Tabreshia Bloodworth is returning to Gainesville to share her knowledge on healthy hair care with the community she grew up in.
After moving to Orlando for greater client opportunities, her homecoming will feature a $250 class on Aug. 1. She also plans to launch a website where she’ll post online courses.
Bloodworth, 31, owns Healthy Hair Tresses, a small business selling healthy hair products like oils, edge tamers and defrizzers. She also developed her own silk press system, which uses six products to maintain healthy and shiny hair after receiving a silk press, a process that straightens hair with a flat iron.
She plans to teach a class at the salon she works at in Gainesville, Hairport Salon and Barber Suites located at 4110 SW 34th St. The salon fosters a nice atmosphere with an open floor to teach up to five people, Bloodworth said.
The class will teach students of all ages how to do their hair in a safe way using products and techniques that Bloodworth has created over time.
“I know that a lot of people don’t actually do natural hair and are not really focused on healthy hair,” Bloodworth said. “Maybe if I can teach what I know, maybe people would want to do it.”
She believes the class could be a great opportunity for people to pick up new skills, like hair product and tool knowledge.
Healthy hair has always been important to Bloodworth as she used to wear her hair in wraps to maintain it. After working as a certified nurse’s assistant for five years, she said she decided to follow her true passion and studied hairdressing.
At school, she learned skills like cutting hair and how to use chemicals for coloring in a healthy way. After graduating, she gained inspiration from the owners of Si Salon located at 5010 W Newberry Road who specialized in making products to turn naturally curly hair silky straight. She worked with them for two years before working on her own.
“I was able to learn how to give the hair a healthy look and what products to use especially for our culture,” Bloodworth said.
She decided to move to Orlando in September to open a bigger salon and build a clientele but returns to Gainesville once a month to offer services to clients.
“I figured that I would service my home area first before servicing the Orlando area only because I’m known there,” Bloodworth said.
Her clients believe the class will be beneficial as well.
Jeriah Owens, a 29-year-old Orlando resident, gets her 8-year-old daughter’s hair done by Bloodworth. She believes Bloodworth is offering a huge opportunity for others to learn how to care for their own hair properly.
She said her daughter has a lot of hair that is difficult to straighten. It was often damaged before they started going to Bloodworth.
“There was a big comparison difference when I went to Tabreshia because literally her hair is silky, and I really feel like it's the product that she use,” Owens said.
On top of being extremely knowledgeable about hair care, Owens said Bloodworth’s prices are extremely reasonable and she creates a professional but friendly environment.
Owens said Bloodworth’s edge control and hair serum works well and has helped both her and her daughter’s damaged hair grow and become healthy.
Michaela Dudley, a 41-year-old Gainesville resident, has been going to Bloodworth for about three years to get hair washes and silk presses. Bloodworth’s process and products have helped her hair grow, she said. Bloodworth also gives instructions on how to maintain the hair at home.
“I like the product she use. I like the way she washes my hair. I know it’s gonna be fully clean,” Dudley said. “I don’t let a lot of people do my hair.”
She received flyers about Bloodworth’s class and thinks it’s a great idea, but she doesn’t want to see Bloodworth stop doing hair.
“I was like ‘Girl, God gave you a talent. You’re supposed to use that talent. And I know you want to teach, but you probably should do both,’” Dudley said. “When people share their talents to help other people grow or make money, I think that’s nice.”
Contact Lucille Lannigan at llannigan@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @LucilleLannigan
Lucy is a senior journalism major and the metro editor for The Alligator. She has previously served as a news assistant and the East Gainesville reporter for the metro desk as well as the health and environment reporter on the university desk. When she’s not doing journalism you can find her painting or spending time outside.
