Sewing: Fifth Ward native turns tragedy into a tranquil spa in Cypress

The fire blew quickly through LeBrina Jackson's spa in River Oaks in early 2022. It was just a few weeks before Valentine's Day, her busiest season.

That morning, she pulled herself out of bed to nurse her newborn daughter, Wynter. She noticed the missed calls on her phone. One after another. A spa employee was frantically trying to reach her. When Jackson called back, she learned that a fire had destroyed her dream. Burned it to the ground.

MORE FROM JOY SEWING: Beyoncé's homecoming is symbol of pride for Third Ward community

Both Jackson and her now husband, Will Jackson III, an NFL cornerback, witnessed the devastation on FaceTime. Together, they cried.

LeBrina Jackson, owner of Escape Spa in Cypress, married long-time beau and NFL cornerback Will Jackson III, in Napa Valley, California, in summer 2023. They are both Fifth Ward natives and grew up riding horses. They live on a ranch in Hockley with 14 horses.

Jackson had worked so hard to build the business, earn the trust of customers and develop a loyal clientele. Everything she had worked for was gone.

She could have caved into life and moved on with another dream, something not as lofty as owning her own spa. That's not who she is.

In July, Jackson, at just 34 years old, opened a new spa in Cypress.

The 5,000-square-foot luxury Escape Spa is situated in a strip center near Buc-ee's; the location might be deceiving, given that the popular chain isn't known to cater to luxury clientele.

But Jackson has developed a following and an allegiance on social media, especially TikTok. Clients come from around the country to visit her spa, which features hydrotherapy, halotherapy, infrared sauna, IV infusions and luxurious body treatments, massages and facials. She even has a wine bar outfitted with plush green sofas.

Jackson learned some hard lessons from her first spa, she says. There, she was doing too much, like offering lashes and other extraneous services, and her staff turnover was high.

This time, she sought out renowned spa consultants, Under a Tree, to help create the vision she had in her head. She hoped to offer all of the sweet luxuries that clients want and hire a dedicated staff to meet their needs.

Jackson isn't new to the beauty business. The Fifth Ward native grew up shuttling between her mother's hair salon and her father's feed store after school.

In her mother's shop, Jackson learned that good service is essential when styling hair and that the salon is a safe space for clients to unload the heaviness from their work days and to laugh. She learned that hustle is part of the entrepreneurial journey, as she watched the constant flow of people stopping by the salon to peddle CDs, cakes, pies, accessories and other wares.

At the family's feed store in neighboring Settegast, her father sold chickens, pigs and rabbits and was known in the neighborhood as the "dog man," whose medicinal concoction was used to cure dogs of many ailments. He also rode horses and taught Jackson to ride when she was just 4. By 5, she had her first horse.

She was extremely close to her great-grandmother, Maggie Pruitt, who did hair in the shop for nearly 50 years before she died of lung cancer when Jackson was a sophomore in high school. Pruitt's memory keeps her going.

HISTORY LESSON : Sewing: 'Green Book' exhibit at Holocaust Museum Houston explores segregation-era life of Black travelers

"I learned from her to be a good person, because she was always a good person," Jackson says. "Sometimes I can feel her happiness and sometimes I see myself and feel her fussing when I'm making the wrong decision."

Jackson was the first in her family to go to college. But she dropped out of Texas A&M University after two years. She was pregnant. Her grandmother would have fussed about that, Jackson says. But returning to college wasn't an option. She didn't know how to go to school and be a mom. She didn't have a village either. (Her son, Brinon, is now 14.)

So Jackson focused on becoming the best hairstylist she could be and worked in her mother's salon for the next decade.

"I knew how to engage clients and entertain them. It was like fellowship to me. I would serve mimosas and doughnuts. And my clients came from far away, like Fulshear and Manvel."

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate

LeBrina Jackson with her 20-month-old daughter, Wynter, and a miniature horse named Willow at her ranch Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023, in Hockley.

Jackson wanted to expand her skills, so she went to massage school. When she got her first massage at 23, it was awful experience, she says. But it got her thinking about how amazing it could have been.

"I imagined how I could change the experience, and I started to dream about creating a more memorable experience when you massage someone. I needed to understand the technique of a good massage. I became good at it."

By this time, she was selling her own line of hair extensions and hair care products. She did well, too, and bought herself a diamond necklace at age 27. But when she couldn't get bank credit, she sold it to invest in her first salon in 2017.

Ashley Payne, a scientist and Houston native now living in Atlanta, has been a client with Jackson since 2012. Jackson's attention to wellness and knowledge of the best regimens for hair and skin transformed her, Payne says. But Jackson's positive philosophy about life helped her even more.

Payne has facial scars from a car accident, so she always wore her hair to cover her face. Jackson convinced her to try different styles. Then she gave Payne an assignment to write 10 things she liked about herself.

"It took me a few days to do it, but it allowed me to see myself differently," Payne says. "LeBrina helped me to rebuild my confidence and self love. I love me now."

Jackson wants her Cypress salon to be a peaceful space where her clients can feel like the weight of the world has been lifted.

For her, that feeling comes when she's at home on her ranch in Hockley with her family and her 14 horses, which she shows in national competitions, and a stray kitten that has settled there. Here, Jackson can watch the stars and reflect.

"Self-reflecting is my reality on a daily basis. I think you attract more good in your life when you do that," she says.

In Jackson's world, challenges are just lessons for growth. Her next one? A spa in the Texas Hill Country.