One of the Miami Valley’s best kept secrets is Alexandria Di Nofa, aka Peechee Does It. She’s one of Dayton’s premier hair braiders and locticians, as well as being one of the more popular Millennials in the region. I recently spoke with her about her craft, her origins, and her life.
Tell us all about you.
Hello, I am Alexandrea a.k.a. Peechee does it. I am 33 years old and originally from California. I was raised in Columbus, Ohio for 15 years and then been in Dayton since.
What is your company and what is it that you do?
My company is Peechee Does It ltd. I am a Loctician and braider, with my own brick and mortar salon on Xenia Avenue. I have been in business for a total of six years with being at the shop for almost a year and a half. I also recently just got certified to do make up services as well.
How did you start your company?
I started my company as just a hired hand doing rides and cleaning houses residentially. I switched and started doing treats and birthday cakes for a little while, and then during Covid I started doing hair. And thank you to our stimulus check! I was able to fully invest into myself and take the risk to go out on my own and start earning income full-time.
How did you get into your field?
I am 100% self taught. I got licensed with a braiding registration in 2020. I have utilized my social media tools such as YouTube, Facebook videos, TikTok, you name it. I just absorbed everything that I could possibly get my hands on that might send me in a more positive direction with doing hair. Now, I’m currently taking class with Chris McDread and Val_tuffcuts which are some of the most popular lock influencers in social media, to hone in on some of my other skills. As I have grown, I do things like reattachment and extensions and also do wicks along with a multitude of other skills other than just re-twisting.
Optically, you are a White woman who usually does Black hair. Is this an organic/natural choice? Have you gotten any pushback from people who know that you have clientele of color?
For me it was a natural choice. I’ve always loved to do hair. I’ve always been the one to play in my friend’s hair at sleepovers or be in the bathroom with my grandma or my mom while they get ready for the day and watch them go through their beauty routine. I kind of felt like I always was going to end up behind a beauty chair. I never imagined doing African American hair. Never been one to discriminate. I’ve always dated in the Black community and I have a mixed child, so some of my knowledge came out of necessity when needing to do his hair. Locs happened to become a passion of mine on accident. A friend asked me to do the re-twist one day and I agreed and it was good, and they told people about me. So, by word-of-mouth I just kind of blew up off of that. When I first started, I was working out of my home and I had such a negative reaction from my neighbors, they called the police because of the traffic in and out of my house. I have received pushback when trying to ‘sell myself’, like “What do you know about doing some locks?” I show them my pictures of my work and the conversation changes. Lol! I’ve even had people go as far as create fake bookings on my website to take up my time and appointments. I still push on. The only way I’m stopping is if I choose to stop myself.
For anyone interested in getting into your field, what advice would you give them?
In this day and age, we are a social media overwhelmed society, but it’s a great tool. Go find somebody on social media that you identify with, or you like their work. Follow them, study them, watch them, and ask questions to anybody that you possibly can. Absorb as much information as you possibly can. Take all the classes you can if you feel you need it. There’s something to take away from every single one of them. Braids aren’t something that they teach in cosmetology school so in this particular case you’ll need your village.
. For anyone who’s interested in your services, how can they do so?
I have a website: https://peechee-does-it.square.site
It contains my full availability and a menu with prices of all of my services on it. I also have a phone number. People can use it to either text or call me to inquire about booking, 937-315-0442.
