Today we’d like to introduce you to Christiana Sayyah.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
As long as I can remember, I have been in love with makeup, hair, and fashion, but in my own style, the arts and music always influenced me growing up, and are a huge part of my life. It was natural for me to become a Cosmetologist, but not the easiest road getting there. I have been doing hair and makeup professionally for the past 3 years and loved every minute of it. In a short time, I’ve been licensed to create, I have become a salon suite owner, and an Educator for Manic Panic Professional as well as Devacurl. I am also on the Keracolor hair team as an Ambassador.
In addition to specializing in color and cuts, I work weddings full time, which keeps me fresh in my makeup application. I’ve started dabbling in special fx makeup with film and would love to explore that genre more. Basically, anything that keeps me creating art people can relate to is what I am passionate about!
My brand and salon, Glitter & Geeks are all about connecting the hair and makeup I do with my favorite fandoms (such as Harry Potter, Star Wars, etc.). I personally connect to fandoms because of my own battles with mental health and find most of the time, others do as well. I’ve been a fangirl my entire life and now that I am an adult and have a career where I can incorporate my interests with my craft, I couldn’t be happier.
Has it been a smooth road?
Being an artist, it makes finding your career path even more difficult than usual because nothing seems straightforward; this was definitely the case for me. I began my schooling for Cosmetology in 2013 and completed half of the required hours while going through huge personal life battles. I finally decided after many moves and much indecision, to transfer schools to one that would better suit my needs for fantastic education, At the point, I began Lakeland College’s Cosmetology program, I was 29 and turned 30 while in school. I came to my career later in my adult life but always felt it calling to me on some level or another.
While in school, I faced a lot of hate and criticism for being different with my own personal style and interests, but I never let others change my passion. I have also been living with chronic pain caused from being hit by a car; the same week, I began Cosmetology school! And get this… I was walking across the street! Chronic pain has been my biggest battle throughout the years, but I fight through it because I absolutely love what I do. If I’m not creating, I’m not living.
The best move I made for my career and life was out of the Midwest, where I was born, raised, and resided for the majority of my life. I moved to the greater Atlanta area in Spring of 2016. It took me about a year 1/2 to find where I fit into the industry after living in Georgia, but once I found my brand, I was unstoppable. I’ve always been a hard worker, so bringing that work ethic to my passion for coloring hair, makeup application, and haircutting was the perfect marriage.
My advice for women, especially young women just starting their own journey is to follow your voice. Learn from others, take all the classes you can, and always push yourself, but never allow anyone to tell you orange eyeshadow isn’t cool or that you’re too shy to make it. Being yourself, while staying humble and positive will carry your career a long way. It’s also important to remember that social media isn’t real life. I think in the era we now live in, it’s too easy to get wrapped up in what others are portraying their life to be on social. When in doubt, think like Wonder Woman.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Glitter & Geeks Salon – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I specialize in vivid hair color and tie all of my hair color creations with pop culture fandoms I LOVE. I am a huge Harry Potter fan, so this summer, I got a group of 4 hair models, myself, and a wonderful photographer, Jill Blue Photography, together and created hair magic! I designed, colored, and styled each model’s natural hair in the theme of each Hogwarts house colors. For the photo shoot, each model was dressed in traditional Hogwarts dress robes, representing their house, and I donned a Luna Lovegood cosplay. This project was so much fun and so close to my heart. I released the photos on Harry Potter’s birthday and the response was so positive! I have other hair projects in the works for the future, but no spoilers! 😉
I am most proud of creating hair art that makes people happy! I have pledged to be a positive social media influencer, and my Instagram page is my space where I post all the geeky, glittery, magical work that makes me feel like I am living a dream.
Often it feels as if the media, by and large, is only focused on the obstacles faced by women, but we feel it’s important to also look for the opportunities. In your view, are there opportunities that you see that women are particularly well positioned for?
I feel like women in my field have a voice that is very, very important. So many female cosmetologists are in positions where they are business owners, social media influencers, and leaders. In my experience, a lot of younger people look up to Cosmetologists, as we are the trendsetters and influence how men and women feel about their physical appearance and self-esteem daily. I take this role very seriously and encourage all Cosmetologists to lift each other up and promote love and positivity.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 217-264-3738
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @glitter_artist
- Facebook: facebook.com/glitterandgeekssalon
Getting in touch: VoyageMIA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
