Meet the Hair Jungle Artists

With 17 years of experience behind the chair, Gaby is a blonde specialist known for creating refined, dimensional color with a polished, effortless finish.

Originally from Toronto and now established in Orange County, Gaby specializes in blonding, balayage, lived-in color, and complex color corrections. Her approach to blonde is highly personalized, considering each client’s skin tone, natural depth, hair integrity, lifestyle, and maintenance to create a shade that feels completely their own.

From bright, high-impact blondes to soft, dimensional and lived-in color, Gaby focuses on beautiful tone, seamless blending, and healthy-looking hair. She is especially skilled in corrective blonding and transformations, helping clients move from previous color or challenging grow-outs toward a more elevated, cohesive result.

Every appointment begins with intention. Gaby takes the time to understand the desired look and create a customized plan designed not only for the day of the appointment, but for how the color will wear and grow out over time.

Outside of the salon, Gaby enjoys exploring the outdoors, running, and spending time with her four-year-old daughter, Gigi.

For clients looking for a luxury blonde specialist in Orange County, Gaby brings experience, precision, and a thoughtful approach to every transformation at Hair Jungle.

With over eight years of experience behind the chair, Marlena is a dry cutting specialist known for creating customized shapes that work with the hair’s natural movement, texture, and density.

Her foundation in precision cutting began with an intensive two-year internship under Brian Aguilar, where she developed a strong understanding of shape, balance, and the technical details behind a beautifully executed haircut. Today, Marlena has refined that foundation into an approach centered around dry cutting, allowing her to see exactly how the hair falls and make thoughtful adjustments as the shape comes together.

Marlena especially loves working with long hair, layers, thick hair, and clients looking for movement without sacrificing length. Rather than following a one-size-fits-all cutting pattern, she considers face shape, density, texture, lifestyle, and how each client naturally wears their hair to create a cut that feels intentional and personal.

Her work is polished but never overdone, with an emphasis on effortless movement, balanced proportions, and hair that continues to fall beautifully between appointments.

Marlena is also experienced in dimensional color and gray coverage, allowing her to look at the haircut and color as one complete look when creating a client’s overall style.

Outside of Hair Jungle, Marlena loves spending time with her two kids, Charles and Leila, her Great Dane, Purdy, and cruising along the California coast.

For clients looking for a dry cutting specialist in Orange County, Marlena brings a thoughtful, detail-driven approach to creating haircuts designed around the individual.

With over 19 years of experience behind the chair, Thais brings a refined approach to color, cutting, extensions, and styling at Hair Jungle. Known for her attention to detail and polished finishes, she creates beautiful, wearable hair designed around each client’s features, lifestyle, and individual style.

Thais specializes in dimensional blondes and brunettes, highlighting, balayage, color correction, customized haircuts, and extensions. From classic, beachy blonde waves to rich brunette dimension and full, bouncy blowouts, her work has an elevated yet effortless feel.

Her foundation in the industry began at Santa Monica College Beauty School and continued through advanced training under renowned celebrity colorist Michael Canale in Beverly Hills. That experience helped shape her thoughtful approach to color, with an emphasis on beautiful tone, dimension, and maintaining the integrity of the hair throughout the process.

Thais is also experienced in extension transformations, including tape-in and cylinder methods, creating added length, fullness, and dimension while keeping the finished result natural and seamless.

Continued education remains an important part of her career, allowing her to continually refine her techniques and bring a modern perspective to nearly two decades of experience.

Outside of Hair Jungle, Thais loves music of all genres, animals, sushi and tacos, and spending time outdoors walking or biking.

Thais looks forward to welcoming new clients to her chair and creating beautiful, personalized hair that feels just as good as it looks.

Hello, beautiful souls! I’m Karina, a passionate hairstylist at Hair Jungle with eight years of experience behind the chair. My journey in hairdressing began with a spark of creativity and a love for making every client feel confident, beautiful, and completely themselves.

Over the years, I’ve continued to grow my craft through education and hands-on experience, always staying inspired by new techniques and evolving trends. Whether you’re envisioning a beautiful new color, a fresh cut that complements your features, or polished styling for a special occasion, I’m here to bring your vision to life.

With a keen eye for detail and a commitment to personalized service, I take the time to understand your hair, lifestyle, and goals so we can create something that feels uniquely you. Every appointment is also an opportunity to connect. Your comfort and experience are just as important to me as the finished result, and I strive to create a warm, welcoming space where you can relax and enjoy a little time for yourself.

Whether you’re looking for a subtle refresh or ready for a complete transformation, I’d love to be part of your hair journey.

I look forward to welcoming you to my chair at Hair Jungle and creating something beautiful together.

Warmly,
Karina

Meet Leslie. She has a natural eye for creating beautiful, wearable hair and loves helping clients find a look that feels like them. Her approach is thoughtful and detail-oriented, with a focus on healthy hair, movement, and results that are easy to live in long after you leave the salon.

Leslie takes the time to really listen during her consultations, whether you’re coming in for a subtle refresh or ready for something completely different. She wants her clients to feel comfortable asking questions, sharing ideas, and trusting her to guide them toward what will work best for their hair and lifestyle.

Behind the chair, Leslie is upbeat, easygoing, and genuinely loves connecting with the people she works with. For her, a great appointment is about more than just good hair—it’s about feeling comfortable, taken care of, and excited about the way you look.

Outside of the salon, Leslie loves good coffee, spending time outdoors, and slowing things down whenever she gets the chance. She’s currently welcoming new clients at Hair Jungle and looking forward to having you in her chair.

Ashley brings a creative, expressive energy to the salon, driven by years of experimenting with hair alongside friends and growing up around hair care specialists. Her passion lies in transformative color, whether it’s seamless blonding, bold fashion shades, or detailed color corrections. As a dedicated stylist, she aims to help clients feel confident, refreshed, and more like themselves, or even embrace a completely new version of themselves when they leave her chair. Outside the salon, you will find Ashley by the water, at concerts, or exploring the outdoors. With a love for everything from alternative rock to classical music, her style is as versatile as her work—creative, evolving, and always inspired. A true animal lover and lifelong horse girl, Ashley dreams of one day having her own land and horses, infusing that same sense of freedom and individuality into everything she creates as one of the top hair experts in the salon.

With over a decade behind the chair, Henry brings a creative, detail-driven approach shaped by years of working throughout Los Angeles, Hollywood, and Beverly Hills. Originally drawn to hair through anime and styling his own looks, his passion quickly grew into a career centered around both cutting and color.

Henry specializes in precision cutting, blonding, and transformative color, and loves when the cut and color work together to create a complete look. From major transformations like taking dark hair platinum to creating a fresh shape or maintaining beautiful, healthy color, he approaches every appointment with the same priority: understanding the goal while protecting the integrity of the hair.

His consultations are thoughtful and realistic. Henry takes the time to listen, create a roadmap for where you want to go, and make sure you understand how to maintain your hair beyond the salon. His chair can be a place for a great conversation or a quiet appointment where you can completely relax. Either way, his focus stays on making sure you feel heard and leave feeling confident in your hair.

Outside the salon, Henry draws inspiration from Japanese street fashion, anime, music, gaming, and his travels to Tokyo. He also enjoys working out, rock climbing, and keeping up with fashion and culture. Dependable by nature, Henry hopes to build long-term relationships with his clients based on trust, great hair, and evolving together over time.

Meet Makaila, but you can call her Makay. With over a decade behind the chair, Makay brings creativity, precision, and a genuine love for her craft to every appointment. She specializes in creative color, precision cutting, and hair extensions, with a passion for transformations that feel just as good as they look.

Originally from the Bay Area, Makay believes hair is an art form and loves creating looks that bring out each client’s individuality and confidence. Her chair is a welcoming space where creativity and good energy come together.

Outside the salon, she’s a proud cat mom of two, a gamer at heart, and loves hitting the gym, watching a good movie, or getting lost in anime.

With 16 years behind the chair, Brittney loves helping people discover hair that makes them feel their best. Whether you’re ready for a fresh look or want to refine the one you already love, she brings creativity, thoughtful attention, and an easygoing energy to your appointment.

Her love for hair started young, styling Barbies and playing beauty salon in her grandma’s kitchen. After training at Empire Beauty School in Pennsylvania, she built lasting relationships with her East Coast clients before making her way to California.

Brittney’s favorite services include long and short haircuts, blonding, lived-in and dimensional color, extensions, and perms. From a subtle refresh to a bigger transformation, she enjoys finding the details that make a look feel personal to you. Every appointment starts with a conversation about your vision, your everyday routine, and how much maintenance works for your life—so you can feel confident about the direction before getting started.

Warm, a little sassy, and naturally go with the flow, Brittney makes it easy to feel comfortable in her chair. Come ready to chat or enjoy some quiet time; she’ll take your lead. She values the person behind every appointment and wants you to leave feeling heard, cared for, and excited about your hair.

Outside the salon, Brittney loves spending time with her husband, daughter, and Australian Shepherd, Tinker. She’s into little getaways, good food, decorating her home, and all things Disney. A day exploring somewhere new is always welcome—but so is a day at home with no plans, a dirty soda, and sour candy.

Jessy is a creative at heart who found her path in the hair industry through her love of self-expression and helping others feel confident. After years of experimenting with color, bleach, and cutting on her own hair, she transformed that passion into a fulfilling career. Currently, Jessy serves as the Salon Assistant and Front Desk Coordinator at Hair Jungle, where she plays a vital role in ensuring a seamless, elevated experience for every client. As she trains within the salon’s education program, Jessy is honing her skills in blonding, cutting, and extensions, areas that are highly regarded by hair care specialists. Her passion lies particularly in blonding and precision cutting, and she’s eager to continue growing her expertise among the salon’s talented hair experts. Outside the salon, Jessy enjoys painting, yoga, car meets, and live music. Her unique style reflects a mix of creativity and edge, balanced with a love for simple daily rituals and travel. As she continues her journey at Hair Jungle, she looks forward to showcasing her talents in the stylists profiles and welcoming her own clients soon.

Sixteen years behind the chair and still obsessed with good hair.

Aaron is the owner and founder of Hair Jungle, known for an intuitive approach to cutting, color, and transformations that feel effortless, modern, and personal. His work isn’t about following a formula. It’s about understanding the person in the chair, how their hair naturally moves, and creating something that genuinely fits them.

Over the course of his career, Aaron has built a reputation for taking on everything from subtle refinements to major transformations, with a particular love for dimensional color, blonding, curly hair, and customized cutting. His approach is creative but intentional, balancing what a client wants with what will actually work for their hair, lifestyle, and long-term goals.

After more than a decade in the industry, Aaron opened Hair Jungle with a bigger vision: to create the kind of salon he wanted to work in. A space built around great hair, strong individual stylists, continued education, creativity, and an experience that feels elevated without feeling overly polished or pretentious.

Today, much of Aaron’s focus extends beyond his own chair. He works closely with the Hair Jungle team on education, creative direction, and helping each stylist develop their own identity and career behind the chair.

For Aaron, the best hair doesn’t look like it was trying too hard. It just looks right.