Copyright bbc
Annabelle Sonmez, 26, has been travelling from London to get her hair done by Natalie for the past three years. Like Roisin and Natalie, Annabelle was born deaf and learned BSL from a young age. "I feel my deaf identity is included at my hair appointments. I can express what I'd like and can talk about my deaf identity, I can talk about my job, my life, everything," she said. In the past Annabelle - who had never met a deaf hairdresser before Natalie - said she never really got what she wanted when she went to the hairdressers. She said: "BSL is very important to me, that's the way I communicate. "Natalie's deaf, I'm deaf - so we can explore ideas together [using sign language], I can try different hairstyles, she can educate me on how to improve the health of my hair. "It's really important because if I go to a hearing hairdresser, we can't communicate. "And sometimes I'm not happy with my hair because of the lack of communication." Annabelle added as well as allowing her to be independent, Natalie was also an "inspiration" to her and the younger deaf community. Jayeesha Parmar, a registered BSL interpreter, said having a hairdresser who could communicate using BSL "must make a huge difference" to deaf clients. She said: "Usually, when deaf people to go a hearing person for a service, it can be very tense and uncomfortable. "It's nice for deaf people to be able to go to a salon and feel comfortable and confident."
