My education at Aveda has been one to remember. As an Intro student I sat in a class with twenty-five other people that were in my exact shoes, starting a thirteen month journey through cosmetology school. After two days of reading and learning the entire handbook we finally got our student kits, and just like Emilee said, it felt like ‘Christmas’. New hair dryers, flatirons, brushes, combs, mannequin heads, and perm rods could not prepare us for what lied ahead. The next eleven weeks taught our minds and bodies what real 12 hour days were like. The next phase brought much excitement, a new educator, and someone new in class to get to know. We also started theory class with Laura which would help prepare us for our state boards. More quotas, manicures and pedicures are what we enjoyed for these eleven weeks. The next step was A-2. Here we learned many haircutting techniques from Mike! And for most of us, we experienced working on a paying guest for the first time. This was the time our class learned from each other and started to become a family away from home. Late nights studying for the theory tests and practicals brought us all closer together.

Salon Concepts was next. Once again, new educators and more guests per day opened our eyes to the real world a little more. Less breaks and shorter lunches taught us the value of timing real quick. This phase seemed to fly by.. until we got to practicals. For the state of Florida only 1200 hours are required. So these were graded by Jamie with the intent we were heading into the licensed world of cosmetology. It felt like the longest three days yet. Congratulations, you’re on to Masters!!! Three days of bootcamp, and then your faced with reality again. Four hours of workshop a week and the remaining 26 hours are spent working on guests. This was when we could experience how creative we can really be in this industry. You have the best educators to gain as much insight as possible. Starting this experience, I really didn’t know what I was getting into. But I fell in love. To all my educators and classmates along the way, Thank You for walking this path with me.. it’s been STUNNING!!