For some people, beauty school is a choice made after years of deliberation and decision, but for Ferrin Caldwell, that choice was a quick one, made after a particularly impactful hairstyling appointment at Ogle School. Read on to learn more about how Ferrin Caldwell decided to become an Ogle School student herself.
Ferrin Caldwell’s Journey
What made you decide on Ogle School?
I actually chose Ogle because, at the time, I was working at The Little Gym, which is right across the street from here, Ogle Mockingbird. I was tired of my hair falling out from chemo treatments, and I came over here to get a haircut. And one of the girls was like, “You can do this yourself.” And I was like, “No, I can’t.” And they were like, “Yeah, you can.” And I did, and I signed up. And since then, this has been my family.
What put you off from going to other schools?
Just the vibe at other schools was different. It was very competitive. It was very cutthroat. And then they put you in these little tiny categories of either you’re going to cut, or you’re going to color, you’re going to style. And I’m like, “I want to do all three.” That’s why I chose Ogle.
What was your biggest obstacle as a student?
I would probably say my biggest obstacle is my health, mainly because at the time, I was still going through chemo treatments. So, trying to handle going to class, trying to be prepared for Face Off and TrendVision, and then also changing up on career paths. I mean, I was doing computer programming before I came to cosmetology. So those were my biggest ones.
What advice would you give a student who is going into cosmetology?
Don’t give up. Don’t give up. Don’t give up. Let me emphasize that one more time. Don’t give up! I’m only saying that because most of the time, students feel like when you can’t do something, or you’re not sure of yourself, or you’re confused on how to manipulate the curl, or just you can’t pass the written, which we all do, don’t give up. Just keep pushing, because at some point, all of your teachers or all of us that are staff through Wella or Sebastian, we all had to start off somewhere. We all never knew anything. You are constantly growing every single day because technology is growing every single day, and so are hair and products. It’s changing every single day. So, you’re not alone. Don’t give up.
Did you have any issues with your schooling?
To be honest with you, when I first started out, I couldn’t take a color client. I kept constantly passing them off to other students, and I just wouldn’t do it until Ms. Witter was like, “Ferrin, if you don’t try this, you’ll never get better at it. You’ll get it. Just try it. It’s just numbers.” And really it is. It’s just math. It’s just like two plus two equals four. It’s the same thing in hair color.
What are you most passionate about?
Chicken wire! Chicken wire, because I can now show my style, and I can build some of the greatest shapes with chicken wire. It’s probably always going to be styling. Secondary is going to be always my color because it’s still a numbers game. It’s formulating, taking this one color, and taking another color, and creating another different tone and level.
What are you doing now?
Right now, I am a color consultant for Wella and also Clairol as of almost about a month ago. So, I go from location to location, either Sally’s or schools, or other salons, and talk about color formulations or different product lines, how to cocktail colors together, or even cocktail products, showing off different styles, or even doing platform performances as of this point.
What is an impact you’ve had on someone as a stylist?
There was a lady named Vivian Green, who came in. She was Deaf, and I come from a very long line of Deaf people in my family. And no one would work with her because no one could understand what she was looking for, what she needed. And I was the first one to step in. She was sitting in another student’s chair, and I just stepped in and was like, “What do you want? How can I help you?” And she was like, “Wow. You sign?” And I was like, “Yeah, I sign as an interpreter. But what’s happening today?” And she was just ecstatic. She was overjoyed.
To me, that was just the bigger eye-opener to realize that there are people in the world that come from different walks, different paths, different communications, or different levels or tones in life just like we are, that are looking for the same thing. You would never think that someone who is deaf is trying to figure out how to put the greatest extensions in or how to apply eye shadow, but they’re everywhere. So that was my biggest impact.
Discover Your Own Beautiful Story
There are many ways to have a Beautiful Story, and Ogle School wants to help support you in all of them. From the cosmetology program to the esthetics program and beyond, Ogle School can help you learn the skills you need to pursue your passion. Request more information from Ogle School today to start your journey toward something new and exciting.
