Interview with Rella, owner of Rella's Eden

Rella's Eden find out if you have curly hair and if you like natural treatments, mix oils, herbs and henna.

The first time you go there is like jumping into an oasis in the desert, a mixture of Africa in the garden, the Milanese one of the Isola neighborhood, not so much among the oleanders, as between the unmistakable scent and texture of baobab oil, of the seeds of the persistent and precious moringa oleifera and among the inevitable jars of colored or curative powders: henna, curcuma, amla and much more.

The fingers move quickly between the red blender, the scissors and the brushes, becoming soft for massages to the hands, skin and face, and smiles are certainly not spared.

And importantly, you will have understood, first of all hair is cured, then we think of aesthetics, and we end up with curls that literally fly!

A touch of bubbles at aperitif time - yes, because collaborations with the nearby bar could not be missing - and the game, or rather the "beauty night" is done!

There are many questions, but let's leave it to those who manage it with passion, Rella, to tell us the rest.

Rella, you have already been asked by so many, but how and when did the "crazy idea" to challenge the mainstream in terms of hair and throw you in search of something more come to you?

Let's start from what I like, from my curiosity to discover and learn about new worlds: having chosen a job that I like stimulates me even more, then my way of living in private life has started everything.

In 2006 I attended an Ayurveda school to learn more about the benefits of massage and the Ayurvedic lifestyle ; besides the massage, I was fascinated by the ayurvedic herbs for the body and hair, I tried to bring to my clients the treatments I learned at school and beyond the excellent results I liked very much the idea of caring for nature .

From there the research in various countries like Morocco, India, Senegal, Zanzibar, Egypt, Madagascar to learn about the cultures of female beauty of each place, from the return of each trip I created a new herbal product.

In 2011 my hair coloring line was born , face masks, natural oils with herbal bases and completely natural, " Hair Kitchen " in fact.

Can Rella's Eden be defined as an ecological salon? Why?

Ecological Rella's Eden? Yes, we wanted to create an ecological and welcoming environment for all the ethnic groups in the world, starting with our furniture .

The project was born from a reflection on the subject of recovery, used in the construction of furniture and objects, where each piece is full of stories and memory, even of my personal life; so, together with our carpenter friend Massimo Turati, who creates the tree houses, we chose recycled material such as wood, iron and copper .

Ecological also for our services, such as our hair colors, face and hair masks, the treatment of skin and lengths, 100% natural "Hair Kitchen".

Ecological for the choice of using organic products like John Masters Organics, products not tested on animals, without environmental impact; we try to communicate to our customers our philosophy, the why how to choose an organic product instead of another.

How can you find such raw material, it's easy to find? What is your absolute favorite product?

To offer a good service while respecting nature, the raw material is fundamental.

Today in 2018 it is easy to hear about herbs, but it is not easy to find their stories; unfortunately, due to the companies' fault, the demand for a clean and pure product is no longer at the center of attention, so I am forced to personally select the spices directly in their place of origin, going to touch what I use.

Every spice chosen by me is already my favorite : sandalwood enchants with its perfume, henna with its coloring and restructuring power, indigo with its fascinating workmanship that gives it a color called "Berber blue" and finally the karkadé flower, which represents female beauty in India.

You specialize and love treating curly hair, don't you? But what about straight hair?

The philosophy of the store supports the care of all hair types "curly, smooth, wavy, dread, afro" .

In particular I love the Afro world, with the hedgehog we have many more requests because, with 20 years of experience, I have learned to treat them to the best, but without taking anything away from the smooth.

Then the Velaterapia treatment for hair care is born, in which a cleaning is done over the entire length of the hair of the split ends with a candle and a Hair Kitchen treatment.

What was (if any) the almost impossible to solve curly case that gave you the most satisfaction?

Surely the most challenging curls appear when girls with African hair adopted by Italian parents enter the store. Unfortunately, having no knowledge on the Afro hedgehog, they cannot treat them and often come up with disastrous situations in the head.

In any other shop everything would be cut, while we very calmly get to comb hedgehog for curls working sometimes for whole hours. So their smiles coming out of the store with a nice hedgehog are certainly the most satisfying and rewarding.

Do you ever think of spreading your knowledge elsewhere or taking natural courses for hairdressers?

I already run training courses for my colleagues, and on March 8th 2017 I started my association "Hair Kitchen 4 Women" ; is born thanks to the generosity of women in the world who have shared with me a piece of their culture, to help other women in Africa, India, to make them independent in every part of the world.

The ultimate goal is to open a professional hairdressing school and train those who want to learn this world and make a cultural exchange involving various colleagues.

What is the latest news to tell us about the new research, projects or treatments you have in mind?

The latest research is in Senegal where we have the project to open the vocational school ; in November I will return to start creating the work for the women of the village, starting with the opening of a laboratory to work the herbs and extract the oils with the village harvest.

The last born are: " Summer Oil " (a mix of baobab, argan, sesame, rose) and " Hair Loss Treatment ".