The hair chameleon

It’s true, there’s nothing ordinary about this hair pro. From her craft to her long, braided hair, the woman knows how to set herself apart. Her mother never went to a salon after she styled her hair for the first time when she was only 10. Her passion for hairstyle and braiding grew with her in Bulawayo, a city in Zimbabwe.Precious Gudza, now herself mother of a 10-year-old girl, has come a long way in pursuit of her passion for doing the hair-dos for African women. She learnt the traditional ways and styles in Zimbabwe. She got an opportunity to modernise and diversify her skills in Cape Town, South Africa. Now, the hair stylist is eying to internationalise her skills in Qatar.Precious is also interested in what kids are wearing on the street than what’s cool on the catwalk right now, which is often reflected in her work on the runway, on the red carpet, and in the pages of fashion magazines.Community recently sat down with the stylist to talk about her ‘karuka’ skills, traditional word in Shona language used for hair braiding or weaving, her journey to modern hairstyles and her future goals and aspirations.About her love for hair-dos she said that she started taking interest in hairstyling when she was in a boarding school. “I started to build up my clientele when I was in school. Whenever I used to get back home during vacations, girls and women would come to me for braiding and hair weaving,” she said. “My first client was my mother. She trusted me and allowed me to style her hair when I was only 10 and she never went to salon after that,” Precious said smilingly.“I started with kuruka when I was eight-year-old. I used to see girls at school and always thought that I can style their hair in a much better way. Now my 10-year-old daughter also knows how to do hair. She styles my mother’s hair as she lives with her grandparents.” Regarding her self-learning, Precious said, “I must say it has been a very interesting journey. It has been very diverse. First, I moved to South Africa and now I am in Qatar. The way we do hair in Zimbabwe is very different from the way they do it in South Africa. Moving to South Africa was challenging. I struggled there because I had to learn more techniques. It took me a while; I used to spend extra hours in the salon only to learn. The experience of working in Johannesburg has changed my life completely. Later, I moved to Cape Town where things actually happened for me.”She was in Cape Town when she ventured into other hair styles including Caucasian hair and straight hair besides doing ethnic styles, cornrows, dreadlocks and twists. “When I started doing non-African hair, I also got a chance to work with entertainment and fashion industry. I worked with commercial and TV models. I also started working independently, attending my own clients.Speaking about her experience in Doha, Precious said, “For me Doha is another change. A friend of mine, already working here, pushed me to come to Qatar. In Africa, everyone is more or less doing the same thing. I’m interested to get an insight into different hairstyles adapted in different regions of the world. I came to Doha in 2014. Initially I started working at a restaurant. During my restaurant job, I met a salon owner who invited me to work for him. I also work independently.”She finds Doha a very diverse place. The diversity has pushed her to be a better hairstylist. “I have no choice other than to be a better stylist. That has helped me a lot. I have never seen the quality of service that I see here in Doha. However when it comes to doing hair for African women, there are few choices here. I plan to tap the opportunity. I carry a tradition and I want to share it with the world. Here is my chance. Hair of ethnic African people are not easily done. They need a specialist for their hair.” She loves safe and secure life in Qatar and enjoys living here.Precious dreams of opening a salon in Qatar where she particularly wants to take care of women with ethnic African backgrounds. “In our traditional style, we use extensions to grow our hair. Naturally, our hair grows very slowly. Our hair is our crown. With the help of braiding we can improve our hair.”