SOOOOO since I'm completely obsessed with my natural hair I think it only makes sense that I make a blog about my hair...First disclaimer is that i stole the title of this post from my friend who has a tumbler account called 'mad about my mane' and i thought that was adorable! So shout out to you miss! Anyways I thought I'd share with you my hairstory (haha get it? like history...but not!) ANYways lol.
Well I've always had a ton of hair my mom said i was just a hairy baby. Well lucky me as I grew up it stopped growing all over my body but continued on my head! Which is great cuz i save money on razors! lol. Neways I got a perm when i was in the fifth grade because my mom was through taking care of my mane. She trusted me with the maintenance of it washing and styling for the most part. I unfortunately was one of those unruely little girls that didn't give two shits about how my hair looked. Soo I took horrible care of my hair. It started to break :(...not only did my hair begin to break I was petrified of the process of getting a touchup. I have a sensitive scalp and a crap ton of hair so getting a perm was always a big event. Well when I was in the seventh grade my maid was washing my hair and she didn't have a perm, I asked her how she took care of her hair and if she thought I could do it, and that night I decided I wasn't going to put perm anymore. I waltzed into my parent's room and anounced to them that I would no longer be perming my hair. Don't ask me wat my plan was... all i knew is that perm shit was for the birds and I ain't no vulture (lmbo get it?! deuces!)
So for the next like 5 years I had in braids about 85% of the time. We snipped away at my hair little by little until the permed ends were gone and I've been natural ever since.
Now the issue was that I didn't know how to care for natural hair. I was really a pretty hot mess everytime I tried to rock my hair on its own, so when I got to college I tried the whole texturizer thing. I only put it in twice and after a few washes my hair was back to its lovely nappy state (yes I say nappy...)
So junior year of college seven years since that night when I announced my parents that I was going natural I finally decide to get to know my hair. I spent the first entire year without putting in braids, and I'm currently on about a year three months of what i call project 'you and me'. Project you and me was my year of making peace with my hair. And I must say that it's turned out to be a whole lot more fun than i EVER expected. I mean I've always loved my hair but now im obsessed.
I have two friends who decided to do the big chop last year and began to ask me wat i do to my hair and when i realized I didn't have a real routine nor did i really know wat was good or bad for natural hair I decided to start researching. I follow people on youtube, mainly a girl named Beautiful Brown Baby doll (her page: http://www.youtube.com/user/BeautifulBrwnBabyDol) i found out what they use in their hair and new hair styles. I'd say that this year I've truelly become a Natural Diva! lol I spend more money on hair products than clothes or food and I spend at least 4 hours a week just messing around with this fabulous mass of curls atop my head. I know the first 6 years of my natural lifetime I didn't rock it much but I'm makin up for lost time big time!
I remember a couple of people told me I should just cut my hair off or perm it since I obviously didn't know what i was doing with all that hair but I could not be more grateful for my headstrong determined self because at 21 I'm reaping the seeds that I sowed so long ago!
I'd put up a pic but...instead this is a pic of my celeb natural crush Shingai Shoniwa of the Noisettes (that's her at the top too) and just in case you don't know her music, its also quite fab! She is a fierce fierce bitch with extra nappy hair and she doesn't hide it nor try to change it to be what it isn't I love her for embracing and rocking every inch of her main in such a classy manor I aspire in her direction....yes it is that deep. I see so many girls trying to fit this perception of beauty that the world has imposed on us, and we are all so afraid to embrace our hair for what it truly is. I can't help but respect someone like Shingai who rocks hers for all its worth. If you're reading this blog and you've got three inches worth of permed hair and you're wondering why your hair won't ever grow maybe its because it's tired of you trying to turn it into to what it was never meant to be. A black woman with long hair is only so rare because we suck at caring for our own...learn your hair! talk to it find out, what it likes and doesn't. Find out what your real curl pattern is! It's so sad that me and my friends in our 20's are just learning how tight or lose our curl patterns are for the first time when we've lived with this on the top of our heads for our whole lives; just neglecting it or trying to make it more like what the rest of the world has taught us is beautiful.
Ok I'll stop ranting. And just a disclaimer I don't have an issue with perm, i think it works for some people just not everyone, and maybe we should stop viewing it as the only option for beauty. My favorite thing about my hair is its amazing versatility I can look like almost any version of a black girl and always return to base. This year Ive learned to live and thrive in my base. I think its a process of loving on yourself that every woman should go through because its truly healthy and encouraging.
