Question 1: What’s your hair type?
I’m lucky to have thick long hair. I’ve had it long for about 15 years after I cut it all off at the age of 11… something I immediately regretted!
Question 2: How often do you wash your hair?
This really depends on what’s going on e.g. when I’m working out or a shoot day etc but on average I would say I wash it every other day. I can’t leave it much longer because of my psoriasis but if I could I’d wash it every 2-3 days.
Question 3: What is your hair care routine?
On hair wash day I’ll use shampoo and conditioner, followed by a heat protection crème, then to style I use Percy and Reed oil and a styling cream. I use a dry shampoo to help ‘set’ my curls as this immediately cools them without adding heavy product or affect the way they look.
To refresh my hair after a workout I then tend to wear it up so spritz some dry shampoo and sometimes use a little hairspray for fly-aways. I like to treat my hair once a week, I use a hair mask to add a little bit of moisture and care back in.
I’m also trying to be super conscious of hair tools too as I’ve got some breakage at the front. Silk hair bands and less heat have been helping with this.
Question 4: What does a day in the life of look like?
Oh what a question! I’m currently working 3 (very) different jobs so things are always go go go.
A *typical* day looks like this:
I’ll get up and make a cuppa while catching up on emails and/or the news. Then it’s get ready and go to work if I’m teaching that day. I’m a flexible worker and can plan my own diary but like to get things going early so the day is more productive. After work (and if I have time) I’ll meet my friend Laura for a catch up, train at the gym and then coach at the gym or look after the business side if not coaching. I fit in Instagram around all of those things but always shoot with my friend Jess on a Friday to get content.
I’m not good at sitting still and doing nothing so if there’s a gap I’ll either go see my parents and the dog as they live in the same town or try and spend it with Rob.
Question 5: What’s ‘hair goals’ to you?
If I’m honest I’d just love it to stay styled for more than a few hours! I spend ages curling it and sometimes it drops out after 10 minutes of being outside. Moist air or wind? No chance. So I guess I’d like it tamed with a bit of volume with controlled fly-aways. A hard one I know!
Question 6: What is your day job/ How would you describe what you do?
Rob and I own our own CrossFit gym called Grand Union CrossFit. It’s his baby really but I help coach and run the business side as that suits my previous experience. I absolutely love it – it’s so rewarding seeing people meet and exceed their goals, no matter how big or small, and get a buzz from the atmosphere and community we have created.
I teach Hospitality Apprenticeships for a training provider and side stepped from Hospitality management into this about 4 years ago now. I have a passion for the industry and want to help people develop their careers. It’s flexible and I can set my own working hours so allowed me the time I needed to start pushing my Instagram content when things started to pick up. As of January this year I have dropped to part-time to really utilise time to push harder.
I started my blog Jen’s Where in January 2018 and have had a lot of success since. I haven’t written as much as I’d have liked but it’s a refocus for this year as well as developing Instagram and venturing into the world of IGTV. I really enjoy the process of creating content and working with brands I love, so watch this space!
Question 7: What inspired you to work in this industry?
I have always had a love for styling and fashion so when Instagram started growing I started to show the world a bit more of what I loved and it went from there.
Question 8: How did you get into this career? Give examples of uni courses, internships, other roles etc that lead you here.
I never went to Uni and ended up working in pubs to pay for auditions for drama school and film work. As that dried up I ended up making some of my closest friends in pubs and worked my way up through the management chain quite quickly. The hours got longer and more and more of my friends left to work other careers or city pubs. I went into training because I always loved it in-house but never had time to do it properly as the business demanded so much of me. It’s flexibility meant I could start my Instagram and then eventually the gym… it’s all led me here!
Question 9: Your favourite thing to do in London on your day off?
I love a good mooch, or a coddiwomple as I like to call it. It means ‘to travel in a purposeful manner toward a vague destination’. I enjoy not having a set ‘thing to do’ and to just end up in places. That’s when all the fun happens as it’s spontaneous and you come across things you never would have done on a schedule.
A bit of retail therapy never hurt anyone too.
Question 10: Your favourite place to travel? And the 3 in-flight beauty products you can’t live without when you travel?
I really love Paris but I wouldn’t say I had a favourite. I try and do 1 new country for every year I’ve been alive and so far I’m on par. The next places on my list are New York, Bosnia and Montenegro, Bali and Sweden. A good old mixture!
My favourite in flight products are a lip balm, mini dry shampoo and eye masks.
Lastly... tell us 5 things people don’t know about you
I was an Auntie at 4 years old.
I used to run a catering area at Harry Potter Studio Tour. I’m a big fan of the books and used to listen to the Stephen Fry audio books every night to help me sleep after a late finish in the pubs.
I can deadlift over twice my bodyweight.
I don’t like coffee
I bought my first pair of jeans at 22.
To discover more about Jenna, head to her instagram.com/jennanicholls/