african american girls

Sometimes at HairBlues I like to take a “time-out” to focus on a particular topic: today’s pause is to consider (again) “what is considered Beauty”? In other posts I have discussed “Bald” as a beauty statement, and “how to deal with making your hair loss beautiful”. We’ve focused on weaves and wigs as beauty statements. In this post the focus is on African-American (Kinky Hair), and where we are as women who wear this hairstyle as a fashion and beauty statement.

Everywhere I go these days I see beautiful natural (kinky) hairstyles worn by both young and mature black women. As a baby boomer, I am only a little jealous that many of those styles had not been thought of when I first strutted my Afro hairstyle :). But, after more than 40 years since black women freed themselves from the stigma of having “bad” hair, and James Brown (the Godfather of soul) made it clear that being Black was something to be proud of (which included natural, unprocessed or straightened hair worn by black women) this discussion is still going on – that is to say – black hair not traditionally combed is not necessarily considered a thing of beauty on black women.

What a wonderful thing that black women have progressed even further to feeling comfortable with “wash & wearing” their hair without combing it out. I remember when I first did that over 30 years ago how mortified my Mom (rest her soul) was that I was going outside without “picking” my hair out.

Nowadays it warms my heart every time I see a young woman who has the freedom and courage to wear her “natural” hair. But, is there a price she is going to pay for doing that? Apparently, the answer is YES – for some black women. However, an article by Demetria L. Lucas, “Why Does My Natural Hair Get No Love”, published on The Root (http://www.theroot.com), suggests that oftentimes our conclusions about “not getting any love for natural hair” may need self-reflection, as well as self-reliance.

At Hairblues we agree: Beauty after all is not only in the eye of the beholder, but in the heart and mind of the “Beheld”.

See you at the next post!

black woman standing near green plant — Photo by Matheus Henrin on Pexels.com

For generations African-American girls have had their hair braided because it is a traditional belief that it would help their hair to grow.

Nowadays, there is talk about braids “causing” hair loss. At HairBlues we think it is important enough to investigate what some of the causes of hair loss and braids may be. Below are tips we found online that may help to ease this problem, which appears to happen more often these days. Don’t forget to click on the link provided at the end of the highlighted tips to get detailed information.

♦ Beauty should not hurt! If your head hurts, it’s because your hair is braided too tightly, or you have too much extension hair added. In either situation, this doesn’t bode well for the future of your hairline. Some braiders may tell you to take an aspirin and the pain should be gone by morning, but any pain is an indicator that something is wrong.

♦ Use warm water to loosen them: Take a shower and let the water cascade over your hair. You may need to gently rub your scalp to loosen the braids a little. This is not the time to worry about how much money you just spent and how much time it took to style these braids, so don’t think about that! Concern yourself with loosening up this tight style and saving your hairline.

♦ Remove them: Yes, remove any braids that are causing little bumps to pop up on your scalp. This is not normal and can lead to hair loss down the road, especially if you make a habit of wearing tight braid styles.

♦ Do yourself a favor and see how your head feels when you’re still in the stylist’s chair. Does it hurt while she’s braiding? That’s the time to ask her to ease up on your hair.

♦ Do not return to tight braiders: Some braiders are notoriously hard on hair. Once should be enough to tell you that this is someone who doesn’t care about the health of your scalp. via What Can I Do about Tight Braids.

FYI –Traction Alopecia:By Del Sandeen

Definition: A condition where constant pulling and tension on an area of the hair results in thinning, breakage and/or hair loss. This is commonly seen in women and children who braid the hair too tightly particularly at the hairline or wear the same style over extended periods of time, not allowing the scalp and hair follicles to “rest.”via Traction Alopecia.

I hope this is helpful !