Dionne Phillips — Toledo’s Own Boss Lady Making History in Beverly Hills

Toledo is known for several great things. Although it earned the nickname “Glass City” for its long history of manufacturing glass, it has also produced well-known celebrity writers and actors, professional NBA and NFL players, opera singers, music legends, and more.

This article is about Toledo producing a “Boss Lady,” Dionne Phillips. Boss Lady is a colloquial term for a woman who is confident, assertive, and in control of her professional and personal life. The term implies strength, independence, and success. It’s used to describe someone positive, determined, creative, resilient and who inspires others. All attributes that describe Dionne.

Dionne was born and raised out Stickney of Toledo. She is a graduate of Woodward High School where she gained popularity as a cheerleader, a spark of bright positive energy with a beautiful soul and a gorgeous face. In those early years is where I met Dionne, as a model captivating the audience on the runway. We were always auditioning for some of the same fashion shows eventually becoming like a modeling family as we were both part of the same agency.

Starting her career in modeling, make-up, and fashion, Dionne knew she had to leave Toledo to make it big. Her first steppingstone was in 1991 when she joined an agency in Detroit that booked her for a major liquor campaign in New York City. After completing her assignment, she felt she was in the right city to make her dreams come true, so she stayed and never looked back. She interviewed with Grace Del Marco Models, one of the pioneering agencies to represent Black models in New York. She hustled hard, landing commercial print ads and quickly becoming one of the top working models. Soon after, she became a fitness model and began performing stunt work in major films from which she is still receiving royalty checks  

Although she was never focused on acting, the casting director from her first movie told her Spike Lee wanted to meet her. She described the experience as humiliating, standing in a line against a fence as he walked by, as if choosing clothes from his closet. He picked her. She read her lines and landed her first movie role as the ex-girlfriend of the lead basketball player in He Got Game starring Denzel Washington. From there, she booked national commercials including Sprite with Busta Rhymes, DJ Red Alert, American Express, and more.

Dionne began splitting her time between New York and Los Angeles to spend time with her boyfriend, now husband, also a model originally from Michigan. In 2006, she made the official move to Los Angeles.  A decision that would change her life.

While modeling in New York, Dionne began experimenting with cutting lash strips into smaller custom pieces to create a more natural look on herself. Models and actresses quickly took notice and soon she began doing lashes right out of her kitchen. The results impressed everyone because they lasted two weeks or longer. Word spread like wildfire from New York to Los Angeles. Someone told Brandy. Brandy told Serena Williams. And the singer Tweet. Soon, she had a three-month waiting list while operating from the kitchen in her humble Los Angeles apartment. The cost at the time? Just $65.

One day, her client Kate Somerville suggested she come to her spa. There, she had the chance to do Paris Hilton’s lashes. Paris mentioned her in an interview which Dionne has said helped ignite national buzz around her work. Her waiting list grew from three months to eight. People were flying in. She was being flown out. Media was calling. She couldn’t sleep or eat from the excitement!  Her dreams came true not from modeling, but from mastering the art of lashes.

Dionne has said in interviews that she’s worked with celebrity clients such as Viola Davis, Victoria Beckham, Nia Long, and even Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. She’s been featured in Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, Jay Leno, E! Hollywood, Extra, Access Hollywood, and more. When she decided to lease a salon suite to continue serving her growing clientele, she was afraid they wouldn’t follow her, but they did. Her business increased. She was booming.

Then came 2020.  And soon after, the Hollywood strike. But that didn’t stop Dionne. She pivoted to teaching lash application classes to beauty academies across the country.

In 2022, she began searching for a space of her own in Beverly Hills, a place that matched her vision. She finally found it, but not without adversity. In the early stages of demolition and construction, she was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer. Now she was demolishing a building and fighting for her life. She began chemotherapy while overseeing contractors and designing her salon floor plan. She was determined to win at both. But chemo slowed her work. Eventually, doctors said she needed surgery. She chose a double mastectomy and had to figure out how to pay for it.

Her dear friend Lindsay Price, the actress,  singer, and wife of Australian chef Curtis Stone threw a fundraiser at his Michelin Star restaurant. Her financial advisor reminded her she had a cancer clause in her life insurance policy which made her determined to fight for her life and her business.  

Dionne endured five and a half months of chemo, one month of radiation, and six surgeries. Today she is cancer free. She urges women to do monthly self-checks and get 3D Ultrasound Mammograms if they sense something is wrong. She says it saved her life.

Today, Dionne and D’Lashes are thriving.

D’Lashes is now a lash, health, and wellness spa offering eyelash extensions, facials, skincare, and massages for both men and women. It has been described in industry press as Beverly Hills’ first Black-owned lash & wellness spa.

She also created the D’Lashes LASH IT! Kit and a full line of lash products at dlashes.com. She was recently recognized in InStyle magazine for having one of the best eyelash glues on the market. A new line of lashes is on the way and her YouTube channel now features tutorials and health information.

Dionne Phillips is a true Boss Lady with a warrior spirit. Her motto: “The setback is a setup for your comeback.”

She invites you to visit D’Lashes in Beverly Hills not just for beauty, but for sanctuary. A place that blends high-end services with wellness… and a safe space for all.