Samantha Renee

As a biracial girl, my mom and I share many characteristics, but hair is not one of them. Having straight, fine hair, my mom didn't have any clue how to take care of my thick curls. As a child, I spent every weekend at my grandmother's house on a pillow between her knees watching cartoons. The process would take a few hours. My grandmother would wash and set my hair into whatever the style was for the week. She was a true kitchen beautician, and I like to think part of my passion for the beauty industry derives from the time I spent with her. It wasn't until my junior year of college and during the recession before I fully tapped into my creative calling. Before that, I was enrolled full-time at Dominican University, helping my family run the gym my parents opened in 2005, traveling and generally having a good time. My parent's gym didn't survive the recession, and I slowly realized I needed to adapt to the changing economy. My original plans had to change. Enter Hair. I always "played" with my friends' hair and makeup before I decided to go to beauty school. I had been working part-time in a small local salon since in high school. I enjoyed the rotating personalities and stories that sat in the salon chair every hour. I loved the way people stood taller and emanated confidence after being in the salon. Owning my own business was something I always imagined - but never thought I would own a salon for some reason. Maybe, because that is the standard answer from every student in cosmetology school when asked: "What do you want to do when you finish the program?". After beauty school, I worked for a Luxury Salon & Spa in Lakeview. The training was rigorous: shampooing, color techniques, cutting styles, updo's, men's cuts - I did it all. Once I graduated to the salon floor and had my station, my clientele exploded quickly. I had found my calling, my people, and my home. I belonged in that salon. In the beginning, it wasn't pretentious or catty or the usual bs you might think of happening in a salon. It had a chill atmosphere where the most important thing wasn't my outfit, but my client's happiness. Eventually, the climate changed and I knew it was time to move on, but how? Once I knew it was time to move on, I figured I would have to work for myself because I couldn't imagine finding a boss better than the

one I had. I was looking to cultivate a different environment. An oasis where you could be yourself, clothes didn't matter, and if I didn't feel like putting mascara on that day, it was ok. I was behind the chair to make my client look and feel fantastic. A friend of mine, Melissa Murphy at The Hair Studio Chicago, introduced me to Sola Salon Suites. She gave me and my clientele a salon to call home in her suite-style space and mentored me on how the business side works. Sola had everything I wanted in a space when I was ready and able to do it on my own. This independent culture unifies all of its beauty professionals. It's a company that, even in the most challenging economic times, supports its artists. Under Melissa's wing, we worked happily together for four years. I was able to grow my business and financially prepare to run my salon. Welcome to Nov Salon. We are open to every kind of person with any type of hair: older women and men, children, and everyone in between. From short to long, fake and real, straight or curly, I want to provide expert styling for a broad and diverse range of clientele, and be the eclectic stylist that I know I am.