Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Farrah Walz. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Farrah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

Yes I have been able to earn a full-time living from my work and I feel incredibly blessed. That’s not to say I didn’t put in a lot of hard work and very long hours to get here. I knew from the beginning it was going to take a lot of sacrifice and time. But the driving force in me knew it was going to pay off. In my industry the more experience you have the better stylist you become. I knew I needed to put in the time. So I started as a stylist assistant. I did this for 3 years and I learned so much about being behind the chair and real life salon experience. I full heartily believed that this process and job position is something I needed to experience in order to become the stylist/owner I am today. From there I went on to work at a few different salons and continued to grow as a stylist and build my clientele. This was another time of my life and that was extremely necessary. I became more confident and it reflected in my work. Before I knew it, I was fully booked and pre-booking more than half of my clientele. Which also allowed for me to branch off on my own. And in 2020 I open my own salon suite, FreeStyles Salon.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Farrah Walz and I have been a hairstylist for 14 years. Ive owned my private salon suite for 4 years. I got into the hair industry because it seemed like the natural next step for me in my early young adult years. I have always had an interest in the beauty and hair industries. At a very young age I started practicing on my sister and friends different hairstyles and make up techniques. I even started coloring hair in my parents home kitchen. Today as a seasoned stylist, I offer an array of salon hair services. I provided a safe, fun and professional place where my clients can come and leave completely satisfied. I take so much pride not only in the quality of work I create but in the relationships I build with every person who sits in my chair. I truly care about you and your hair. I believe what sets me apart from other stylist is my deep sense of gratitude. I know that they are many other stylist you could go to get your hair done. That fact that you come to me, you trust me, you invest your hard earned money with me, lights a fire within me that fuels my passion and allows me to dedicate my self everyday to this career. I continue to educated myself, to learn new and exciting techniques and recently I have even embarked on a new venture within this industry and that is to educate others.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In the beginning years of my hairstylist training and assisting, I started to experience quite a bit of adversity. I first had people who doubted my ability to make this a career path and become successful at it. And then I worked for owners who mistreated me, devalued where I came from and questioned my abilities to perform. I adopted a mindset that allowed me stay positive, to not give up and to stay resilient. My family had instilled in me the true meaning of hard-work always pay off. I knew that I could prove to myself that not only was I capable but I was deserving. So I did that. I put in long hours, I worked harder than anyone. I did free haircuts on anyone and everyone I could get my hands on. And I gained an incredible education and salon experience because of it. This time in my life also helped me speak up for myself. To be my own advocate and to not let anyone mistreat me. I’m so proud of this time because I know I would not be the stylist I am today if I did not experience this. These were valuable lessons I learned very early on and I needed to see myself through this so I could continue to speak my truth and to ultimately grow as a person and as a stylist.

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

After 14 years in this business, I have found several rewarding aspects of this career. One of the big ones for me is the relationships I’ve built not only with my clientele but with other creatives who are just as passionate about hair as I am. I always say my clients turned friends. And these friendships have become some of the most loving, most caring and most meaningful relationships I have experienced. How grateful I am for this and if you would have asked me on day one if I could foresee this, I most likely could have not. I have learned from some incredibly talented mentors and worked side by side with women who kill it in the hair industry. All things that inspire to me to keep going.
Another rewarding aspect of being an artist for so long, is seeing my craft grow and flourish. Like anything, the more you dedicated yourself and continue to practice the better you become. Seeing the work I can create now compared to the beginning gives me a joy that’s unmeasurable. I take so much pride in my work because I know everything it took to get here and yet I’m still yearning for more. More experience, more things to learn. That’s the beauty of the beauty industry, it’s forever evolving and I’m so here for it.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @free_styles_
• Other: Tik tok: @farrahwalzhair