Ch-ch-ch-changes…
On 8/14/11, I received my last press n’ curl. I did it for three reasons: (1) I wanted to see what my hair would look like if I didn’t straighten it, (2) I wanted to be able to do my own hair and (3) I didn’t want to be restricted to certain activities.
When people get dressed and all fancy, some get dressed starting with one piece of their ensemble. For some it’s shoes, others it’s a little black dress. For me, I get dressed starting with my hair. If my hair looks good, then I’m more likely to put on a cute outfit. With a cute outfit comes makeup. If I’m going to wear makeup I have to have my eyebrows done so the makeup will look right. If I’m at the salon to get my eyebrows done then I might as well get a mani pedi too. (Do you see where I’m going with this…?)
The problem was that the only way that I thought my hair looked good was it if was pressed and able to be worn down. Well this opens up a whole other can of worms. See, I’m also struggling with my weight and in need of working out on a regular basis. For anyone who has had a press before, you know that sweating and jumping around is not conducive for having silky smooth hair. So I had to make a decision: hair or gym. Now, I’m not saying that I’m out of shape because I wanted to maintain my hair (because that battle continues even though I’ve been natural for a year….but that’s another blog entry) but having pressed hair did provide certain restrictions.
So what’s a girl to do??
I stumbled across a couple youtube pages talking about natural hair and the different styles that they were doing. It seemed simple enough so I gave it a try. My first mistake was thinking that it would be easier to be natural…wrong! It’s more involved and complicated than I thought. But, I will say that it does force me to be a bit more creative and brave with my hair. In some ways it’s therapeutic to do this. It makes me put myself out there and get me out of my comfort zone. Lately I’ve fallen on 3 or 4 styles that I really like and have been able to replicate them. I’m happy with my decision and I’m excited to see where this will take me.
I don’t know if this is a permanent move for me but I like what I have so far. I’m able to make myself look good rather than have someone else do it for me. Keeping it in my hands is very liberating for me. Strange what a little control over your hair will do for you J.
