Why I am an Esthetician...

I get that question a lot: what made you become an esthetician? I always say something like 'oh, well, when I was twenty I got a job at the Body Shop in San Francisco and really enjoyed it and discovered I was good at applying makeup so after that I worked for Bare Escentuals then went to beauty school.'
But the truth is: My name is Jennifer and I have a unibrow. I struggled with my single eyebrow for years. I had all kinds of bad brow experiences: shaving them with razors typically used for legs and beards (cuts AND stubble....nice) over-tweezing, overtrimming, overgrowing, you name it. It took me years and years to find the proper brow shape, I'm thirty and it's only been a few years since I figured it out.
My husband is always urging me to 'go Frida' and let my brows unite once again. He said he wanted to see what it looks like. So I dug out this picture of me in the seventh grade, circa 1989. Rave hairspray was my favorite although I also dabbled in Aqua Net. I had a perm AND frosted hair. I chose an orange mock-turtleneck ( I also one in mustard and one in purple, three colors I should NEVER EVER wear) for my class photos. I was self-conscious about my teeth so I didn't smile.
In short, I was a mess. I always knew the power of appearance. On how it affects how you feel and how others treat you. I went into the beauty industry to help people nudge out their inner beauty. I realized two things: we are our own biggest critics and a good brow wax can change your life.

Thirteen years old, painfully shy:


Two-tone hair, unibrow, perm:


My makeup actually looks really good, though: