Today we’d like to introduce you to Audrey Gayle Cuenca.
Audrey, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Before hair, I was a debt collector and surprisingly, I loved it. I loved it so much; I decided college wasn’t for me. My mom warned me, “What happens if you ever get laid off?” I told her, “This is job security, and someone will always be in debt.” Besides, if I decide to go back to college I have my Associate’s Degree in Arts and it wouldn’t be hard to pick up where I left off.
I wasn’t the notorious aggressive collector. I’d have intimate conversations trying to understand what that person went through. It’s surprising how people would open up to complete stranger over the phone. They feel no judgment cause they can easily hang up and I had my fair share of being hung up on, but the ones who stayed on the phone they wanted to fix their debt and they had a lot to say. After a day’s work, hearing what people out there go through, I valued where I was in life. I didn’t have the tribulations these people went through.
Then, one day, my beloved company laid everyone off, literally days after I just signed for my first apartment. What can I say? Moms always right. I had a great set up, full benefits, paid time off, bank holidays off, weekends off, bonuses, one hour lunch, two 15-minute breaks, and they let us have “one” alcoholic beverage during lunch. What more could you ask for? Best job ever! Before they laid everyone off, they purchased 20 lottery tickets and would share the earnings if we won. We didn’t and they assisted us to locate new jobs within our field. In the meantime, I worked double shifts as a waitress to make ends meet.
A few months later, I started another collections job that paid more except had a high turn over rate. I feared to lose my job daily. For the entire year, you had 7 minutes to spare if you were late. If you ran out of minutes, you’re fired. I was fired and not because I was late but evidently, when I called in sick it wasn’t done by a protocol. I was paid for being off but I got fired for not coming in. Yeah, that doesn’t make sense to me either. I literally just found out I was pregnant.
It was that moment, I realized, I need to find a career I love doing. I refused to get a job solely for the money to support my unborn child. I didn’t want my child to see me come home and talk depressingly about what I did for a living. I contemplated Psychology, I wanted to connect with people and make them feel good about themselves but as a debt collector. I refused to be in massive debt. I could own a house with that amount of debt.
At the time, I had long luscious hair and I’d always kept it styled. People constantly asked me how I created that style and if I did hair. The father of my child does hair and I believed perhaps I could do hair too. Out of curiosity, but not taking it sincerely, I took a tour of Paul Mitchell the School Arlington. I fell in love with the culture and I started crying happy tears because why didn’t I find this place quicker? I rationalized doing hair in high school except I come from a family of professionals, such as a nurse, lawyer, or human resources. I felt compelled to go to college. My parents grew up in a poor upbringing in the Philippines. They came to better there life and their children’s. I felt that I should make them proud. Doing hair didn’t sound like the ideal career then.
I’m not the stereotype A-honor roll student. I never applied myself but when it came to hair, what a nerd. All A’s, in all the extra-curricular groups you could be in, arrived at school early and left school late. A complete opposite of high school and college. I discovered my passion, I aspired to make people feel good inside and out. I wanted to connect with people and make them feel beautiful. Once graduating, I didn’t feel confident in my skills. My daughter Jada is depending on me. I had to be proud of my craft.
I heard about The Mastery by ESANI in Atlanta, a school for advance cutting, advance color, and editorial work. They have limited seating and you had to write an essay on why you chose to do hair and a video of you doing hair. In doing so, I achieved a scholarship. It was a tough decision to let my parents watch my one-year-old daughter for three months while I was away in Atlanta but if it wasn’t for The Mastery, I wouldn’t have known what to look for in a high-end salon such as Osgood O’Neil.
It took me leaving two salons to find Osgood O’Neil. After leaving those two, I started to question if hair was even for me. The other salons didn’t have everything I was looking for but third times a charm. Osgood O’Neil had everything I was looking for. I had to start over as an apprentice each time but I was enthusiastic to learn. I didn’t care how long it took me to get behind the chair, I was going to work for a high-end salon and I was going to take every ounce of knowledge I could get.
I drive an hour to get to Osgood O’Neil because I’m determined to work for the best and strive to be great. Since being behind the chair, I’ve won two contests, a one-on-one class with Platform Artist Ira Pope Sage — the best hairstylist in Las Vegas and a trip to Italy courtesy of Osgood O’Neil and Davines. I’m honored to work on the Dallas Maverick Dancers calendar, where one of the girls I styled got front page, I’ve styled two models Dannie Riel and Meredith Mickelson and now this interview with Voyage Magazine. It feels surreal but such an amazing honor. Writing this is a self-reminder how far I’ve come and never did I think I would accomplish all this. There are days where I question my craft and ask myself am I good enough? I work alongside the best of the best and I can only hope and attempt to be as worthy as them.
I know I’ll never feel truly good enough and not because I doubt my abilities but because I want to better myself consistently. I will continuously learn and add more to my arsenal. It’s been a bumpy, curvy road. My faith and patience remained tested immeasurably but I couldn’t have grown this far without the encouragement of my family and friends. Hope Perez and I collaborated on this hairstyle and not only is she the colorist. She and I started Paul Mitchell together and she put in a word for me at Osgood O’Neil. We’re both mom’s trying to make a living to provide for our own like our parents do for us. We’re living testimonies that if you want to succeed as bad you want to breathe, you will be successful.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Far from smooth, it’s been bumpy, curvy, muddy, you name it. I was a seed in the ground that had to grow in the rain and mud, to finally come out of the dirt to blossom and radiate in the sun. It took time to grow.
I had to move back in with my parents, my car that I just paid off died right before Jada was born, my relationship with Jada’s dad was rocky, he was out of the picture for some time. I couldn’t go to school and work having a newborn. So, I chose to go to school only. She was the only happiness I had left in my sunken place. I had no income, I’ve always had a job. I had to sell all my stuff, to try to pay my debts. I had to live on government assistance. I was on the other end of the debt collection calls. Debt collectors were calling me, I was going through my own set of problems. Just a really dark place throughout my pregnancy and post pregnancy.
I was depressed but I had my little girl depending on me. I couldn’t let her down. I had to motivate myself, during that sunken place. I read The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. It taught me, whatever you exert is what you manifest. It’s the law of attraction, if you put negative energy out there you will attract negative energy. I had to fake it till I made it. I had to resonate positive energy. Like Henry Ford says, “Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right.”
You have to be confident in yourself. I had to believe in myself well no one else did. I felt some of my family members thought I was trying to cop out of college by doing hair. It wasn’t until I started doing the Dallas Mavericks Dancers calendar they took it seriously and that’s 4 years later into doing hair. Regardless, what anyone thinks, you have to always believe in yourself no matter how hard it may seem. No one can do it for you but you. Be your own inspiration. I found writing a journal helped a lot and during tough times, I went back and read what I was going through. Now, looking back, I felt I could never overcome those tough battles but I did. My own words of encouragement got me to be where I am because if I don’t believe in myself who will? The light is at the end of the tunnel, it may be dim but its there. Focus what’s in front of you, don’t worry about what’s going to happen and how will it happen. As long as what you are doing right at that very moment is leaning towards your goal. You will get there. Your mind is more powerful than you think. Believe it, feel it, exert it.
We’d love to hear more about Osgood O’Neil Salon.
I’m a cutting specialist, as far as what I’m known for, I feel I attract a lot of long luscious thick hair because I have thick hair. So, I understand it. My hair is short now and if I never shaved the sides of my head I would have never understood the variations of styles. I believe as a hairstylist you need to try all hairstyles so you can fully understand the growing process. You can’t truly understand something unless you go through it yourself.
When a client sits in my chair and it’s the first time, especially if they had a haircut they absolutely hated from someone else or they’re going through something whether it be emotionally or physically. I have the power to either break or make someone’s day. If a great shampoo is all it took for their headache to go away or fabulous blowout to make them feel like the fairest of them all or just being a friend and having an in-depth conversation. If I made someone’s day, if I made someone feel a million times better. That’s what I’m proud of. I’m capable of inspiring someone or make someone feel important. That’s what I love the most about doing hair.
I want to say my shampoo & blowdry is what set me apart. If it was up to me I wouldn’t cut hair in an hour. I’d want a full 1 hour 15minutes. The extra 15-minutes for an amazing shampoo and massage. It would explain why my weekends are full of blow dry. During blow dry, I have the 15 minutes to massage since I’m not cutting. I also like to think I can give someone volume and make their hair seem full and hopefully last longer than they expect it too.
Which women have inspired you in your life?
One of Osgood O’Neil’s very own Kim Crawford. She’s a stylist. She does bridal updos, extensions, women’s hair (short and long), men’s hair, and kid’s hair. She does it all aside from color. Which I don’t do color either and she is always in heels and she never complains. She’s fashionably trendy. She works for Osgood O’Neil the Loft where you can create your own hours. She’s a mom of three and as a mom myself, I look forward to having more time with my family. She is everything! She’s been with Osgood for a quite some time and I hope to work alongside her one day. She’s been mentioned in a magazine as well but as I mentioned before I work with the best of the best.
Pricing:
- $85 Women’s Cut + Style
- $75 Men’s Cut, $55 Blowdry
- Brazilian Blowouts starts at $300
- Milbon Conditioning Treatment $65
Contact Info:
- Address: 8308 Preston center plaza Dallas Tx 75225
- Phone: 469.880.5330
- Email: audreygayle.info@gmail.com
- Website: www.audreycuenca.con
- Instagram: instagram.com/audreygaylecuenca
Image Credit:
Lisa Mills, Natasha Desai, Krystal Belfort, Chloe Hedrick, Nikki Cuenca, Shannon Durbin
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