Tatiana Karelina

Tatiana Karelina (born 1980) living in London, United Kingdom is a widely recognised hair extension specialist, credited with being the first in the United Kingdom to break with the practice of using damaging glue, in favour of Micro Rings, to attach the extension hair.
Due to the popularity of her extensions Karelina is often described in the press as a mane maestro and is frequently called upon by the press to give her opinion on hair extensions to the media. Over the years Karelina has extended the hair of some of the UK’s most high-profile women including Katie Price, Cheryl Cole, Sam Faiers, Lauren Goodger and Stacey Solomon.

Karelina, was born to Soviet parents in Kashin, Russia, a rural agricultural area 250 km north-east of Moscow. In 1996, at the age of 16, Tatiana left Kashin for the United States to learn English only to return in 1998 to start university in Moscow. In 2002, she graduated from university with a degree in Linguistics and once again returned to the United States where she was, by chance, first exposed to hair extensions. Moving to London a few years later she rapidly gained experience and expertise by training with Lucinda Ellery, a salon, which at the time was regarded to be one of the best in the industry.

In 2008, Karelina, realising a gap existed in the market, decided to branch out on her own and design a salon that echoed the sophistication of her clients. From the outset her revolutionary approach to extensions was clear. Instead of conforming to industry practice Karelina became a mistress of innovation.

She rose to prominence in 2008 on the back of a British Broadcasting company (BBC Three) documentary Jamelia: Whose Hair Is It Anyway? which saw UK pop singer Jamelia travel with Tatiana to Russia investigate the hair extension industry. She has since opened salons in London and Manchester under her name, Tatiana Hair Extensions and is planning to launch her brand in North America in late 2012, beginning with Los Angeles. In 2011, Karelina’s reputation in the UK extension industry was reaffirmed when she was invited by BSkyB’s Moscow correspondent, Amanda Walker, to Moscow, to film a new piece on the hair extension industry in Russia.

Tatiana Hair Extensions, under the guidance of Tatiana Karelina, continues to innovate and lead the industry. In 2011 she launched the industry’s first iPad application used in the salon allowing clients to "virtually" try on different styles before the extensions are fitted. In early 2012, Tatiana Hair Extensions will open a new flagship salon boasting an outdoor terrace in London’s exclusive borough of Kensington and launch THE TV, a web-based TV station offering a collection of how-to videos.