Community Highlights: Meet Daria Izvoznikova of Daria Iz

Today we’d like to introduce you to Daria Izvoznikova.

Hi Daria, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My name is Daria Iz, and I’m a Ukrainian-born hairstylist, beauty professional, and entrepreneur based in Orange County, California. I have been working professionally in the hair and beauty industry since 2010. Hair has always been much more than my profession — it has been the creative world I’ve built my life around. Today, I work hands-on with clients while also taking one of the biggest steps of my career: bringing my own professional haircare line to life.

I’ve always loved beauty and transformation, but what I love most about my work is how personal it is. Hair can completely change the way a woman sees and feels about herself. There is something very special about watching a client look in the mirror after an appointment and seeing that confidence in her face. That feeling has stayed with me throughout my entire career and, in many ways, has shaped what I’m building today.

My professional journey began in Ukraine in 2010. I was fortunate to receive a very strong foundation early in my career, studying with highly skilled educators and training one-on-one with experienced professionals in Kyiv. I continued expanding my education through European techniques and training, and from the beginning I learned to look beyond simply creating a beautiful result. I wanted to understand the hair itself — its structure, condition, and how different techniques and products affect it over time.

When I moved to the United States, I brought that education and experience with me, but I also had to establish myself professionally in a new country. I completed the necessary licensing process in the U.S. and continued investing in advanced education here. Even after so many years behind the chair, I still believe education never really ends in this industry. Techniques change, products evolve, trends come and go, and I always want to keep learning while maintaining a strong technical foundation.

Over the years, I have developed my own approach to hair. I specialize in precision haircuts, dimensional color, blonding, balayage, toning, and restorative treatments, but one of my biggest priorities is maintaining the quality and integrity of the hair. Whenever possible, I choose gentler approaches, including ammonia-free color and techniques that allow me to achieve a beautiful result without unnecessarily compromising the hair.

Working with clients for so many years has also taught me how different every head of hair really is. I have worked with so many textures, colors, levels of damage, and individual concerns. Here in California especially, we also deal with a lot of sun exposure, dryness, heat styling, and chemically treated hair. My clients have always trusted me not only with their services, but also with questions about what they should use at home and how they can keep their hair looking and feeling healthy between appointments.

Those conversations eventually inspired the next chapter of my career.

For years, I had the idea of creating professional haircare of my own. After working with and testing so many products throughout my career, I realized how difficult it can be to find something where everything comes together — performance, the way the hair feels, the ingredients, ease of use, and the final result.

That idea has now grown into something very real. I have been working with professional laboratories and manufacturers to develop formulas based on what I have learned through years of hands-on experience with my clients. I am taking my time with the process because I don’t want to put my name on something simply to have a product. I want to create something I genuinely believe in and would confidently recommend from behind my chair.

My professional haircare line is now in the final stages of development, and I’m getting closer to bringing it to the market. The vision is to create a complete haircare line, but I’ve made a very intentional decision to introduce it with one signature hero product first — something I’ve been developing with great attention to performance, quality, and the experience it creates on the hair. I’m keeping exactly what that first product is a little bit of a secret for now, but the launch is getting closer, and I’m incredibly excited to finally share what I’ve been working on.

Looking back, my career has evolved from learning my craft in Ukraine, to rebuilding and growing professionally in the United States, to developing my own name and approach as a hairstylist — and now, to taking everything I have learned behind the chair and turning it into something that can reach people beyond my own clients.

For me, beauty has never been only about how someone looks when they leave the salon. I love that moment when a woman looks at herself and feels beautiful, confident, and happy. That feeling is still what motivates me, and it is at the heart of what I want to create next.

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?
I definitely wouldn’t say it has been a completely smooth road, but I think many of the challenges along the way have shaped the way I work and the way I approach business today.

One of the biggest transitions was moving from Ukraine to the United States. I already had professional education, experience, and years invested in my craft, but coming to a new country meant learning a new system, completing the licensing process, continuing my education, building a new clientele, and establishing my name again. You quickly realize that experience is incredibly valuable, but you still have to prove yourself all over again.

The beauty industry itself also requires constant growth. Trends change, techniques evolve, and clients are more educated than ever. I have never wanted to become comfortable doing things simply because “this is how I’ve always done them.” At the same time, I believe it’s important not to chase every trend. For me, the challenge has always been finding that balance between continuing to evolve and maintaining the strong technical foundation and standards that I believe in.

More recently, developing my own professional haircare line has brought an entirely new set of challenges. Creating a product is very different from simply having an idea for one. There is an enormous amount that happens behind the scenes — working with laboratories and manufacturers, evaluating formulas and ingredients, testing performance, making adjustments, and sometimes going back to the drawing board when something doesn’t meet my expectations.

I think one of my biggest challenges in this process is also one of my strengths: I am very particular about what I am willing to put my name behind. After working with hair for more than 16 years, I know how I want a product to perform and how I want the hair to look and feel afterward. If something is just “good enough,” that isn’t enough for me. That can make the development process longer, but I would rather take more time and create something I truly believe in than rush a product to market simply to launch it.

Through all of these stages, I’ve learned to be patient, adaptable, and persistent. My path has changed many times, but the direction has always remained very similar: keep learning, keep improving, and never lower the standard of what I want to create for my clients and, now, for the people who will eventually use my products.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Daria Iz?
Daria Iz is my personal professional brand, built on hands-on experience in the hair and beauty industry since 2010 and a continuous commitment to developing my craft.

My work is centered around creating beautiful, polished hair while protecting its quality and integrity as much as possible. I specialize in precision haircuts, dimensional color, blonding, balayage, toning, and advanced restorative treatments for dry, damaged, color-treated, and chemically processed hair.

What has always been important to me is that beautiful hair should not only look good when a client leaves the salon — it should feel good, move beautifully, and remain manageable afterward. I pay close attention to the condition and structure of the hair before deciding what technique or service is appropriate. Whenever possible, I work with gentler approaches, including ammonia-free color, and I am very conscious about how much stress the hair can realistically handle.

Hair restoration has also become a significant part of my work. Over the years, I have incorporated treatments focused on hydration, strength, smoothness, and improving the overall appearance and feel of compromised hair. I also offer formaldehyde-free smoothing options for clients who want more manageable, polished hair.

I think what sets my approach apart is that I don’t look at haircutting, color, and haircare as three separate things. They all affect one another. You can create a beautiful color, but if the condition of the hair is compromised, the result will never feel truly luxurious. For me, the goal is always the complete result.

That philosophy is also what led me to the next evolution of my brand. I am currently bringing my own professional haircare line to life, developed from years of working directly with clients and seeing what their hair needs both in the salon and at home.

The line is now in the final stages of development, and I’m getting closer to bringing it to market. I’m working with professional laboratories and manufacturers on formulas created around very specific performance standards. I want the products to feel luxurious and elevated, but more importantly, I want them to perform.

The full vision extends beyond a single product. I am building a complete haircare line designed to work together, but I’ve intentionally chosen to introduce it with one signature hero product first. I’m not revealing exactly what it is just yet — I want to keep a little mystery around the first launch — but it is something I am extremely excited to finally bring to my clients and, eventually, to women far beyond my salon chair.

What I am most proud of is that my brand has grown organically from real experience. It wasn’t created around a product first. It began behind the chair — through years of touching hair, listening to clients, solving problems, learning what works and what doesn’t, and building trust one client at a time.

Now I’m taking that experience and turning it into something that can reach much further than my own chair. To me, that feels like a very natural next chapter for Daria Iz.

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Something that surprises many people who know me primarily through my work is that last year I stepped completely outside of my usual world and entered Mrs. World America — and ended up winning the title of Mrs. World America 2025 Grand Queen.

I have spent most of my professional life behind the chair, focused on my clients and my craft, so suddenly being the one on stage and presenting myself in such a different way was definitely outside of my comfort zone. I’m very proud that I allowed myself to try something new, and winning the title made the experience even more unforgettable.

But there’s another thing people are often genuinely surprised to learn about me: I got married when I was 18, and my husband and I have now been together for more than 20 years. We have two daughters, and when I tell people that my oldest daughter is already 17, they often don’t believe me at first! Our younger daughter is five, so we’re experiencing two completely different stages of motherhood at the same time.

Family is a very important part of my life. We also have two little toy poodles, and my husband is passionate about motorsports and competes on race tracks, so many of our weekends are spent together at the track supporting him.

I actually love all of these contrasts in my life. One day I can be behind the chair creating beautiful hair, another day dressed up for an event, and another at a race track with my family. I think there are many different sides to all of us, and I’ve learned that I don’t have to fit into just one version of myself.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://dariaiz.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daria__iz/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dariaizhair