by Jessica Jones
Sheri Youse, origIinally from Atlanta, is a state certified stylist for Studio New York, a natural hair care lounge in Homewood.
Before she became a natural hair stylist, she graduated with a degree in business from Georgia State University, then studied at Dudley’s Cosmetology School in North Carolina.
Many of the clients that visit her have issues with growing their hair, and Youse provides a safe, private environment for clients to assess and take care of their hair’s needs.
Her own natural hair journey began two and a half years ago. Chemically relaxed since the age of three, Youse wanted to see the natural texture of her hair.
“I wanted to see what I looked like,” Youse said. “It’s just that simple. I was almost 40 and I felt like I had never really truly seen myself, so I stopped relaxing.”
She went from bone-straight, shoulder length locks to sporting a tiny two inch afro. But the lack of length didn’t bother Youse. In fact, she was thrilled with the person she saw. Pleased with her new style, Youse then began the mission of growing her hair out. When it came to learning her hair and providing it with what it needed to retain length, she did what most people were doing at the time, searching YouTube for tutorials and guidance.
“It was a learning process,” she said. “I didn’t know what I was doing. I just knew that I liked it. I knew that I loved the way I looked, and I felt free, and I felt like my true self. I felt like I had evolved. I felt so f-r-e-e. I even started calling it fresh revolution by ethnic evolution. [Learning my hair] was a learning process. I had to learn my texture, I had to learn what products worked for me, what didn’t, what my hair needed. But it was fun.”
Youse’s hair journey taught her a lesson that would eventually lead her to an even greater discovery. While she was learning what her hair did and didn’t like, she realized that the key to length retention was moisture. So she began creating her own homemade moisturizing mixtures to apply to her hair.
“I’m not going to use any of my products on my clients,” she said. “I was still just buying hair conditioner and just beefing it up a little bit. But as my natural hair grew out fast, people would always ask me what am I using, so then I started using my conditioners on my clients.”
She named her business The Hair Café, a service where clients can request a product based on what they feel their hair needs. A wide range of ingredients are used in the conditioners, everything from blueberries and sweet potatoes to carrots and Shea butter and can be used on any type of hair, relaxed or natural.
“Just like you go to a coffee shop you’re able to step up to the counter and order a hair smoothie,” she said. “Patrons are able to take it home and shampoo and condition their hair [or] take it to their stylist and have them use your deep conditioner or your treatment on you. Of course being a natural hair stylist, I can shampoo and condition your hair here at the salon.”
The salon suite that she rents inside Studio New York also features a hair steamer used as a hair drier would be used for allowing deep conditioners to penetrate the hair. Youse uses this method over the traditional plastic cap and hair drier method because she feels the steamer allows the conditioner to better penetrate the hair shaft.
“I do everything to natural hair, except relax it,” Youse said. “I’m not going to chemically change anybody’s hair.”
