Nine years ago, Erin Otter was at Durham College in their Cosmetology Apprenticeship program, and was placed at
Quattro (Hair Design and Day Spa), in
Northumberland Mall. She has been there ever since, and has absolutely loved it.
Erin had no hair styling experience prior to working at Quattro. She has come a long way in her career, and what she has learned in the process. She not only specializes in hair care and styling, but now also makeup and beauty because she has recently become an Independent Presenter for
Younique Cosmetics.
Erin has been my go-to hair person for anything I need done, and she always does a fantastic job. She makes the experience, as well as the result, a very good one. She is very easy to talk to, and sure does know how to take a client's vision and turn it into something amazing.
I had the opportunity to visit Erin at Quattro and get some insider info on what being a hair stylist is all about, and also her experiences at Quattro. I've included photos of the salon's space, and some of Erin, while demonstrating some of her work. Her photos and answers to my questions are below.
Mikayla:
How would you describe your hair style, and how does it compliment or go with your sense of clothing choices?
Erin:
I recently changed my hair colour and I'm loving it! Natural looking colours are really trendy right now so I went with a light ash brown shade all over with blonde highlights to give my hair a sunkissed look. My hair is long, and growing!, with bangs
and lots of layers. The layers give me volume when I wear it straight and when I style it with my natural curl. My hair compliments my clothing style well because I wear a variety of colours and with a natural and versatile cut and colour in my hair, it never
clashes with my outfit.
Mikayla:
When you started helping out at Quattro nine years ago, what was it about the job that you liked so much? What made you want to pursue this kind of career?
Erin:
I didn't know what to expect when I first started at Quattro but the longer I was there, the more I loved it. I realized that there was actually a job that consists of making people look and feel beautiful while being social. I still say it can't get much better than that! It just felt natural, so I decided that this is what I was meant to do.
Mikayla:
What is one of the most memorable hair styling experiences you have had while working at Quarttro?
Erin:
I have a hard time picking just one, I can think of so many! Recently I had a client who was feeling very brave and I really changed her look. She came in with brown coloured hair that had grown out and faded. First I lightened all of her hair to a beige blonde, then put a mixture of blue, purple and pink throughout the bottom. It turned out beautifully, the blonde sitting over the rainbow of colours that peek through. Not many people are this brave, including me, so it was definitely a memorable day!
This is a photo of the hair colouring that Erin described above. Neat, right?!
Mikayla:
Do you have to or feel you have to dress a certain way while working at a professional salon?
What kind of things do you usually opt for while getting dressed for work?
Erin:
In the beauty industry, there is an expectation to look the part. Our clients come to us as professionals to make them look their best, how can we make them feel confident in our talents and skills if we don't look OUR best? Keeping that in mind, I can go all day without stopping so comfort is also important! Right now I can't get enough of skinny pants with boots and longer sweaters or shirts.
Mikayla:
What is your favourite hair style/trend right now? What have you been seeing customers do with their hair lately?
Erin:
Quite a few of my clients have been changing their styles, some cutting 8 inches or more, others growing shorter cuts to try out something different. I love it all! Giving someone a whole new look and seeing the smiles when I'm finished is SO rewarding. I mentioned before that natural looking colours and styles are really trendy right now and I'm really into it. It doesn't necessarily mean that it's the clients natural colour so sometimes it can be quite a big change.
Mikayla:
Since you have been with Quattro for almost ten years, how have you seen it change and grow in the last decade? Would you say that anything specifically is drastically different or not?
Erin:
I have seen so much change in the past decade, in the salon as well as the beauty industry itself. Years ago, your stylist was the only source for information about hair. Now with a few clicks of a button, you can learn everything you need to know about hair and all the different ways to do it. Clients are more informed about what they want and what a stylist is doing. Stylists need to stay current with trends and always learn and evolve if they want to keep up in the fast paced beauty world. Salons need to stay current as well, which brings me to other big changes I have seen. 7 years ago, Quattro moved locations within the mall, allowing us to expand our services to include Esthetics. You deserve to be pampered but don't always have the time so having one salon for all beauty needs is very important! A few years ago, the salon once again underwent a remodeling including a whole new colour theme and new, modern stations. I would say that things have definitely drastically changed in the past decade but all of it for the better!
Mikayla:
Since you have now taken on a job in the makeup field with Younique cosmetics, how do you like specializing now in both hair and beauty? They do go together really well, so how does that help your skills or knowledge in either field?
Erin:
I became an Independent Presenter for Younique in November 2014. I think it fits right in to my career, I give beauty advice every day so it wasn't hard to branch into makeup especially because Younique is such a wonderful company. They provide high quality products with no fillers as well as being animal cruelty free, gluten free and vegan. I believe that hair and beauty go hand in hand and I'm happy that I can help women feel even more beautiful! I'm always on the lookout for ways to expand my skills in beauty and Younique is one of those ways.
Mikayla:
What are some of the most important life lessons or hair/beauty lessons you have learned over your span of time at Quattro?
Erin:
I started at Quattro when I was 19 so I've learned so many life lessons since then. One of the most important things I've learned and that has been helpful in my life and career, is to listen. In my experience, that is the key to a good relationship with my clients. Knowing my clients vision for their hair helps me give them a look they will love and builds the trust they need to make changes to a look, however subtle or drastic. In terms of hair, I didn't know a whole lot when I first started so I'd have to say I learned almost everything in my span of time at Quattro.
What Erin Wore:
Shirtg // Ricki's
Tank Top // Le Chateau
Leggings // H&R Fashion Plus
Earrings // Pandora
As always, thanks for reading!
Photos by Mikayla Kuehn
© All content is my own. Feel free to use anything you would like, while giving proper credit. Thank you
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