Hair by Fia was birthed out of one woman’s determination to be a cut above the rest. As a natural hair advocate, she is a hairdresser who exclusively deals with hair in its natural state. Sofia Dhliwayo narrated to The Weight She Carries how it all began.
I am the only girl in a family of three. I was born in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe and this is where I currently reside. In high school, my friend and I would plait each other’s hair and when I proceeded to college, the love for hair continued. [Around 2015] is when I took the hair thing seriously and I would get people who requested that I style or plait their hair.
I unfortunately had to drop out of college due to financial difficulties my family was going through at the time. Truth be told, at the time I felt depressed and thought, ‘Well this is just the end for me.’ As I tried to figure out what to do after dropping out, I knew for sure that I was never going back to continue with the program I was doing, which was language and communication, because advertising and media is where my passion lies.
The little experience I had with hair at the time helped me find work in various salons to support myself. I decided to open up a social media page which is where I would post what I was doing with my hair, and surprisingly, a client base was created. I worked from home and the clients loved it due to the privacy it provided them.
In February 2019, I made a decision to relocate to a formal place in the city centre.
It was during the time when I was selling hair products that I knew that natural hair was going to be my specialty. Natural hair is beautiful, raw and authentic. I could not help but fall in love with it.
What misconceptions do people have about natural hair?
The most common misconception I have come across is that keeping one’s hair natural is for school kids and broke people, and so overturning that mindset is going to be my life’s work one head at a time.
Over the years, I discovered that hair has a life of its own and it wants what it wants, and so one has to understand what their hair wants.
Natural hair to me is not a trend; rather, it is a lifestyle choice, a health choice. And so when someone walks in and wants their hair done, I educate them on their hair. I firstly educate them on their hair type and give them tips on how to treat their hair even at home.
What are some tips you can share about natural hair care?
With natural hair being a health choice, I believe that what is good for the tummy is good for the hair. These are some of the foods that I have tried and tested myself and definitely recommend to anyone.
Water is life and is the ultimate moisturizer and must be the base in all the products we use on our hair.
Aloe vera is a very good conditioner and has healing properties as well.
Avocado can be used as a deep conditioner.
Guava leaves when extracted of their juice are an excellent anti-breakage treatment.
Onion juice is a growth rejuvenator, so for those with damaged or receding hairlines, try out the onion juice. Rice water when fermented is a very good protein treatment.
Olive and coconut oils are good moisture sealants and efficient when performing the Liquid Oil and Cream method abbreviated to LOC method. This is one of the most basic regimens for anyone who is natural or one who intends to go natural. It makes life so much easier for the naturalists.
The truth is that no matter the choice one has made either to go natural or to relax their hair, a lot of work has to be put in.
To all the aspiring naturalists, just learn what your hair wants, be proactive and be patient with your hair. Educate yourself on your hair type, make a conscious decision to go all in and turn it into a lifestyle.
To all the hairdressers out there, you are artists, beauticians and trendsetters.
I have held a number of masterclasses and hold various online competitions just to raise awareness on what I am doing. In the future, I want to coordinate more events to [inform] others on how one can be natural and turn it into a lifestyle and would also like to rebrand my media page and bring it to the people.
