Check Out This Week's BCU Featured Stylist - Kaily Hitchborn @kaily_hairnorwich

Meet this week's BCU Featured Stylist! Kaily's work caught my eye because of the stunning variety of color work she does!

Let's get to know Kaily Hitchborn! She's a color specialist out of Norfolk, U.K. You can find her on Instagram at @kaily_hairnorwich. I asked Kaily a few questions so I could learn more about her and her journey. Check out our conversation below!!

 +How long have you been doing hair? 
I’ve been a qualified hairdresser since 2015 but have been in the hairdressing industry since 2013 as an apprentice.

+Tell me about yourself. Are you a salon owner? Booth renter? Commission stylist? What is your specialty behind the chair. What are your goals?
I am salon based and am on a rent a chair basis. I specialise in anything colour! I’m 100% more of a colour gal than I am a cutter, always have been! Which is why I perused perfecting colour, I love anything from vivid to natural and love that I have that variety to always keep me on my toes. I’ve always been a salon based stylist. Wanting a family and then becoming a mum, it’s never interested me to travel the world/teaching, I just want to be close to home always. But one thing I absolutely want one day is to extend a room out at my own house to have my own suite for me EXACTLY how I want it! The perfect aesthetics & atmosphere that align with me as a stylist and the experience you get when you have your hair done with me, I think that’s one of the most important parts of getting your hair done!

+What's been the best advice you have ever received?
One of the best things I’ve been told as a “slow” stylist is that IT'S OKAY! You don’t have to do a full foil in 1hr. Whether you do it in 30minutes or 2hrs, it doesn’t define you as a stylist. For years I’d panic that I was taking too long, so this was music to my ears. Full head of highlights is not just that anymore, it’s baby lights, root shadows, colour melting, backwash balayage and these services take time and patience to PERFECT! 

+What do you feel is your greatest strength?
I think that one of my strengths is that I can manage expectations and if something isn’t achievable I always come up with a solution. If something isn’t achievable I will create a plan on the journey we need to take to get there or if it’s unfortunately not achievable I will always think of an alternative solution! This skill has definitely taken years to build up so don’t panic if you don’t have this right off the bat, it takes plenty of practice and patience!

+What advice do you have for other stylists?
Something I would tell upcoming stylists is that yes you have to start from somewhere, and sometimes the jobs you have to do aren’t exactly what you want to be doing. But if you are working somewhere that is making you feel looked down on and fills you with anxiety then leave! I have worked places like this, and taking feelings like this home with you just to go back to it the next day is an awful place to be. No one deserves to be treated like this, there are so many salons and there will be the perfect one for you

+What do you feel is the most valuable part of being a BCU member?
I have loved being a BCU member! Being able to watch videos at home, as many or few as I like whenever I like is brilliant! There is a constant flow of new content added, I learn so much more than I would do if I went on just a one day course. Working smarter not harder has stuck in my head, that you don’t always have to pack thousands of foils in to create beautiful hair and actually less can be more! With all the lived in colours that are so popular at the moment, not overfilling is key so this has been so so helpful!

+Anything else you’d like to share?
I love that I’m in this Instagram generation, I enjoy creating content so much. Even if at times it’s so so tough to stay consistent - which is just impossible to do, we are only human and burn out is real! I think it’s amazing that we are able to express ourselves/businesses/personalities/creativity on here to attract our perfect client! And also help clients to find a stylist that perfectly suits them.

You can visit Kaily's Instagram account HERE!

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