A late-night phone call is not often associated with good news, exept when it is the vibrant Connie de Sousa who phones you up.

Connie was phoning up one of her hairdressers, Takalani Mabobo, with the news that Taki (as Takalani is better known) had just been awarded the 2015 Intercoiffure Mondial Stylist of the Oceonia Region prize. Her interpretation of Glamour Trends, which was the preselected theme for the competition, made her the South African champion. She competed against hundreds of other hair stylists from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

The award was made during a prestigious hair show held in Johannesburg on 3 and 4 October.  

“It took a while for the news to sink in,” said Taki this week. Connie had to receive her trophy on her behalf, as Taki had had to stay home. “The news of my award only sank in when I saw the trophy upon Connie’s return.”

Taki has been working at C Jay’s, Connie’s salon, for the past 12 years. “We are very proud of Taki,” said Connie.

For Taki’s competition entry she depended, for the most part, on her model’s natural hair. Her model was Melissa Leeb, a pupil from Louis Trichardt High School. “Because they are not allowed to go to school with coloured hair, I had to get creative,” explained Taki.

To finish the whole style took her about 40 minutes. After completing the up-style, Taki added more glam by relying on her self-taught expertise with hair extensions that she knotted into little bits of artwork.

After hair and make-up, a photo had to be taken to be forwarded to the international judges of the competition. Local photographer Madeleen van den Berg handled the photoshoot and received compliments about her work after the competition. “Another professional photographer approached me at the event to tell us how awestruck he was by the photo. He said everything in the photo was perfect,” said Connie.

Intercoiffure, which is an international association, stands for prestige and excellence in the hairstyle and fashion industry and has representatives in 55 countries. The different countries are divided into regions, who host their own competitions. Also, to prevent favouritism, judges from different regions will judge other regions’ competitions. “And this year our judges, among others, came from America, and we are just very excited about Taki’s award. Well done!” said Connie.