Bam! What do you get when you mix a fashion show, live music, and a bow tie tying contest? BAM: an Alopecia Awareness event happening at Ginger62 this evening, Wednesday June 19^th. Partnering with Suki’s Hair Salon and Knot Theory, Erin Leach and Tanya Huang are fundraising for the non-profit organization BAM (Bold Alopecia Movement), by mixing sugar, spice and everything nice in order to create a fun and memorable event that is close to their hearts. Two of Erin’s favorite bands, Their There and Dogwood & Dalia, will entertain, and Tanya’s tie tying contest—as well as a fashion show featuring hairstyling’s by Suki’s hair salon—means the night is sure to be a hit.

Being a lover of dance parties, hair, bow ties, fashion and great music, I jumped at the opportunity to support BAM. Not only is BAM increasing awareness about the autoimmune condition Alopecia Areta, it’s actually one that will get you involved! BAM’s Alopecia Awareness Event is not your typical fundraising dinner or auction: this dance party will keep you on the edge of your seat. Fortunately for me, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the ambitious and always smiling Tanya Huang. As the founder of Knot Theory and one of the organizers of BAM, Tanya found the time (somehow!) to chat with me on a hot sunny day about her business, BAM, and of course, about Tanya’s experiences living with Alopecia Areta.

FT: When did you find out you had Alopecia Areta?

TH: I was in Taiwan [when] my hair fell out completely. They didn’t tell me what it was. They just said, have a baby and it’ll be okay…. I was 10 years old. The last time I had my hair [was at] age 16 when I went on this diet. I was about 90 lbs. I ruined my health [because] I thought if my health were down, my hair would grow back. [However] six months later, I lost my hair again! So three years ago, the same time I started Knot Theory, I started a support group. [Right now] we have 45 members in BC and we meet every month in person. Not everyone is brave enough to come to a meet up; it takes time. Because of this group, it helped me become more open about [Alopecia]. No one knew I had Alopecia. I thought I was confident [but] there was still something I was not okay with for my whole life. There are some people in the group that totally impress me. This girl, who’s had it for two years. She lives in a suburban area, she came downtown one time, and thought ‘hey, I don’t know anyone here. I’m going to Starbucks without my wig on!’ She did that for the first time and said it felt great. I thought, wow, I couldn’t do that! I think that listening to stories like that [really] helps. I started going to hot yoga without my wig. It was really good, because everyone was still blow-drying his or her hair and I was done!

 FT: What reaction did you get from friends and family when you posted the Alopecia coming out video on YouTube? 

TH: [It] was overwhelming! I didn’t expect so many people to reply and post something nice. I didn’t expect my friends to react badly of course. [However,] I was worried about the people who would find me attractive. The sex appeal! I’ve always thought this doesn’t look good; guys would see no sex appeal since hair is so strongly associated with beauty and femininity. It took me a long time to [think] I could rock this. This one guy I was seeing at the time, I told him about it [before the video], but I didn’t show him. After a couple of months, he asked me to see it. He was so turned on. This was one of the hottest guys I’ve ever been with!

FT: How was your experience on Dragon’s Den? Did it teach you anything?

TH: It was a lot of fun [leading] up to going into the den. […] It was kind of nerve-wracking preparing for it, but once I was there, I was so excited! I wasn’t nervous at all. The dragons were nice. I got all five of them to say yes to me; I thought I was getting airtime for sure! I [honestly] cared about two things: the image of Knot Theory was good, and that I get aired in front of 3 million viewers. I know a lot of people thought we got funded, but almost no one I know [that goes on the show] gets funded […] I learned what I already knew going in… it’s show business. It’s not really a show, about business, it’s [just] reality TV. My plan was if I got an offer, I’d say yes. If they were mean to me, I would make a scene, scream and cry. Maybe get a reality show offer! It was a good experience…the process of being in the studio was fun.

FT: How did you come up with the concept of re-inventing ties and why hasn’t anyone ever thought about changing it up before?

TH: I studied computer science [in University] even though I’ve always loved both art and science. I always wanted to do fashion. I kept saying, I’ll do it I’ll do it! It got to me one day [that] I was all talk! I quit my job after six years. [That same] month, I was looking at my old sketchbooks and came across these ties that didn’t look like ties. I actually hated ties! This is something I admit to more now. Before I wouldn’t want to say that because a lot of my fans like ties. I developed an appreciation for ties. They [actually] haven’t changed in centuries; they went through a lot of forms in the last few hundred years. Everything else [in fashion] has changed but ties are just ties. [One night] I was watching Battlestar Galactica and came up with twenty designs. I made a prototype; [this was] the first time I put on a tie. I thought that it looked good on a girl too. I could pull this off based on something artistic that you could wear. Ties don’t have to be functional. [For example,] pants have to be comfy, but ties are just ties. You get to have a lot of freedom with it. When I started it, I wasn’t thinking functional. I designed something very architectural. Then I thought people would like it if I changed the colours. Some people like the knots, some like the art of it. The first design took 11 months; it took a year to start the company. That’s why no ones done it, because its too hard!

FT: How did you get involved with BAM?

TH: I was talking to Ken Takagi [the president of] Suki’s last year, and it got me thinking, we have a pink bowtie that’s the same colour as their brand; maybe we can collaborate! In March, I decided to do the video [about having Alopecia on YouTube]; it got a lot of response. So [this year] I talked to Ken, and I said ‘hey, how do you feel about a hair salon donating to people without hair?’  He said ‘Okay love it! Let’s do it!’ At the same time, Erin Leach from my support group wanted to do a fundraiser to celebrate alopecia. So I thought ‘Let’s all combine!’ So its Erin, Tanya, Knot Theory, and Suki’s! We wanted to do something that’s actually fun; we have a fashion show, a bowtie tying contest, and a light-hearted alopecia Q&A. The idea of BAM is to get people more exposure. [When you] give more exposure to the public about alopecia, it becomes more sexy.

If you want to support the cause, hit up BAM’s Indiegogo page to either contribute to the fund, or buy tickets to the event happening June 19^th at 7pm. Tickets are $10 dollars to get into Ginger62, PLUS you get a free drink when you enter. 100% of the proceeds go to charity. Such a steal of a deal!