T-L Photo/JOSIE BURKHART Hair stylist Kat Wallace opens her own independent hair business at Kreations in Bellaire by renting out a booth where she offers hair services and body waxing.

BELLAIRE — Chapter 30 — Hair by Kat is open in Bellaire at Kreations, where Kat Wallace will be offering hair services and body waxing.

Wallace moved her independent hair business, Chapter 30 — Hair by Kat, into Kreations hair salon in Bellaire at 55511 Ann St. where she rents a booth.

Wallace described booth renting as the closest thing to having one’s own salon without having their own building. Stylists pay for the space every month, manage their own clientele, set their own prices, buy their own products and essentially own their own hair business inside a salon.

Wallace said eventually she wants to open her own salon as almost every hairstylist aspires to do, but this is the first step.

She opened the booth at the beginning of the year and offers body waxing, hair color, haircuts, blowouts and conditioning treatments and plans to expand services soon. Her favorite services to do are color and updo hairstyles.

Wallace always liked doing hair, from doing her friends’ hair for school dances to her friends’ and families’ hair and makeup for homecomings and weddings. She knew it was something for her.

“It was my way to express myself, especially with the vivid makeup. And back then, we didn’t really have YouTube and Tiktok and so it was pretty much just getting to play with the different makeup and the different hair and coming up with your own creations,” she said. “Hair has always been a thing for me, I just love how it can make somebody completely different and fall in love with themselves again.”

It wasn’t until 2023 that Wallace decided to go to beauty school. Before that, she was a stay-at-home mom, where she said she felt like she had lost her identity. Wallace took the leap to find herself and attended Elite Academy of Hair Design in Bridgeport — an experience she described as amazing with the teachers pushing students to be their best.

During her time in school, she got a job as a stylist in training at SmartStyle Hair Salon. After being there for six months, she landed a spot at Color Me Madd in Bethesda by the time she graduated.

She came from Color Me Madd, where she worked as a commissioner receiving a portion of the money she made with clients there. She wanted to move her business to Bellaire because she grew up in Shadyside and has family there and in Bellaire.

Wallace knew she wanted to do her own thing and decided Bellaire would be the place she’d run her business because it’s closer to home, as she now lives in Martins Ferry, and it would be more convenient for her clients, who have almost all followed her to her new location.

“I struggled with self-confidence for the longest time, and I wanted to do something that could help somebody that was struggling like me,” she said. “And by giving people their confidence, I actually gained my confidence and found my true purpose.”

People can find Wallace on her Facebook page Chapter 30 — Hair by Kat, the Gloss Genius app or Kreations’ website. People can also direct message her on Facebook or message and call at 740-310-9283. Wallace usually works between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday but is flexible for those who can’t make those days.

“I’m just excited to see what Chapter 30 brings us,” Wallace said. “Honestly, I’m excited to meet new people down here and maybe reconnect with people that I haven’t seen in a while, but I just want to be able to make everybody feel beautiful, because this valley is hard on people’s mental health, and if you don’t feel good about yourself, it doesn’t make it easier.”