Today we’d like to introduce you to Hailey Cornelius.
Hailey, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was one of the lucky few who knew what they wanted to do since childhood. I fought my mother about how to fix my hair since kindergarten and all of my Barbies had custom haircuts by yours truest. In middle school, I had my fair share of bathroom hair coloring sessions with my friends.
Once I got into high school, I had a plan laid out about which cosmetology school I wanted to go to and budgeted everything out my freshman year. I found out that our school district offered a cosmetology program and my mother encouraged me to go. I changed direction entirely and went through their program. It ended up being an incredible decision and I got to compete statewide for esthetics and graduated high school with my cosmetology license.
As soon as I graduated, I found the salon of my dreams and began my apprenticeship at Jackalope Beauty Lounge in old town Keller. I learned so much from my apprenticeship and it set me up for my career quickly. Within a few months of graduating, I was booked out solid and my books were full. I stayed at Jackalope for almost five years. During that time I was featured with Pulp Riot, grew until I was booked solid for three months in advance, and started down the path to becoming an educator.
It sounds like my path was one easily traveled but it wasn’t. Because I was practicing for competitions in cosmetology school, I started my apprenticeship without knowing how to cut men’s hair or pixie cuts. I had learned the basics of haircutting but I didn’t even know how to properly texturize hair. My passion had always been for fashion colors or “ vivids “ but I was told they were a waste of time to learn and that I would rarely if ever do them. Nonetheless, I practiced and taught myself the ins and out of how to use them and techniques. People didn’t always support my vision and told me it wouldn’t work and I would fail. Luckily, at the salon, I apprenticed at, creativity and dreams were nurtured and cultivated. Anything I wanted to try, they supported me in. It wasn’t long until most of my clientele was sporting fashion colors and that’s how I paid the bills. A barber and a pixie specialist were two of the four owners at Jackalope and didn’t just teach me how to do what I hadn’t learned, but how to exceed in them.
A time came when I knew I was ready for the next step into my career. I was ready to manage and learn the skills it took to run a salon. The word got out that I was ready for the next step and my childhood hairdresser reached out to me and told me she had a management position waiting for me. I went to work for Posh hair salon in Fort Worth and began my journey with salon management. I also hired my first employees and taught my first apprentice. I was set up in the best possible atmosphere to learn the ins and outs behind that side of the business. I’ve recently been approached to interview for a position as a Pulp Riot educator.
Being 23 years old and being where I am now has taught me not to listen to the skeptics and that dreams are possible no matter how wild they seem. You just have to work for it and close your mind to the negativity that people will try to plant.
Has it been a smooth road?
It obviously has taken a lot of hard work, long hours, and perseverance to get where I am now. You can let people’s negativity and disbelief hinder you, but you can also choose to let it fuel you. Do not let people hold you back by telling you that your dreams don’t have value, that it’s not possible, or you aren’t fit for the position. Keep the end in mind and put in work. Prove them wrong. Show them that it can be done, and it can be done well. When life beats you down, get back up and keep going. If you don’t fail a few times along the way, you’re not learning.
What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
I’m a color correction and fashion color expert. I’m known for taking distressed, unevenly colored hair and making it look and feel like nothing ever happened. I’m also known for the wild colors I do. Rainbow, unicorn, mermaid hair is my passion. I LOVE when my clients find their wild or creative side and allow me to help them express it. I love helping tradition my clients through the process about themselves. They go from feeling “ bleh “ or “ normal “ to feel this overwhelming surge of confidence. Like it’s the color that was always meant for them. My clients are those that stand out from the crowd and radiate creativity and I’m just there to help bring it out of them. You’re never too old to have a pop of color and being a mom isn’t an excuse to blend in when you were born to stand out.
For good reason, society often focuses more on the problems rather than the opportunities that exist, because the problems need to be solved. However, we’d probably also benefit from looking for and recognizing the opportunities that women are better positioned to capitalize on. Have you discovered such opportunities?
Women exceed in being relatable and bringing connections. Women constantly bring people together and help unite ideas. They’re tough, they’re fighters, they’re dreamers. We know how to spot problems that need to be fixed and creatively solve them. The only thing holding you back from doing anything is your mindset.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/alienfoils
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/alienfoils
Image Credit:
Hailey Cornelius, Vanessa Rocha, Scott Cornelius
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