A Cut Above

Introduce yourself!
My name is Miha, and I’m from Malaysia. I’ve been a hairstylist for 17 years, coming on 18.

Why did you decide to go into hairstyling?
When I was in primary school, I used to play with my one and only Barbie doll a lot, styling its hair in different styles and over time, my interest grew. After I finished school, I decided to learn the ropes from the salon that I used to go to, and that’s how I got here.

I was already a hairstylist in Malaysia, but I decided to move to Singapore to learn about the different hairstyling techniques here.

In Singapore, there are hairstylists of many different nationalities—Japanese, Korean, Singaporean—and all of them have different styles in the way that they cut hair. I find that very interesting!

What’s the craziest hairstyling request you’ve received?
There was one customer who couldn’t decide what colour she wanted, so she chose to dye her hair in a rainbow—literally a bit of every colour that she wanted! Thankfully she ended up liking it.

Tell us about your hometown in Malaysia. Do you go back often?
I’m from Sarawak, so I’d have to cross the ocean every time I go back for a visit. Despite that,  I still go quite often, not like every week, but every few months.

One thing to know about Sarawak is that there are actually many cities within it, and they all have different kinds of food, but people are mostly familiar with kolo mee.

Back home, have three types: a black soy sauce version, a white version, and my favourite, a char siew sauce version, which is both sweet and salty. These are the three things you have to try In Sarawak. If you can’t make it there, then the best, most authentic one you can get in Singapore is in Bedok or Waterloo.

Speaking of travelling, are you planning to go on a vacation anytime soon?
I actually just came back from Bangkok, so not right now.

The last time I was there, I witnessed the Butterbear craze. It’s the mascot of a popular cookie shop, and people will start queueing at 2AM just to see the bear in person. In fact, the bear has more than 10 security guards!

These days, I think people have to buy tickets online to see Butterbear for crowd control. I’ve never queued myself though, I’m happy just seeing it from afar.

If you weren’t a hairstylist, what do you think you’d be doing?
I’d definitely be crocheting, maybe with m y own shop selling my creations. It’s something that I do in my free time, making small things such as keychains. I can’t make clothes though. If I do, I think I’ll end up with only one sleeve (laughs).