HairTroversy: Are Curly Weaves Better?

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Lately, I've noticed that more celebs and Black women in general are opting for curly, kinky, wavy or natural weaves.

Whether it's Serena Williams, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce or your average girl on the street, the curly look is in. Now, mainstream media has picked on, as this piece on Philly.com illustrates, via BGLHOnline.com.

The hair is so popular, that weave shops can't keep it in stock.

Is this an improvement?

Depends. If a woman wears weaves only because she's afraid to wear her natural hair, that's an issue that she'll have to deal with when she's ready. If a woman is wearing a curly weave because she doesn't want a straight one, that's an overall improvement, perhaps.

The Curly Paradox

Now, I don't think straight weaves will ever go "out" of style -- just ask the women shelling out thousands of dollars for Remy or Malaysian hair. But, just like more women are wearing natural hair, more women are also copying that look -- except with wigs/weaves.

Maybe this will be the impetus they need to go natural; maybe it won't. Maybe they like natural hair, but are afraid to really embrace it and want to dip their toes in the "natural" waters. Meh. Yet, it's still important to point out: Unless it's your natural texture, natural weaves are not our hair.

Better question: Are you comfortable with the kinky, curly, coarse stuff that grows out of your scalp -- even if it doesn't look like the curly weave you're rocking? If you're crushing on some hair that you can't realistically achieve For some of us, I'm not so sure. It will be a good day when we can love OUR hair, no matter how curly or kinky it is.

Do you think curly weaves indicate a broader acceptance of curly hair or is it still a step back in terms of hair acceptance? Would you wear a curly weave/wig?

HairTroversy: How Do You Handle A Hair Compliment When Wearing A Weave/Wig?

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Sometimes, even the most well intentioned comment can go all the hell wrong.

I was at Rack Room shoes today when I saw what I thought was a headful of thick, natural hair. Mid-back length straight, thick hair, lots of body and thick curls at the end.

Before I could compliment her, she complimented me: "Your hair is so pretty!" I returned the compliment and said: "Actually, I was going to tell you, I like your hair."  She immediately pointed to her hair said, "Oh, thank you, I'm natural under here. It's hot and I had to do something with it. I couldn't take it anymore. "

My face was probably looking all kind of wrong, because I had no idea she had a weave. The ends of her hair were thick, like sponge roller thick type of curls. Most weaved up girls get the long, pin straight weaves. This young lady had thick, but straight hair. I just knew it was hers.

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When A Compliment Goes Horribly Wrong

Turns out it wasn't, and it left me feeling awkward as hell. I immediately felt like I might have made her a bit uncomfortable. If I could do it over again, I wished she would have said thank you and kept it moving. I didn't need an explanation about why she wore her hair the way she did; that's her business.

All of which left me thinking: Is there a right way and a wrong way to give a hair compliment?
Should the receiver of the compliment just say thank you and keep it moving or should they admit that it's not their hair?

I don't like to throw shade. If it's obvious that a person has a wig/weave and I like it, I just say, "Nice hair" and leave it at that. Now, sometimes the person will say, "thank you." Other times, they'll admit it's not theirs.

Hey, I'm cool with both. Personally, I've done both when I wore wigs, but especially the latter when I was new to wearing my La Jay wig. The more comfortable I got wearing it, "thank you" became the only explanation needed.

Do you admit you are wearing a wig/weave when you get a compliment? Do you make excuses for wearing a wig/weave?

Wig it Up!

It can turn into an ugly, vicious debate in the natural community: Wigs/weaves vs. naturals.

But really, there shouldn't be an us vs. them.  I think naturals feel some type of way about weaving/wigging up, but I'm all about doing "you" and whatever that means for Y-O-U.

If that means wearing a wig or a weave to protect your precious tresses, then so be it. If length is your goal, the wig/weave wearer (depending on how well they maintain their natural hair, of course), will probably retain more length than those twist outs, braid outs and wash and go girls who wear their hair out non-stop.

Pick the wig or weave that looks best on you and do you, BOO!

Heck, I wore a straight wig three years ago to grow out a pixie cut. And I'm strongly considering buying a few natural wigs just to give my hair a much-needed break. I probably won't wear a straight wig, but a natural wig? Yeps, that's the plan.

If you haven't checked kinky wigs out recently, you'll be in for a pleasant surprise. There are so, so many on the market these days. From short to long to everything in between, natural wigs are all the rage. Why buy all these concoctions, curly cremes, $40 puddings and all of that when I can buy a wig with realistic looking curls?

I think my hair just might thank me for it.  Even weaves have gone kinky. I saw a kinky weave on a model in a magazine that was just GORGEOUS!

I don't have a problem with curls in my natural hair; my problem is uniform curls. My curls are about the size of the tiny metal pieces inside a push-button pin. But they're not uniform. And shrinkage is a MUTHA! Some days my curls are poppin' all over. Other days, ehh.

That, and I get tired of manipulating my hair at times. I think of wigs as an accessory. I'm easily bored. I probably won't color my hair, but I sure will sport a wig with the color I'm feeling at the moment -- and save my natural hair from the maintenance and upkeep that comes with color.

I'm loving the La Jay by Vanessa and Creta Girl by Freetress. I hate wig stock photos, (they look SO much better on a real person) so I'm showing images of wigs that were posted online or in forums with a link back their original source.

Would you wear a wig or no?

Creta Wig by Freetress

La Jay by Vanessa