Today we’d like to introduce you to Angelica Arvizu.
Hi Angelica, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I signed up for cosmetology as an elective in my sophomore year of high school. From there on, I completed my required amount of hours needed to start taking my practical and written exam. After I became licensed, I was able to get a job at a salon and reporting every two weeks to my instructor. In that process, I learned how to cut women and men’s cuts. For like two years after cutting men’s hair only I decided I wanted more creative freedom, and I started seeking an assistant job at a local salon. Where I learned how to do balayges and vivid color. In the process, I found myself leaning more towards vivid color and extreme blonding as well as butterfly cuts and 90’s layers.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It was hard finding my footing in where I wanted to put my focus at; at one point, I only wanted to do men’s hair, and eventually, I found myself uninspired. I really wanted to venture out and be more creative with my work as well as photos and videos. It was also really hard to take the leap into becoming an independent stylist because you really have to have faith in yourself that you will succeed in a more saturated field. Especially when I started doing vivid the clientele really wasn’t there.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I specialize in vivid hair, color blocking, and color placement. I would like to say I am really known for chunky highlights and unconventional colors. I am most proud of being confident in myself enough to put myself, my work, and my personality on the internet because I was always my biggest hater. I never really had the biggest confidence in my work and in myself to be able to just be independent or put myself on TikTok because the internet is so scary. I held myself back for a long time before my friends gave me the push. I feel like even though vivid hair is becoming more popular and sought after, my clients and me work together to create more non-conventional looks, which is mostly because of them having full trust in me and my creativity. So that allows me to do more experimental and unique looks that others may not get the chance to do.
How do you define success?
A lot of people would define success in numbers and the money that they’re making. I feel as if right now, where I’m at is what I would consider to be successful, considering in the beginning of being independent, you are struggling a lot to fill slots and pay your booth rent at the end of the week. Nowadays, I don’t find myself struggling to fill my books. There’s people reaching out to me in hopes of getting their hair done by me, and I have a community of people who enjoy what I create and want to learn from me. A few years ago, I would have never expected myself to be in the position that I am in and to me that fulfills the hopes and dreams of my younger self.
Contact Info:
- Website: softihair.glossgenius.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/softihair
- Other: tiktok.com/softi4u
Image Credits
@adriancamarillo
