For most of her life, straight-haired Ilona Reece never thought twice about curly hair. Her goal was to become a police officer.
But when her daughter Tanisha was born 15 years ago, all of that changed.
Reece, who now has two curly daughters, has become a curl expert. The professional stylist has gained a reputation throughout Canada for her expertise in working with all curl textures, with some clients traveling from as far away as Kentucky.
Earlier this year, she launched her Taria Curlz instructional video for curly kids. She just introduced a line of five products specifically for kids with curly, kinky hair.
Like many hairdressers, Reece came by her knowledge on her own. The beauty school didn’t address the needs of textured hair.
‘I was always asking why we weren’t learning about curly hair and they would say ‘We don’t have a market for it,” Reece says. ‘As hairdressers, we should all be learning about it.’She recalls working at a salon after graduating from beauty school and watching in horror as a black woman was turned away because the receptionist said the salon didn’t work on hair like hers.
‘My heart dropped,’ Reece recalls. ‘I thought ‘How would my daughter feel if somebody said that to her?’ On the spot, I decided I would learn how to work with curly hair myself.’To help with her training, Reece has traveled to Toronto to take classes because they incorporate curly hair into their curriculum. She also has worked in a multicultural salon to learn how to work with all different types of curly and kinky hair.
‘Curly hair comes in so many forms, textures and thicknesses,’ she says. ‘The key is to understand each individual curl pattern and texture and what should be done with it.’Reece says 75 percent of her clientele now are black or biracial. Although most of her clients are adults, curly children are a special interest of hers.
‘Because of my daughters, I’ve always had a passion for children with curly hair,’ she says. ‘Over the years, I’ve come to realize that so many parents of children with curly hair have struggled to learn how to deal with their hair.’Reece says the principal of her daughter’s school told her a child’s self confidence and self esteem have a big influence on their academic achievements.
Reece has learned a lot from her own daughters about proper haircare. Tanisha has spirally curls, while Aria has kinkier hair. They were the inspiration for her video, which provides steps for how to wash, condition, comb (painlessly”> and style all types of curls. It even provides guidance on how to get them to sit still while they’re getting their hair done.
‘The whole point of the video is to make hair time a fun time rather than a struggle,’ Reece says.
Based on the success of her video, she she wants to come out with another video on advanced styling techniques.
She is also excited about the recent launch of her haircare line: Banana Cream Dream Shampoo, Creamy Chocolate Chip Conditioner, Juicy Melon Berry Curl Quencher Spray, Moisturizing Mango Butter Cream for Curlz and Curlz in Control Coconut Frizz Smoothie. It will be available later this month in CurlMart.
‘My main goal is to help parents teach their children how to work with their hair, and to let the children know how beautiful their hair is’ Reece says. ‘It shouldn’t be viewed as a problem.’
