Meet Jaclyn Croel | Hair Stylist and future Pole Instructor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jaclyn Croel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jaclyn, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I’ve always been one with a wild imagination and a curious heart; that really doesn’t offer space for a “normal 9 to 5” career. To be frank, I despise that schedule. My brain works best when growing within something that allows me not only my creative freedom but also challenging education and lessons both professionally and personally. As a hair stylist, there’s always a new trend, always a new process, always multiple ways to get to the final goal. I’m not only working with color theory, but also geometry, chemistry, therapy, mine and my clients’ vulnerability, all while exploring the worlds of marketing, advertising, social media, entrepreneurship, and continued education. Having a creative career allows me the space, time, freedom, and exploration that both my brain and soul crave.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
The biggest lesson I’ve learned: always follow your gut, your intuition is always correct. I’ve been a creative since day one: I took dance, gymnastics, cheerleading and explored all kinds of avenues of nature. I started Girl Scouts at age 5 and have my lifetime membership.
I knew as a child that I wanted to be a hairstylist. I specifically remember going to the salon with my mom around 7 or 8 years old and being mesmerized at what her stylist was creating. I looked at her combs that were in a jar of barbicide and told them both that one day I’ll be behind the chair. When I got to high school though, my guidance counselor completely talked me out of cosmetology and pressured me into college. After dual enrollment classes with Kendall College of Art and Design, I started my journey as an art student. I began school as an art major with the intention of becoming an art therapist but very quickly realized the way of traditional college was not for me. After two years of art and fashion classes, I decided to drop out and go to cosmetology school (I did end up going back and graduating with an associates degree).

At the start of my career, I had six jobs and was working seven days a week for over a year. I absolutely struggled to find myself, my salon home and my tribe of support all while trying to move through some extremely difficult lessons. My young 20s were full of some really horrifying moments that forced growth in ways I never thought I’d seek. I started therapy, fell back in love with dance and slowly started to find myself. Currently, I am in the process of becoming a certified pole instructor. My goal as an instructor is to merge together the worlds of movement therapy and pole for sexual assault survivors and sex workers. I am so grateful to have a career that allows me to be expressive in more ways than one. I will never be able to put into words how much it means to be able to explore vulnerability in both the world of movement and the beauty industry.

The last year has definitely been the most gratifying yet surprising year I have yet to experience. I started performing as a competitive pole dancer and was able to perform internationally, earned a partnership with the international company Matrix and traveled cross-country for a solo coming trip through the mountains of Arizona. I am honored to have learned all that I have and to continue growing in every way I can.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
A day outside. I am absolutely much more of a nature gal. Two of my favorite places are out by the lakeshore: Village Baker Inn in Spring Lake and Temptations ice cream in Grand Haven. I grew up backpacking, white water rafting and caving so any chance I get to be outside, away from the lights and the noise, is very much so welcomed. We will definitely be enjoying a lakeshore hike with the perfect dessert of a Lake Michigan sunset. Sometimes I think we’re so infatuated with the next new cool thing that we forget to slow down and appreciate the little things. Mother Nature has a way of putting you in your place and at times, we all need to be reminded of that. Sometimes, it’s good to feel small.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I recently read a quote (that stated no author), “It took a lot of violence to get to this much peace.” “Violence” can mean so many things: in my case, it took a lot of trauma and learning life lessons the extremely tough way. I am so grateful to have an amazing tribe of support that is far too large to list. My goal is to create the safest possible space to grow, heal, learn, and create. Those that are in my circle have done just this for me. I am so honored to have a support system that creates the safest space for me to also learn and grow. In my early 20s, I started taking pole dancing classes which forced me to become comfortable owning, accepting, and exploring my vulnerability. This world opened me to so many supportive and important relationships. I owe so much of my growth to my pole journey; it has taught me mental, physical and emotional strength in so many ways. It’s been extremely gratifying to take these lessons and apply them to my life behind the chair. Being able to accept the type of vulnerable support that I receive in my personal life from the pole community and turning it into something I can offer my clients in the salon is such a beautiful thing.

Website: https://jaclynmckenziebeauty.com

Instagram: @jaclynmckenziebeauty

Image Credits
Triptychs Photography Don Q Photography