Salon Spotlights #withVIRTUE: Blonde Faith Salon

Meet Karen Craig, owner of the chicest salon in Austin, Texas, Blonde Faith Salon.

We are so fortunate to meet and work with some of the most inspiring people in our industry, and Karen sits high on our admiration list. Karen had spent much of her adult life thinking about the career she had dreamt of, but hadn’t pursued. As she raised her family, beauty school was always in the back of her mind and, at 46, she enrolled in cosmetology school, proving it’s never too late to chase your dream.

Now Karen is the owner of a beautiful salon, with a staff of 23 talented women, that is setting trends and taking names… for hair and cosmetic appointments, of course!

What made you decide to open up your own salon?

Somehow, an inner voice inside told me that I could do it :)

What is your best memory about the journey?

My best memory is doing crazy projects with my teenage (now college aged daughter) and using the salon as our “lemonade stand that went off the rails”. We’ve done events, crazy craft projects, wallpaper and design installations, advertising and many other things. It was an amazing blessing to work with my own daughter who rocks at everything and then send her off to Carnegie Mellon where she is studying mechanical engineering and is now the intellectual and creative woman I would have dreamed her to be.  She is a feminist in the best, most perfect sense as she literally sees no limits related to gender.  She does not even consider her femininity in any regard; it does not bind her and does not hold her back.

What is the most challenging thing about owning a salon?

The most challenging part has been keeping things calm, cool and collected under pressure, and even under the desirable pressure of our tremendous growth. Keeping on, always moving forward and always anticipating the next and the next-next step.

When did it feel like you caught your “big break”?  

In 2017, before we reached our four year anniversary we had the opportunity to expand into our adjoining building space and triple our size and double our rent.  We embraced the opportunity and created our own “big break”….

Is there anyone in the industry (or beyond the industry) that you really admire, or has inspired you?

I’ve always loved the relentless pursuit of creativity, never ending curiosity and tireless energy so I’ve loved personalities such as Martha Stewart, Beth Minardi, excellent chefs, and curious intellectuals. My daughter Cosette has inspired me the most tho by far as her enthusiasm for life and her constant encouragement and help and creativity made the salon what it is.

Tell us more about how you define “style”

We tend to prefer classic beauty and beautiful trends. We love the energy that new trends bring, but do not try to be different for the sake of being different. We prefer “excellent” to “different” and believe in being your most “excellent” self.

How do you define a client success?

A success to us is a happy client who wants to tell someone about us and about her experience. A success to us is helping a client to be her most excellent self.

What’s your personal morning hair routine? 

 I believe in shampooing daily. I do not follow the trend of several days between shampoos (and I own a farm hahaha).  I believe that stimulating the scalp is healthy and invigorating for the hair and have always shampooed daily. I shampoo with Virtue, of course, as it has been life-changing for me, and then I apply a styling product or two (6-in-1 and Volumizing Whip) and then either do a classic blowout and duckbill clip the loops to curl while I drive to work, or style with a curling iron and duckbill clip the curls to cool.

I always always use hairspray and the Virtue spray is the best I’ve ever used and I’ve used a lot and I’m very discriminating when it comes to hairspray.

What is your favorite trend right now?

My favorite trend is Balayage with a root shadow as that is the majority of our work at the salon. I believe it offers the client more longevity than traditional highlights and takes a true artist to achieve so it is very creative for us.

What other things are you passionate about that aren’t necessarily hair related?

I own a beautiful farm and my farm animals such as horses, donkeys, four dogs, a cat, 40 chickens, ducks, and geese are my passion and my outlet outside of the salon.  I treasure every minute on the farm and love that its so different than the salon!!

What is next for your salon and your career?  What part of it are you most excited about?

We have been growing at such a rapid rate I am often questioned about opening up other locations, etc. I would love to change the salon experience and given unlimited resources would create a sort of “we work” type space for women where they could be productive but also be in a safe, stimulating environment to attain their beauty goals. I would love to patent an invention related to hair as well. 

For the present though, I am happy to be surround by 23 amazing women who are buying houses, having children, and participating in the American Dream.  I feel my role is to support them, encourage them, mentor them, develop them and be meaningful in the story of their lives.