Today we’d like to introduce you to Victoria Freeman.
Hi Victoria, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, and moved to Dallas in 2019 when I was 18 for cosmetology school at Toni Guy. Pretty much ever since I can remember I was always fascinated by hair and makeup; I did science projects related to it and tried to take any chance in middle in high school to expand what I was able to do with it, so for me, it was a pretty cut and clear it’s what I wanted to do with my life. It was a little scary though moving away from my friends and family to start this process, but I very quickly met amazing friends, teachers, and mentors here that always pushed me to keep trying, and my parents were incredibly supportive in the whole process still are. I was in school still when the pandemic started which was a little strange, we didn’t get to work on as many clients as you typically would and had to do remote learning part of the week. Going through that process however, definitely taught me that there will always be a way to get something done; you just have to be patient and figure out how to get through it.
After graduating, I started an apprenticeship at a salon, this was a year and a half that taught me so much. I gained some amazing friends in both hair and life through this program, I got onto the floor and realized that while I loved doing hair and meeting different clients something was missing. I found I really wanted something of my own. Eventually, it was decided that it would be best for me to go ahead and part ways from the salon, and that pushed me even more, and I just kind of was like, “well time to figure this out and fast” I had an incredible friend from hair school, Karen Noble Eversgerd, who has allowed me to share a suite with her as I am fully getting this all started.
I decided to call my studio Golden Beauty Studios, inspired by the book The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. We read it in middle school for an English project, and it was just something that always really stuck with me; Specifically, two quotes from the book “Just don’t forget that some of us watch the sunset too.’ refer to that even though there are people of different walks of life, but at the end of the day we are all the same in ways, at least that’s what I always got from it, and “stay gold pony boy.” referring to always staying yourself and being content with whatever comes your way. So, for everything that I had gone through with the process, it felt pretty fitting.
And even though this is a new venture, I’d have to say it’s been the most fulfilling; I have been growing a clientele of like-minded people that make me look forward to every time I get to step through the door. I get to try so many fun things that before, I wasn’t really able to. My clients feel less like clients and more like friends; we get to laugh, tell stories and just be open and honest. As hairstylists, we have such an incredible opportunity to get really see people for their entirety; we get to learn about the people who sit in our chairs and create a safe space for them while also getting to bring their inner beauty outward. For me, that makes every second of it worth it.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Going through cosmetology school through a pandemic was definitely not something I’d had on my Bingo card, so to say. It made hands-on practice a lot harder as we weren’t able to see clients and mostly did work on each other or on the mannequins. This ended up having a trickledown effect on my apprenticeship, I was starting a little more behind than the people who had come in before me and who would eventually come in after me. It also was very hard being away from my family (mom, dad, and my sister) for the first time and at what felt like such young age. They have honestly been my biggest driving force, there for the many calls of “guess what happened today?” and “Should I really keep doing this?” I feel like anyone in creative fields always has a hard time really knowing if they’re good enough to be doing what they are, but my family was constantly there reminding me that I was going to be okay, it would work, and they were always going to have my back.
I also had a hard time at the salon where I did my apprenticeship and was a stylist, it was a good place to work, and I had some amazing coworkers who I still talk to and love to hang out with, but it just wasn’t really me. I guess the best way to describe myself would be more alternative, and I love doing fashion-shaded and vivid colors on my clients, which wasn’t really a big thing for that space, so I found I was doing hair that I wasn’t as excited about. I also still was keeping up with a second job 4-6 days a week through all of this, I actually still am, but I’ve been able to go down to 2-3 nights as a server because of this transition into my own space.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I offer a variety of services, from cuts to color to treatments; however, I specialize in blonding services and vivid color services. I like to make sure I am keeping the hair as healthy as possible while still creating the color my clients are looking for. I take extra time to make sure my client and I have a solid plan moving forward and are able to both have a little fun in the process.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
I try to listen to a lot of mindset podcasts, just random ones mostly that I find looking around on Spotify. Also, just music in general, I pretty much always have something playing because it keeps me excited and focused on my tasks; I am currently listening while filling this out, actually, Haha.
Pricing:
- full highlights- 200
- Vivid colors starting at 275
- lived in color – 225
Contact Info:
- Website: https://golden-beauty-studios.square.site
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/victoriagoldenbeauty/?hl=en
