Funky Braid Out Pin Up On Natural Hair

I saw this vid on CurlyNikki.com today. I think it's a quick, easy natural style that looks funky and fly!

@LuvBeInNatural uses Cantu Shea Butter for her braid out. I have so-so results with it in my hair, but I love how her hair is uber defined. Cantu costs $5 at Wal Mart, so maybe I'll give it another try. My main problem with my twists and braid outs is that they don't last long enough. I have to redo them every night, which I think is too much manipulation.

I may post a YT vid about my results.

How do you get your braidouts to last? Will you try this style?

"Good" Hair on National TV

A few weeks ago, I wrote about "good" hair and how we need to redefine it.

No sooner than that blog came out, now we have to deal with this sort of foolishness about "good hair" by talk show host Wendy Williams and singer/actress Brandy.

Wendy: "If you have a baby with him, the baby will have good hair."

Brandy: "Yes."

Full disclosure: I didn't see the show last week, but the comments were widely reported on blogs, including KisforKinky.com. I haven't heard anything from Wendy or Brandy's camps that the comments were inaccurate.

Sigh.

Really, Wendy and Brandy?

Really?


Why Black Folks Know Exactly What "Good" Hair Means

If there's one thing that's tied to being Black in America, it's the term "good" hair. Sure, black people in other areas of the world deal with it too, but I'd say that we are particularly obsessed with it stateside.

Folks gauge their infants' baby hair to see if it will be "good."

I've heard of others giving their 2 and 3 year old daughters perms, presumably, to achieve "good" hair.
Women even make decided to have children based on if the man has "good" hair -- doesn't matter if he's good Daddy material, but he got that good hair!

If you are Black and in the U.S., you likely know what the word means -- either you were teased for not having it or were told you were prettier because you had it. I'm sure white folks in Wendy's audience and around the country were like, "Huh?" Unless they live around people of color, they had no freaking idea what they were talking about.

A Damn Shame

Wendy is too old for that mess. I like her, but  I have yet to see her real hair -- though she has said she's got long, "good" hair underneath her stable of wigs. And Brandy? Maybe I'm wrong, but perhaps I can't expect more from woman who, like Wendy, her hair is weaved/braided up on the regular. Brandy and Wendy's real hair could be down to their ankles, but you'd never know it. I don't EVA remember Brandy wearing "her" hair out -- even when she was a young teenager.

Why, oh, why, are our damn insecurities about our hair served on a platter on national TV for the whole damn world to see and pick apart. I'm no psychologist, but this is why everyone and their Momma goes hard on Black women -- because we do it publicly for all to see! White women have insecurities about their hair, too.

But I don't see them on TV talking about that ish!

Get Rid of or Redefine "Good" Hair?

Folks have buried the N-word. Can we please bury the term "good" hair as it relates to hair texture, density and curl pattern? Or at least do it like the N-word and redefine it to mean healthy hair? Yeah, I know that the natural hair community likes to say that good hair is healthy hair.

But it's clear that most of the world outside of hair blogs, YouTube vids and hair forums don't feel that way.

What do you think?

Was it wrong for Wendy and Brandy to discuss "good" hair on national TV? Do you even care?

Designer Tracy Reese Expands Her Labels

Good news for fashion designer Tracy Reese!

Just shy of a month before Fashion Week, WWD reports that Reese will expand her clothing labels, Tracy Reese and Plenty and Frock! Those brands will be rebranded under the name T.R. Designs, with CEO Karen Castellano at the helm. Reese's website will also be revamped to become more interactive.

Reese is a Detroit homegirl, so you just know I had to report this.

Good luck, Tracy! 313 stand up.

HairSpiration: Natural Kids

I love this kid. Is she posing or what? Uber cute!



Source: BlkGirlsRock.Tumblr

Hit or Miss? Golden Globes

Black glitterattis sizzled on the red carpet during the 2012 Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills.

Actors Octavia Spencer, Idris Elba and Morgan Freeman took home honors -- setting the stage for hopeful Oscar wins later. Ya know we showed up and showed out! It was all glam and glitz, with Black Hollywood's style game on point, of course.

Here are the hits and misses. Photos by Getty Images.

The queen of hip hop soul sizzled in this beaded Michael Kors gown. Love it!

"The Help" actress Octavia Spencer sizles in this demure, yet fashionable number by Tadashi Shoji. It's got just enough elegance and sass, while not over-the-top.

The Help actress Viola Davis is a smash hit with this one shoulder, Grecan-inspired Emilio Pucci bordeaux gown. Uber sexy, with the revealing shoulder and the thigh-high split.

Love actress Paula Patton, but I'm not a fan of this fishtail dress by Monique Lhuillier. I love the design of it, but the color ... not so much. A different color, maybe?

Amber Riley sizzles in this red gown by Badgley Mischka. Very haute, and richly compliments her skin tone.

Idris Elba is stunning and dashing as ever in this black tux. I love the rhinestone tennis shoes.

HairSpiration: Solange Knowles

Earlier, I posted what I felt was a unflattering pic of Solange.



This is a pic of her via BlkGirlsRock.Tumblr that I just love.






Source

It's ... so cosmopolitan, so sexy. Now, THIS is the Solange that we've all come to know (friend in my head, right?) and love for her spunk, creativity and uniqueness. This picture is sooooo different than the earlier pic.

She seems so comfortable in her skin. Isn't that what we all want?

What do you think of this pic of Solange?

Love it or Hate it? Solange Rocks a Fro

The hair chameleon that is Solange has emerged!

She's now rocking a fro in this magazine shoot, but I don't know if I'm feeling it. It looks .... too ... fake? Can't quite put my finger on it. I know that Solange is the queen of natural wigs, but this choice (I think it's a wig)? Not so much. I had to stare extra hard, because it didn't even look like her.

For once, I just want to see Solange's natural hair.What does it look like? She wears wigs -- most of the time they're very, very cute -- but I can't even begin to tell you what the hair from her scalp looks like. I love how she changes her look up, but this look?

Meh. The wig is just bad and the jacket? Girl, bye! It's even worse. Looks like some of those 80s rejects I see during my thrift store jaunts. The color is awful -- and cheap looking.

The good news: Solange is a new auntie to Blue Ivy Carter and she has just signed to Next Model Management. Go Solange!

What do you think of Solange's look? Can there be a such thing as wearing wigs too much?

HairTroversy: What's The Worst Thing Someone Has Said About Your Natural Hair?



Source

 If you read natural hair blogs like Hairnista, Curly Nikki or BGLHOnline or peruse the many natural hair Tumblr photo sites, you'd swear that everybody just loves natural hair, right?

No, Boo Boo, everybody ain't in love with our kinks, curls and coils. Some people downright hate them, and they are quick to tell you that they don't support our natural journey!

Inspired by Char Jay's hilarious YouTube vid, Sh*t Natural Girls Say to Relaxed Girls, what's the worst thing you've ever heard said about natural hair?

Are the Jokes On Us?
I admit, I cringe whenever I hear Martin talk about Pam's "beady beads" or her "kitchen." Funny as hell in the 90s and I will admit it's still funny now -- though I think I"m more "naturally" aware of the sting the term can cause. Like anything else, though, many times it depends on who is saying the term.

Maybe it's a natural hair insult when you were a kid -- back then, "nappy" was a fighting word. Yeah, I know many naturals today embrace the word now, but it was not the business back then. Are there certain natural hair insults that we need to rethink or are we too sensitive?


Is there a Naturals' Pass?
Many times, we get offended based on who lobs the insult. I know I've seen plenty of eyebrow raising things on forums. Most of the time, it's "packaged" differently, by typing of hair, as in type 1, 2 and 3 hair is somehow better.

Hair typing still gets the side eye from me, but oh, well. That doesn't mean that naturals can't, and won't, insult fellow naturals. However, I think the sting doesn't hurt as much? It's wrong, but it's almost like it's a bit more acceptable when from your own.

But a relaxed girl? Sorry, she can't say nothing, as we saw in Char Jay's hilarious YouTube vid, Sh*t Relaxed Girls Say to Natural Girls."

 What's the best way to respond when your natural hair is insulted?