Brooke Young Shines as Proprietor of Only Vegan Skin Studio in Houston

Brooke Young Shines as Proprietor of Only Vegan Skin Studio in Houston

“SHOP YOUR SKIN, not the trends, and find the routine that works best for you,” says Brooke Young, founder and proprietor of Vegan Luxe Esthetics, the first and only vegan “skin salon” in town.


In retail management for years with Sephora, Young started off as a makeup artist in New York for television anchors such as Dan Rather and other celebrities.

“I decided to go vegan about 10 years ago during Lent, after the day of fasting, and became intrigued with it,” says Young. She knew she needed to make a change when she couldn’t keep up with her young twins anymore. “I had gained weight and was slowing down.” After her diet transition, one of the first things she noticed was a positive change in her skin and hair, which inspired her to found her own spa.

Young, who grew up in Brooklyn, is a single mom of three kids. Her family members in Houston encouraged her to move here in pursuit of a more easygoing lifestyle. She became certified in the highest standard of spa safety and hygiene and opened Vegan Luxe Esthetics during the height of the pandemic. “Even though it was scary, I didn’t give up because 90 percent of clients were focusing on staying healthy during that challenging time,” says Young.

Now a vegan in diet and lifestyle, Young also sells her own vegan skin care lines at her studio, on Amazon, and two other e-commerce platforms. Vegan Luxe Esthetics caters to all skin types and promotes sustainable practices. “We empower our clients to join the conversation about how the impact of the products and ingredients we use on our bodies impact the environment.”

After a deep look into each client’s skin with a derma scope and an interview about lifestyle and goals, the client leaves the studio with working knowledge of her or his skin type and product recommendations. “I create comprehensive plans for each client,” says Young. Her most popular services are the VIP facial treatments, including Glass Skin chemical peel, microdermabrasion, L.E.D. light therapy, 24-carat gold facial, and the diamond facial.

In her leisure time, Young likes to devote time to her family, and travels often, like to see her daughter in college. And she always makes time for yoga. “Hot yoga keeps you young!”

Mwenso Carnegie Squad

WITH SUMMER FAR from over, DACAMERA continues to roll out some of the hottest musical programming to be enjoyed here — and anywhere else in the South for that matter — with Houston SUMMERJAZZ 2023 (Aug. 17-20). The series highlights the breadth of contemporary jazz, with nods to the music’s Cuban, pan-African, funk, pop, and soul connections. This year’s festival includes performances by the Spanish Harlem Orchestra (Aug. 17), vocalist Gretchen Parlato in her first Houston appearance (Aug. 18), and crowd-pleasing global artists Mwenso & The Shakes (Aug. 19), whose members come from Sierra Leone, London, South Africa, Greenwich Village, Madagascar, France, Jamaica and Hawaii. (Jazz is, indeed, “global” music.) All Houston SUMMERJAZZ concerts take place in the Wortham Center’s Cullen Theater.

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BEGINNING THIS THURSDAY, Aug. 17, DACAMERA’s Houston SUMMERJAZZ festival presents a concise, three-night program of jazz in a myriad of contemporary forms, with the Spanish Harlem Orchestra (Aug. 17) illuminating its historical connections to Cuba and Puerto Rico, and internationalists Mwenso and The Shakes (Aug. 19) extolling the music’s pan-African, funk, and pop potential. In between those two hits, on Friday, Aug. 18, all of these tributaries and more will be explored in a set by two-time Grammy-nominated vocalist Gretchen Parlato, making her first appearance in Houston.

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