Hairy Arms and Unibrows

"Hairy Arms and Unibrows" is a coming of age story of Aida Radfar, the mastermind behind The Thread Bar, Los Angeles's successful eyebrow studio. Growing up was beyond difficult for Aida, for many reasons. She spent most of her childhood resembling a boy because her mother had a clever idea of giving her a boy's haircut to avoid the agony of combing through her unruly hair. In addition, growing up with the hairiest arms in school and having a unibrow didn't help either. She was taunted and physically bullied by her classmates, overcoming the odds for being now secure with her hairiness, and using it as weapon to contribute to her success. Being who she is today, came with a price. She had a few brushes with bankruptcy thanks to her lightening speed hair growth, but throughout the years, she researched economic and efficient ways of keeping her hair on the down low. Being hairy is a huge part of her life and instead of writing a thesis on it, she decided to share her heroic and inspiring story-wax, tweezers, razors, thread and all.
About the Author: Aida Radfar is one of the world's most profound experts in eyebrow shaping. She singlehandedly changed the eyebrow industry, by making threading not only a trend, but permanently shifted people away from waxing. She was one of the first threading only concept salons worldwide. Her hands and eye for beauty are sought after by celebrities and the everyday person. Aida was born and raised in Chicago to Iranian parents. She is the youngest of three children. During most of her youth, she was heavily bullied. She was proclaimed the ugliest and hairiest girl by most of her peers. As she looked in the mirror perplexed that yes, maybe she didn't resemble the features of her classmates, but she was still far from being ugly. Even if she was ugly, the bullying and ostracizing shouldn't have been acceptable. She graduated from Loyola University School of Business. She later opened The Thread Bar in sunny Los Angeles. She decided to use her hands to help people feel less alone and less bankrupt in their battle against hair by adhering to a below normal price point while giving the best service. Her heart and passion is felt through her shop that has cultivated a huge fan base. Now Aida is a powerhouse in the threading world. Her craft is sought after worldwide. A year after Aida opened her shop her client, Veena Hampapur, approached her to make a documentary called "Thread". The film examines the life of Aida and how she connects to people in her shop. Growing up as an ethnic minority in the Midwest, Aida's experiences shed light on conceptions of beauty and belonging in the United States. Thread was praised for hitting an emotional yet taboo topic. The short documentary made its debut at the Director's Guild of America in 2011. The Smithsonian featured it in one of their exhibits called 'I Want the Wide American Earth'. Later it was showcased at the Japanese American National Museum. Aida started writing a memoir, "Hairy Arms & Unibrows" because through her shop and Veena she realized she wasn't alone in her battle and decided to share her story. Her book sheds light on being a victim of bullying, but she found the strength to overcome it. Of course, being hairy is the underlying theme in her hilarious and touching book. Aida will definitely make you laugh, she might make you shed a tear or two, but you will enjoy her story. Her candidness, her humor and her provocative attitude makes this an inspiring and fun read.