This story will curl your hair

Intensely curly hair is not a curse and can be styled, made beautiful and doesn’t have to be painful, says Ilona Reece.

The Winnipeg hair stylist’s passion for educating and helping those with curly hair challenges led Reece into taking specialized training in Toronto.

She then developed her own natural hair care product line and is spreading the word, which she hopes could lead to far-reaching mediums like daytime talkshow Oprah Winfrey.

“That would be a dream. And not because I could sell lots of product, that would be great, but my main reason is because I want to share my passion and make people aware...I want people to love their curls,” said Reece.

Reece is well on her way to reaching that dream.

The mother of two created her own company, Taria Curlz, when she became a mother and suddenly was dealing with tight curls in more than just her job.

“I really want to instill positive messages, especially to kids. I want to make hair care fun for kids because (hair care and styling) can be very painful for people with tight curls,” said the multi-ethnic hair expert, explaining that curly hair needs intense and constant moisturizing.

“When I started off it was geared more towards kids. Now it’s geared for everyone. There’s few stylists out there that know about (curly hair). My products are for any age, race, or gender.”

Reece, who works at Ambiance Hair Studio on Carlton, started off by making a Taria Curlz step-by-step informational video about the basics of hair care for curly hair.

Then came the locally-made, natural hair care products which is starting to sell overseas.

“I have more plans to expand and grow my company,” said Reece.

Along with the video, Reece educates her clients with simple tips like sleeping on a satin pillowcase to help with friz management and moisturizing given the harsh Manitoba climate.

It is her passion, knowledge and attention to detail that has kept Caroline De Silva coming to Reece even after De Silva moved to Alberta in 1999.

“I have very curly dark brown hair. Prior to Ilona I was wearing braids because they are low maintenance and I thought that was the way to go. Prior to the braids, I was going to a salon once a week to have my hair looked after,” said De Silva, adding she was lucky to have that option.

“Ilona explains hair care and doesn’t make you feel embarrassed or ignorant.”

De Silva says she recommends Reece to parents with bi-racial children who are working to understand their kids’ hair and loves to get compliments on her hair while travelling for work.

“Especially when I travel and get compliments on my hair I say ‘oh she’s in Winnipeg, that’s Manitoba, Canada by the way,’” says De Silva with a laugh.

Michelle Perrett calls Reece a godsend.

Perrett was referred to Reece when she was talking to a friend that the specialized products she was buying to try to manage her daughter’s hair was giving both mom and daughter bad skin reactions.

“How do you tell your kid not to hug you?” said Perrett.

“Ilona is the best thing that ever happened to us. Nobody cries anymore (over doing hair). It comes down to Ilona educated me. Now when we go out, we have other parents stop and ask how we got my daughter’s hair so nice. So we pass on Ilona’s info, it’s good karma.”

Reece’s website is www.tariacurlz.com.