“I don’t consider myself a celebrity hair stylist even though I’ve done celebrities,” Wilson said. “I was in right place right time, knew the right people, and I’m a hard worker.”
About a month ago, Wilson contacted the Four Seasons salon after searching online for five-star salons in the area. He had five job offers, but selected Four Seasons because of the staff’s hundreds of years of combined experience.
Wilson is working part-time at the salon, taking clients from Wednesday to Friday. In his free time, he goes out to his farm and trains his horses. When moved from Lincoln, North Carolina, last October, he downsized from 22 horses to three, which he shows.
“My loves and passions are as follows: family, hair, horses,” Wilson said.
Wilson admits to styling his horses’ hair before shows.
“I keep them groomed, but not only with that. At shows, I color their manes and tails if there’s something wrong with it, like if they are red from dirt, I will put silver tone in to take the red out,” Wilson said. “Do I style my dogs? No, don’t ask me.”
In North Carolina, Wilson managed and then owned a day spa for 28 years. His high-status clients would fly in from all over the United States for cuts, he said. In 2008, he decided to close the salon and take life a little easier.
“I was lucky enough to find that special someone, who just happened to live in Virginia. I now call this state my home,” he said. He just picked up his Virginia driver’s license and new license plates, which he was very excited about.
He will still return to North Carolina for a week once a month, where he also has a full clientele. He has not taken a new client in North Carolina in 11 years, unless it’s a child of one of his current clients. He still has his very his first client from when he started 28 years ago.
“I take my job very personally,” Wilson said. “They’re not only clients, they’re my friends, and I enjoy that. I want to hear about their families – and it’s really truthful, I do want to hear about them. It’s almost like we’re [hair dressers] psychologists a little bit and that’s some of the fun. Leaving North Carolina, I feel like I’m giving up a lot of family because I was leaving so many friends of mine.”
In 1996, Wilson became the executive director of the Miss Lincoln County Scholarship Program, a preliminary step to the Miss America pageant. He brought the girls in to his salon, cut and colored their hair, then taught them how to blow dry and style on their own because they do not have help come time for the actual pageant.
“Each girl is different, so I teach each of them how to work with their own hair,” Wilson said.
His clientele includes Miss North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee. Two of them have been first runner up to Miss America.
Wilson also worked for Versace in Atlanta for four years, helping with hair for magazine layouts.
“I did whoever they would bring in, and I never knew who it was going to be,” he said.
Four Seasons Salon & Spa has 25 employees and is still growing. “We are very careful of putting the right team together,” said owner Bobbie Norris. .
“I love my job,” Wilson said. “It’s just so fun. I learn from people who have been out of school for years; I learn from people who have been out of school for day. You learn from everyone and learning is part of the fun.”
What does Rusty do with his own hair?
“Oh lord, mine’s easy. I get out of shower, towel blot it, add gel, towel blot it again, and l leave it where I want it and go to work with it wet,” he said. “I’m a very natural guy. I like a natural look, a classy look, a look that’s always going to be classy. I don’t like wild stuff – I can do it, but I don’t like it.”
Rusty’s hair tips for Dorry:
“I would bring the length up to below shoulder and cut directly straight across so that there is a fullness to back. I would cut layers on the sides to soften around the face and layer it through back, but not to go quite so short as she has it now. I would have the longer layer in back come to short layer in front. In terms of styling, I would have her get out of the shower, comb it out, towel blot it upside down, scrunch her hair with a firm hold gel the size of a quarter. She should throw her head upside down, add gel at the ends, towel dry again, and let it dry naturally. For softer curls, she should run her fingers through her hair as it is drying. For tighter curls, leave it alone as it is drying.”
Rusty’s hair tips for Stephanie:
“I suggested a product to lay the cuticle down so the hair lies smoother and takes the curl out of it more, and another serum to make it smoother. One side needs to grow out a little bit, but I don’t like to bash other people’s cuts. In terms of color, in the fall, I would go in and put mahogany red into it - very soft and light in the amount, not color. I put in it to match skin tone. Stephanie has red undertones, so the highlights would bring that out a little more.”
Rusty’s advice to those wanting to do hair for celebrities:
“There are so many different ways to do it. I would get on scene of movie sets and start there. Also, the more education you have, the more classes you take, the better off you are. I have enough certificates to cover 3-4 walls.”
Services Offered at the Four Seasons: The majority of customers make appointments, but the Four Seasons has staff on hand for walk-ins. The Four Seasons strives to never have more than a 15-minute wait.
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