Meet Caitlin von Hagen of Scottsdale + Gilbert

Today we’d like to introduce you to Caitlin von Hagen.

Hi Caitlin, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I always loved helping people. I knew from a very young age that was part of my purpose. I had a fire + passion within me from birth that has been my fuel until this moment. I have always been a dreamer, and had an internal inner belief and desire to make them come true from a very young age. I originally wanted to do makeup artistry and had a fellow mentor who owned a salon advise that I take cosmetology so I can be covered in the whole industry. Thats where my decision for hair stemmed from and it’s been an incredible transformative journey. My hair License has always been my very first baby. It was the seed to so much I didnt know when it was planted. It was something I always held on to, nurtuted, I was proud of, and it kept me creative and alive in the darkest of days, weeks, Months and years of my life. Hair actually became my canvas when I worked in the Colorist department in salons. Hand painting with an eye to eye approach outside of technical placement, really seeing hair as a map to free paint, transformed my lens of how I approach hair, color, and treat hair. Tapping into the true needs and wants behind the chair allowing for lived in longevity. I studied a lot about canvas balancing, product knowledge, + prescribe ritual care plans for them to maintain at home. My journey started in NY and I always had a desire to work in more luxurious spaces for quality education + standards for myself and clients. After years of color department I decided I wanted to branch out to be little more “well rounded” to expand in community and behind the chair and end up landing in a curly specialty salon. This is the moment my career changed and I still didnt know it until almost 7 years later when healing met hair.

Becoming a curly hair alchemist has been so special and I always followed brands that held value, and mission for both hairstylists + client. I found myself in tears with women and men who had countless traumatizing salon expertiences and could not understand why, or always thought they were the problem. I speak to a lot who just want to embrace their hair, but they were so lost, defeated, and felt completely not themselves. The trust was gone. I watched them roll their eyes to another stylist giving them another product to add to their shelves of retail they already tried and failed. The biggest heartbreaker, was when they would come in with their hair not in the natural state thinking thats something they had to do prior to a haircut. Something had to change. And seeing how common it was, the patterns of trauma and experiences, and the lack of solution gave me a fire within to make a difference.
It is so much more than hair in my chair. We heal and we transform, through our hair. Especially curly clients. We honor our lifestyles and comittment levels and honor trust and boundaries. Each client has a customized session.

I moved to AZ about 11 years ago for rehab, as I suffered from CPTSD and alcoholism and years of abuse. Once I got back on my feet, I educated myself day in and day out, I manifested the things I needed to help community to give back and access the knowledge and wisdom for them. I spent the last 8 years spreading awareness all over Facebook groups, clients referrals, coffee shops, friends, family and its been amazing and so so much gratitude watching it grow. Its been a beautiful journey and 2026 I will be fully merging integrative specialty reiki incorporated offerings + head spa with your curly hair services. One of the biggest questions I get asked is “you dont have curly hair, so how do you do it?” And I say “passion. Innerstanding. Building Trust. So much education. + alchemy.”

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There were so many times I wanted to give up. I actually was almost beauty school drop out. I had a lot of pain and suffering in my personal life which caused hindrances and set backs.
However, my passion and goals were too big and it was the thing that carried me through. The high demand of curly clients were flooding in and they were feeling heard. The beauty industry can be aggressive, Competitive, and clicky so it was quite the journey navigating through that and finding different salon homes and spaces to land to align with the values and needs of my clients and myself while navigating trauma. Years of trauma caused memory loss, slow learning, relapses, so much grief, imposter syndrome, the list goes on and I struggled balancing, maintaining expectations of what that looked like in certain work spaces and our society. I just had a vision. And a mission and always follow my heart in all that I do. I just wanted to help and I needed the space, time and freedom to create that how we needed. This is what really turned the dark parts into light because I really started incorpating my personal healing wisdom, intuition and intention in my goals based on what was needed instead of what was expected. Id work in spaces that would tell me I was taking too long. And I’d always feel like it was like someone was taking a paint brush from an artists canvas mid project. This is where it also really changed where I chose to work on my own so I can create the sacred space for my clients to do and be exactly what we have to, limitlessly and freely. I think one of the most challenging parts too was discovering the lies behind a lot marketing and hair care, and the spinning it caused on my clients minds, and pockets. This is where I really found passion in ritual and intentional hair care, product consultation and canvas balancing for all textures, climates, and hair scalp traumas. What works for someone else, may not work for another person and take pride in finding quality care for my clients. Now that I’ve merged passion into purpose which also took years of self discovery and grit, there is not a day I go into the salon where it feels like work. I am on a mission, and the assignment is heard.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am most proud of emerging healing with hair and my passion and efforts for curly hair movement around AZ that I built from scratch with my hands. I continue to educate myself daily and weekly learning, refreshing new skills, techniques and have always incorporated energy work into my services. It started off as just doing anyone’s hair and later in the journey became about who was called to my chair and thats really where the transformation started happening and really started to see the mission at hand. Texture just got added to cosmetology curriculum the last couple years and the demand for these services is wanted more than ever. I am proud to stand behind that and be a teacher for that in our industry so clients can embrace their natural hair and feel nothing less than themselves and empowered. Feel heard. And most importantly, seen. My passion penetrates in all that I do. And I lead with my heart, love, and so so much intention.

Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
Oh goodness. I wouldn’t be here today without the help of my mentors. First off. My husband Ben Davies. His patience and unconditional love has been a gift for the movement and he never ever questions my crazy ideas, dreams, or fast shape-shifting. Jennifer Bates, first salon owner I knew that inspired me to get cosmetology license over makeup certification which completely changed my career path. She always believed in my craft and saw what I couldn’t. Barbara Mancuso was my amazing goldwell Colorist mentor. She taught me so much about precision in formulation + color, and quality of integrity of hair for color services and professionalism. I carry her in my pocket every color service almost 15 years later! Kayla Scurry-my soul sister. Who reminded me of my power, and most importantly my gifts. I almost didn’t continue curly specialty and shes the one who reminded me of the golden wisdom I held as well as a shared vision and values of what to bring to the beauty industry with alchemy and transmutation. Ouidad, the queen who taught me the ropes of curly specialty services and was so honored to do product launches, trainings for hairstylists all over the world. I learned so so much. This was the seed for curl specialty that was being planted and taught me really how to prescribe each canvas and create structure in the hair. Sabrina Ourania- my business alchemist and astrocartographer who helped guide me with my vision and souls purpose. She helped clarify so much of my path, for my visions + lead me from entrepreneurship to soul-preneurship.

I am forever grateful for all my teachers, sisterhood, and mentors through and through.

Pricing:

• $100 curly specialty cut
• $230+ Hand Painting
• $100+ Coloring services
• Reiki Curly Cut $165
• Reiki Add on to any hair service $65

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/healinghairbycaitlinvonhagen

Image Credits
Ben Davies