Have you always been
natural?
-No. I permed my hair when I was 12 and kept it relaxed
throughout high school.
How many years have
you been natural?
-I’ve been natural for 5 years. August 1st is the
anniversary of my Big Chop!
Why did you decide to
go natural?
-I wanted a change.
My freshman year of college as a dance major I was spending
money on a wash-and-set on Saturdays that would be a hot mess by Wednesday from
sweating in class. I didn’t know whether to dance with my hair wrapped in a
scarf or with my hair out. I felt like I was wasting $20 every other week. I
eventually started to do my own wash-and-set to save money. Towards the middle
of my freshman year, I became more involved in the New York dance scene and every time I
performed, I’d have to tease my straight hair to have a cool style. It was
unhealthy and a hassle so in January of 2006, I stopped getting relaxers. I
also started to notice other professional dancers with huge curly hair and I
fell in love! I thought it was so beautiful and it definitely had an influence
on my choices. By July, I’d had six months of new growth and I liked the look
and texture of my roots. I asked friends what they’d think if I cut off my hair
and no one supported the idea, nor did they believe I would do it. I went
online to research natural hair salons and I made an appointment at Afrogenix
in Manhattan. On the sunny afternoon of August 1st, I chopped it all
off! I wasn’t too worried about what anyone else thought of it, because I loved
it. It’s funny because I was the first person I knew in my college with natural
hair, sporting the big chop. By time I was a senior though, all the black
females I knew were either natural, in transition or getting ready to chop it all
off. I like to think I have something to do with that. It’s also fun being
natural at home with my family. We were all relaxed at one point in our lives
but now my mother and cousin have gorgeous locks, my sister and aunt are
natural as well, and my father is a man who supports a woman rocking her own
hair, in its natural state.
What is your regimen?
- Most nights I put my hair in a few twists and sleep with a
satin scarf. In the morning I let my hair get damp in the shower and I style it
with different products. I straighten it about twice a year to check on the
length and thickness, and get a trim. I just trimmed it yesterday! I only wash
my hair with shampoo once a month, sometimes less often. But I do co-washes
often. (Washing with conditioner only)
What products are
currently your staples?
- My staple product in the beginning was Miss Jessie’s curly
pudding and buttercreme, but now my hair is longer and requires too much of the
product, which is wildly expensive.
My staples now are shea butter, mango butter, coconut oil,
rosemary, tea tree, jojoba oil, castor oil, emu oil, aloe gel and aloe juice. I
don’t use all of them at once! [giggles] Nor do I use them everyday. But I
switch it up between these staple products.
What advice can you
give to those think of going natural?
- Do it for you. It’s not about what anyone else thinks.
Your hair is your crowing glory and how you feel about it is all that matters.
What's the best thing
about being natural compared to being relaxed?
- I can wet my hair in the shower daily, with no worries and
no shower cap!
Would you ever
consider going back to relaxers?
- I would never go back to relaxers. The only time I think
about it is when I want to wear a weave, which I’ve only done once because I
can only get a full weave with a bang. That’s because I don’t want to leave any
section of my hair out; it would have to be straightened everyday and that section,
would be drastically damaged compared to the rest of my hair once I take out
the weave. So now, If I wear a weave, I’ll clip in the extensions and take them
out at night. The only other times I think about a relaxer is when my blow-out
or wash-and-set gets frizzy.
If you had 1 product
to recommend, what would it be?
- I recommend using Shea butter- raw, unrefined, unbleached Shea
butter. It can be the base to a D-I-Y moisturizer. You can add it to coconut
oil, rosemary, castor oil, or aloe juice, or use it alone. Your hair won’t be
dry, nor will it be ridiculously dripping with grease as though you’ve used
Soul Glo (ref: coming to America)
What's one trick you
found that works with your hair?
Wetting it everyday is the trick. It needs water like a
plant, not too much and not too little. I have another trick though, Do not
comb it when dry. I ONLY comb my hair when there is conditioner in it; so yes I
comb my hair once a week or bi-weekly.
