by
Chinwe
“Ironically I’m sitting here with a “wash’n go” in the literal form. I washed my hair, put some leave in conditioner in that joint and walked out the door. 10 years ago I would’ve NEVER done this. I at minimum had to put it in a puff, but today I was 100% good on this and it’s shrunken up in all its nappy glory right now and I know I look cute LOL!”
~ Glamazini
One of the great things about going natural these days is that you are not alone. There are tons of other women in your corner and rocking their kinks, coils or curls. There are many useful resources that are available online. Never have I seen so many books and media catered to our natural hair. “Natural” is becoming more mainstream and less ‘unusual’, for lack of a better word. Don’t get me wrong; the wearing of our natural hair – especially in “all its nappy/kinky/coily/curly glory” – still does receive pushback in a few professions, circles, etc. However, to wear it this way is hardly an oddity in 2014.
Though I big chopped about six years ago, I can imagine what it would’ve been like to do so ten years ago. Six years ago, I was being told, “You should go back to a relaxer … your hair is too thick” and asked, “What statement are you trying to make by not relaxing your hair?” Even a visit to a natural hair salon warranted some reference to my “grade of hair” which the stylists implied should be in “locs”. I also remember a non-hair-related event I attended where a natural woman volunteered (because I sure did not ask her) to show me how to care for my “dry-looking” natural hair. All these comments came up when I would rock my ‘fro, whether slightly stretched OR shrunken, but nonetheless with kinks and coils still very visible. The alternative – wearing twists – seemed to please everyone around me and yield a resounding, “That’s much better”.
Other than folks telling me about my hair and what I should do with it, resources for natural hair care were few and far between when I big chopped in 2008. I mean, keep in mind that BGLH was just beginning and numerous other natural hair care blogs had not yet been born. Two of my biggest inspirations and resources were a couple of friends who had been natural for quite a while, two natural-haired women on Fotki (a photo album site), and a couple of hair care boards. This was all just six years ago.
When I big chopped, I had plenty of external pressure to do something – relax, loc, braid, etc. – to my kinks, but none of that phased me because I knew the beauty and possibilities of my hair from those few but impressionable Fotki albums. Now, had I big chopped ten years ago, I don’t know that I would’ve made it past a couple months being natural given two times the social pressure that might’ve existed then and the reality that those inspirational naturals I looked to might have still been using relaxers. I might’ve gone back to the “creamy crack” or hid my natural hair under braid extensions for who knows how long. However, I’m so glad I big chopped when I did because my mind was ready at that point.
It is amazing to me how natural hair has become increasingly accepted these days. I’ve never felt so “normal” walking down the street in a shrunken ‘fro or going to speak to a professor from a different generation and background with my kinks and coils “naked and exposed”. Also, though I don’t like to admit that the external can sometimes impact my internal, it is positive places (like BGLH) and positive people who have made me feel okay rocking my ‘fro.
Are you comfortable wearing your natural hair in all its kinky/coily/curly glory? Share your experiences and thoughts!
66 Responses
Until recently, I wore a shrunken afro since going natural in 2012, for lack of not knowing what else to do with it (after starting out with a braid-out at the beginning of the week). I got several compliments from men and women too, although I didn’t particularly like how it looked. Now I twist it up at night and where a twist-out daily. I like the twist-out a lot better on me, because it looks more feminine and pretty in my opinion.
I don’t find them unattractive at all. It’s that some people with 4c hair have told me their hair shrinks onto itself and creates terrible, terrible tangles. Everyone’s hair is different so I’m sure it comes down to the individual and what their particular hair does, but some people consider it hair suicide.
unfortunately i think that shrunken afros aren’t considered attractive to everyone. i prefer long hair on myself but i do like twa on others.
I think we make too much of this. I don’t need anyone else to make me feel ok about what I do or don’t do with my hair. as long as it’s clean and does not smell (which would rightfully be an imposition on others) then it’s my hair and that’s the end of it. # donetalk
i’m thankful for all the naturals who were natural before it was widely accepted, as a newer natural, i haven’t received the brunt of anything. not saying it doesn’t exist for some today but the vet naturals really had it rough back in the day. thank you 🙂
There is so much misinformation out here; it’s sad.
I seriously don’t get the fear and loathing of shrunken ‘fros. I have tightly coiled 4a-4c hair and wear my hair in a shrunken ‘fro all the time. And it looks quite FLY, elegant, and professional. Contrary to a lot of misinformation out there, you do not have to experience tangles with a shrunken ‘fro. With a good cut that will give your hair shape, a shrunken ‘fro can actually look very edgy. In fact, I’m reached a point where I rarely twist my hair or wear it in twist outs because I love the ease, convenience, and look of my shrunken fro. Plus, again, it’s cut in such a great shape that I can wear it anywhere. I was the type of natural that almost exclusively wore twist-outs, until I discovered a way to keep my hair moisturized using wash-n-go (and avoiding “butters” and “creams”, which act as barriers to moisture.)
I went natural about 12 years ago and I didn’t feel pressure to go back to relaxers. I disregarded the comments like you did then too. But overwhelmingly I got compliments on my hair, especially when it was short. I have since chopped it again and am in the middle awkward stage with some long hair. You made the key point that your mind has to be ready! I had made the decision in high school I wanted to stop relaxing my hair and about a year into college I did it. I stayed natural because my mind was right!
a black woman’s hair is always scrutinized, all i can do is be me, even when my hair was relaxed it didn’t behave the way people thought it should, or it wasn’t long enough. most of the women i know are either relaxed or they wear weaves 24/7, they don’t know much about natural hair so they don’t dare tell me what i need to do with mine.
YES!!!!! Shrunken 4c hair is considered unattractive to a lot of people and sadly to myself as well.
when my hair is acting right and the hair is curly i get complements and in my opinion it looks good. ( my hair is short but not a twa…its in the awkward length.
On the days i use some silly leave in and my hair is a dry nappy shrunken mess!!! Yes i said it! I can feel ppl stare and i get odd looks at work then if someone has the courage they whisper to me to wear a wig the next day whereas i have no wig and hate them. Or ppl say oh “your hair has been this length for a year”, or “it was longer last week”…I’m like yeahh, this i WASH AND GO!!! NOT A TWIST OUT!
Either way no matter what my hair looks like im confident and i try to love and accept it. Its not always easy…but I try, and it keeps getting better.
Thank you so much for this very timely and great article. I have been natural for 5 years and today because of your article is the first time that I wore my 4 type hair in a wash and go. I had listen to all the comments about how 4 type hair cannot wear wash and go. Sometimes you have to try things with your hair. The beauty of natural hair is if a style does not work you can wet it and do what does work. My hair is APL and it shrunk about 90% but is looks amazing. It all about your attitude. Yes it might get tangle but that is what conditioner is for. lol. Try it you might like it.
I would love to be positive here but I think YES they are STILL considered unattractive by the natural community. Verbally we are very good at giving are support. But numbers don’t lie. Look at the numbers of views of a shrunken 4c fro. Dismal. And don’t make the excuse well you have to factor in that people of other races will look at pictures of curly heads. I agree with that but the person say on you tube has 10,000 subscriber’s and averages 6,000 views per video. The shrunken Afro 1,000 views. Now are you going to tell me we can attribute that toooo…… yeah that’s my point. It has 3 strikes against it 1. No movement. We can get on board with blown out fro’s why? They move or what I call Flowing Hair Syndrome. It’s extremely infectious and makes the victim feel a need to flip their hair 3 times an hour. 2. No curls. 3. No shine. One of these 3 we can give up but all of them ohhhh easy to say we support but our views, likes and thumbs up say a different story
It seems every time I visit this page now there is the same article reworded and now it seems every other day its about type 4 hair being discriminated against. Its almost like the natural hair community wants to bring in the drama and seperation by constantly bringing it up. Obviously there are gonna be ignorant people but we keep headlining the ignorance just to keep people aware. All types of natural hair textures are judged. If your black and your hair is loose curled people want to assume your mixed or chemically altered or if its very kinky people crack jokes or say you need a perm to me all are equally offensive so creating this new level of discrimination just for type 4 hair is just doing what the white people want and expect us to do which is segregate ourselves. We all know as black people we come w a variety of shades and textures and white people are sitting there praising any of it differently bc at the end of the day your still black its us who tear so deep into everything to victimize and segregate ourselves. We need to get over this petty nonsense and just be glad our sisters are returning natural in the first place
Attraction is yes about what you wear and how your hair is done. But most importantly the confidence you exude. So if you rock the shruken afro like it’s everything you will be attractive.
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Looking at them stresses me out lol. My hair is capable of achieving that look,but I refuse,detangling is a NIGHTMARE!
Great post Chinwe.
I still notice the looks of confusion and lack of praise on the odd day I decide to not stretch my fro and rock it in its shrunken state. I’d get all sorts of questions too: “did you cut your hair? what happened to your hair?” or otherwise people would look and just not say anything. Yet the next day after I’ve twisted it out, the compliments would roll in. And I’ve received that feedback from people of all sorts – even others who I wouldn’t have expected it from (eg. fellow bloggers). It used to bother me but not so much anymore. Now I know I’m not stretching my hair to ‘look prettier’ or achieve a certain curl pattern – it’s to avoid my hair from tangling on itself. If anything, I wish I could rock it shrunken more often because it appears much thicker when I do! For those who claim that the texture of one’s hair doesn’t matter, I’ve experienced it first hand that to many, it still does. And your level of beauty is based on that.
Great article. And I am so with you. Perhaps it is because I had long dreadlocks before I big chopped this past March, but I am now rocking the sh*t out of my TWA. My hair when stretched is 3 times as long and I don’t care. I am living for my curls, coils and kinks and just focusing on keeping then healthy. Maybe next year I will get all into twists and stretching etc. (I can struggle with it now but I am so not into it at all) but for now, I am just happy letting my hair do it’s thing. And I am grateful to have online support from sites like this and people like you. Be well!
I have 4ab hair which can look like 4c if it’s really dry. I’ve NEVER EVER worn my natural hair all shrunken up. Not even in the 60s & 70s when I first went natural. Why ? Because I have very fine delicate hair that breaks easily & would probably get too tangled if left shrunken up. I try to avoid excessive manipulation. Back in the day it was a bit thicker than it is now, but it’s always been soft enough to be easily detangled with a Magic Star rake & a condish with good slip. I would always braid or twist my hair up at night to keep it stretched out. Kinky Curly does a fab job giving me a headful of tiny penspring curls, so that’s what I use for wash n goes.
“I have 4ab hair which can look like 4c if it’s really dry. ”
Statements like the above are casually made re 4c hair all the time and the commenter just doesn’t think of how offensive, belittling and negative this is.
I hate the short fro look, I much more prefer big fros. FROS should be huge in my opinion. However, I’ve seen really pretty women wear little fros and it did look glamorous on them and made them look sexy. I don’t know, it depends, on some people yes, on others no.
excuse me elastagirl….out of curiosity: what rock have you been under lately?
The debate will never simmer until there is acceptance of African-American women who are comfortable breaking the Eurocentric mold of beauty. More comfort-based than political statement, women who go natural compel us to value brains over beauty’s hype and go beyond the superficial.
I absolutely wear my shrunken (nappy,kinky, curly, coily, etc…) fro often… probably too often for the detangling nonsense I have to deal with later, but wasnt that the point of “going natural”??? Being happy/proud to wear my hair the way it grows iut if my scalp!!
People have issues with 4c hair in general (it’s usually not just 4cs who have an issue with it either). It’s not coincidence that many non naturals, black men, black people and the new natural hair community all seem to hate shrunken afro hair and 4c is the hair with the most shrinkage. Society just generally balks at the kinkiest Afro hair but the natural community is more damaging in its opinion because these are meant to be the outlets and support systems and yet often the kinkiest hair types are downgraded because of the amount of shrinkage the texture has meaning the impressive hair journey is harder to see. The older generation often believe shrunken hair is ugly and undone, for the newer naturals, I think it’s just not showing any length, it’s not curly/defined and therefore it’s not pretty.
I don’t wear my hair shrunken because that would lead to damage in the resulting detangling process and would just make my time consuming hair even more time consuming. Do I care about natural shrinkage that happens in the course of a day or week? The week, no but if it’s within a day on a twist out then yes because my style is gone very quickly. I just don’t do twist and braid outs. I do twists and partial roller sets and I like when the curls turn into little kinky coils due to shrinkage. Sometimes it’s a hindrance and sometimes it adds character to styles that are just too done.
I agree with you. I am someone with 4c hair and struggled to love my natural hair. I feel that it is harder when you don’t have a natural curl pattern that is viewed by most as attractive. I see a lot of very curly hair and people with my hair type making their hair resemble other curl patterns. Some of the terms are a bit negative too. Fine is attractive like fine china or fine boned but coarse is used to apply to large grit in sand paper rough around the edges it is never used to describe something as beautiful or delicate. I came to embrace my hair both natural and straightened. The sheen my hair has when straightened catches light and the softness of my natural is described beautifully in one game I played as a cloud tail or puff which describes it fluffy goodness. For some it is easy to feel comfortable with their hair but for others like me who have been ridiculed and rejected because of it it can be a challenge and I get more opposition from the black community than outside of it. I am used to the fight against shrinkage ever since I was a young girl being pressed out there was no such thing as stretching out your hair. I am so glad my children will not have to live through some of the things I have.
I’m currently in Kenya (Africa) and i’ve seen a few naturals (and here we dont have the same hair products mind you.) I’ve seen a few type fours with their hair out in mini fros ( or shrunken hair cant tell) and one in particular with really long type four hair in a pony tail. I myself have my type 4 hair out which is always puffy regardless the fact that my curls pop sometimes and sometimes they dont, and no one bats an eye. when i was here three years ago all i could hear was “so when are you gonna get that hair braided?” although most women have weaves and relaxers, it’s no longer weird having ur natural hair out. and i’m not in the city where people dont get shocked easily.
The only natural hair community I care about is the one that controls the hair on my head, i.e. ME. I love my shrunken fro.
It’s awesome.
lol. i love the sass.
To answer your question as directly as possible.
These days…
No! Shrunken 4C Fros are not Considered UNATTRACTIVE in the NATURAL COMMUNITY.
Things have definitely changed.
It frustrates me that so many women in the “4 category” have to experience such ignorance. Even though I might not have the same type of hair, I have friends and family who do and their hair is beautiful! Whether shrunken or stretched they have “good” (healthy) hair and I love playing in their fros. I think the people who hate it are most often the ones who have it and are self-haters or those who just don’t understand it. My thing is if you don’t understand ask and/or don’t judge. Our bodies are not public property for ppl to give their social commentary. I’m ready for the day when we lose the whole “hair grade” concept.
I wear a shrunken look every so often on a literal wash and go. I wash my hair condition and then throw some oil and Shea butter on top. Boom!
I have 4c hair and I love it in all of it’s many different states. It the mindset the person has that makes it acceptable to them or not.
I hate to say, but I actually find that shrunken afros are mostly unacceptable to black people. Those black people have a ways to go on the self-acceptance journey, mind you. I think it’s all about rocking your natural kinks and coils with pride. You are an inspiration to the next woman (of all races but especially black) trying to embrace herself.
Other races don’t know a damn thing about our hair and don’t care to know (recall “You Can Touch My Hair” 2013). Yet, they don’t attach the same stigmas to afros as black people unfortunately do. Remember, in the 70s the afro had transformed from a political symbol to a fashion statement. Black political activists weren’t the only people wearing afros anymore. The last time America saw so many afros, the afro was considered a very cool hairstyle. To this very day, people LOVE afros….except SOME black people (and perhaps other people of color who are brainwashed by white beauty standards and post-colonialism). For SOME black people, the afro means you have a low class/social status or other derogatory things. I have no idea why this is so with some black people. My only guess is internalized racist beauty standards.
When I was in primary school (ages 10 – 12), I wore my hair in its shrunken state. Mainly because I didn’t want to go for a haircut and tried to keep my hair looking as short as possible. But I wouldn’t do that now. Mainly because my hair is so hard to detangle when kept fully shrunk. So all I do now is stretch it a bit using African threading, pat it down into shape and go. Works better for me since I hate detanging
I think you should leave the house feeling confident. If u like it then that all that matters, whether it’s a fro, twist, twist out, flexy rod set…etc. so long u are happy! That my motto
I wear my shrunken 4a hair most days. I cowash every 2-3-4 days, so shrinkage on my hair type is unavoidable. When I first went natural 1 year 3 mos ago, i graved stretched big hair. that is too much work for me. now i grave healthy shiny moisturized hair. that kind of hair looks good shrunken or otherwise. folks stare too—everybody likes healthy hair!
I love how I look in my shrunken afro. I use the keracre hair spray on my ends and it gives me a nice sheen. But sometimes when I go out with my afro, none of the guys are checking for me lol! I am not saying I go out to get attention but they just ignore me or just stare. I feel like they are saying, “ugh” with their facial expression. It makes me sad but I love my nappy 4CD-Z hair and this is me.
if they dont like it someone else will 😉 black women look authentically beautiful with their natural hair because that is how they are meant to be.
The health of the hair is foremost. if you have thick kinky hair of any length then you are truly blessed because many of us have length but not volume.
I agree kinky hair folks are blessed with volume. I had to have a professional go in and cut my hair so it could stand. I had to sacrifice the length for the volume but it stands now so yayyyy!
I big chopped in Dec 2011 and have always worn my hair in stretched out styles. After watching a WNG Challenge on Facebook recently I started experimenting with different products to see if I could get my WNG to “work”. I’m still on the fence about how it looks, but I get more compliments sporting my natural curls than when I wear my twist out? It is very encouraging lol.
I think what is considered “attractive” is a reflection of how we personally feel wearing our natural hair in public. The more that we project CONFIDENCE and SELF-LOVE with our kinky or curly tresses, the more people of all colors will catch on.
fi true! it starts with us
I wore a fro in the 70s and shrinkage was no issue. We just sprayed with Afro Sheen, picked it out and out the door. I plaited my hair each and every night, no big deal and I had a big fro. I religiously visited the barber to keep it shaped up. The reason I stopped was because of the lack of versatility in styles, although now I pretty much wear it in a twistout now but it usually frizzes up into a fro. But that doesn’t bother me because that is what my hair does. It amuses me to see the emphasis on shrinkage and curl definition that is prevalent now
“It amuses me to see the emphasis on shrinkage and curl definition that is prevalent now”
Amen! It’s actually offensive.
+100
SO glad to see you and mary (above) representing the 1970s…young folks kill me trying to act like natural hair is brand new… 😉
I was a kid in the 70s and I remember how folks did what was called “the natural.” Just as you described: Plait it at night, take it out and pick it out in the morning with some Afro Sheen assistance. Now I happened to live in “integration” 😉 so the only women I saw with ‘fros were rebellious teenagers. My mom and the other older women saved their ‘fros (or ‘fro wigs) for the weekends usually.
I went (back to) natural in 1995 when the “World Wide Web” was just starting to become a thing. By that time Lonnice Brittenum Bonner’s book Good Hair had been out for three years or thereabouts (1992). In it she demonstrated how to do both twists and what eventually became known as twistouts. I remember going to Brooklyn for the first time in 1999 and seeing more natural and braided hairstyles than relaxed. That same year I discovered online discussions about natural hair.
Here, specifically, is what’s new IMO: Natural hair has become (almost) mainstream. I was out and about today with my second-day coily ‘fro* and I saw all kinds of natural hairstyles walking around…and nobody batted an eye. Not too long ago two naturals would see each other on the street and start gabbing excitedly about products, regimens, etc. Nowadays, at least in my little corner of America, sisters just go on about their business with their kinks, coils, curls, you name it. Today I saw little girls with ‘fro puffs, elderly women with big silver halos, and pretty much everything in between.
Are shrunken 4c ‘fros considered unattractive? Depends on who you ask, doesn’t it? Ask it again in five years and let’s see where we are…
*I consider myself a 4b because I have a clumping coil pattern that’s very small. I always knew I had it but I didn’t learn how to preserve it at longer lengths until literally two years ago. So after 17 years of wearing every other Soul-Patrol-approved hairstyle out here, including locs, YES I AM about the coil definition these days and I’ve really been enjoying learning new things about this hair on my head. 🙂
Hey Lbell! I love the little walk through the times. Thanks for your perspective.
Who said shrunken fros are not okay? It’s not okay until YOU convince yourself. “Society can say something”, but it’s upto you to believe in your heart and manifest negative thoughts to reality.
it’s upto YOU to change YOUR perspective
Personal responsibility
You= anyone.
As usual the empathy for black women is non existence. It’s funny and ironic when a white woman is crying on television about her battling anorexia a flood of empathy and heartfelt words are given to her and society is to blame . But when it’s us battling the terrible affects of white surpremacy it’s our fault. Probaly why so many young black girls are battling with what they see in front of the mirror . I just love your words of love… Smh
Yes yes yes! My fro is my go to for right now. 🙂
My hair is 4b. It is also that very fine type of super kinky. When it became wet and shrunk and was very easily tangled .This led to hair loss just trying to comb it out if I let it dry without combing first. On the other hand if I combed while wet I lost the tight curl pattern and looked wiry like I had been electrocuted. Finally years ago I decided to loc. They are small but not micro locks like the typical sister loc look. To be honest I like the convenience of no combing after activities like swimming which I love. Wash and go fits my lifestyle. And I love the look. It long enough to wear in a variety of ways. I do still feel limited with locs though and sometimes miss my kinky allover look. But the convenience of locs has won out for me.
excellent post!
Can’t wait to finish my transition (18 months and counting) so I can wear my 4c hair in a fro!
Shrunken up 4c hair is beautiful. You must love yourself and embrace your hair. It is natural, it is the way God made your hair and no one should think otherwise.
I don’t usually wear my hair in it’s shrunken state because it’s not good for it, but I really like the look now. For the longest time I didn’t like that it wouldn’t stay defined once it dried, but I’ve come to accept my hair for what it is. Most instructional videos focus on maintaining large curls, but WNGs are supposed to be about simplicity, not spending a bunch of time to make your hair look a certain way.
When my hair was shorter (3inches) I could wear shunken fro no problem. I loved it. The first time I wore a wng I had to because I had a lot of errands to do. I never had so many doors open literally. “Hello ‘ s , “what can I do for you” etc. I was wondering if they thought I was a lost child. It was easy and fast, plus I find not know what I was doing.
Fast forward (12 inches of 4b/c). It’s a tangled mess. I have tried it just to much.
Can someone tell me, How did they wear those big Afros in the 70,s daily? Or has that secret died?
I wore a fro in the 70’s and we just did it. When I first B/C’d it was 1969, and I wore it shrunken for a couple of years. Then cornrows became popular and I braided and pin curled or did cornrows to mine every night then picked it out in the morning. We all used some form of grease in our hair and that may be the difference. We wore them out year round. I think my hair shrinks and tangles less with hair grease and I don’t remember all the dryness. This time around, I am having a problem with dryness but then, I started out using all natural oils and butters. In April and May I switched back to hair grease and my hair looks and feels much better.
I want to hear more stories from people like yourself, who were around for that first natural hair revival. I think its so interesting and seemingly a piece of lost history. I just don’t understand how within the decade btwn the 70’s and the 90’s, knowledge just became lost. I was never one to think of a relaxer as creamy crack, as I wasn’t addicted to it or didn’t initially want one. However, when I think that its rise coincided with the crack epidemic that hit the urban areas in the 80’s one has to wonder.
I want to hear about the mindset, and the haircare practices back then. I want to understand how it got lost and why.
Back In those days many people would platt (spelling) up their hair for bed, may be even put them on sponge rollers, then undo that in the morning and pick it out. Also anyone remember the Ultrsheen blowout kit? Really showing me age now.
I remember ultrasheen and afrosheen…and yes I’m old enough to have had an afro in the 70s. Although my afro was rather pathetic….I couldn’t get it to stay fro like…it would flop down eventually. I didn’t appreciate my curls back then…funny how perceptions have changed.
I’ve worn my hair natural since I was in my early teens (late 1960s). Back then, you would have a wash hour (not a whole day) once a week, grease your hair and scalp (using Afro sheen, Royal Crown or something like that), comb/brush your hair thoroughly, divide your hair into 6-8 parts, and braid each part. Let your hair air dry, then pick it out with a pick. That’s it. I’d also go to a barber (usually before I washed it), and he would pick my hair out, and then shape it up with scissors. For the record, your fro would always look the best the day or two before you had to wash it lol
I agree with Mary. The grease used back then had lanolin as a main component. Lanolin is a humectant, emollient and sealant. I won’t use mineral oil or petroleum again, but I do use USP-grade lanolin and sometimes mix it with an oil. It makes ALL the difference for me because these newer leave-ins and puddings and creams are ‘okay’ but dry my hair out and don’t give me the same fluffiness.
Also, the same as Mary, my mom plaited all our hair and rolled the ends at night to keep a fro that stayed floofier throughout the day.
Yes my mom had some lanolin the other month and I used just a little bit and it really was good. I plan on getting my own and incorporating it into my hair care. Mixed with some oil like jojoba or grape seed was what I was thinking. I almost forgot, thanks for reminding me.
Thanks for the memories ladies!
Hey ladies:
If you are willing to try products that are not all-natural, you may want to give some of the old school products a go like StaSofFro lanolin ‘comb out’ spray which is a personal favorite for my 4abc hair. I use it straight from the bottle, or if I’m feeling both fancy and frugal, mix it w/ Oyin’s Juices & Berries or Frank Juice.
For a ‘soul’ flash back: Check out the old Afro-Sheen Ads on youtube from the 60s and 70s! Don’t forget ladies, people also donned Afro wigs back then too as many could not achieve the desired shape (globe) or length (long hair made for a BAF)dictated by the times. There were also users of Blow-Out kits which were basically mild-relaxers.
Do I love my shrunken fro? Yaaaaaaaaaas! However, the norm that works for my lifestyle are simple 2 strand twists in a bun.
I love to see naturals love and appreciate the beautiful hair that grows naturally from our scalps, but we have to be patient with those that don’t. 400 years of mental conditioning will not reverse itself overnight.
i have 4b/4a hair and i couldnt agree more. overall, its about self-love and understanding that looser textures are not for everyone and are usually imposed on society as the “best” because, despite the curls, resembles the european strands the closest. but i have noticed there is less stigma attached to my fro, and more of an acceptance – outside and in. i mean in africa, tight coils are normal.
I’ve only relaxed my hair for a short period of time in my life (less than a year)and otherwise used braids/weaves to make myself look “presentable”. I’ve BC’ed so many times and have run to braids to cover my kinks, but I do have to say that this time around March 2014)I have ZERO reservations about my hair being short and nappity natural. In fact, I hopped out the barber chair, traveled home without feeling people were staring at my hair, took a selfie and threw that up on the interwebs with pride. This is for sure due to regularly seeing other women embracing their natural hair on sites like this 😀
Negative comments and looks still happen, but they don’t bother me anymore.