Mikala Vandenbroucke, 28, grew up the oldest of three children in Gretna, Neb. Although she originally attended Northwest Missouri State for three years with a desire to become a nurse, she transferred to Cosmetology at Xenon International Academy in Omaha after being encouraged to make the switch by her parents and a friend who was a hairdresser.
“My parents knew since I was a child that [being a stylist] was what I was going to do,” she says. “I used to cut and color all of my Barbie dolls’ hair and was constantly playing dress-up in all kinds of outfits and playing with makeup.”
Vandenbroucke has been a licensed stylist for a little over five years and with Mod Studio Salon for about a year and a half. Her specialties are cuts, colors, and makeup, and she has a very diverse clientele ranging from women wanting short pixie cuts to long, layering shapes. “The majority of my clients are women, whom I find to be dynamic and independent, so I find inspiration from them and really enjoy our time spent together in the salon.”r
“Standing out in a group is not a bad thing for me!”
rThrough the course of her styling journey, Vandenbroucke has taught classes and worked trade shows for Rusk (whose products she currently represents), worked New York Fashion Week for the Nolcha group with Rusk, and worked with local clothing designer Eliana Smith for Omaha Fashion Week. “Lately, I’ve been shifting focus toward editorial styling…[In November] I had a four-page spread of work that I’d done with local talents in a salon industry publication that reaches over 100 countries,” she adds.
Vandenbroucke describes her own personal style as unique, colorful, edgy, and sexy. “I enjoy looking and dressing differently than my peers. Standing out in a group is not a bad thing for me!” She likes to wear her hair short and dark at the moment, but it often changes. Her makeup, however, stays very clean and fresh—but Vandenbroucke has been known to rock blue and green eyeshadow from time to time.
Her favorite styling products and tools include:r
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- rNaked 2 palette and Primer Potion from Urban Decay—“I take these two items with me everywhere, to every shoot and for every makeup application. The primer keeps your eyeshadow in place all day long with no creases, and the colors in that palette are versatile and also very beautiful.”
- rVolare V1 Blow Dryer from BaByliss Pro—“This thing is incredible! It’s an amazing blow dryer that I use on a daily basis in the salon and dries hair with an airflow of about 78mph…It’s like having a hurricane in your hand!”
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