can. I genuinely care about how they look & feel when they leave my chair.
Another bonus: My clients always get the real me… not some overly stuffy fake version of myself. I might slip a swear word here and there, or if you’re really lucky a cheesy “dad joke.”
Contact Info:
- Email: jamieevanshair@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.jamieevanshair.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamieevans.hair/
- Other: https://bio.site/jamieevanshair
Image Credits
Kelsey Jo Photography
