“In The Chair” spotlights the incredible hairstylists in our community who are giving us major inspiration. Each week, they discuss their personal hair and career journeys, what they’ve learned from their clients, and their top hair care tips.
As the powerhouse behind many of fashion week’s best hair looks, hairstylist Lacy Redway built her career from the ground up. Her multi-texture approach to haircare has landed her on the books with A-list celebrities– including Alicia Keys and Serena Williams. Additionally, she’s done hair for just about every magazine you can think of.
Before all of this success, the Jamaica-born stylist was her own first client. “My mom had a family friend relax my hair because that was what would make styling easier for us,” but the kitchen table treatment ended in damage as her hair began to fall out. “I had to quickly learn how to style it,” she says. “I continued practicing on myself and then also practiced on my doll’s hair.” Then, by the ripe age of 11, she started taking on actual clients.
From Allen Iverson braids to creative hairstyles (think: Moesha), Redway began charging $5 to $10 throughout middle and highschool, unknowingly starting her career. Once in college, she remembers “the last woman I worked for in a salon did photo shoots, so that’s what exposed me to the idea of doing hair on set,” she says. She then began to build her portfolio, which landed her assistant gigs with hair mavens like Guido Palau, Eugene Souleiman, and other industry-leading names.
Back then, knowing how to do textured hair backstage was an asset in New York. “I was a monopoly because there weren’t a lot of stylists backstage that could specialize,” she says. But she didn’t know she “made it” until landing work with her first big celebrity, Jill Scott, for her The Light of The Sun album cover. “It was a really proud moment for me to not only get the opportunity and impress her in that way, but to create this [sculptural] hairpiece.” Since then, her reputation with clients from Tracee Ellis Ross to Tessa Thompson, names her the “Hairstylist to the Stars.”
Her current favorite products
“Scalp care is really important. I’ve been using a lot of the Shea Moisture products that are designed for textured hair. I use their Scalp Moisture line, which really hydrates your hair. I do also love the Coconut and Hibiscus line [for] edge control for award season and fashion week.”
Her favorite styles to do
“I love really classic romantic finishes that I get to do during award season time. I think hairstyles from the twenties to the sixties are shapes that I really enjoy recreating. I also love doing styles that you wouldn’t traditionally see in spaces that they are.”
Her top hair health tip
“Scalp care, again, is really important, especially because a lot of us with textured hair, we use a cocktail of products, so we make a lot of different things. I think making sure that you keep your hair hydrated, you should use clarifying shampoos that can strip your hair from product build up. I also think protecting your hair at night– whether it’s a silk scarf, bonnet, or a silk pillowcase– is key to not stripping your hair of its natural oils and drying it out further.”
A hair myth she wants to debunk
“Once upon a time, Black women and Black people were thinking that we should not wash our hair at all, that we should only co-wash. I think that’s definitely a myth that we should debunk. If your pore is clogged with product build-up because you don’t shampoo it out, you’re not really going to get the sort of hair growth that you want.
Also, there’s a myth that braids and weaves, if you do them, they break your hair. I think anything that’s done incorrectly can damage your hair. It’s just a matter of learning proper care.”
What she’s learned from her clients
“I’ve been really blessed in my career. They’ve taught me how to also be a better businesswoman, be strong in what I believe in, and not really conform to the things that I don’t believe in. I’ve seen how hard they work. Just watching them pursuing their [dreams] has inspired me.”
How she uplifts her clients
“It’s different for everyone, but I think just my spirit and my smile really uplifts them. I try to stay positive and I’m funny. A lot of people don’t know that about me. I think just telling them, besides things like, ‘girl protect your hair at night’, I tell them how awesome they are and remind them of that. Being in the public light can sometimes be hard because there are so many different opinions about who people think you are. I just try to keep them positive and uplift them and just tell them how amazing they are.”
