Let’s talk hair

 

If there’s one thing that women everywhere are always talking about it’s their hair. Articles are written about it in magazines and online, women spend hundreds of dollars each month on products and salon trips, they seek advice from their girlfriends and will die, fry and slap it to the side (yes, I know, cliché) to find a style they love.

Honestly, for years I’ve trolled the Internet and magazines about natural hair care. I adore wearing natural styles, but I still want my hair to look a certain way and I’m not always pleased with how it looks naturally.

Let me share a little of my hair history:

I started wearing a Jheri curl (okay, try not to laugh and tease me) when I was in middle school. Before that I was getting my hair straightened with a hot comb and after that I started getting a relaxer. Again, making my hair straight. As a young black girl in the 1970s it was acceptable to wear braids, but as one grows it’s almost expected to straighten your hair. I have since learned that it really depends on where you live and how you grew up. I have a friend who was born the same year and her young hair experiences were totally different.

Okay, back to my hair history: I kept a relaxer for about 11 years and “went natural” around 1996-97. I started wearing two-strand twists and then decided to wear locks. What some call dreadlocks. I grew them for a little over 11 years (that must be a lucky number) and they reached about three inches below my waist before I cut them off. The main reason I cut them off was because they no longer looked as neat at the roots and hairline  as I would like. The picture to the left is a headshot, which was taken by Alex Jones for Atlanta Tribune: The Magazine. It’s before I had three more children and longer locks. :-)

 

In this photo, a very pregnant me (with child #4) had already started cutting the locks.

Here (after the third pregnancy, I think) I have my extra long locks in a ponytail.

I’m still natural – having just colored my hair on occasion – and I normally wear my hair in a puff… Is that what it’s called? LOL. … or two-strand twists unraveled. Every once in awhile I splurge on braids, which I absolutely love and have now. I want to wear them more often and give my hair a chance to rest and grow more; not to mention the varied styles I get to rock. I’ve also invested in more costly hair products and those that are touted as being for specific hair types, and I’m pleased that most work to soften and strengthen my hair.

Look at all the natural hair transitions I’ve made …

     

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve even tried a wig… that didn’t last too long ‘cause I don’t even like wearing hats!

I have kinky twists now (left), which really remind me of when I had locks. I forgot that I also had them in April of last year (below). I can’t decide whether I like my hair light or dark. What do you think?

 

 

 

 

 

And, of course, there are the braids that I have had on and off for a few years:

I haven’t had my hair straightened and curled since it’s grown, but below I think is the last time my daughter styled it with a flat iron.

The “research” I’ve done has given me increased knowledge of natural products and ingredients. So much so that I’ve written a list to test different products when I get the chance. That’s why when I saw the article “Party Over Hair” in last week’s Jet magazine I read it with excitement and anticipation.

Our hair is like an accessory and it has to look just right. It’s nice – really nice – when other people think it looks good, but I am my worse critic and l make sure it looks good for me.

What’s your hair history? Are you in love with your hair or have a love/hate relationship with it? Also, share your best hair tips.