Curl Definition vs. Volume

Definition vs. Volume

I recently read an article that reminded me of a conversation that I once had with some natural friends. The subject in a nutshell was: Definition vs. Volume. Now, I have always been more a volume kind of chick myself but I find myself usually having the same conversation with new naturals: How do I get more curl definition?

The article poised the thought that our desire for perfect little ringlets is a result of conditioned thinking of what our natural hair should look like. Although I would love some Trace Ellis Ross curls showering over my face, I realize that my hair just doesn’t do that. I wonder sometimes if growing up with natural hair makes you more realistic about natural hair expectations than making the change after growing up with relaxed hair.

Transitioning from a lifetime of getting relaxers for as long as you can remember and not knowing what more than a couple months’ worth of new growth looks like can definitely make us ill prepared. Especially since most of the natural hair products and bigger natural hair icons have little spiral curls cascading all about. Even I sometimes catch curl envy.

But, how can we truly grow through our natural journey if we spend the whole time trying to get unnatural curls? Becoming a definition junkie will hinder our hair journey entirely. We become so obsessed with buying new products and smothering our hair in gels and curl creams to get a look that we are still not born with. Now, I’m not saying that we shouldn’t explore. When I’m in a super curly mood, I throw in some small three strand twists and unleash the spiral curls but most of the time, I’m just rocking my semi curly puffy fro.

Long story short; don’t get caught up in all the hype. The point of the natural hair journey is to love yourself and your hair exactly as it grows. Maybe that’s with flowy curls or semi curly puffy fro, but that is the fun in all of this, your hair is uniquely yours!

Are you all about the curls or a sucker for volume?

Autumn Hair Care

Autumn Hair Care

So, summer has ended and your curls are fried, autumn is rolling in and it time to recover.

Here are a few tips to help that recovery process easier!

1)  Clarifying Shampoo: after a summer full of products and sun burnt hair it is a good idea to get a fresh start. Clarifying shampoo will allow you to rid your hair of all build up without stripping your hair of its natural oils. Although, it is always a good idea to follow up with a good deep conditioning afterwards, or a great leave in to restore some moisture balance.

2)  Leave In Conditioner: A good leave in conditioner is crucial for all seasons, but as we move from a hot sweaty summer to a dry cold winter, it is especially important that we maintain moisture in our hair. This can be done using a great product or on your own. If it is done using a product then it is best to use a product with water/aqua listed as one of the first ingredients.

a.  You can also do this on your own by using a number of natural items. You can use raw shea butter, coconut oil, olive oil and/or glycerin to lock moisture in hair. They also assist in prevents breakage and shedding by penetrating the hair shaft and providing moisture throughout.

3)  Protective Styling: Buns, sew ins, wigs, extensions, anything that will hide your hair and give it a break would be a great idea to recover from the sun damage. Since our ends are our oldest and therefore, the most abused, any protective style that will hide your ends would be a good idea. Plus, your warmer fabrics could cause more damage to your ends by rubbing against them on a constant basis and prevent length retention.

4)   Protein Treatments: If you are like me, then you spent a lot of time trying to get the perfect tan to hold you out through the winter, lol. You probably also like to add lots of fun color to your hair, so a good protein treatment is always great to strengthen your hair strands and keep it from feeling like a stack of hay :s You should try to do a good protein treatment at least once a month!

5)  End clipping: as stated earlier, your ends take a lot of crap over time and the summer is pretty harsh with all that constant sun on them. It is a good idea to get your ends clipped as necessary during the fall to remove damage that was caused during summer fun.

6)  The recurring theme of this article, if you haven’t noticed, is moisture, moisture, moisture. So, it should be of no surprise that this tip is also about properly moisturizing. The wash n’ go that you rocked all summer may not cut it as we move into the colder weather. We also need a good moisture method and what better than the L.O.C. method created by Chicoro. Liquid, Oil then Cream is the definition of the loc method. So apply a liquid, then an oil then loc it in with a cream or butter. Simple enough, right?

7)  Heavier oils and creams: it may be necessary to start bringing the castor oil, avocado and shea back out as we move into cooler weather. The lighter oils that worked during the summer may not be as effective or long lasting as the heavier oils that will coat your hair better during these drier months.

8)  Satin scarf or bonnet: I know, we always use our bonnets/scarves/pillowcases and this is an obvious, right? Well. Honestly I don’t, but my goal for autumn/winter is too be more diligent in this process with the goal of, you guessed it, maintaining moisture. Not a scarf person, get a satin pillowcase so that your sheets and pillow cases won’t steal all your oils and moisture and transfer it to your face, it’s a win-win. You can also wear your scarf or bonnet under a beanie as the weather gets colder, but you cannot wear the bonnet like a beanie!

9)  Detangle: my last tip would be to find a great detangler. Dry hair tends to hold on to more tangles. So finding a good detangler will allow the moisture to travel throughout your hair and help you manage it easier.

Those are my tips to maintain those lovely curls as we move to colder weather!

What are your changing hair regimens for the seasonal shift?

Habitual Offender

Habitual Offender

On July 8^th, I shared a story with you guys about a school that had proposed a new school dress code that would prohibit children from wearing most natural hairstyles claiming that they are distracting, unprofessional and faddish. After much opposition, that school quickly revised the dress code. But, Deborah Brown Community School seemed to be harboring similar feelings and had no intentions of making changes until a 7 year old child was forced to switch schools due to her locs.

It hurt my heart so deeply when I watched the video of this 7 year old girl crying because she had to switch schools due to her hair. Tiana’s father, a barber, stated that he takes pride in his children’s appearance and would never allow his child to leave his home not looking “presentable”. He even attempted to compromise with the school by discussing different styles that Tiana could wear in her hair to make it “less distracting”. But, after not being able to find the middle ground he decided that his daughter was not wanted at the school and it would be best to find another school for her.

While it was in the dress code since 2007 that dreds were considered an inappropriate, Tiana’s father states that she has wore her locs to school in the previous year and met no opposition. Deborah Brown Community School has decided that they will now allow students to wear faddish hairstyles, such as afros and locs, as long as they do not present a hygiene issue.  But, Tiana’s parents said that this does not change the fact that their daughter came home crying after her school made her believe that something was wrong with her.

When Tiana was asked how she felt, she choked back tears and stated “I think that they should let me have my dreds”.

Tiana's response to having to leave school <<--- click here!

Many people at the board meeting to make this change in dress code felt a great relief at this dress code change. A board member stated that there were more important things to tackle than hairstyles and too much energy had been invested in prohibiting this style in the past 10 days.

I have expressed before how important I think it is for our children to learn to love themselves exactly as they are and I am very happy that Tiana’s parents did not succumb to the school’s rules of discrimination. But, I do wonder how many other parents were faced with this dilemma and dimply changed their child’s hair as a way of saying that “this is life”. I do understand that we have to teach children that we are sometimes not able to do what we want, but we also have to know the difference. I could understand if Tiana was coming to school with neon purple and blue locs or something that was actually distracting. But, natural hairstyle such as afros and locs being banned as unprofessional is definitely not a lesson that we want to teach our children.

What is your opinion of the ban of these hairstyles as faddish?

How do you feel about children and natural hairstyles?

Would you have handled this differently?

Can I Touch Your Hair?

 

Can I Touch Your Hair?

I have always been caught in the middle when it came to the subject of touching my hair.

Now, if it’s another natural asking to touch it then I will gracefully bow down and rub my fro in your face, lol.

But, if it is a non natural then it would really be like Russian roulette to ask me such a question. There would be so many factors to consider before answering that question.

·         First, will allowing you to touch my hair ruin anything that my hair is currently doing?

·         Am I sober? (you have better chances if I’m not)

·         Do you look like you will say something that will piss me off?

·         Do I look like a petting zoo?

I mean really, the list can go on for days.

But, recently, one of my natural hair muses, Taren Guy, stood in Union Square with a group of other natural women holding signs that read "You can touch my hair." This campaign was done with the intentions of starting conversations that would allow them to educate others about natural hair, about the concept of good hair vs. bad hair and about the taboo behind a nice big fro.

This campaign was not met without opposition. There was also a group of naturals with signs that read "You cannot touch my hair" and other more colorful statements. These girls argued that it is not our job to educate others about our hair and we should not degrade ourselves to a petting zoo in order to help others understand us.

I can understand why these women feel this way, but how can we promote change without education.

I think this campaign has had a definite effect on the way that I will handle this question when approached in the future. This is not to say that my fro will become open for business, but I will be less discriminating about whom I allow to cop a feel.

What is your opinion? Should we be more open to the afro illiterate?

Go Curly for a Cause

Go Curly for a Cause

Pledge to #wearyourhaircurly August 14th! Fructis Style will help send a girl to rock camp.
I'm rockin' my curls.
If you are too then make the pledge at the following link:

http://bit.ly/14pOPRt

Keep Your Afros at Home

Keep Your Afros at Home

Recently, a viewer and friend shared an article with me that left me feeling very confused. Natural hair and childhood is a subject that I am very passionate about.

I wasn’t allowed to get my first relaxer until the age of 13 and I was mad about it. But, I am very grateful for this now. I feel like this allowed me to enjoy being a child, I wasn’t allowed to wear weaves or too many elaborate hairdos because I was expected to be, act and appear as a child. This granted me the ability to escape vanity for a little while longer. I also feel like it helped me to learn to love myself without any additives.

I have spoken to many people before about how important it is for our little girls to love themselves as they come. As time passes, we will all be subject to the pressures of vanity but childhood is not the time to start.

We should be teaching our little girls to love their hair as it grows and their skin in its different shades. As oppose to burning the black off their scalp or hiding it beneath weaves. I am not saying that this will prevent them from ever getting a relaxer or even from becoming a high maintenance pinup doll. I can’t even pretend that I have fully escaped my hair prison. I am still sometimes wondering if my hair looks nice or professional enough, I am still getting questioned by friends as to what is a professional enough hairdo to wear to work. I still know naturals that wear weaves to work instead of their hair as to not offend anyone.

But, I do firmly believe it will help them appreciate themselves more and do less searching for that appreciation in others. And it will definitely help with this epidemic of young girls looking like grown women.

Below is a portion of the letter sent to parents highlighting the new dress code changes at Horizon Science Academy in Ohio.

Afro-puffs and small twisted braids, with our [sic] without rubberbands, are NOT permitted.”

But, I digress. This article left me mouth agape and teeth grinding. I understand that the ban has been lifted and this is supposed to reverse the damage. But, the fact that they had the nerve to make this ban in the first place is the very reason that we must allow our little girls to learn to love themselves as they come. Although it may not be an outright hate statement, this is all but a hate crime. This is a blatant example of how people of color are taught to hate themselves. It is a subliminal message to our little girls that their hair as it grows out of their scalp is so unacceptable that it is a violation of dress code to wear it to school.

They banned afro puffs, but they did not ban pig tails. So you can send your daughter to school with her hair in ponytails as long as they lay down and not stand up, like ours naturally does. This is so laugh to me, or should I say all I can do is laugh at this.

But, in some ways, I also find this encouraging. Maybe it means that we are doing a better job at turning our children against themselves, doing a better job at loving ourselves and it is becoming a threat.

Whatever the reason, please remember that this starts at home. We can blame the schools and the society as much as we want. But, if we are doing this to our own children then we have no room to complain.

What are your thoughts on children and relaxers/weaves/appearance?

 

Organix Product Review

Organix Product Review

Anybody that knows me knows that I am an Organix product junkie!

I have even gone so far as to call as to call the Coconut Milk line my hair soul mate.

Today I will be reviewing this amazing product line based on the experiences that I have had with the different products that I have tried.

Coconut Milk

Website description: Coconut milk and ultra whipped egg white proteins along with weightless coconut oil to hydrate and nourish your hair as gentle cleansers wash away impurities.

ShampooI really enjoyed this shampoo. This is definitely my favorite of the different lines that I have tried from Organix. I enjoyed the sudsiness of this shampoo and the amazing smell. It left my hair feeling clean but not stripped.

Conditioner

Once again, this is definitely my favorite conditioner that I have used thus far. It left my hair feeling soft and well moisturized. I honestly do not have any downfalls to using these shampoos and conditioners.

Anti Breakage Serum
 I thoroughly enjoyed the anti breakage serum. It made my hair feel very smooth and look very shiny. The only problem is that it is a little thick so it is not easy to transfer all from your hands to your hair.

Weightless Styling Mousse
This is probably the only product from the Coconut Milk line that I did not enjoy. This left my hair feeling a little stringy.

Brazilian Keratin Therapy

Website description: Transform your hair into silky smooth locks with this exclusive blend of coconut oils, keratin proteins, avocado oil and cocoa butter.

ShampooI did not enjoy this shampoo very much at all. I assumed that with this nice blend of ingredients that this would be to die for, I know I should have known that it wasn’t going to be the best due to it being for Keratin Therapy. But, I do recommend for anyone that does use the Keratin in their hair.

Conditioner
I did find this conditioner to be useful in helping with shrinkage. I do not like to use it alone, but I typically mix it with some of my Coconut Milk conditioner and it really helps with stretching my hair and leaves it feeling great!

Macadamia Oil

Website description: Drench your strands in an ultra-moisturizing luxurious formula infused with nutrient rich macadamia oil to instantly hydrate and smooth parched, dry hair while exotic sugar cane extract and bamboo extract soften and mend split ends for a luscious, vibrant mane with brilliant shine

Sn: You know you natural when you receive hair products in your stocking. (that is how I met Macadamia Oil from Organix)

ShampooI enjoyed this product almost as much as I enjoyed the Coconut Milk line. I definitely found all of the benefits it boasted in the description to be true. It left my hair smelling and feeling great.

Conditioner
The conditioner was just as wonderful, if not better, than the shampoo.

Biotin & Collagen

Website description: A high performance blend of powerful ProVitamin B7 biotin infuses nutrients into every strand, while plumping collagen adds volume and dimension, and hydrolyzed wheat proteins strengthen, for thicker, fuller, healthier looking hair

ShampooThis had to be the most disappointing product that I have tried from this line. I was looking for something to strengthen my hair and after a bad experience with taking biotin pills; I figured that this shampoo would be the perfect alternative. It left my hair feeling stripped and maybe even weaker than before I used it.

ConditionerI also did not enjoy my experience with this conditioner. Although it smells heavenly, it left my hair feeling stringy and tangled. This quickly became shaving cream.

Please note, that depending on your hair type, you may love some of the products that I did not enjoy. I did try the Teatree Mint shampoo and conditioner once, from a friend, but not enough times to write a fair review.

These products are a bit expensive, in my opinion, but typically you can catch them on sale somewhere. Walmart, Walgreens and CVS typically take turns with either buy on get one or 5.99 each. But, since these are pratically the only products that I use in my hair anymore, I think they are defnitely worth it.

My hair does not respond well to argan oil so despite how bad I wanted to try their argan products, I declined. But, if you have tried them or any of the other lines that I haven’t gotten my hands on, feel free to share your experience with us. Or if you have tried any of these and gotten a different result, then please share that as well!

Wicked Wednesday: Afros for Breast

Wicked Wednesday: Afros for Breast

Did you know that African American women leading cause of death is lung cancer? Or that the second highest cause of death is breast cancer? According to research, there will be 27,060 new discoveries of breast cancer in African American in this year alone and 6,080 African American women are expected to die from it.

While we do not have the highest rate amongst all races, we do have a pretty high rate for women under 45 and a mortality rate that is 41% higher than our Anglo Saxon counterpart.

African American Men are just as vulnerable to this disease as African American women. It is important that we recognize that this is not a gender based disease.

While we have improved on our screening rates, this is still a cause that we need to educate ourselves on. Education must go much deeper than pink ribbons and walks. We must learn about our genetic history and the signs to look out for. We must do regular checks and learn ourselves so that we will be able to catch any early signs. We must also encourage each other to become aware!

July is Breast Cancer Awareness month.

In today’s Wicked Wednesday we will be honoring naturals who have fought Breast Cancer.

Minnie Ripperton

Richard Roundtree

Marsha Hunt

Ernie Green

Audre Lorde

Edward Brooke

Wanda Sykes

http://ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/Statistics.html#AfricanAmerican

http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/20070406b

Bass Ackwards Compliments

Bass Ackwards Compliments

Don’t you hate when people start staring at your hair and saying those things that are meant to make you feel good but leave your face twitched and your hands itching?

There is nothing more annoying than the ignorant, backwards natural hair compliment. Well, honestly, any backwards compliment is nerve grinding. But, of all the backwards compliments that one can give me, it is the natural hair ones that get me riled up the most.

So let’s make a list of these backwards compliments and the real responses that we want to give:

·         Do you have a texturizer?

o    No! I have curly hair, as hard as it is to believe, natural hair is not the equivalent of a used rug and if you pulled your head out of your stereotypes then you would be able to see that natural hair is curls!

·         I can’t believe how soft it is!

o    I can’t believe how ignorant you are! (lol) But seriously, don’t you get tired of people acting like afro is a synonym of pot scrapers.

·         I always thought dreds were so dirty?!

o    Did you think that people became allergic to shampoo after locing their hair?

·         Your hair would look so good straightened!

o    But, not as good as it does natural!

·         My daughter/son is mixed; I wish she/he had hair more like yours…

o    Stop reproducing for vain looks, just because you like my hair like doesn’t mean that your kid would like my hair like this! Teach them to love themselves how they appear.

·         Are you from the islands?

o    As if, a regular black woman from Florida couldn’t wear her hair with pride?

·         I wish that I didn’t have to do anything to my hair, like you.

o    (This one makes me want to throw on my exorcist voice and start spinning my head. Okay that was a bit dramatic, but seriously!) What I want to say is: Please don’t confuse this effortless look for ease! It takes a lot of work to wear twist outs, keeping our hair shiny and looking longer than 2 inches after retaining length for the past 3 years!

I know, some people are thinking well zayumn, “what can I say about her hair?” It’s simple, if you like it, say so. Even if it you are surprised that it is so soft you can say that; because I do a lot of work to keep it soft and shiny! But don’t say it like black hair is a curse that I somehow managed to get lucky enough to escape from. Don’t say it like it my hair used to be some myth that you just disproved. Don’t say it like my hair is almost good enough for you. Give me a compliment like you would give any other person a compliment or keep your half hearted words to yourself!

What are the bass ackwards hair compliments that kink your curls?

A Day In The Curls of J. Sheree

 

J. Sheree’s Interview

Question: How long have you been natural?

Answer: 2 years on Feb 21^st

Question: At what age did you start getting relaxers?

Answer: Probably, 10 I would say.

Question: Why did you make the decision to stop getting relaxers?

Answer: I dyed my hair and it left my hair feeling extremely brittle and falling out, so I cut it all off to                  about an inch all over.

Question: How did people react to your decision to go natural?

Answer: A lot of people didn’t agree because I had “so much hair” that I just wasted.

Question: Do you feel that having gone natural has effect you in any way?

Answer: Yes, because thinking about what I put in my hair makes me think about what I put in my body more now. So, I tend to look at labels more, I’m not perfect at it but I’m getting there.

Question: Do you feel that it has affected your art or your music?

Answer: Yes, I don’t know why, but I feel more soulful and I can’t really explain the connection. Embracing my hair naturally makes me want to embrace my natural voice, I naturally have a soulful voice but I tend to try to seeing more poppy even though that is not really me.

Question: Where can we find J. Sheree?

Answer: You can find me probably at work, lol. No, seriously, I will be at Stone Soup in Ybor on Wednesdays and I am also local rapper Jonah’s mixtapes and have plans to feature on a few other local artists’ mixtapes. I am also working on the courage to become a regular at Sacred Grounds Slam and Open Mic at The Roosevelt 2.0.

Question: What can we expect from J. Sheree in 2013?

 Answer:I am working on doing more performances; I would love to do a mixtape if I am able to gain the right connects. Plus, I’m learning the guitar, so I and Lucille will be making a debut.

Question: What are your personal hair goals?

Answer: I want to be more consistent in keeping up with doing and maintaining the healthiness of my hair.

Question: What are your hair “guilty pleasures”?

Answer:  I would say that mine is straightening my hair.

Question: What is your favorite product to use in your hair?

Answer: My favorite product would probably be Shea Butter because it holds in my curls.

Question: Question: What is your signature hairstyle?

Answer: A curly side fro.

Question: What is your advice to other curlies who are working on their stage fright?

Answer: Don’t think too much about it, just do and continue to do.