Top 10 Eyelash Extension Artists And Their Stories
Top 10 Eyelash Extensions Artists And Their Stories
Find the stories behind the founders of Xtreme Lashes, The Lash Lounge, Live Love Lash, Borboleta Beauty, and six others to find out how they came about.
Who Are The Top Lash Artists In The World And How Did They Become Professionals?
Whether you’re a successful lash artist or are thinking of choosing this path, the first step is to research how others like you found their calling. Is the market worth it? While the answer to this is within the statistics of the lash industry trends, the answer to how do lash artists succeed or get started is hidden in their stories.
Read on to find out the top ten lash artists and their inspiring stories of how they started their own salon, website, and other successful establishments based on their career-of-choice.
Let me say something before you dive in though.
We aren’t affiliated with any of the Lash Artists or the brands they represent below. The below list is prepared without any prejudice or bias. Put simply, we aren’t earning anything out of promoting any of the artists below and the following article is totally for the engagement of you, the readers.
If any of you are just starting, I wanted to help you understand there are many women just like you out there, who started and made it big in the lash industry through dedication, hard work, and free will. I hope it boosts your confidence as it did for me when I was just starting out.
Keep in mind that learning these stories isn’t a waste of time if you’re thinking of joining this industry. Instead, reading it will help you carve out a unique path of lashing for yourself from their mistakes and achievement.
Good luck, fellow lashers.
Let’s begin.
1.Jo Mousselli
URL: https://www.xtremelashes.com/imgAboutJo/Jo-Mousselli-of-Xtreme-Lashes-by-Jo-Mousselli.jpg
Website: https://www.xtremelashes.com/
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/xtremelashes/
Store address: Xtreme Lashes, LLC 24127 West Hardy Road, Suite D Spring, TX 77373 USA
Considered the ‘Queen of Lash Extensions’ Jo Mousselli started as a nurse in the Pediatric ICU but switched to lashing by simply falling in love with it. Her story is quite simple, but one of the most touching such that hundreds of women have trained at her academy to emergy as expert lash artists today.
Once a Magna cum Laude from the Texas Women’s University and a nurse for 10 years at Texas Children’s Hospital, Jo switched to lashing to find a solution to how her exhausting line-of-work spoiled her makeup. She wanted to find a permanent solution for women working long hours to look their best without having worn-out makeup.
Jo is many things amongst a nurse and eyelash extension artist today. She teaches others and owns the 15-year old lashing brand that’s the center of all things lashes. Her unique background in medicine has helped Jo create the best curriculum for teaching young artists as well as develop extremely-useful lash products with a sharp mind.
This is an entrepreneur with endless awards to her name starting from Inc.500|5000 List of 2011 and Gulf Coast Area Finalist in 2011 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year.
2. Anna Philips
URL: https://www.franchisechatter.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Anna-Phillips-Headshot.jpg
Website: https://www.thelashlounge.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelashlounge/
Store address: The Lash Lounge, 3535 US-1, Princeton, NJ 08540
One of the first eyelash extension trainers in the U.S with certification as far back as 2005, Anna is a licensed beautician, permanent makeup artist, massage therapist, owner of hundreds of salons, and a great female-entrepreneur.
Before Anna made it big with lash extensions, she worked in salons, spas, and other places where beauty was the sole focus for a decade before switching over entirely to falsies.
Started as a single-room lash salon in 2005, the Lash Lounge grew over to 111 salons with a history of serving over 90,000 clients and currently employs 550 stylists. It was such a success within one year of opening that Anna opened a second salon within just a year.
The entrepreneur began franchising the Lash Lounge in 2010. If you’re thinking of teaming up with Anna and becoming the owner of a Lash Lounge in your city, you need to know the finances too. Truth be told, owners of the franchise have the capacity of earning up to $734,000 for each location according to Lash Lounge research.
Other services you can find here are lash and brow tinting, lash perming, semi-permanent lash extensions, even clothing, jewelry, gifts, and accessories. The first Lash Lounge opened in Colleyville in Texas. She also represented Xtreme Lashes as a traveling trainer and owned the Rejuvenate Spa from 2003 to 2006 in Grapevine Texas.
3. Amy Dickerson
URL: https://livelovelash.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Amy-300×300.jpg
Website: https://livelovelash.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/livelovelash
Store address: Live Love Lash Studio, 4485 Trinity Mills Rd Suite 36, Dallas, TX 75287
Nicknamed ‘Keeper of the Culture’, Amy Dickerson started doing lashes about 13 years ago. She got her lashes done back in 2004, went on with her life as an art auctioneer, moved to Wisconsin, and realized she wanted to become a lash artist because nothing chimed better than the prospect of being a lash technician.
Currently a Certified Xtreme Lashes Master Stylist, Trainer, and a Licensed beautician, Amy was also chosen the Xtreme Lashes Trainer of the Year in 2015. She was featured in Huffington Post, Associated Skin Care Professionals, and Brides Magazine.
What makes me proud of Amy is that she’s a salon owner besides being the co-owner of Hydrate IV Bar® Cherry Creek. With 15 years of experience in the beauty industry, Amy began as a lash artist and is one of the rare few entrepreneurs successfully running their lash empire. As for her hobbies, she loves trying new cuisines, working out, and hanging out with girlfriends
Here’s a complete peek of her story with Xtreme Lashes from Amy:
4. Kim Jaynes
URL: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0163/4078/t/174/assets/meetkim.jpg?v=4446081529184225748
Website: https://borboletabeauty.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimberjaynes
Store address: Borboleta Beauty, 201 S Main St #2300, Salt Lake City, UT 84111
Synonymous with high-quality lashes today, Borboleta is a brand founded by Kim Jaynes. She began doing lash extensions over 12 years ago in 2008 because Kim couldn’t find a reliable brand with artistically-inspiring eyelashes. She launched Borboleta in 2013 after years of R&D due to the same reason and the rest is history.
Today, Borboleta is known for bringing the most-natural-looking lashes with the softest texture. They are also renowned for their safe adhesives. Celebrities like Katherine Heigl and Nineveh Madison are her favorite clients. A little-known fact is she is also one of the first contributors to the popular HER magazine.
If you’re wondering, Borboleta comes from the Portuguese word for ‘butterfly’. The brand stands for the ideals of ‘beauty that embraces diversity’. The good news about the brand is that it also fronts an academy in Salt Lake City called Borboleta Lash Academy to help other artists find the ropes for surviving in the real world.
5. Angela Chandler
URL: http://www.lashoutloudextensions.com/meet-our-lash-artists.html
Website: http://www.lashoutloudextensions.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lashoutloudlashstudio
Store address: Lash Out Loud, Salon Boutique, 17570 N 75th Ave Suite 14, Glendale, AZ 85308
Began lashing in 2008 from Bellevue, Angela launched Lash Out Loud within a year. If you’re looking at this company, the good news is she’s one of the most sought-after artists in the Northwest. Whether you’re looking to train or get your lashes done, Lash Out Loud is a good place to invest in.
If you’re a first-timer, Angela’s establishment has different levels of artists you can use based on your budget and level of confidence. She has also been featured in several publications including Sugarlash Pro where she busts the myths surrounding eyelash extensions.
6. Verlee Gumban
URL: https://www.verleepearl.com/bio
Website: https://www.verleepearl.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/verleepearl/
Store address: Lash Maven, 489 S Robertson Blvd Studio 105, Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Started in the food industry, Verlee switched to beauty by getting an esthetician license in 2010.
What’s incredibly shocking is that her love for lashing wasn’t even purposeful. Truth be told, Verlee confesses that she didn’t even want to do eyelash extensions when she finished her beauty school training. She decided to try it just so that if some client on a fine day asks her if she knows how to do lashes, she could help them out right away.
Well, that one trial led to one-too-many and the rest isn’t a mystery. Verlee also says that what suited her the most was her QA background of believing the devil is in the details, being sharp and effortlessly-easy-to-talk to.
As for her humble beginnings, she worked for local lash parlors, one of which is Sola Salons, and then realized this is a field she could set her own hours. Hence, she started The Lash Maven, her brainchild. She didn’t just start by herself but sought help from the business coach Aaron Keith from Ascension Programs to help her out. The results were so good, Verlee’s schedule was booked in full for four months after starting her coaching.
She got serious when the Russian Volume came to the mainstream foray in 2013. How did her clientele grow and scale? She swears by referral and WoM (Word Of Mouth) marketing techniques.
So if you’re in the food industry too with an Eiffel-lean towards the beauty niche, don’t fret too much, a’right. Just take the jump and follow Verlee’s path, she’s a great role model y’all. On top of it, if you also have a ton of friends, this career is gonna make you so much happy because your girlfriends are gonna be super-pumped to get free sessions too.
7. Kimberly D. Wisneski
URL: http://www.lavielashbar.com/artists-bios.html
Website: http://www.lavielashbar.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/la.vie_lashbar
Store address: La Vie Lashbar LLC, 12703 Perry Hwy, Wexford, PA 15090
A cum laude graduate from The Pennsylvania State Uni with a B.S (Bachelor of Sciences) in Management Science and IT, Kim was a marketing maven before she stepped into beauty. In total, she has a decade’s worth of experience in the Fashion Industry of New York and New Jersey.
Kimberly received her Pennsylvania Department of Cosmetology aesthetician license in 2013 from South Hills North Hills Beauty Academy, wherein she continued education to earn her lash license. Next year, she joined the Lashe Academy in Chicago to successfully complete her Classic Lash Certification. She went onto do her Volume Lash certification in 2015 with Borboleta Beauty, owned by Kim Jaynes.
Since then, she has been a beauty machine with a soul, churning out perfect services for countless clients. Today, Kimberly is the owner of La Vie Lashbar, Master Lash Artist, Brow Specialist, Licensed Beautician, Certified Microblading Technician, Owner of the Beauty Branding Service, Ambassador of Borboleta Beauty, and much more.
8. Reyna Nebeker
URL: https://www.cherrylash.com/about/
Website: https://www.cherrylash.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reyna.nebeker/
Store address: Cherry Lash, 5775 S Rainbow Blvd STE 100, Las Vegas, NV 89118-2531
One of the renowned and sought after artists in Las Vegas, Reyna is a rarity because of having over 25 years of hands-on experience in the beauty industry. On top of it, she runs a BBB accredited service named Cherry Lash.
If you’re wondering how did she get started or what did she accomplish, read on to explore her timeline of achievements. Reyna received her cosmetologist license in 1994 (when she was 16 guys!!!), and the Permanent Makeup Technician accreditation in 2007 with Advanced Synthetic Lash trainer in 2007.
As for education, she studied the Associate of Science Business Administration at Long Beach City College under the University of Utah in 2001 and B.S in Communications and Public Relations in 2005.
When it comes to professional achievements, Reyna opened Reyna’s Full Beauty Salon in 1995 and ran it till 2001. But she didn’t stop there, folks. She launched ‘Got Lashes’ in 2006 that was open until 2010. The same year, she went on to start Cherry Lash in LA, Nevada. This is a unique lash company because they are specialists here that offer no other services than lash treatments. Put simply, it’s the one-stop-shop for lashes.
Being an Aesthetics Master Educator, her method is to use customized lashes that are cut based on the style and curled according to preference. Currently, Reyna also owns a patent for the unique method of lashing called Featherize.
9. Megan Manke
URL: https://www.primplashboutique.com/meet-your-primpers
Website: https://www.primplashboutique.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/primplashboutique/
Store address: Primp & Refinery, 2703 Capital Mall Dr SW Ste 200 Olympia, WA
A famous lash artist in Olympia, Megan’s love for lashes wasn’t triggered by business gains. She graduated with a B.A in Speech and Hearing Sciences from the University of Washington, after which, she worked with children who had problems to do with development and growth.
However, within a few years of working with children, she realized her true calling was for the beauty industry. Today she’s a licensed aesthetician, lash artist, makeup artist, and Microblading specialist, other than a femtrepreneur.
Her first love for eyelash extensions was during her engagement photoshoot and by her wedding, she was hooked to falsies. Well, her background says she was always in love with beauty because she was doing makeup for her friends and sorority sisters way-back-when.
She has several more achievements under her belt too, folks. Megan was the first to bring falsies to Olympia and considered the best in Thurston County. After being licensed, she worked for years in the salons of Olympia started at a medical Spa in Thurston County. It was in 2012 that she started Primp & Refinery with Ali Nanne to bring lashing to Olympians and since then, she has been hired all over the county and beyond for falsies and special-occasion makeup.
Her motto: Wants to make everyone look their best
10. Emily Phelps
URL: https://theeyelashguru.com/
Website: https://theeyelashguru.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eyelashguru/
Store address: The Eyelash Guru, 435 N Roxbury Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
A renowned celebrity makeup artist, Emily has many popular shows like Desperate Housewives, Basketball Wives, Couples Therapy, and Shop NBC, fashion shows, and red carpet under her sleeve. While she started in the beauty industry, Emily collectively has over 10 years of exclusive experience as a lash artist.
When I said she started in beauty, I meant, she knew everything about skincare from A to Z. After switching to her current field, Emily is currently a master of both ‘Classic’ and ‘Volume’ lashes. The best news is that she can even do a full set of lashes in just an hour. Apart from being a master eyelash extension artist, Emily Phelps also teaches and trains others to become eyelash extension experts.
Her advice to other artists is that it took her a whole of two years to become an expert at lashes and it might take others even longer. It’s a difficult skill to learn and it takes even the best most amount of time. So, go easy on yourself.
Her motto: the better your skin looks without makeup, the better your skin looks with makeup, she believes lashes are the frames to the window of the soul too
In A Nutshell
You read all about the top ten lash artists in the world and how they came about from the grassroots level to owning salons and lash services renowned all across the country. Did it inspire you? I am sure at least a few of them went straight to the heart. As for me, every one of them gave me goosebumps and that’s why I decided to share it with you.
Hope you find the inspiration you were searching for.
Stay pretty and make pretty!
