As this year comes to a close, I’ve found myself pausing more than usual, not because of what a whirlwind it has been, but because I’m deeply aware of how much has changed. This year wasn’t just busy. It wasn’t just successful. It was transformational.
I can honestly say this has been the best year of my life yet.
For so long, I chased growth with intensity: new techniques, new stages, new cities, new versions of myself. This year, something shifted. Growth stopped feeling like a chase and started feeling like alignment. The work expanded, yes, but so did my heart, my home, and my sense of who I am becoming.
From Imposter to Artist
Touring this year reminded me why I fell in love with teaching in the first place. The Imposter Artist Tour became so much more than a series of classes. It turned into a conversation we were all having together. About confidence. About fear. About stepping into rooms before we feel “ready.”
Standing in front of artists across twenty states and inside some of the most beautiful salons, I saw myself reflected back to me again and again. Brilliant, talented humans doubting their own magic. And every stop on tour reinforced the same truth: we don’t become artists because we’re fearless. We become artists because we’re brave enough to keep showing up anyway.
From the Modern Artist Tour to Artist Daydream, and now the Imposter Artist Tour, each tour has been an invitation, to myself and to others to step fully into our artistry. To show that you don’t need permission to dream bigger. They were about courage. About dreaming out loud. About becoming before we feel ready. I hope these tours changed you as much as they did me. And I can't wait for the next one!
Flights & Fertility
This year also asked me to grow in ways that had nothing to do with hair.
My IVF journey was deeply personal, deeply emotional, and deeply grounding. It taught me patience in a way nothing else ever has. It softened me. It strengthened me. It reminded me that success isn’t always loud or visible. Sometimes it’s simply choosing hope again and again.
Between flights and appointments in New York with Generation Next Fertility, waiting rooms, phone calls, and big decisions, life kept moving—and the cycle moved right along with it.
Creating Home While Chasing Dreams
At the same time, I made one of the biggest moves of my life: buying a home in Amsterdam and officially moving to Europe. Even though my life will be bi-continental between LA & Amsterdam, this is officially our main home and the place where I’ll be opening my second salon, bringing my vision to life in the heart of the city. It invited me into a slower rhythm, a richer presence, a life where inspiration meets stillness. Getting our residency and buying a house here didn’t just give me a new address, it gave me a sense of grounding I didn’t realize I was craving.
Then came the weight of it all. Paperwork, visas, mortgages, advisors, layers upon layers of logistics we never anticipated. It felt endless at times. This life wasn’t built alone. It was built with help, and I carry deep gratitude for every person who helped us cross the threshold into it.
Pausing to look back and let it sink in, to feel the weight of what I've built with my best friend and husband Sebastian, standing beside me through every big, life-shaping decision.
Redefining Success
For years, I measured success by momentum; how fast I was moving, how much I was producing, how full my calendar looked. This year redefined that completely.
Success now looks like waking up inspired instead of depleted.
It looks like building a life that supports my creativity, not one that drains it.
It looks like trusting myself enough to make bold decisions, even when they don’t make sense to everyone else.
Yes, this has been my most successful year professionally. But more importantly, it’s been my most rewarding year personally.
Moving Forward
As we step into a new year, I’m carrying so much gratitude with me. Gratitude for every modern artist who trusted me, every salon that welcomed me, and every version of myself that got me here.
If this year taught me anything, it’s this: when you stop trying to prove yourself and start listening to yourself, everything changes.
Here’s to becoming.
Here’s to expansion.
Here’s to the art, and the artist, we are still growing into.
If you’ve been waiting for permission to take the leap that scares you, let this be it. Life on the other side of your dreams is possible. It starts with one brave choice and the belief that you are worthy of the life you’re calling in.
With love and deep gratitude,
Larisa 🤍
📸: The Broken Lense