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| Tyler with a royal crown of hair. <3 |
Welcome to Natural Hair Affair: A true story
This page of my blog is dedicated to natural hair. :)
Most of my life, I didn't know the true appearance of the hair on my own head. This piece of myself, had been always been like a mystery. It was not uncommon to be sheltered from knowing the hidden world of natural hair in the black community, no matter the class.
There were some barriers to discovery of this well- hidden thing:
a) I personally had no leads to follow. Most folks I knew had their hair dyed, fried, & laid to the side. No joke.
Except for those who used other guises to make their natural hair seem somewhat different from the normal nappy-ness associated with our hair...such as annual braid wearers or those donning locs.
I really wasn't one for wearing heavy braids because my scalp is very sensitive. I didn't want to wear locs...they weren't my style, whatever that style was at that time. In the beginning, some members of the black community shunned dreadlocks by saying that they looked primitive and unkempt, yet this once considered trendy and particular hair glory still grows more popular today. Yet those seemed to be the acceptable ways to wear a natural style initially in our culture.
b) I didn't know how to take care of such hair, being told many myths about how it wouldn't grow, and that it would be painful to de-tangle if I ever went swimming or jogging. Once I got to past (neck length) in growth, it still was not a problem to take care of it even though it was longer...just took more time and patience, which in turn made me learn to love and care about it more.
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| www.iheartmyhair.com |
Today, there are tons of ways to wear natural hair that is deemed acceptable. Acceptable to wear your own hair? Yes...unfortunately relaxed hair, wigs and weaves were the black girl's first choice for a long time. Teenage girls were even going to beauty supplies and stealing hair because it was highly coveted and expensive. If you were not wearing synthetic hair, human hair or some type of extension, you were "lame", "bammer", "not cool" "ugly", etc. The only way to avoid torture was to have a "good" finer grade of your own hair. This would mean that you didn't need a relaxer because your hair was not thick, coarse and untamed and it would grow longer.
There are still a lot of controversial issues surrounding the natural hair thing. I got adverse comments from family. Shocked me out of my socks! But I'm a hair rebel, LOL
Yay!...I am almost three years natural. As of January 2010, this makes two years since I experienced my big chop. I transitioned about 9 months before that while carrying baby Chris. So many wonderful revelations came to me during this pregnancy. Good mental growth, and celebrating my 30th year, which was a surprisingly pleasant experience despite my fears. <3 I never thought that I would be so excited about my hair, because it was something that I loathed as a child. I wanted to blend in and be incognito...now I find that the bigger my hair the more I love it.
I uploaded a short video on youtube about my hair that I wanted to share, so here is the link. Check it out.: My Natural Hair Clip
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| Feeling in touch with my whole self! |
HISTORY
According to wikipedia:
Sometimes
referred to as Afro-textured, ethnic, kinky-curly and many other names, natural
hair is defined as the untreated hair of people from African descent. Nonetheless, it is a controversial matter, just
recently and openly accepted among more people who possess it, especially in
the African American community. In fact,
it is now far more acceptable than it has ever been, since the initial
marketing of relaxers and similar chemical processes that are sold for this
hair type.
“Creamy
Crack”, otherwise known as chemical straighteners, lye or no-lye relaxers, or
perms, was invented by Garret Augustus Morgan, Sr., who
was born in 1877 in Paris, Kentucky, a son to former slaves. Lye was used for repairing sewing machines,
and Morgan, invented it’s use in hair from trying it on an Airedale terrier
whose curly fur straightened one the chemical was applied. He then tried it on his own hair. In 1913, Morgan founded the G.A. Morgan Hair Refining
Company. The company's premiere hair relaxer product, G.A. Morgan's Hair Refiner, was based on the
alkaline chemicals used to straighten hair in his home workshop.
LYE RELAXERS
African Americans noticed the way their hair
changed with the combination of alkaline hair relaxer and lye soap used to wash
hair. However, it wasn't until 1971 that lye relaxer was officially produced
commercially. Proline, the manufacturers of Dark and Lovely, manufactured the
first official lye relaxer, which consisted of sodium hydroxide, water,
petroleum jelly, mineral oil and emulsifiers. The lye straightened hair by
weakening the internal protein structures of the hair, loosening the natural
curls.
NO-LYE RELAXERS
In the late 1970s, African-American women and
hair care product manufacturers began noticing the damaging effects of
lye-based hair relaxers. Lye stripped proteins from hair, leading to breakage
and thinning hair. In 1981, Johnson Products Company, Inc. introduced Gentle
Treatment, the first no-lye hair relaxer. Instead of lye, their hair relaxer
used less harsh alkaline agents, such as potassium hydroxide and lithium
hydroxide. At the turn of the century, many hair relaxers, such as Soft &
Beautiful, began creating herbal and botanical hair relaxers for African
Americans.
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| Damage from relaxer looks like this chemical burn can cause permanent hair loss. |
The truth about hair relaxers:
http://www.skinbiology.com/truthabouthairrelaxers.html
Hair breakage, hair thinning, lack of hair growth, scalp irritation, scalp damage, hair loss are just some of the complaints due to the misuse of chemical hair relaxers. In fact, the FDA lists hair straighteners and hair dyes among its top consumer complaint areas. Yet, in so many stores around the country, chemicals are available for everyone to use, without much instruction, a powerful process which transforms the basic chemical makeup of the hair strand. Sodium Hydroxide is the strongest type of principal chemical used in some chemical relaxers because it provides the most long lasting and dramatic effects. However, this same sodium hydroxide is found in drain cleaners which well demonstrates the strength of this chemical. Guanidine Hydroxide is the other common option of relaxer chemical used today. This is what is referred to as “no-lye” relaxers. This label can be misleading to some consumers. Although this type of chemical hair relaxer can be less damaging than its counterpart, the hair and scalp should be in top condition before attempting treatment, and this type also requires special care when applied.
After 100 years of women feeling captive to relaxers, and the constant taming of “new growth”, people’s perceptions are changing. The trend is current for wearing a natural untreated crop of curls, a fade of chemical free waves or a mane of kinky swollen locks. This trend is healthy in the sense that it condones better care of our biologically fragile strands. A chart was developed that ranges from 1 to 4h which defines the texture of a person’s hair, and the best options to care for that type. In this instance, race is not a factor. There are several different textures found in all kinds and range from straight to kinky. Some white people with Irish, Scottish and Dutch backgrounds are crowned with tightly coiled frizzy curls just as African persons from Moroccan, Ethiopian or Sudanese background may have smooth straight shiny strands. Not all ethnic hair is curly, wavy, or nappy. The source of the hair itself is not determined completely by race, more so by DNA which can spore from ancestry leading back centuries ago.
Unlike relaxed hair, natural hair is soft to the touch, and very versatile. With a round brush and blow dryer, a natural can wear a straight look just as if the hair was relaxed. If the hair is relaxed, it cannot mimic the curly styles of natural hair. The ends don’t fully curl, and hair seems limp and lifeless.
Some believe that naturally curly hair is here to stay; some think it is a fad that will eventually be buried like the jherri curl. Only time will tell, but the lasting effects of being in harmony with the hair God gives you has to be stamped on minds around the globe. Not only as a positive way to feel about one’s hair, but for you have made a life changing decision...!
http://www.skinbiology.com/truthabouthairrelaxers.html
Hair breakage, hair thinning, lack of hair growth, scalp irritation, scalp damage, hair loss are just some of the complaints due to the misuse of chemical hair relaxers. In fact, the FDA lists hair straighteners and hair dyes among its top consumer complaint areas. Yet, in so many stores around the country, chemicals are available for everyone to use, without much instruction, a powerful process which transforms the basic chemical makeup of the hair strand. Sodium Hydroxide is the strongest type of principal chemical used in some chemical relaxers because it provides the most long lasting and dramatic effects. However, this same sodium hydroxide is found in drain cleaners which well demonstrates the strength of this chemical. Guanidine Hydroxide is the other common option of relaxer chemical used today. This is what is referred to as “no-lye” relaxers. This label can be misleading to some consumers. Although this type of chemical hair relaxer can be less damaging than its counterpart, the hair and scalp should be in top condition before attempting treatment, and this type also requires special care when applied.
After 100 years of women feeling captive to relaxers, and the constant taming of “new growth”, people’s perceptions are changing. The trend is current for wearing a natural untreated crop of curls, a fade of chemical free waves or a mane of kinky swollen locks. This trend is healthy in the sense that it condones better care of our biologically fragile strands. A chart was developed that ranges from 1 to 4h which defines the texture of a person’s hair, and the best options to care for that type. In this instance, race is not a factor. There are several different textures found in all kinds and range from straight to kinky. Some white people with Irish, Scottish and Dutch backgrounds are crowned with tightly coiled frizzy curls just as African persons from Moroccan, Ethiopian or Sudanese background may have smooth straight shiny strands. Not all ethnic hair is curly, wavy, or nappy. The source of the hair itself is not determined completely by race, more so by DNA which can spore from ancestry leading back centuries ago.
Unlike relaxed hair, natural hair is soft to the touch, and very versatile. With a round brush and blow dryer, a natural can wear a straight look just as if the hair was relaxed. If the hair is relaxed, it cannot mimic the curly styles of natural hair. The ends don’t fully curl, and hair seems limp and lifeless.
Some believe that naturally curly hair is here to stay; some think it is a fad that will eventually be buried like the jherri curl. Only time will tell, but the lasting effects of being in harmony with the hair God gives you has to be stamped on minds around the globe. Not only as a positive way to feel about one’s hair, but for you have made a life changing decision...!
UPDATE!!!
There are reports that now hair relaxers are directly linked to uterine fibroid tumors and earl puberty....check it out! From www.madamenoire.com...
/relaxers-linked-to-uterine-fibroid-tumors-and-early-puberty/
All the more reason to cease the use of these harsh and dangerous chemicals. No matter your reason, natural hair is a good choice!
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