Adventures of a New York Beauty School Girl

This blog comes to you from the other half of the Hunt clan today. Normally Alan would be writing to you on our behalf. However, there has been a big change in our lives that I'd like to tell you all about. I have decided to go back to school, but not in the traditional sense. As many of you know, I've wanted to be a hair stylist for a long time and on Tuesday (Feb 17th) I became a student at the Carsten Institute for Cosmetology here in NYC. It's an Aveda concept school, which means they use Aveda products and techniques (for the most part) but they are owned by a family. The owner, Carsten Wilms, is a world-renowned stylist who has developed his own cutting technique, which he created and mastered in France. So let me tell you how I came to make this decision.

When we lived in MN, I used to get my hair cut and styled by students at the Aveda Institute. I knew that there was an Aveda Institute in NYC so I called to make an apt. but they couldn't get me in so I was researching other beauty schools online and that's when I found Carsten.  I fell in love with the school the moment I walked in the place but at that point I didn't even considered becoming a student. I had sort of given up on that dream. But visiting Carsten stirred something in me and I started to think about becoming a stylist again. When I went to the school to get my hair done, I chatted with a student who was in the part-time night program. She worked full time and went to Carsten every night, Monday through Friday. No way would I EVER be able to have that kind of discipline. But she told me all about her life, and she had a very similar story as mine. When she started the program, her husband had just finished grad school. She worked full time and couldn't afford to quit her job to go to school. When I left that night, I really started to think that it was something I would be able to do. But I honestly couldn't imagine giving up all my free time for a year. When I got home, I talked to Alan, and instead of worrying about how much money it would cost or about how much time it would take, he told he that I should do it. He told me that he had a chance to follow his dream and go to grad school so I should follow mine and go to beauty school. My original plan was to start this fall so that I could enjoy the summer but I was getting so excited to start. There's no time like the present. So that brings us to today.

I just completed my first week and so far I am LOVING it. On the second day we were already doing hands-on work and cutting hair (on mannequins of course). It's very exhausting though, having to work during the day and go straight to school at night. I don't get home until 10:30. I am getting used to it, but it's going to be hard to keep this schedule up for a year. 

So, my plan for the future. Part of the reason why I'm doing this is because I have always wanted to be able to work for myself. I am not a fan of Corporate America and I'm much too antsy to sit in a cubical for the rest of my life. What I really want to do is be a freelance stylist focusing on the wedding industry. I would love to be a personal stylist for weddings. For my wedding, we had our hair and makeup artist come to us. It was such a good experience! I also plan to get my makeup license eventually, and I'd love to learn hair and lash extensions. I want to be a full-service stylist! My goal is to be able to be working but still be able to stay home with our kids. 

So, I'm going to continue to keep you all updated on my own blog, but I haven't set it up yet. Stay tuned for the url! 

xoxo