Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Riley.
Amanda, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I grew up doing hair, it was something I was always passionate about. I started cosmetology school when I was 17, so quite honestly, I grew up doing hair, I started at a reputable salon straight out of school when I gave a year of my life to learn from Denver’s best. I worked for that salon company for 7 years before I moved to Los Angeles. I can truly say that moving to Los Angeles not only had me grow in ways in my personal life but had me grow far more in my professional life than I ever had anticipated. Right now, I’ve been doing hair for over 10 years, own my own business as an independent stylist and can only imagine what the next 5 years will bring me. In 2015, I became a part of an amazing program through Wella, a hair color line, to test their updated program to become a Wella Master Color Expert. It was one of the hardest yet most rewarding times in my hair stylist life. Breaking down components of the hair follicle and learning the ways that hair color affects them makes me efficiently choose how to color my client’s hair. Because of this certification, my greatest passion has become hair coloring! I get constantly asked what I specialize or what I love most about doing hair and while I could say “color” I truly love the relationships I’m able to build with my clients and the people I surround myself with.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
My biggest obstacle was my age. I remember fresh out of beauty school and having people sit in my chair and lie to them about how long I had been doing hair and my age. Only so that they wouldn’t feel uncomfortable that a 17-year-old was about to cut their hair. Starting a career at 17 was the time in which I grew the most as a person and had to identify who I was. I went through so many phases with how I dressed and how I did my hair. I also had a hard time with the fact that all of my friends were in college having fun or partying and I was “stuck” years deep into my career. I remember thinking “gosh I should have gone to college, so I could have that experience”. But I’m so glad I didn’t because I was able to excel years forward in my career because I started so young. I would also admit my biggest career divergent was that I focused on trying to make a career of modeling happen. Moving to Los Angeles truly helped me refocus my career in hair!
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about @amandarileyhairstylist – what should we know?
I specialize in natural “looking” hair. What I mean by that is that I prefer creating blondes, brunettes, balayage and copper hair that looks like my client was born with it. I’m most proud of the relationships I’ve built with my clients over the past couple years that have been built through doing their hair and through Instagram. I owe a lot to my career of recent to Instagram! My continued education is what sets me apart from other stylists. I am a certified Wella Master Color Expert, which basically means, I can scientifically tell you what I’m doing to your hair on a molecular level and why. Its helped me to take my hair styling business to another level with learned to read body language better, keep the integrity of hair intact, be able to say no to clients and create goals rather than over promise and under deliver.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My family, friends and husband deserve credit for letting me try out every technique and style on them. I’ve had many mentors and supporters over the years with amazing education starting at The Parlour in Colorado working under Stacie Joyce and Julie Mustaffa as well as Estevan Garner. I owe my biggest success to my clients of course who had stuck with me through the years of finding my feet in LA, getting married, starting my own business and jumping from Silver Lake to Pasadena and back to Silver Lake again. I truly couldn’t have made this career without them and their support.
Pricing:
- Full Highlights/Balayage starting at $250+
- All Over Color starting $150+
- Long Haircuts $90
Contact Info:
- Address: The Harbor, 2827 Bellevue Ave Los Angeles, CA 90026
- Website: www.amandaleeriley.com
- Phone: 213-318-5634
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/amandarileyhairstylist
- Other: www.theharborsalon.com
Image Credit:
Morgan Newton, www.morganolivianewton.com
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