We were lucky to catch up with Brittany Ault recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Brittany thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I was destined to be a hairstylist from age 3… maybe earlier. When I was a baby my Mom came home with a spiral perm. It was the 80’s. I must have known a bad perm from birth because I screamed non-stop and wouldn’t let her hold me for days.

I grew up in Montana in an extremely small town. The first thing I ever wanted for Christmas was a kit with curlers, f*ke scissors, make-up and all sorts of beauty supplies. I had 4 sisters and my Mom had very little time or talent to style our hair. I learned to braid and was always trying out hairstyles on my sisters and myself.

Later in grade school I did a job shadow day with my Aunt’s friend who was a stylist. It was a dream to get to help with sweeping and shampoo’s. I knew I had found my future career.

I loved every form of art. I loved to paint, draw and make clothes; cutting up my nightgowns and turning them into the latest fashions. Art was the biggest part of who I was. I carried this into everything I did. I’ve loved creating for as long as I can remember. I guess it was my form of communicating with the world since my whole childhood I was quite shy. I still express myself through art.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I went to beauty school straight out of high school. I was lucky despite having 14 dollars to my name and a car that barely ran, my Mom had raised us with a strong work ethic. We didn’t have much money, so I began working at a young age. Living in Montana taught me how to stretch my resources and utilize every drop of natural talent I had to succeed in life. Thankfully, I was able to apply for a grant that helped me pay for my beauty school supplies. I got a job at a restaurant 2 days after leaving home and arriving in a new city. This is how I payed for school and my first time living on my own at 18.

Fast forward, my profession as a hairstylist has taken me down many roads. I discovered my love of teaching and mentoring younger stylists, which led to educating for a few different companies. My love of color and color formulation as well as sustainable, safe, non-toxic products led me to Italy to complete a mastery program.

This was my second time training in Italy. The first time was a 6 week yoga teacher training course. I love being a hairstylist, but my real love has always been connecting with people. This lead me down a path of teaching in fitness and diving deeper into the wellness industry. I have always believed in beauty from the inside out. I love helping people align with their highest potential; mentally, physically and spiritually. This is what really lights me up.

Later in my career I built my brand around this philosophy. WITH LOVE: Beauty from within. In January of 2020 I was ready to open my first business. I found a studio where I could combine all of my passions under one roof. I would partner with local health and wellness practitioners to host workshops, classes and retreats. I had a single mobile hair station so I could continue to accommodate my clients.
I planned my first event which was to take place in April 2020. We all know what happened next.

Having spent my life savings funding my beautiful business, 2020 was a tough time. I went well over 6 months with no income and no ability to gather. I felt isolated and alone while riots raged in the city and my beautiful space was vandalized over and over. It was devastating and terrifying. When salons were able to open again many stylists were displaced by the closures. I quickly pivoted my original plan and invested in more equipment to take in a couple of stylists. I was grateful to provide a place for them to land, and grateful to be working again.

Despite the hardship of 2020, I was able to build a successful salon. In 2021 I grossed the highest income I ever had previously as a stylist. I worked relentlessly to recover from the previous year. While the income was a blessing and the business thrived, inside I was not okay. Having not had the time to process all of the losses and shifting of my original dream, I became deeply depressed.

The Burnout was SO real. I sort of lost myself. Even while the business thrived, I drifted further and further from the things that made me want to open my space to begin with. I was in survival mode. It would be a couple years before I actually realized this. By this point I was running from my life. I worked part time in San Diego to get away from the Portland dreariness and try to address my mental health. It all came to a head in 2023. I decided to close my doors. I needed to breathe and regroup without all of the pressures that come with running a business solo.

This may sound like a sad story as many stylists dream of salon ownership. To me, it is a triumph to have built my dream, even though circumstances shifted my original vision. While I would not change a single thing, and I’m so proud of what I accomplished, it was time to turn the page. The moment I sold my salon my burnout started to melt away and my spirit began to renew. I returned to Oregon full time and started fresh.

Fast forward to 2025: With Love: Beauty from within has been re-birthed. I’ve built a new community outside of the city. I’ve integrated all that I’ve learned and have returned to my roots; Mind, Body and Spirit. I’m teaching yoga again and renting a small studio space doing hair. It’s such a gift to have the passion restored in my craft. It was only in taking a giant step back that I have been able to move forward.

I have so much love and gratitude for all I’ve learned. I don’t know where life and the creative path will carry me next, but love drives me each day and the joy of creating art continues to inspire and motivate me. My love is people and people are living Art.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

The best way for society to support creatives is by supporting art. Invest in it. Value it. Share it. Treat this beautiful gift with respect and honor it. Understand that creating takes time, a vast amount of energy, and complete vulnerability.

In my profession specifically, I see a lot of clients wanting the impossible. They bring in an inspirational photo of someone else- wanting an exact replica. They don’t understand that this may not be possible for them or even what would look best on them. They often don’t want to invest in the money nor the time it takes to create these looks. I miss the days where social media wasn’t so prevalent, and clients had faith in your ability to create a look specifically for them. I wonder if we are losing the true beauty of our craft. I wonder if the ‘art’ aspect is dwindling with the times.

I believe in treating artists with the same respect and courtesy you would treat any person in any other profession. Our service to you comes from our soul. Treat us the way your soul would want to be treated.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding part of being an artist is autonomy. For the entrepreneur, this is everything. If we don’t work, we don’t make an income- but at least it’s on our terms and on our time. I wish every human being had complete autonomy to create a schedule that was right for them. We are so much more motivated when we have the time for self care, our pets, friends and family. Immagine a world where we all had this. It would be a very different world.

Contact Info:

• Website: Http://www.withlovepdx.com
• Instagram: @_britthealthandhair
• Facebook: Withlove_pdx

Image Credits

Edward Marks