What inspired you to pursue a career in beauty therapy?

I actually didn’t know what to do when I left school, I had to go to college and pick a course to do because I couldn’t be a lifeguard at my local pool forever, which I actually thought would be a great career choice at the time.

I picked beauty therapy because I enjoyed doing my eyebrows from a young age, mainly because my eyebrows were attached at the middle and I hated it. I loved to be with people and I especially liked to help others with their eyebrows. It wasn’t instant love for beauty therapy when I was in college, that came later when I started working on different clients in spas and salons. I would thrive on making my clients happy and making sure I gave them the best experience. I would always get too attached to my clients and love to hear all about their day and what they had been up to since their last appointment.  

Can you share a little about your professional journey?

I have a passion for facials and advanced facial treatments, I love to teach the combination of relaxation from massage and prescriptive advanced facials, tailored for each client and their skin type. I have an obsession with brows and transforming a client’s whole look with a tint and wax. I would always take my time with a client’s brows and make sure the shape and shade of tint was perfect for their hair and face shape. I see it as a work of art which is displayed on a client’s face for all to see. I would always run over time with brows and get into trouble for my whole column being out of sync for what should have been a quick brow shape. 

I fell into teaching because of my Welsh language, there was a small training provider in Aberystwyth who needed a fluent Welsh speaking assessor. I started teaching a combination of level one hair and beauty in schools and instantly knew teaching beauty therapy was the most rewarding, wonderful career path to be on. My long-term goal was to teach level three beauty therapy and I finally achieved this last year. 

How do you stay updated with the latest trends and techniques in the beauty industry?

I enjoy upskilling and still get so excited to learn new treatments and techniques. I regularly book in for different facial treatments to make sure I am up to date with the new machines and products. The last few years of teaching we have immersed our department into competing at Skills Competition Wales and WorldSkills UK competitions. 

What advice would you give to students aspiring to enter the beauty therapy field?

I would encourage students to visit their local college for an open evening and perhaps talk to current students and anyone they might know working in the industry to ensure that it would be a career choice they could picture themselves in. Beauty therapy is a demanding, tiring job but the rewards extensively outweigh this if you are a caring person who strives for perfection in their work. 

How do you unwind and practice self-care?

I enjoy watching my children carry out their various activities in the evening like horse riding, rugby and swimming. I am a dog lover and enjoy walking miles with my dog on weekends. But for my own self-care I like to swim, not a leisurely paddle but a long-distance freestyle swim, this helps to keep me fit and clears my head. 

What inspired you to pursue a career in beauty therapy?

I always struggled academically in school and was always more hands-on and loved practical activities. Actually, beauty wasn’t my first choice and I really struggled with what I wanted to do as a career. 

I did beauty as I’d gone to get some treatments before my sister got married and really enjoyed watching the therapist and I was asking so many questions that she turned around and said, “why don’t you do a beauty course?” So that’s what I did, I enrolled on a part time beauty course and loved it and found something I was good at but that I also enjoyed. 

Can you share a little about your professional journey?

I left college and was lucky enough to have been offered a job at Ragdale Hall Spa from being there on work experience. I did my three months trial but decided to follow my partner who had got a job in Essex as a teacher and I was lucky enough to get a job in a Salon in Chigwell. I really enjoyed my time there and the training I had really made me into the therapist I am now.

Then we decided to move home to Wales and I worked in Salons and Spas in the local area then decided to start my own business. 

Teaching was something I had an interest in so I did an introduction into teaching course and after that I was lucky to get a space on the PGCE course. I completed one year and a job vacancy came up in Coleg Ceredigion so I decided to try for it as it was so close to home and I managed to get offered some teaching hours and the rest is history.

10 years later and I am still loving teaching all levels of beauty therapy. I love doing nails, pedicures and facials but I love all beauty treatments to be honest. 

How do you stay updated with the latest trends and techniques in the beauty industry?

I still work in the industry so that keeps my skills up and keeps me up to date with the trends as well as attending additional training.

What advice would you give to students aspiring to enter the beauty therapy field?

Follow your dreams and don’t ever give up because anything is possible if you just stick to it and believe in yourself.

How do you unwind and practice self-care?

Spending time with my family (it’s a very busy family with three children, a husband and a dog) and I have recently joined a choir.