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• Chris Appleton is a celebrity stylist known for his work with the Kardashians and J. Lo.
• He started his illustrious career at the age of 13.
• He was recently seen hanging out with actor Lukas Gage in Mexico.

Lukas Gage, 27, is one of Hollywood’s fastest rising stars. With roles in HBO’s massive hits White Lotus and Euphoria and Netflix’s You, it makes sense that he’d have equally accomplished friends in the business. Enter pal Chris Appleton. The British celebrity stylist, 39, was seen via social media hanging out in Mexico while vacationing with the actor, and it’s apparent he’s got a lot of high-profile names in his contact roster — including Ariana Grande and Dua Lipa, among others.

We know from the pics that he’s currently enjoying four wheeling and swimming at a resort in Punta Mita with Lukas. But what else does Chris do and what’s his background? Find out more about the powerhouse stylist seen hanging out with Lukas below.

1. He started his career young.

According to an interview with Grazia Magazine, Chris got an early start on doing what he loved — he secured his first gig at age 13 at a hair salon in 1996. He also touched on doing his own mother’s hair decades ago as a way of pampering her amid a busy work and home life. He’s continued to do the same for the most illustrious clients in the world. “Jen recently called me and said, ‘You always make me feel so great,’ and that means a lot to me because that’s what I used to do for my mom, just to make her feel good,” he told the outlet, obviously referring to Jennifer Lopez. “That never goes out of fashion.”

2. He’s a father of two.

Chris appears to have two adult children, whom he regularly features on his Instagram account — daughter Kitty Blu Appleton and son Billy Appleton. Chris has been mum on who their mother might be, but he’s made no secret of how much he loves them. “Grateful,” he wrote alongside a family snapshot in formalwear with Kitty and Billy in November of 2022. Attending a wedding in September, he captioned a carousel of photos with his kids in part, “My forever plus 1’s.” He also shared a touching observation in another post from September. “When did they get taller than me,” he captioned another photo collection. “Being your Dad is best thing that has ever happened to me.”

3. Chris has a lot of famous friends.

And when we say “a lot,” we really mean an entire galaxy of the brightest stars in the entertainment industry. He’s responsible for many of Kim and Khloe Kardashian‘s most stunning and versatile looks, which he regularly shares with his 3.3 million followers via Instagram. Ariana Grande and Dua Lipa have benefitted from his famous talents, as well.

He’s also been known to drop by pal Drew Barrymore‘s show to chat her up. “The gift that keeps giving – absolutely loved shooting the valentine’s Day special @thedrewbarrymoreshow with @drewbarrymore yesterday she is the sweetest human I know,” he wrote alongside a February 2022 selfie with the Wedding Singer actress.

4. His credits are beyond impressive.

Ever wonder who did J. Lo’s flawless hair at her lavish Georgia wedding to Ben Affleck? Or her bouncy 2020 Super Bowl performance looks? How about her windblown nude beauty campaign? Kim’s platinum blonde variations, the snake-print hair, or even the mile long braid? You guessed it. Chris was on site and responsible for the hairstyles that have literally helped shape the careers and images of two of the most powerful women in Hollywood.

5. Chris considers his career ‘magic.’

In his Grazia interview, he looked back on doing his mother’s hair, and what about it transformed his future ambitions. “When she looked in the mirror, her expression would change in her face, and her shoulders would go back,” he told the outlet. “I realized that I had this ability to make people feel really good, like emotional medicine. For me, that is what started this journey for me: making people look good, but really making them feel good. When you can do both is when the magic happens.”