Taiba Akhuetie is the visionary crafting clothes out of hair

Growing up in a Nigerian household in South-West London, Taiba Akhuetie’s mother would take her and her younger sisters to an aunt’s house to get their hair done. While her siblings were restlessly eager to see the results after sitting still for hours, Taiba was drawn to the intricacy and versatility of the hairdos created by her aunts.

“I’d watch their techniques and pick things up in my head,” she says, already wondering how she might follow suit. Years later it’s no shade on Taiba’s relatives to say that the east London creative is more than ​“just” a hairstylist. A follicular connoisseur, Taiba’s mind-bending expertise makes her a creator of tromp l’oeil garments and a crafter of wearable art.

Ten years ago she launched her custom braid bar and service named Keash London. ​“I saw some sort of gap in the market for making creative braids and hair in general,” she remembers. Taiba carved a niche for herself and her storytelling on the scalps of Black clientele, refreshing the centuries-old practice with vigour.

Unsurprisingly, no two works of Taiba’s are the same, with the designer moving into what we might call fixtures and fittings: now you can purchase an umbrella with wefts of hair affixed, a braided mirror or a dress with silky tresses. These creations are the results of a lockdown pivot, when she was forced to rethink the best way to flex her creative muscles – as well as monetise her livelihood.

Confined to the indoors, items in her home became the cornerstone of her work. ​“Mirrors were one of the first key things that I honed in on. I thought, I could do some crazy things here.” Taiba’s limitless line of thinking ensured that she spawned sell-out pieces which, in turn, gave her the confidence to branch out and begin customising everyday mundane objects from vintage stools to cowboy boots – all of which were a part of her first solo exhibition in 2021, titled We Need More Black In Hair.

Since then, Taiba’s avant-garde designs have had the likes of Cate Blanchett and Tems beguiled. This year, the hair whisperer’s visionary concepts reached a pinnacle at Fiorucci’s SS25 collection in September: lustrous bundles of feather-light blonde hair were transformed into head-turning skirts and tops that breezed down the Milan catwalk.

Today, Taiba’s nonconformist art is stored in her Hackney studio, which she gave us a tour of. Hopping about the space, clad in full Miu Miu, the artist is ready for her next chapter: a full-scale catwalk-meets-exhibition, pending 2025. ​“I’m looking at a runway element this time around. I want people to see the movement in the hair pieces,” she says, surrounded by a large wall of hair and piles of braided garments of varying sizes.

It’s a hairy job, but someone’s got to do it, and Taiba’s more than proved she’s equipped to handle it.

Hey, Taiba! You initially studied art and film before switching to hair styling. What pushed you to make that change?

Art was my main focus in school and [it was] the thing that I was good at. After uni, I had a job being a quality control operator at a production company and I also shadowed a fashion stylist. I didn’t love it and then I saw more people getting increasingly experimental braids, and I knew I could do interesting hair too. That’s how Keash London started.

You’ve done everything from creating Gucci hair tattoos in people’s hair to making musicians’ hair look like the sun. Where do you get inspiration from?

I make spur-of-the-moment decisions. I’ll start doing something to see how far I can go [with the hair]. I don’t look directly at hair for inspiration. Cool shapes and things I see every day inspire me, using items that aren’t typically used when working with hair is how I’ve defined my narrative when creating hairstyles.

What were the first items you created using hair? Did it get quite hairy (soz)?

Mirrors were one of the first key things that I honed in on because they’re everywhere! I also covered some old Air Force 1 trainers in hair and it took ages because of the intricacy of the braids.

You covered an umbrella and shoes with silky straight bundles and the internet went mad for it. Tell me more about that shoot.

The images were shot by Bafic [a British director] who I’ve wanted to work with for ages. At first, it was meant to be all about a bag covered in hair. Then, I was about to leave the house, and I was looking around for an umbrella because it was raining, and I thought the shape was cool. The rest is history!

Did you expect it to go viral?

I did to an extent but not this much. I was expecting people to be wowed because I was wowed myself, but I’ve been getting so much love. It’s continuing to go viral now. I’ve had so many views on TikTok – it has over 100,000 views.

The SS25 Fiorrucci show featured some of your hair pieces on the catwalk. How did you connect with the team?

Nell Kalonji [a stylist] consulted and styled the Fiorrucci show this year. The Fiorucci team told her that they wanted to incorporate hair and Nell told them all about my work and the next thing I know, they got in touch.

The pieces were a mixture of their references and mine. For instance, the hair top was supposed to have blunt ends but it ended up having a more flowy finish.

Where do you purchase the hair that you use?

Mainly from Pak Cosmetics. They know me well! I use human and synthetic hair. Also, if I’ve got a shoot and I’ve used a bunch of hair, I never waste everything. I’ll cut excess hair off of a model’s head, take it back home, and repurpose it.

Tems wore one of your designs to the Met Gala after-party this year. How did that happen?

Tems’ stylist told me that she loved the Bundles of Paradise collection that I did last year. I had full creative freedom to make some pieces for her-that was a real ​‘whoa’ moment.

Cate Blanchett also got wind of your designs, right?

I had no clue that she was gonna wear [one of] my dresses! I woke up to loads of tags and notifications. Cate’s so inspirational so that was nice to see.

What’s next for you?

My plans for my 2025 exhibition include some large-scale sculptures. I want it to be quite immersive and [I want] wind blowing so you can see the movement in the hair. It’ll be all about wearable art and sculptures together in one space. The next thing I’m making is a pannier skirt made of hair; I want people to see what I can do with all the different types of hair.