day 3's challenge is the new about page... I never know what to say when talking about myself....
It's amazing that something as "trivial" as hair can bring about changes in other areas of life. No, I'm not saying my whole world has changed and I'm a brand new person after getting rid of the perm! But small changes here and there... Here are a few of the things that I've noticed are evolving along with my look.
1. PATIENCE: You cannot rush natural hair! Sometimes, like last night, I can spend 35 minutes just detangling my hair. It's tedious; it's time consuming. However, taking care of each section and making sure it's done right is well worth it. I'm learning (ever so slowly) to take my time with some things. Not everything has to be rushed. Some have to take a while to do right and to truly enjoy.
2. SELF ASSURANCE: Even though I've gotten a lot of positive comments from others regarding my new look, I still get hit with negativity and criticism. If I wasn't confident in what I'm doing, why I'm doing it and who I am, some of those comments could make me falter. In learning to defend my decision and advocate natural hair to those who think they "can't do it," I feel a little more confident when talking about other ideas and decisions that may be met with adversity.
3. MY PERSONAL STYLE: I often used my long straight hair as my sole accessory. Earrings were a maybe; necklaces were almost never even considered. Now that I'm rocking short tresses, I'm becoming a little more experimental with my jewelry as well as my makeup. Not only that, but I'm trying to take more risks as far as clothing is concerned. I'm not trying to be disingenuous to who I am and my style, but why relegate myself to the "safe" colors and styles that I have? Especially when I see cute outfits on others or put pieces together in my mind and think "I could rock that." I'm already going against the grain here with the natural hair. What's to stop me from playing with everything else a little more?
4. APPROACHABILITY: Okay, I don't know if that's quite the word I'm looking for, but it'll have to do for now. These days, I get a lot of opening lines about my hair, from men and women alike. Now that's not so new, because that happened pretty often before. However, where I used to just say "Thanks" and keep moving, I'm now eager to discuss my hair regimen, style ideas, why I went natural, etc. And I'm more apt to approach another natural haired lady to pay her compliments, ask what she does to it/uses on it, whatever. And yeah, we're just talking about hair, but it's not just the hair! That intro could lead/has lead to various networking opportunities to use to my benefit socially, professional, etc.
So, have you recognized any changes that sort of corresponded to your natural hair journey?
I love your blog and thanks for commenting on my page....I'm seriously considering going natural. I haven't had a relaxer in over 2 years but have been wearing a weave (yeah the whole professional vs. natural thing). But I'm tired of the upkeep and stressing over hair that is not even mine. So I definitely think I'm going to take the plunge. I'm terrible at styling hair of any kind so I like that you show different styles. Thanks again for the visit and the link :)
ReplyDeletei almost feel like you took the words out of my mouth! i have never worn make up but suddenly have the urge to now that i wear my hair *curly
ReplyDelete@ thecandyshoppe Wooow 2 years? You're not considering; you're pretty much there! lol I totally feel you on not knowing how to style hair. When I was relaxed the only things I could do were wrap it, roll it, and make a ponytail. If you're ready to try your hand at dealing with your natural hair, I'd suggest perusing some of the blogs I have linked to the side. I've gotten tons of great ideas from other bloggers. Hope that helps!
ReplyDelete@thetiffany So I'm not the only one! The only makeup I've ever worn consistantly is lipstick, but I'm learning to play around with eye makeup as well. It's.... interesting, to say the least!