We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Meghan Gottschalk a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Meghan, thanks for joining us today. Can you recount a story of an unexpected problem you’ve faced along the way?

When I started working with wigs I had no idea that is was going to turn into a career or a business for me. I originally attended DePaul University in Chicago as a Costume design major just knowing that I had a passion for creating wearable art. At the time there were very few hair and makeup programs out there and even less that were financially viable for me, and while DePaul didn’t have their hair and makeup program established until the year I graduated they had a beautiful wig and makeup room and many classes on the subject. From my first makeup class at that school I knew that I wanted to work in the shop and I was hired on in my second year. In this position I worked as a class assistant and eventually a shop supervisor. I learned how to style, ventilate individual hairs, create wigs and facial hair pieces from scratch, and run wigs for shows. I loved the energy in the wig room, actors were always passing through for makeup consultations, students were working on different creative projects, we would hold makeup competitions and even have local drag queens come and do makeup demos for our students. It was a fabulous opportunity and with the busy course load and performance schedules I was working, it was great to have a work-study program that could integrate with that. But all that changed in March of 2020 when within twenty four hours work stopped, fittings were cancelled, and shows came screeching to a halt. We had to grab what we could of our current projects and go home. The school was shut down and people had to move out of the dorms. There was nothing left to build for in the shops. no work to be done. A lot of us were being faced with what entering into a world without in-person theatre was going to mean for us and our Theatre Degrees. I was particularly disappointed at the cancellation of our production of Marie Antionette with its extravagant wigs and headpieces, all that planning had been for nothing. I had been so hoping to learn about that era of styling and how to make wig cages. Eventually I decided that even if our shows were cancelled I was going to make wigs anyway. I was allotted a small stipend for materials for my thesis project which I had decided would be to bring these wigs to life even taller and more grand than originally designed. And that is what I did, I set up meetings with various artists and professionals in the field, who conveniently suddenly had a lot of time on their hands as well. I set up a small area in the back of our two bedroom apartment and created a rudimentary wig studio. These were the conditions that birthed my first cage wig collection, and my favorite piece to date the three foot tall pink cage wig. Armed with the knowledge that I had gathered through this process I decided that I wasn’t ready to stop there, and without any other safe way to go back to work I started to style and sell wigs online, creating a business by the name of Witchy Woman Wigs. A venture that has been my constant support and companion to this day.

Meghan, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My business started as this pandemic pet project and grew into one of the greatest gifts and challenges of my life. Moving home from Chicago with a degree in a stalled industry was heartbreaking and being cut off from physical creative spaces was so difficult. I draw much of my inspiration from Drag shows, theatre and burlesque performance. I also am an avid enjoyer of horror and all things spooky and campy. Starting this business gave me a vital lifeline of connection to all the beautiful creatives in the world that inspire me so much. I style wigs for really any occasion be it a halloween costume, cosplay, drag, or something for a music video, and I have shipped wigs all over the country and even overseas. My favorite thing is when I can drop off a wig for a client in my city because I get to see the excitement of their faces and discuss in person how to care for their piece. These days with theatre up and running again I am once again working in the industry but I have carried this business with me across state lines again and set up my studio again and again as I have moved to chase my career. This business has existed in bedrooms and basements and has not always looked pretty, but through all of that it has not stopped me from growing my following and connecting with people. My styling time is more limited than it used to be, but in the breaks between projects I love to take on new commissions to push the boundaries of my styling techniques. I offer pre-styled wigs and mustaches, as well as custom creations and cage wigs. I love when someone messages me with an inquiry that is weird and sculptural, outside the box, or incorporates unconventional material. If you have an idea for a wig that is shaped like hands or has some wild reveal element odds are I want to hear about it!

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I think the biggest thought pattern I had to break when I started styling for my own business was to stop saying that I had to wait until I was “ready”to do things. There is no “ready” when it comes to starting a creative venture like this, you just have to do the best you can with the tools at your disposal and not be afraid to network. There were a lot of times that I felt like the product I had wasn’t up to par with the vision that I had in my head or that my social media wasn’t polished enough. I am not a professional photographer nor do I have a background in social media management. I don’t have a fancy camera set up and my backdrops were very makeshift in the beginning. I was just a theatre student styling wigs in my college apartment, storing supplies in my bedroom closet and walking packages to the post office in my grocery cart. I felt hesitant to exhibit my work in professional spaces, reach out to certain clientele, or promote myself as a business to the people that I met. This is still something that I actively fight against in my life now. There is a certain level of imposter syndrome that comes with running a bussiness that is still growing and finding it’s identity. Over the years, the look of my styles and how I present them has changed. My methods of advertising have differed. You aren’t going to come right out the gate and immediately know what your venture’s unique fingerprint is going to be. It takes trial and error to get there.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I think the most rewarding part of working as an artist and creative is connecting to other artists and doing collaborations. I particularly feel at home working in the drag scene. When I was in Los Angeles I was part of a group of friends that formed a small drag house in WeHo. All of them incredibly talented artists in their own right who together possessed a range of skills from sewing, to rhinestoning, to sound mixing and of course performing. We all got to pool our resources, share costumes, advice, and wigs. I would style wigs for some of their performances and help them with quick changes in the back of the venue. Sometimes there are nights when the crowd isn’t right or your friends get cut from the competition before their big reveal, but there is something special about getting to take part in the art of the people you care about and to see that the art going up on stage takes a community to build. My favorite drag events to attend were the ones by the artists for the artists. These shows often had the energy of a house party and were mostly for drag performers, vendors, and their friends. These were always the best shows because they showcased art that didn’t need to prove itself. It didn’t have to be for anybody except the performer and their friends. There were performances that were confusing, funny, beautiful or messy, but above all they were unapologetic and so much of the work that I do today, I try to do with that spirit in mind.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @witchywomanwigs
• Other: Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/WitchyWomanWigs

Image Credits

(For my headshot)
Photo Credit: Don Q Hannah

(For the two modeled cage wig photos)
Photo Credit: Mel Foley
Model Credit: Georgia Berg