Puddon Sweet eyes international markets and entertainers

In music, especially local dancehall culture, stylists are known to define a star's image from head to toe.

"There are certain things that an audience sees before they hear the artistes' voices," celebrity stylist Lakayda 'Puddon Sweet' Brown says. "Stylists are very important to the entertainment industry because we put a distinctive look to the person."

Puddon Sweet works with her clients, like Lisa Hyper, Loud Boss and Spice, to put together a look that reflects an in-your-face and fun approach; that includes her signature wigs.

She said, "One thing I know for sure is we bring it to the table when preparing the wigs."

The stylist says she grew up watching her mother style hair and was intrigued to take on a similar challenge. She attended the Dornid's School of Beauty Culture for basic training and sanitisation courses and acquired additional training overseas.

"I believe it naturally runs through my blood. Most of what I know, I never learned in a formal school setting. I also captured the Canadian market from a young age," she shared.

Eleven years later, the stylist has a team of beauticians, hosts wig-making workshops, and has established her own salon space called Puddon Plus Sweet, that also has a clothing store. She said the store "is there to keep individuals occupied while waiting. Based on the clientele, the wait is usually a long one, but the team is growing, and it is helping with cutting down the wait period."

One of the more popular requests is for the lace wig that can be drawn on easily or installed without having to be secured to the head with glue.

"Nobody can try and steal your wig because they are customised to the size of the head. The basic making technique is in the elastic band, which, unlike other wigs, is never visible in ours. It's made up of perfect stitches," the stylist told THE STAR.

Puddon Plus Sweet should be setting up shop in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Bronx, New York, for the summer season.

Puddon Sweet has also collaborated with the 'Queen of Dancehall' to launch the Faces and Laces beauty line.

"This new brand has been quite an eye-opener to the world. The team was also invited to Toronto, Canada, to do a demonstration of our technique, so we will be heading there in August for a two-day pop-up workshop," she said.

Other than her trademark blue hair, Spice sports many neon colours, and Puddon Sweet says she's always experimenting with new things.

For the summer alone, she will have a neon wig collection in various cuts.

She explained, "It's summer already, and right as the month of June chipped in, we find females that are not necessarily entertainers but inspired by someone in the public eye have come in to cut and style - the heat is turned all the way up - and for neon boy-cut or pixie-cut styles in wigs."