" I don't want it to be elitist in any way. It’s for the people. It's also never been about fashion."
Just as Dorothy entered OZ, you’re now entering the bright and colourful world of TUTTII FRUITTI. This neon caravan in London offers their clients some of the most unbelievable follicular makeovers in the world. Loverboy’s Justin Gray spoke with Tuttii Fruitti about her history, her inspirations and the future of the salon.
Can you tell us a bit of the history of how Tuttii Fruittii The TecniKolor Hair Sculptor came to be?
Tuttii Fruittii came alive at Glastonbury Stone circle in 2010. That was the day I met one of my sisters “Celia Arias” and she instantly gave me that name. Back then I wore lots of different headpieces that I made and colorful heavily printed headscarves around my head with flowers and jewels. Dressed head to toe in African Print clothing that I’d also made. I looked like a Carmen Miranda CLOWN. When I first met Celia, she started calling me Tuttii Fruittii and then it caught on to everyone else. I felt reborn. It truly opened up a whole new world for me and I could finally realize my true inner self. A life wrapped in colour, a life without judging myself! The techinikolor hair sculptor just came recently through experience in my hairdressing career. Because of how I see hair and colour it came so naturally. I wouldn’t put myself into the hairdresser category, as I don’t see hair like most hairdressers. I see it as a canvas, sculpting the hair with color and structure. Of course face shapes do come into it but the hair will be sculpted to perfectly complement the face.
Being based in London, do you find inspiration in the city?
I definitely get inspiration from living on this planet and taking in all of its fresh and never ending juices. Especially tribes people living in the wild. I love how they express themselves using raw materials from the jungle and other surroundings. The rawness of it really inspires me; but they are only inspired by themselves, using purely their minds and imagination to interconnect with their family, friends and the jungle surrounding them. That’s how I see myself also. I create looks that come from my soul. That’s the same with our tribe in London, HAUS of SEQUANA. We are an all female urban tribe from, in & around the darkest corners of London, Brighton, Bristol and beyond. The members are an eclectic mix of artists, designers and performers, who – via hectic primal processions and invented ceremonies – endeavor to assault the boundaries of visual, aural and behavioural standards.
What is the Haus of Sequana?
With the H.O.S we were initially inspired by the vibrant costumes and activities of the tribes of Africa, Asia & South America. ‘Why on EARTH’, we asked ourselves, ‘don’t more people in England march around half naked, with their face painted and chanting on a regular basis? The ancient and enriching rituals are clearly a source of much joy and liberating community!’ They didn’t understand. Something HAD to change! So after many rampant orgies of imagination and joyous mashings of minds, our styles and habits were spawned. (hausofsequana@gmail.com)
What prompted you to open up the caravan salon?
I wanted to open a Trailer Hair salon because I loved the idea of stepping into a whole new experience. Something totally different to any other Salon you’ve ever been in. I wanted it to feel like a kaleidoscopic world of happiness. A place you can come and leave feeling like you’ve been on a magical journey; a place where Tuttii Fruittii has the vision for the hair that fits your personality. A hairstyle that changes the way you think. A hairstyle that leaves you feeling like a new person! Tuttii Fruittii London has the vision that fits everyone. It’s a salon for the people!
Punk is one of my favourite movements and I still love how strong it is today. But what I’m creating is new, fresh and now! Punk doesn’t sound right for Tuttii Fruittii. I know it’s a description that works because there are elements of punk in there. But I’m pushing to create original looks. There are no boundaries! And I’m sculpting the hair in a structured way that has many layers to it. I mix up a lot of colours and blend them together. That usually wouldn’t work in a salon.
I have a very interesting client base. They come into the salon with visions. Trans, queer, fem, punk, older generation, children, a total mix and artists etc. So the more creative the person is, the more creative the haircut will be. It’s lovely having customers come in with a vision. We bounce ideas around. Those are my favourite days. We always come up with something unique. It can really change people’s lives having a Transformation Hairstyle.
Do you usually have a look in mind for a person before they tell you what they want?
Clients can give me a small description and I’ll get exactly what they mean. No one leaves unhappy. It’s so important for me to know them and what works for them as a person.
Your entire look is a work of art. What designers do you gravitate towards?
A few of my favourite would have to be… Amandine Urruty and Vivienne Westwood. But House Of Malakai, Lady Gonzlez and Nixikillick are young and established designers totally creating something fresh and original! We are going to be working with them this year. House of Malakai, me and my duo, ‘CandyKONK’ & Toni Tits collaborated recently, mixing their new geometric colour block fetish/street wear range with our ‘JüNgòLä Klòwn’ style. We did a full body painted shoot where we created these Antiwar JüNgòLä Street Warriors.
Do you think that the success of your salon can be attributed to the counter culture community in the UK or do you think that more people outside of that realm are embracing this kind of fashion and art?
That is the great thing about what I’ve created here in Deptford. I’ve always wanted this Hair Salon to be all-inclusive and it is just that. I have the same amount of local families coming as I do underground artists. I see the Tuttii Fruittii Salon as a bridge between different worlds and that’s how I want it to stay. I’ve been building up great relationships for 6 years with my clients and love how it interconnects creatures from the UK. I don’t want it to be elitist in any way. It’s for the people. It’s also never been about fashion. That isn’t a realm I connect with at all. I’m more anti-fashion. Fashion has that intrinsic elitist quality that I really hate and never want to be associated to.
Where do you see yourself and the salon heading in the future?
Our future is starting now. We have recently launched a crowd funder to help open a magical new space which will offer hair extensions, makeup, a Fruittii Photo Booth, head & hand massages, Events, Art exhibitions for local and nonlocal creatives. We need to find a solution urgently as we will soon be evicted from our current premises. We’ve seen a lot of queer spaces struggle and eventually close in the last 7 years in our beloved but harsh London. The LGBTQI community and their beautiful allies are hugely lacking in spaces offering all-inclusive non-normative creative & innovative hairstyles for gender non-conforming people at an AFFORDABLE PRICE. So this project, more than ever needs to see the light! This is a crucial time and we are reaching out to get as much support as possible to achieve our target of £20,000. It needs lots of work, as it’s totally derelict. You can find out all about this here.
Finally, if you were to have one Mariah Carey song playing in the caravan, which one would it be?
‘Dreamlover (Mariah Carey Def Club remix)’ A lot of history behind this tune! My Mum and Dad first played this version to me and my sis when we was kids! Dancing round our living room. It’s a big tune! Mariah has been a part of our lives growing up. Definitely an artist that knows how to produce real music! Her sounds will live on forever and always be just as bangin!! Mega B A B E! Respect!
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