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I mean, who doesnโt love a great hair day? |
Iโm going to let you in on a secret:
Every day isnโt going to be a fabulous hair day.
Okay, so maybe that wasnโt exactly classified information. But in the world of Instagram, Pinterest, filtered selfies, and pouty-faced Vine videos, youโd be hard pressed to believe that your favorite natural hair bloggers, gurus (Iโm beginning to have a distaste for that term, by the way) and hair crushes did not indeed, โwake up like this.โ It seems as though they always have perfect hair, perfect skin, perfect makeup and well, just all-perfect-everything.
One important thing to realize is that because social media is a tool, your favorite internet personalities are able to control the image that you see of them. That isnโt necessarily a bad thing; it just is what it is. Before I derail this train any further, let me get back to the central point: bad hair days do exist. Butโฆevery day does not have to be some tragedy of epic proportions. There are simple things you can do to maximize the number of good and great hair days you have. Here are my 5 tips:
1. Love Your Hair
I know this is said time and time and time again. But truly, this is where having good hair days start. Iโve written before about the detriments of hair crushing/obsessing โ in fact, chilling out on hair idols was the #1 resolution I recommended for naturals to make this year. It is hard to love your hair when youโre so caught up in the beauty of someone elseโs. Tips, styling ideas and inspiration are all fine โ but that is really where we need to draw the line. Love your hair first. Appreciate what it can do, instead of focusing on limitations. Are your wash and goโs a tragedy? So what! I bet you can crank out a killer twist-out. Bantu knot fail? Iโm sure you can rock a top knot that is to die for. Feeling self conscious about your TWA? Join the rest of the 3+ billion women in the world who are self-conscious about their appearance in some capacity. This is not by any means an attempt to diminish some of the challenges we face as women, especially in terms of being self-conscious about embracing our natural hair. But if we donโt embrace, accept, and love what God has given us first โ how can we expect anyone else to?
2. Be Solution-Oriented
One of my biggest frustrations is when I want to vent to my boyfriend just for the sake of blowing off steam, and in all his loving amazingness, he begins troubleshooting and proposing solutions. Many men in general tend to be solution-oriented โ even when you donโt want them to be. They identify an issue and devise ways to fix it โ even when you donโt want them to. Look at your hair the same way! Note: I DO NOT MEAN LOOK AT YOUR HAIR ITSELF AS THOUGH IT IS AN ISSUE!!!! Just wanted to clarify that.
What I mean is, donโt look at your hair with hopelessness and despair day in and day out. Chances are there is a solution to your hair woes. If your hair is lacking in the vitality department, maybe itโs time for a protein treatment, deep conditioning session, or even a trim. Buns and updos not staying right like they used to? You might need new elastic bands, scrunchies, and bobby pins. Is your head too big and your bun too small? Stretch your hair first (note to self), or find another more fitting updo. Although embracing natural hair can be very emotional at times, your challenges donโt have to be all-consuming. Take a more pragmatic approach to fixing your hair woes and watch your better hair days skyrocket!
3. Have A Staple Product Stash
Iโm a product junkie and one of the hardest things for me to do is tell someone what my favorite product is. Heck, I couldnโt even tell you what my favorite product is in one particular category. One thing I had to do (especially as someone who tries out different products often) was narrow down a few products in each category that I could rely on no matter what. You might have to kiss a few frogs to find your Prince Charming of products, but once you doโฆboy, oh boy! Thereโs no greater feeling than not having to wonder, hope, pray and cross fingers that a product will do what it is supposed to. For example, I know I can rely on TIGI Catwalk Curls Rock Amplifier to give me an amazing wash and go that will last 5 days or more. This is not to discourage experimenting with different products and combinations, but rather to say, make sure you have a go-to product that consistently delivers. Consistent results = consistently better hair days.
Click here to see my list of 2014 Must-Haves that ALWAYS deliver for my hair!
4. Itโs OK to Have a Comfort Zone
Thanks to social media accounts that showcase fellow naturalistas and their amazing, edgy, fabulous and sometimes gravity-defying kinks, coils and curls, it can be hard to resist the temptation of wanting to try a new style or switch things up with a new color or cut. If you are bold with an experimental wild streak then go for it! But for those of us who canโt as openly embrace change as much as we would like to (am I talking to myself here?) there is absolutely nothing wrong with having a styling comfort zone. Iโm sure some of my Instagram followers get bored with my seemingly endless streak of wash and go styles โ heck, sometimes I bore myself. But truthfully, since finishing my transition and chopping, wash-and-gos work best. I did a twist-out and hated it. I want to do finger coils, but I canโt seem to find the time (or desire) to sit for 4 hours and twirl. I want to color my hair, but donโt exactly look forward to the extra maintenance and upkeep. I thought I was crazy or had turned into a lazy natural because even though more styling options are possible with my all-natural hair, I couldnโt bring myself to do them. Then I came across Instagrammer GeekyCurly, whoโs photos consist of nothing but twists and twist-outs. She does them well (gorgeous, really), and they work for her hair. Iโm sure she could rock the heck out of a bantu knot-out, or even have a jaw-dropping blowout done. But she chooses to do what works for her hair and her lifestyle. And there is absolutely, 137% nothing wrong with that. The bottom line is, if you have a style that you rock well, work it! If you donโt, try to develop that one you can pull off come hell or high water.
5. If You Stay Ready.โฆ
Although I often use the aforementioned quote from Suga Free in relation to my edges (article on that coming soon), this mantra applies also to increasing good hair days. So letโs say you love your hair, came up with a practical solution to make it better (like getting a trim), used all your staples that deliver and have set yourself up to rock your go-to styleโฆand somehow your hair still manages to go completely ape-poop. Maybe there are some things you canโt control like insane humidity or an uncalled for rain storm. Thatโs where staying ready comes into play. Call me crazy, but I always, always, alllllllways have a stash of bobby pins and at least 1 scrunchie in my car, work bag, and gym bag. And if I carry a purse, theyโre in there too (Iโm not much of a purse gal, but thatโs neither here nor there). You never know when your beloved hairstyle will say, โGirl byeโ so it is best to stay ready so you ainโt got to get ready! Having a supply of bobby pins, a headband, scrunchies, even a cute scarf on hand to tackle those wild card scenarios can help you turn a hair disaster day into a โyaaaaaaaaaaaas hun-ty!โ
What are some of your favorite ways to have more good hair days?
For more transitioning and natural hair tips from Christina, check out her blog, The Mane Objective. You can also find her on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.
I really like this post! Thanks for the suggestion!
One thing I absolutely love about my hair is that even if I wake up late as fuggg, silk scarf somewhere under the blanket, hair all matted and tangledโฆno matter what I do to it (or donโt do), as long as I slick my edges down, I have a hairstyle.
I just learned something here last week. So I no longer tie up my hair, I drapethe silk scarf over the pillow case. No more scarf coming undone!
Plus youโre right about the edges!
Enjoy Life โ there is no 2nd chance! Before mldide age Do not fear! After mldide age Do not regret! Enjoy Your Life While You Can! Do not wait till you cannot even walk just to be sorry and to regret. As long as it is physically possible, visit places you wish to visit. When there is an opportunity, get together with old classmates, old colleagues & old friends. The gathering is not just about eating; itโs just that there is not much time left. Money kept in the banks may not be really yours. When it is time to… Read more »
I rarely had really good hair days when I was relaxed and alot of my styles (especially roller sets) only looked really nice for a few days. I feel people put soooo much more pressure on keeping their natural hair looking perfect and more presentable when they barely put so much effort while relaxed.
Itโs like thereโs no middle ground for some of us (including me sometimes). Our hair is either presentable or itโs a mess.
I couldnโt agree more. So much of what black women do is policed and every time we step out of the box we can always count on somebody to try to smack/stuff/shove us back into itโฆ Very few โgoodโ relaxed-hair pics of me exist. I admit the entire way I see relaxed hair and straight hair in general has changed so some may disagree but of those pics, many of them were taken not too long after a salon visit. I think that says a lot about how little I knew about my hair and its care compared to today. As a… Read more »
Agreed. I no longer have bad hair days. When in doubt, I just let it do itโs thing and afro. Whatโs not great about that ๐
.โฆ..because you never know when your beloved hairstyle will say โgirl bye!โ LOL!!!! Been there ๐
Love #4. I am a lover of twists and twist outs. Different sizes for โlazyโ days and smaller ones for a different look. Or put them up. I would like to try other styles but if it works, it works. Hell, I want to try some styles but like Christina said, 4 hours for fingers coilsโฆ Even if they do look amazing, Iโd have to REALLY want them. Great article.
My #1 tip to having more good hair days is to be flexible. Sometimes Itโs simply a matter of not fighting with your hair, but listening to it. For example, the other night I spent a VERY.LONG.TIME. washing, stretching, and twisting my hair so that I could rock a big, chunky twist out, complete with all day hang time and killer shine. I woke up the next morning to a torrential downpour and 100% humidity (side note- thatโs a funny concept- as if the air was 100% water that dayโฆ). Instead of grabbing for all the gels and oils in my… Read more »
[โฆ] http://bglh-marketplace.com/2014/01/5โtips-on-how-to-increase-your-good-hair-days/ [โฆ]
[โฆ] 5 Ways to Increase Your Good Hair Days | Black Girl with Long Hair http://bglh-marketplace.com/It is hard to love your hair when youโre so caught up in the beauty of someone elseโs. Tips, styling ideas and inspiration are all fine โ but that is really where we need to draw the line. Love your hair first. Appreciate what it can โฆ [โฆ]