Master Stylist Opens Sheer Haus On Mane In Mascoutah

MASCOUTAH – Shelby Derousse has spent the last decade building a successful salon in Millstadt. Now, the veteran stylist is bringing that experience to Mascoutah with the recent opening of Sheer Haus on Mane, a new salon on Main Street that she hopes will become as much a gathering place as a place to get a haircut.

Derousse officially opened the salon Monday after being presented with an opportunity to take over the location.

“I was asked to kind of take it over, and I thought it was a good opportunity to meet new people and build a bigger clientele and be in two places at once,” she said.

The salon joins Corner Cuts, the Millstadt business Derousse has owned for the past 10 years. She said the journey to becoming a business owner was not always easy.

“When I first started, the first year I thought I was going to have to close down,” she said. “It was pretty rough. Then I just kind of got better my second year and took off from there.”

Originally from Millstadt, Derousse balances running two businesses while attending school full time in Carbondale and raising her 5-year-old son as a single mother.

She said the transition into the new Mascoutah location has been welcomed by the community.

“So far, it’s been good,” Derousse said. “Everybody has been super kind and super understanding with me trying to run around crazy, trying to figure out where everything is because we just moved in here. A lot of people have been reaching out and are excited to come in, so I’ve been excited as well.”

Derousse is a master stylist, a designation earned by becoming both a licensed cosmetologist and licensed barber.

She said the additional training allows her to provide services beyond what either license alone offers.

“As a cosmetologist, you’re not allowed to use a straight razor,” she said. “Being a barber, they focus mostly on straight razor work and men’s cuts. I went back to school and did that, and I get all types of clientele now.”

She is currently the only stylist in Millstadt offering straight-razor services and said she has built a loyal customer base for everything from bald fades to traditional barber cuts.

While she performs a full range of hair services, Derousse admits she has a favorite specialty.

“I do everything,” she said. “I do any kind of color that you want. I just specifically specialize in platinum blonde. I love doing blonde hair.”

She hopes clients remember more than just the haircut.

“I definitely won’t make your appointment boring,” Derousse said with a laugh. “I’m very interactive with people. I love to laugh. I’m here to listen, or I’ll just be quiet if somebody doesn’t want to talk.”

That customer-first attitude extends beyond normal business hours. Derousse said she frequently accommodates last-minute appointments and hair emergencies, even late at night.

One memorable call came around 1 a.m. when a woman arrived at her home after leaving bleach on her hair for nearly two hours.

“Her hair was falling off as she was standing there,” Derousse recalled. “I had to leave, go to the salon and fix it. We were there until 4 in the morning.”

She also remembers the surge of correction work after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, when many customers attempted to color their own hair at home.

“I was working until 9 or 10 o’clock at night because I had people that messed up their hair with box dye and kept coming in for me to fix it,” she said.

The salon’s name also carries a personal story.

Derousse said her father, Lance Derousse, helped create the name while brainstorming ideas for the new business.

“He said, ‘What about Sheer Haus on Main because it’s on Main Street?'” she said. “I said, ‘What if we spell mane, M-A-N-E?’ because it’s hair. He said, ‘Yeah, it’s perfect.'”

Although her focus this year is establishing the business, Derousse hopes to become active in Mascoutah’s community events in the future, much like she has in Millstadt. There, she has helped organize community block parties featuring vendors, live music, ax throwing and even the Bigfoot monster truck.

“This year we’ll probably just kind of get our bearings,” she said. “But next year I do hope to jump into the community and kind of help give back.”

For now, Derousse said she is simply looking forward to meeting new faces.

“I enjoy what I do, and I enjoy meeting new people,” she said. “I’m hoping that we get that opportunity and people give us a chance. I understand it’s hard when you’re locked in with another stylist, but I’m here for when they decide to break away.”