Leopard On Trend For Fall

If there's one item in my closet that I've got plenty of, it's animal print.

I'm wild for anything animal print, but leopard has a special place in my heart. My closet overfloweth with all things leopard -- I'm talking about shoes, skirts, dresses, earrings, dresses. When done correctly, leopard print is very chic, classic and timeless.

And you can pair it with just about anything -- orange, red, mustard yellow (so hot right now), denim, black or brown. It truly is the "new" neutral.  And hey we all need to unleash our animal instinct every once in a while.

What I like the most about leopard print is that it is a classic design. Yeah, it might be on trend right now, but trust that leopard is one of the few fashion choices that will still be worn 50 years from now.

I love it when leopard is paired with new designs -- think leopard wedges, leopards platforms.

Here are a few of my leopard and animal print faves in shoes and clothing. Add these to your closet now!

Betsey Johnson Sophia - L, $129.95, Zappos.com

Poppie Jones Leopard Tongue Clutch, $34.95, DSW.com  

Steve Madden Sarina-L, $129.95, Zappos.com

Leopard Print Scarf, $29.90, Zara.com

Leopard Print Jacket, $25.90, Zara.com

First Lady Michelle Obama with Longer Hair

Earlier this week, a few photos were released featuring First Lady Michelle Obama with longer hair.

Clearly, her her hair has grown from the chic chin length cut she's known for, to near shoulder length now.

I think most Black women are fascinated with Mrs. Obama's  hair. From her sleek updos, to chic chignons and classic pulled back hair, it's clear that First Lady likes to do different things with her hair.

I've heard she was a natural, too, but of course, I can't confirm that. Stylist Johnny Wright does her tresses, and I've heard that she prefers flat ironed hair, as do Sasha and Malia. No matter what style, they are all classy.

I'd love to get an idea of the First Lady's regimen.  What do you think of First Lady's hair? If you were her stylist, how would you style her hair?

First Lady Michelle Obama in a chin length cut  -- Feb. 2009

First Lady Obama sporting longer hair -- Oct. 2011

Like This Look

I get my fashion inspiration from lots of things -- from the look stylists put together, models strutting the catwalk, ensembles worn by fashion bloggers, spreads in fashion magazines, to random folks walking down the street.

I'll put together the looks I like from time to time in this feature, Like This Look.

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I like this look from StylePantry.com, by blogger Folake. I really like how she puts together unconventional things, in different colors, and they all rock. I love the turquoise blue and the cut of the palazzo pants. And the yellow necklace makes the entire outfit pop. Folake knows how to wear color, prints and patterns.

I don't know if I could get away with some of the thing she tries, but what she wears looks good on her!

Have Naturals Gone Mainstream?

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Naturals are popping up everywhere -- on national TV commercials, in magazines and now in America's top retailers.  I was in the sunglasses department at Wal-Mart the other day when I saw a large banner ad with a beautiful natural staring back at me.

Have naturals gone mainstream? I think so, but it depends. When it comes to advertising, it's a definite Y-E-S, with household names like Target, Allstate and PayPal using naturals in their advertising.

But, for everything else, not so much. In Atlanta, I see tons of naturals all day, every day. I'm not sure if it's the same everywhere else.

It's always a paradox. The creative powers that-be that control images and messaging on Madison Avenue just seem to love naturals. I'd like to think that it's because our kinks, coils and waves are unique and sets us apart from straight hair; natural hair is a unique identifier, because no strands are alike.

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Natural hair in the media is so popular that there's even a blog dedicated to it --http://www.naturalhairinthemedia.com/.

Yet, for all the "love" we get on blogs, tweets and commercials, there is a very real resistance to our hair in every day life.  Often, it's a resistance to wearing our natural hair from the very same people who look like us -- our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, friends, co-workers and even strangers on the street.

For the record, I'm a "Do you, Boo" type of girl:  Whether it's a perm, a weave or natural kinks, it's their hair and I won't be the one caring for it. Do what works for you! I don't give sideye to those with perms or straight hair.  There are many short, relaxed styles that are the business. I'm a sucker for a chic, closely cropped and freshly cut relaxed hair style.

*shrugs*

To me, it's all about choices. Just like I don't want someone telling me to go get a perm, I can't tell someone else to be natural. The decision to go natural, even today with all of the products and information available, is still a highly personal one. When it comes to styling, it's a decision they have to be ready for.

Still, I'd like to think that, because folks today see more curly girls in commercials and in magazines that, maybe, must maybe, our perceptions about our hair will change. That we will become more accepting and comfortable as Black people about what grows out of our scalps.

Maybe it's too optimistic. I can only hope.

Is Heat Bad?

For years, I was a heat-trained natural. I was the queen of the press and curl and, later, the flat iron.

From my last touch up for my wedding in 1995 through 2008, I rarely wore my natural hair "out" if it wasn't straightened. Except for the two times when I texturized my hair after I chopped it off into a short do in 2006 and 2007, I wore it fried and laid to the side.


When my hair wasn't flat ironed, it was slicked back with gel and bunned. Sometimes, I wore my hair in a curly ponytail, but for the most part, I didn't rock my natural tresses. I don't know why, but maybe I thought I didn't have any options back then?

I saw my first wash and go in 2003 -- curly spirals that were so cute!

I asked the lady how she got her hair like that and she told me she used gel. I never thought my hair could do that -- and remember, this was before products like Miss Jessie's and Kinky Curly were mainstream -- even though I rocked a curly pony tail with gel dating back to the late 1990s.

So, I kept on rocking my presses. Since my shrinkage is a straight beast -- I'm talking from chin length to bra strap length when straightened -- I've always been told my hair "holds heat." I don't know what the hell that means; I assumed it meant that my hair straightened easily.

For me, presses done professionally get my hair straighter than a perm. Except for the two times when I texturized my hair after I cut all my hair off in 2006 and 2007, I've been sans perm.

Beat the Heat?

Fast forward to 2011, and there are so many naturals who swear off heat that at one point, even I thought heat was "bad." Heat damage may as well have been a four-letter word, judging by the ire it gets on forums and blogs.

Really, though?

Naturals swear off blow dryers like they're the plague -- even indirect heat.

While this may be very unpopular to say, let me be clear: I don't think heat is bad all the time.

I think it totally depends on your hair and how much you use heating tools. Sure, there are some naturals -- a minority, perhaps, but I don't have scientific evidence to back that up -- that can't use heat at all.

Flat ironed hair

And then there lies the rest of us: Our hair will probably do OK as long as we don't straighten it excessively. What constitutes excessive can vary by person, but I'd say flat ironing every 3-4 weeks, using temps no higher than 350 degrees and no excessive number of passes.

Do I like straightened hair? I do, and I've begun to incorporate straightening my hair once a month myself.

Do I have a few more split ends because of it? Probably so, but not major damage.

As my hair has gotten longer, I've experienced more knots and tangles. I'm talking about middle of the strand knots, which I've never had before. Stretching my hair by flat ironing it once a month --- or a blow dryer at the very least -- has helped me, surprisingly, retain length by cutting down tangles.

Flat twist on flat ironed hair

As much as I wear wash and go hairstyles, the gels, conditioners and constant moisture are taking their toll on my hair the longer it gets. I can't do the same things I did a year or even 6 months ago.

What do you think about heat? Is it bad or good for your hair?

Are Grease, Mineral Oil, Parabens and Silicones Really Bad For Your Hair?

If you're a new natural -- or even a natural who's been in the game for a minute -- you've probably heard the warnings about the use of grease, mineral oils, petroleum, silicones and parabens.You'd think that you were lacing your strands with cyanide, based upon the number of naturals who vehemently swear off these ingredients like it's the H1NI virus.


Mention that you're even thinking about using them, and it's almost like a come to Jesus meeting in a roomful of Wicca practitioners.

Usually, it goes something like this:

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"You will RUIN your hair."

"Mineral oils block moisture."

"Silicone coats the hair strand."

Or, worse yet, your "Hair WON'T grow!"

Some naturals will do their damnest to convert you to the "other side."A recent post about mineral oils on CurlyNikki.com, via Beauty Brains, got me to thinking: Are these ingredients really so bad? I'll be upfront with you: My absolute favorite deep conditioner is Silicon Mix -- and it's chock FULL of mineral oil.

It moisturizes my hair like no other, it's cheap for just $6, and it works like a charm every time. My hair absolutely loves it. And I love it as well as other Dominican products. Generally, I follow the "do you" regimen. If it works for you, then do it; damn what other naturals say, because they don't know your hair.

I know it's almost blasphemous, but I'll say it: I just don't believe that all the things that are supposed to be "bad" for our hair us, are really bad. One of the most popular products, Miss Jessie's, is full of mineral oils and petroleums.

Yet, some naturals swear by it and think nothing of slapping it on their heads. But those same naturals would never put mineral oil or petroleum on their hair. I'm not a big fan of Miss Jessie's, but it's not because of the ingredients, but rather, price.


We know how little mineral oils and petroleum costs. I just refuse to pay a premium price for non-premium products.

I'm of the same opinion about things like grease. Naturals douse their hair with every kind of exotic oil imaginable, but hardly anything, I've found, works as well for long-term moisturizing than good old fashioned grease on the hair -- not the scalp. Full disclosure: I use Vaseline to seal, olive oil for oil rinses, and coconut oil for my wash and gos.

I've tried pricey pressing oils and anti-humectant serums, but nothing, and I mean nothing, gives me a silky flat iron when I do it myself, like good old fashioned Crisco. I know naturals who read ingredients like stans, instantly throwing out anything with a paraben or "un-natural" ingredient.

Many naturals have tried the all-natural route -- some refer to it as the Curly Girl method -- that avoids parabens and silicones. Their hair has absolutely revolted, with dry, lackluster results. I'm not gonna get too scientific, but it seems that for while everyone says that things like silicones and mineral oil block moisture, but they were created in a lab to moisturize hair and skin.

Most of our mothers knew nothing about 90% of the popular natural hair care practices today: co-washes, heat damage, sealing, finger combing, low manipulation regimens and natural oils were foreign to many of them.

Yet, our hair grew like weeds, often with just a little Blue Magic and Royal Crown grease and ponytails. Look, I'm not saying that we shouldn't reexamine some of our hair care practices. All I'm saying is that the all-natural ingredient route isn't all what it's cracked up to be for everyone.

Do what works for your hair, because what works for one head may not work for another.

Your hair will tell you if a regimen or product is "good" or "bad."

HairTroversy: Is it More than Just 'Hair'?

There's a very real debate in the natural hair community between naturals vs. permies.

Just look at the comments on many blogs, Twitter updates, Facebook stats or even in our very own homes when it comes to textured hair.

Let's keep it real, HairNistas.

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The "hate" comes from both sides of the hair fence.

Fresh from the "creamy crack," naturals flub their permed counterparts, questioning their so-called "Blackness" for chemically altering their tresses. Permies are no better, admonishing those with their natural roots to run a get a perm stat or believing their straightened hair is somehow better.

Both are misguided. And both show just how deep the hair pain is on both sides of the hair fence.

Many times, those lobbing the painful hair bombs are often those who we care about the most -- our mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, girlfriends, boyfriends and husbands -- which does nothing to ease the very painful sting that Black women feel daily for how we decide to wear our hair.

So, it didn't exactly surprise me when I heard about a club promoter in Atlanta -- a self described lover of natural hair -- offering $5-$10 discounts to naturals for a series of events centered around an HBCU football game and homecoming in Atlanta last month.

With the conflict between naturals and permies bubbling up in a virtual all-out hair war on Twittter, Facebook, blogs and in real-life, the promotion took some naturals aback. Some loved it, because for once, finally, a brother was showing us natural girls -- who, unfortunately are often the topic of disdain from the very same men who look like us -- some well-deserved love.

Others hated it, because, really, how do you know who is "natural" and who isn't? I'm rocking a flat ironed coif today; does that make me any less "natural"? What about those who protect their naturals under straight weaves or wigs? Do they count, too?

And wait, isn't all of this really divisive anyway, yet another way to pit black women against each other. Sounds eerily reminiscent of Spike Lee's 80s cult classic hit, "School Daze" mixed with a healthy dose of the "Good Hair" documentary by Chris Rock.

*Sigh.*

Blogs lit up, with sites from TheGriot.com, Root.com to Essence.com weighing in with news coverage and editorial commentary. The promoter, Joey Digital, later apologized for the hair dustup a few weeks before the events.

No word on how "successful" the discount proved; if anything, though, it did serve to boost publicity.
The events were a fundraiser for FAMU. Unfortunately, the only thing anyone could talk about was this natural hair debate; the event became overshadowed by the controversy, even though the promoter said natural hair was just one of many discounts that he offered on a Facebook page.

I get it.

Naturals are so often looked down upon by everyone else, that it feels good -- for once -- to get some love from your own. Though perhaps well intentioned, Digital's natural hair discounts only served to divide us even more.  

Permies, don't worry. It's not us vs. you, nor do most of us who wear our natural hair think that we are better. Heck, most of us have been permed up at some points in our lives. This way of thinking is no better than that "good" hair "bad" hair crap that has so wrongly permeated our culture and beliefs.

Whether you are braided up or locked, twisted up or braided out or your straight tresses are blowing in the wind, let's just show each other some hair love today.

Every day, naturals wear T-shirts and jewelry with unabashed pride for what grows out of our scalps. We say it's "just hair." But sometimes, I really wonder if we believe that ish or are we talking out of the sides of our necks?

Maybe it sounds good, but I sometimes question if we really believe it. There are many days when I wonder is it more than just hair?