I know a lot of my close friends have gone natural, allowed their roots to grow out or just done nothing but moisturise their hair during this lockdown period. Personally, I have been in my bathroom experimenting, it has been a way to distract myself during these ‘unparalleled’ (insert whatever term you have been using to describe what the heck is going on) times. It has been a good decade or more since I’ve had the time to have fun with my hair, you know like you would back in university when you were supposed to be studying.
Having super coily, 4C hair that needs to be hydrated everyday, it’s’ hard to follow the expectations and trends without there being consequences on my hair. As a dark-skinned woman, working in predominately white spaces, my hair is always the bedrock of my workwear style. It takes a lot of time, thought and money to keep it up to a so-called professional standard. As I talked about on my Instagram post, I want to prioritise my health wellbeing above other people’s expectations of me.
During this time, I have taken videos of me mid-way through my latest experiment, describing what works, and why I like it. I’ve left my hair in a state and done nothing, trimmed it (well, kinda, I didn’t know what the heck I was doing so I stopped after one section). I could just throw a wig on, especially as the resolution on zoom is subpar, no one was looking at my closure. It’s been fun, but it’s time to get back to business.
While I was reflecting and falling back in love with my curls, I realised there are a number of questions I need to ask myself before I go about making a final decision on a hair style that works for me and defines my style. I use these questions to distil the options I really have; every wig trend is not for me, it’s to keep me addicted to Youtube and increase a channel’s adsense. I’ve put some example answers, use them as a template if you will.
Here is my list; I hope it saves you time, money and reduces the number of rushed mornings we are sure to have; that’s if things go back to ‘normal’.
- What time do I have? To do the style? One a daily basis?
- In the morning, 5-10 minutes
- Sunday’s are my extensive selfcare days
- What are the best features of my face?
- My cheekbones
- My eyes
- My jawline is strong
- What is the best thing about my hair?
- My hair is dense
- Super coily
- Growing and healthy
- What are healthy practices for my hair in its current state?
- No tension especially on my edges
- Minimal heat
- Regular deep conditioning
- What activities am I involved in on a day to day basis?
- Home learning
- Zoom calls
- Chores
- Studying
- What dreams do I have?
- Gone a FTSE 100 board
- Be a great mum to Adam
- What image do I want to project?
- Polished, vibrant
- What are my hair goals?
- Healthy long natural hair before it all turns grey
- Full thick edges (therefore minimal manipulation styles)
- What styles have I gravitated towards or celebrated recently?
- Now this is where your Pinterest board comes out
- Do I have the knowledge to maintain this style daily?
- Not just oh I’ve watched a YouTube video, but real experience, that you can bank on first thing in the AM
- Do I have the tools to style this hair every day?
- I don’t want you to have the experience I’ve had when I was sure I had some product/ tool etc. and then realised, oh wait no I don’t first thing in the morning when I have somewhere to be.
Let me know if you go through these questions before you run back to the hairdressers this week.
Much Love,
Zeinab