Hi, I'm Shawna! Thank you for visiting my website, and taking interest in getting to know a little about the girl with the curlingiron!

 

A little about myself: I have just over 20 years experience with hair and makeup. (I am older than I look and began my passion for beauty fairly early!) I was born and raised just outside beautiful Seattle, WA. I am a 3rd generation hair stylist in my family. My Grandmother owned & operated her own salon when I was very young, and would often bring me and my younger sister to the salon while my parents worked. I sat and watched her working on clients, fascinated by the process of transformation. When I was a little older, my Aunt (who also went  to the same cosmetology academy as I did, then went on to work for the company!) took to watching us as well, and would have clients come to her house. I again was so enthralled in how she cut, colored and styled hair. I loved the fluid motion of a blowout, the smell of the products and the final shake of the finished look. This inspired me to pick up shears and start cutting away at anything I could get my hands on! Barbies, friends, my younger sister and even my own hair.

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When I was 15, I had my first client! A friend of mine knew I was savvy with clippers and shears so he asked me to cut his hair. It wasn't long before word got out that I was doing free haircuts so I was taking anyone I could and it ranged from 3-5 haircuts a week. Then shortly after, people started bringing me boxes of bleach and color. (Eminem was very popular at the time and everyone wanted his signature buzz cut and bleached head!) I experimented with foil highlights and was pleasantly surprised at how well they turned out. This fared well when I enrolled at the Gene Juarez Academy of Beauty in Seattle. I excelled with what was being taught since I already had a basic understanding of what I was doing. I had such a fantastic time! I competed in a few Academy Artistic competitions, where students team up and create their version of a theme or "look" and compete against other teams/students in both campuses. One made to the top 5 and the other took 3rd place. 

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I am still reminded to this day by my mother who would find snippets of hair behind our couch....We all knew who did the cutting (ME!) but she would rifle through my sister's hair to see if it was her head it came from. Often times it was..... (Sorry sis. lol)

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In 2010, I met my husband who swept me away to the sunny Bay Area! I dove into the professional wedding industry in 2012 and fell in love with doing hair and makeup for brides. (Among other things...) I ventured out on my own in 2016, and Girl With a Curlingirn was born! I have such a passion for what I do and I eat and breathe hair and makeup. I am proud to mention that I have won The Knot Best of Weddings for 2017, 2018 and 2019! I'm gunning for the Hall of Fame badge in the future!

 

 I am a chameleon when it comes to my appearance... I love to change my hair every few months, and play with new makeup looks. And I'm not too shy to try a new bold lip or eye trend. (That IS part of what I do, isn't it! lol) I love doing hair and makeup tutorials for my Instagram page and YouTube channel.  Teaching others how to do the perfect beachy curl or contour is a lot of fun! I've even held classes! In my spare time, I do hair/make up for political news stations such as CNN/FOX/NBC/ESPN. 

 

I have a beautiful 4.5 year old son (and one more on the way due February 2021!), a wonderful, handsome husband, married 7 years, together for 10 and a half,  two chihuahua mix pups (Chanel and Dolce....The names weren't planned, it was fate lol), two sweet sibling kitties, Samantha and Marcello and a mischief of rats: Rico Suave, Jasper & Teddy.  I love watching movies, crafting, cooking (It's the Filipino in me... lol) music, camping, fishing, archery and photography.

 

Be prepared to be entertained when you meet me.... I love telling stories (the long, theatrical version) and love throwing humor in there to make people laugh! I love to have fun with my clients and getting to really know them, and their tribe, like a friend would. 

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If you are looking for more than just a run-of-the-mill beautifying experience, you're in the right place! Let's do some magic!

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Xoxo,

Shawna