-2.jpg) |
 
"DeNight" Master Weave, Braid & Locktition Artist EDUCATOR I was born in Clovis, New Mexico as Sheila Denise (Denisa) Triplett; however, I'm now known as "DeNight" which means ‘to achieve with no limitations’. As a child, I lived in Rapid City, South Dakota and Enid, Oklahoma, but spent most of my childhood years in Seattle, Washington where I lived in the Central communities, and in the downtown areas near China Town where I first braided hair as a hobby. As an adult, I moved to Bellevue, Washington where I lived for ten years braiding and weaving hair for friends and relatives. As a young child, my mother and I would go to the Asian wig shops to purchase my mothers wigs, and while there, I would sit and watch the African American women braid and weave their client’s hair. After years of carefully watching their techniques and styles, I soon added to the knowledge learned from my mother, who only knew one basic plait. She taught me the method of that one basic plait, braided down to the last three strands of hair. But this is the only braid my mother taught me; therefore, I learned everything else on my own and from other licensed professionals and braid artists. While playing with dolls as a youngster of five to seven, I had to braid their hair because curling irons would burn the hair off. By the time I was twelve, an adult cousin noticed my talent. Before I knew it, I was popular for my cornrows; however, I did not know how to market my talents. I didn't make much money for braiding as a job, so I worked at McDonalds and many other restaurants for many years. Finally, I took a job in Alaska as a seafood processor working in canneries along the Alaska Panhandle, up to the Kenai Peninsula where I met John Denver, and out the Aleutian Chain. I also sailed in the Bearing Sea on two ships. While in Alaska, I braided hair. It would take up to two weeks to get hair overnight service. Up to that point I was not really encouraged to be an entrepreneur. While in Alaska, after people had found out about my hobby of braiding and weaving, I was shocked that most or they were interested and most of them were Caucasian. After working for that seafood processing plant seasonally three years, they wondered why I had not gone to beauty school, and why I was not self-employed. I started to wonder also. Due to the climate of the Northwest; hair braiding was common and popular even in the 70's. Stevie Wonder and Cicely Tyson influenced our styles; Bo Derrick wasn't the first to bring braiding to Hollywood. However, many celebrities of all nationalities have and do were hair extensions, even today. In the 80's, I collected many braid pictures from Braid and Beauty Magazines; all of these braid artist were African American. Carolyn Battles, from the East Coast is still someone I would like to meet today. I met one of the photographers for Cornrows and Company; he gave me personal pictures that he took for them. I will never forget that experience. Kamet Kinks is still setting trends in the braiding business today. Before I received my cosmetology license, I worked at an Asian nail shop braiding hair; however, not having a license at the time did not keep me from working in the advanced salons in the posh communities where I styled hair for many local celebrities and there families. Show girls did travel in from Los Vegas, British Columbia, and Portland just to get hair extensions. |
