Meet Your Stylist: Neisjah "Neezy" Hastings

Choosing a career is no easy task, and sometimes requires a bit of trial and error. Neisjah Hastings, a stylist here at J. Bauman Salon for nearly five years, tried a few different things before finding her home here.

“I went to dental school at first, but I didn’t like the lack of creativity. When I dropped out, I didn’t think my family would want me to do hair, because I had tried a couple of other creative things in the past that didn’t work out.”

Neisjah had a fairly successful run as a local DJ, under the name DJ Kitty Smallz, and also had aspirations to design clothing, but neither proved to be her calling.

“My mom came to me one day and said ‘what about hair school?’ And I was excited because I had always done my own hair, and friends and family’s hair, but I never thought it was something my parents would accept as a career.”

And with that, she was off to hair school, and has since established herself as a core member of the J. Bauman team.

“The most difficult part of being a stylist is managing and meeting clients’ expectations. I always want to make sure we’re on the same page. The best part is when you nail what they want, it’s really satisfying.”

I asked her what the most unexpected aspect of choosing this career was, to which she said, “I think it’s the unexpected connections I’ve made. With the way I carry myself - being heavily tattooed and all that - there are times when I think that certain clients won’t be interested in talking to me, but I’ve formed genuine relationships with a lot of people.”

Lastly, I asked Neisjah what she thinks makes our salon unique. “We definitely stick out; there are so many different age groups and lifestyles, and it’s really cool that we are all able to put those things aside and be a family, and work as a team.”

See more of Neisjah's work on her Instagram profile. Follow her here: @hairbyneisjah