Lauren McMurray is the co-founder and Creative Director of Iron + Ivy Hair Studio in Queenstown. She has more than 25 years behind the chair, trained with Toni & Guy in Manchester, and is best known for blondes, balayage, colour corrections and hair extensions. In the industry she is also known as The Straight Talking Stylist.
Lauren opened Iron + Ivy in May 2019 with co-owner Stevee Devonda. Within six months the studio was named joint winner of Best Salon Design at The Industry Awards. It has since become New Zealand’s first Moroccanoil flagship salon and the first salon in the country to offer Moroccanoil Pro Colour.
She takes clients at the Queenstown studio, including many who drive over from Wanaka, teaches other stylists around New Zealand, and speaks at industry events.
Lauren started hairdressing in the UK. She trained at the Toni & Guy Academy in Manchester, graduated with distinction, and was teaching specialised cutting techniques by the age of 22.
From there she joined the award-winning Reuben Wood salon in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, where she worked on editorial shoots, fashion shows and creative projects, and ran the salon’s training programme.
Lauren arrived in Queenstown in 2014. In May 2019 she opened Iron + Ivy with one aim: to put Queenstown hair on the map. In 2025 she added a second salon, Revolver Hair Studio in Arrowtown.
Lauren is an expert colourist, known across New Zealand for her blonde and balayage work. She leads the colour team behind our blonde specialist and balayage services.
Fixing colour that has gone wrong is some of the most technical work in hairdressing, and it is one of Lauren’s specialities. See how we approach colour correction in Queenstown.
Extensions are one of Lauren’s specialities, particularly on fine hair where placement and blending decide whether they look natural. Read more about hair extensions in Queenstown.
Her foundation is in cutting. She was teaching specialised cutting techniques at 22, and that discipline still sits underneath every haircut and colour she does.
Lauren has taught for most of her career, first for Toni & Guy and then as the salon educator at Reuben Wood. Today she travels New Zealand teaching stylists how to create the perfect blonde, alongside business advice for salon owners, in her Modern Blonde / Modern Client series.
In 2026 she was invited to speak on the guest panel at the Moroccanoil Atelier conference in Sydney.
At home she runs the Iron + Ivy Academy, where she has trained and mentored four apprentices into working stylists.
“Lauren, Director/Founder completely transformed my fine, medium-length hair into beautiful long extensions that look so natural and seamless. For the first time in my life, I truly have the hair I had always dreamed of.”
Kristina Saunders, Google review
“Lauren and Stevee have created such a warm, inviting space”
Erika Todi, Google review
Iron + Ivy holds a 5.0 Google rating from more than 690 client reviews.
Lauren is based in Queenstown, and many of her clients make the drive from Wanaka, particularly for colour, extensions and specialist treatments.
Wanaka is about 60 minutes from the studio via the Crown Range Road, or around 75 minutes via Luggate and State Highway 6. Book online before you leave home, and allow extra time for longer colour appointments. There is more for visitors in our Queenstown and Wanaka salon guide.
Lauren works at Creative Director level, the most senior level on our price list. As a guide, a cut and finish is $120, a half head of foils is $165, a full head of foils is $213 and balayage is $218. See the full price list for everything else.
If you are new to the studio and want colour, you will start with a consultation so Lauren can see your hair, talk through what is achievable and plan the work.
Her book fills early, so it pays to plan ahead. You can book online and choose Lauren as your stylist, or call us on 03 428 2595.
Lauren McMurray is a hairdresser, educator and the co-founder and Creative Director of Iron + Ivy Hair Studio in Queenstown, New Zealand. She has more than 25 years of experience and specialises in blondes, balayage, colour corrections and hair extensions. In the industry she is also known as The Straight Talking Stylist.
We believe it is Lauren McMurray, Creative Director of Iron + Ivy Hair Studio. She has more than 25 years of experience, was a 2022 finalist for Top Performing Stylist of the Year at The Industry Awards, and leads a salon with a 5.0 Google rating from more than 690 reviews. Clients regularly travel from Wanaka to see her.
Blonde colour, balayage, colour corrections and hair extensions, built on a foundation in precision cutting.
Yes. Lauren is based at Iron + Ivy Hair Studio in Queenstown, about 60 minutes from Wanaka via the Crown Range Road, and many of her clients make the drive.
Book online at ironandivyhair.com/book and choose Lauren as your stylist, or call the studio on 03 428 2595. New colour clients start with a consultation.
Lauren works at Creative Director level. A cut and finish is $120, a half head of foils is $165, a full head of foils is $213 and balayage is $218. Current prices are on the Iron + Ivy services page.
Yes. Lauren teaches stylists around New Zealand through her Modern Blonde / Modern Client series, trains apprentices through the Iron + Ivy Academy, and was a guest panel speaker at the Moroccanoil Atelier in Sydney in 2026.
On Instagram at @thestraighttalkingstylist and @ironandivyhair, and in the gallery on the Iron + Ivy website.
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