Meet Your Dosha Masters: Thomas | Dosha Salon Spa - Portland's premier Aveda Salon Spa

Meet Your Dosha Masters: Thomas

Jun 6th 2016

Dosha Hawthorne: Thomas Heasley

Meet Thomas. He is a Master Stylist at our Hawthorne location and he is a charmer to say the least! Thomas is one of those hair guys- who has a tip for any problem you having and he loves to educate you on your hair! Thomas is not only a Master but also a member of our Creative team and the Bridal Elite team! We caught up with him and learned some about why he loves this industry and loves being a #DoshaMaster!

How long have you been in the industry? Wow, uh 16 years!

Wow that is awesome- Why did you pick hair as a career? I just wanted to be creative all the time and I really wanted to help people. I like this industry because I can be more of my own boss.

Yeah, you have definitely gotten to a point where you are more of your own boss- what was it like starting out when maybe that wasn't the case yet? It was good- I honestly just knew that this is where I wanted to be and what I wanted to be doing. I just embraced it. I looked to others doing what I wanted and I just thought okay I got to do this to be able to do that.

Where do you find inspiration? Music. Depending on what I am developing, I will change what I'm listening to and that helps me get inspired. So if I am getting ready to do a shoot that is inspired by New Orleans and spring then maybe I will start listening to jazz and blues. It is something I picked up in a writing course in college and it gets me in the right mindset to create.

What does being a Dosha Master Stylist mean to you? It is great- it means I get to be a part of setting the bar for the company. I like that I am someone who younger stylists look to and I get to be a part of helping them develop as stylists.

How do you do that- what things do you do to help newer stylists? I lead by example, I remind them that we have all been there and try and help them through the problems that arise.

Was there a moment with a guest that made you realize you picked the right career? Just every moment when you see the joy a guest gets from having an amazing experience and they are in love with your work. One of my favorite guest moments was with a lady who came in and she was probably 85 and she wanted to chop all her hair off- really short and she just looked at me and said "you're not chicken right?". She was such a funny lady- it was a great experience.

Have your ever cried during or about a services you had? Actually yes, well not really cried but I got pretty emotional. I actually had two guests I was seeing. And one day they both came in (separately) and they both told me, "I'm going to this event, I want to look the best I have ever looked". And then they both came back in and I asked about the event and they both were telling me that they met someone. And I continued to see them for like a year and they both started a relationship with this person they met. Well it turned out that they had met each other! And this whole time didn't realize they both saw me. Well they finally do realize and its pretty hilarious. But in the end they did end up getting married and they actually named their daughter after me. Her name is Hensley- which is not my actual last name but just the fact that I was a part of that and heard all their stories about one another- that was so cool.

Have you ever laughed so hard it hurt during a service? Well yeah a lot, but actually the client I talked about earlier the older lady, she cracked me up- she was just so funny! She was pretty crass and just a spitfire.

What is a surprising fact about you? Well- I have a brother that is a priest at the Vatican.

That is surprising!! Have you ever visited him? Yeah, its really cool actually because you get to stay in family housing at the Vatican for like 12 Euros a night and have dinner together. He speaks 7 languages and he was a priest in New York before they asked him.

What kinds of things do you enjoy doing outside of work? I love being outdoors. Like honestly, if I'm not at work I'm in the woods. I love Oregon for that reason, you can just pack up and be outdoors somewhere amazing in 20min. It's the best of both worlds. There are so many places on my left on my list- it is endless around here.

Favorite Dosha Moment so far? Our master's retreats, those are just so fun. Being asked to be a master and seeing the Hawthorne location grow in my time there. And honestly, I still have guests from when I was in Boston who will fly out every 6 months or so to have me cut their hair- that is pretty huge.

That's is very cool- How do you prep for that- like how does that feel to have someone flying in? Yeah, it is a lot of pressure. and I definitely make sure to book extra time for them and just make sure that I give them the best service and have time to catchup.

Favorite Aveda product and why? Light Elements Texture Creme. I like it so much that I buy it to use on all my guests. It smells amazing and it has a weightless hold without the gunk. I just feel like if you get an amazing cut the product should define it not be the sole part that makes it amazing. With this you just work it into the hair to really define it- it's as easy as that.