Among the things he found were

• A Korean law dating back to the 1960s that bans the export of Korean hair, ensuring that wigs made of Korean hair can only be made in Korea
• Korean-American businesses sometimes won’t sell wholesale products to black manufacturers, as a means of edging them out of the haircare business
• Some Korean-American haircare shop owners have been in business for decades, while black owned shops struggle to survive
• Some Korean shop owners refuse to sell products from Black-owned businesses in their stores as a means of keeping Black haircare operators out of the business
• A severe lack of unity in the Black community when it comes to haircare — low price and convenience is often valued over supporting Black business owners
• Aron also witnessed the creation of the Black Owned Beauty Supply Association whose aim is to gain a larger stake in the $9 billion black haircare and cosmetic industry.

I posed some questions to Ranen about his documentary:

How did you get interested in the black haircare industry?
AR: I am interested in this subject because it is so wrong, yet fixable.

Your documentary talks about the Korean takeover of the black haircare market. Did you ever get to the bottom of WHY this happened? I mean, why Korean immigrants? And why black haircare? How did blacks lose their grip on their own market? Where did the breakdown begin?
AR: In my film I trace it back to 1965 when the Korean Wig merchants targeted the US Black consumer, and lobbied to have the Korean government ban the export of the Raw hair…giving the Koreans a lock on manufacturing human hair wigs and extensions. In the documents exposed in my film, it only describes the black market as it’s target..not why.

Your portrayal of Korean immigrants was mainly as part of the problem, i.e. contributing to a lack of black ownership in the haircare industry. But did you ever find anything in their collective story that you were sympathetic to?
AR: I understand the daily beauty supply employee works long and hard hours, it’s the folks at the top that have been behind keeping African Americans, and Black Londoners out of the industry.

In a few articles I’ve read you point to ‘micro loans’ as the answer for black business. Why did you come to that conclusion?
AR: I believe the only solution is to open 100-500 stores right next to pre-existing Korean owned shops. That means investment, not loans..we need the Black Capitol to realize this is a good investment..open the stores, create the distribution channel, and keep the dollars in the communities as well as getting rid of the “criminalization of the consumer” which exists in many Asian owned stores. This will create a rainbow of jobs from $10 in the stores to $100,000 running marketing and distribution. I can see Reality shows on BET where people compete to get their products in the Black Owned stores!

In everything you saw and heard, what were you most shocked by?
AR: The lack of interest by Oprah, Bill Cosby, the Black Churches in seeing this as an opportunity..and creating buzz and economic action around the Hair and supply business.

Here is part 1 of Aron’s 4-part documentary:

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J’s response:
Hi fellow yogi! You’re very welcome! Great question and it is so timely since we are in the midst of the summer heat! I know sometimes ladies are discouraged to work out during the summer because it’s hot, but mostly because they are afraid to mess up the do! No fear ladies! There are ways to work out and still keep the pretty

Sweet Gym Styles:
1) The Puff/Ponytail: self explanatory!
2) Pin up/Updo: You can do this with twists, braids or loose hair. Use pins or clips to keep it up. An elegant variation of an up-do was already mentioned by Rochelle – a bun/chignon.
3) I <3 Accessories: I love using a brightly colored bandanna or scarf to "catch" perspiration and keep it off of my face. It also works to keep my edges down as my hair expands exponentially to match the intensity of the workout!

(If you’re short on time, these styles also work great after the gym. Depending on how quickly your hair dries, you can rock an “out” style.)

Cleansing
It is essential to wash your hair after working out. This is because your perspiration/sweat contains salt. Salt + hair = dry, brittle hair. Not only that, but the buildup of sweat, oil and bacteria can cause skin eruptions. It’s hard enough already to keep skin clear with the summer humidity. Some women can get away with rinsing their hair thoroughly after a workout, but for most, I suggest that you use some sort of cleanser. Use a mild shampoo after working out. If you work out everyday, I definitely recommend co-washing to keep more moisture in the hair. Concentrate on the scalp and the hairline. Don’t scrub! After a long workout, your scalp will appreciate the massage! If you are a “wash and go” girl, the cleansing part is easy. If you aren’t, consider rocking twists or any other type of protective style so that you don’t have to start from scratch with each wash. Twists and braids have a lot of durability (soft/fine hair types aside) during light washing. Washing in twists or braids will also prevent you from losing a lot of hair each wash in the detangling process. After washing, apply a leave-in conditioner and a light moisturizer again concentrating on the ends of the hair. Rochelle, you’re on the right track with hydration. This is especially important for naturals who live in dry, hot climates. Don’t overload your hair with products since you’re just going to do it all over again shortly. The idea is that you cleanse the scalp gently (once is usually enough) to remove the impurities, but your hair still retains some of its natural oils. At the end of the week, you can do a thorough detangling and deep conditioning.

ETA: I know a lot of ladies are concerned about too much manipulation. I’m not much of a “sweater”, meaning I don’t sweat in my scalp, only in my crown area; so a “cheat” technique I use is to wash only the crown area. I received a question today in my email about weaves/extensions and working out. I’ve never had a weave, but I know that you’re not supposed to wash the hair too often. This will cause it to loosen from your own hair. Another issue with added hair is that depending on the quality of hair, it may get matted with this much manipulation. And I know you gotta keep your “wig” tight-lol! Rinses or swabbing the scalp with witch hazel may work best in these situations. Stick with the technique that works best for you and your hair!

Splish-Splash!
If you’re swimming this summer, invest in a natural-based swimmer’s shampoo. Look for any natural shampoo that will remove the chlorine from your hair with out stripping the precious oils. I use Jason Swimmer’s & Sports Rejuvenating Shampoo. Before swimming, apply conditioner generously to the hair concentrating on the ends. The conditioner acts as a barrier to prevent the chlorinated water from penetrating the strands and damaging the cuticle. Furthermore, use a swimmer’s cap to avoid chlorine’s harsh effects on the hair. This is especially important for my color-treated naturals. In using a swimmer’s cap, something I’ve found that works for me is the “swim cap suction technique” (aptly named to sound technical-lol). If you have a lot of hair, your hair can create enough suction so that water only seeps in around the hairline. Put your hair up loosely (not a ponytail), then tie a scarf/bandanna around it. Squeeze the swim cap over the head for a snug fit. Again this only works with thick and/or long hair. Happy swimming and enjoy the rest of the summer!

Ladies, feel free to share your ideas with Rochelle on how to keep the hair pretty (and healthy) while working out!

~j~

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and speaking of workplace hair, i’ve been thinking about something…
so, i have a ‘natural haired professional’ wishlist that consists of a.) a truly non-bogus natural hair stylist, b.) more natural hair scientists, c.) michelle obama (or the next black female president/first lady)… and now i’ve added a 4th one — a natural hair consultant.

let me explain.

so, it is generally known when straight hair looks bogus.
exhibit a:

exhibit b:

exhibit c:

but there isn’t a general knowledge of when natural hair (or black hair generally) is bogus, and when it isn’t

for example, some employers can’t tell the difference between this:

and this:

hell, they might even be more willing to accept this, just cuz the shit looks familiar:

i remember when carol mosley-braun (first black female U.S. senator) wore cornrows on the senate floor, and her colleagues said it was a sign of disrespect for her job. what?! that’s why we need a consultant. someone to travel from workplace to workplace to educate people on which natural work styles are kosher, and which aren’t.

what do you think? could you do with a natural hair consultant at your job? (i know i could!)

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if you have not seen one already, please see a doctor if any of these conditions persist. please do not self-diagnosis or self-medicate without getting the proper information. the information that follows is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

1) the roots to the causes of dandruff are varied. most often it is the result of dead skin cells due to overactive sebum production. most of us are familiar with those unflattering white flakes. it has been linked to hormonal changes and stress. as a child, i had persistent dandruff that was not alleviated by commercial or physician prescribed anti-dandruff shampoos. the dandruff remained while my hair became stripped and dry. knowing now what i know about sulfate shampoos, i understand why (and i’m sure “grease” only exacerbated the problem). eventually my mother had success with various “back home” concoctions in the form of scalp pretreatments before shampooing which included castor oil mixed with herbs.

some options to try:
for dandruff and fungal infections, try apple cider vinegar (acv). this is because apple cider vinegar has anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, and anti-viral properties, mostly coming from the malic acid and acetic acid portion of the vinegar. many people suffer from dandruff due to some kind of yeast on the scalp. the key with using acv is consistency. use it with every wash. leave it in the night before you wash as a pre-treatment. mix it with a few drops of rosemary , sage or lemongrass. several years ago, i acquired this anti-dandruff recipe: mix equal parts tea tree oil with jojoba, cover with cap for 30 minutes. follow with an apple cider vinegar/water rinse in a 1:4 ratio. you can also simply add a few drops of tea tree oil to your shampoo. another oil with disinfectant/antibacterial/antifungal properties is neem oil. use it as a pretreatment before a wash. caution: a little goes a long way! test your level of sensitivity with this oil as it is potent. and the scent may not be pleasing to some as it is strong and nutty! finally, you will not see results if you’re contaminating your scalp with harmful ingredients. avoid ingredients on the natural girl’s black list.

2) eczema is thought to be linked to an overactive response by the body’s immune system to a bacterium that normally lives on the skin or the body’s response to an irritant. again, avoid sulfate shampoos/cleansers and harsh detergents. some of the best oils that have provided relief are kukui nut oil, emu oil and neem oil. use on damp skin/scalp. tea tree oil is an antibacterial so it works the bacterial angle. add foods rich in b and e vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids and zinc to your diet. although the cause of eczema is unknown, symptoms typically occur as an allergic response so try supplementing internally with natural anti-inflammatory agents like turmeric and msm.

3) alopecia areata is characterized by bald patches on the head. according to the dermatology channel, it is sometimes associated with autoimmune diseases like lupus and allergies. its cause is unknown but one-fifth of those afflicted by alopecia areata have a family history. although not a trichologist, i do know that some people have triggered traction alopecia with harmful hair practices like tight braids. other triggers can include hormone imbalances, eczema, fungal infections, and chemicals in hair dyes, relaxers and permanents. check out this link for more triggers. according to cathy wong, some alopecia sufferers have had success with daily onion juice treatments and daily essential oil massages. try a blend of thyme, rosemary, lavender and cedarwood blended with jojoba and grapeseed oil. extreme stress has been linked to hair loss. try exercising, yoga and meditation to clear out negative energy.

check out this link for other beneficial treatments for hair loss

~j~

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The Locks Market: The Truth Behind the Business of Hair Extensions
By Katherine Zoepf

There’s just no way around it — the bald women are alarming-looking. In this small city in the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, they’re also everywhere: grandmothers and gawky teenagers and pretty young matrons by the hairless hundreds, walking along the road or squashed into the backs of minibuses or waiting cross-legged in the shade in front of the municipal train station. It’s impossible to look directly at them, at first. Despite their gold jewelry and bright saris, their palely gleaming scalps call to mind prisoners, cancer patients, inmates of a 19th-century insane asylum.

The women — and men, too, though the sight of men with freshly shaved heads is far less startling — are religious pilgrims visiting Tirumala, a temple of the Vaishnava sect of Hinduism high in the red granite hills above the town of Tirupati. Since the ninth century, devout Hindus have been coming here to pay their respects to the resident deity, Lord Venkateswara, one of the forms of the god Vishnu. And for many of these pilgrims, a visit to the temple is not complete without tonsuring — a ritual shaving off of all their hair as a gesture of devotion and gratitude to the god. These devotees believe that if they give up their hair, the god will grant them any wish. But in recent years, the practice of tonsuring — aided by the implacable forces of globalization — has also helped to make Tirumala into one of the richest religious pilgrimage sites in the world.

For the reason, look no further than the pages of the nearest celebrity gossip weekly. The lush, high-quality hair extensions beloved by celebrities such as Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, Britney Spears, and Jessica Simpson have helped create a soaring Western demand for “temple hair,” as it is often called. Temple hair most often comes from Tirumala, by far the largest of the South Indian temples where tonsuring is practiced. And at Tirumala, the glossy, healthy, waistlength hair from the heads of young Indian women — women who typically have not cut their hair since early childhood, and who have never allowed anything harsher than fresh coconut oil and herbal Ayurvedic soap to touch it — fetches the highest prices.

Brett Butcher, the national program director for the American arm of the Italy-based high-end hair-extensions maker Great Lengths, is rhapsodic as he describes the strength and beauty of temple hair. Even after it has been sorted, cleaned, processed, stripped of color, recolored one of 56 available hues, stitched into extensions, curled or straightened, and bonded to a woman’s natural hair, extensions made with temple hair can last for up to six months, all the while being brushed, washed, and styled just as if they were their wearer’s own strands.

“It’s the highest-quality hair that’s available to the mass market in the world,” Butcher says. “And the best part is that it’s donated by these women, to pay tribute at the temples.”

In fact, it can feel a little disconcerting for a foreign visitor to see just how freely thousands of women do give up their hair at Tirumala each day. In the temple’s main tonsuring room, a line of women wait, barefoot, on a white tile floor that is grimy, slippery, and strewn with matted clumps of hair. The women are wearing their festival best, saris and shalwar kameez in shades of shocking pink or turquoise or tangerine, and some of them have garlands of jasmine wound around their long braids. One by one the women sit on the floor before a line of five impassive-looking female barbers with towels spread across their laps. One by one they lower their heads forward over the tiled floor.

The barbers are brisk, businesslike. They scarcely look up as they work, periodically dunking the razors in buckets of cold water and taking care to scrape off even the fine hair on the nape of a woman’s neck or below her ears. On average, the temple goes through 50,000 blades a day. One by one the women stand up, staggering slightly, perhaps dizzy as the blood rushes from their heads. Their hair — vast quantities of it — is being swept into giant steel bins, about eight feet high and roughly twice the diameter of a standard New York City trash can. But most of the women leave the room quickly and don’t even turn around to look. If they’re aware that anything happens to their hair after they leave, they don’t show it.

Teams of men empty the steel bins, methodically stuffing skein after skein of hair into burlap sacks. The sacks of hair are then brought to a central collection point — several Quonset hut-shaped warehouses behind the temple’s main marketing office — where the hair is spread out and dried. An unmistakably scalpy coconut-oil smell emanates from the wide-gauge screen windows of these vast storage sheds. Inside, the dark piles of human hair are waist-deep.

Good-quality hair — typically from young women — that is more than 16 inches long can sell for 12,000 rupees (around $245) per kilogram or more, says Mayoor Balsara, who heads SDTC Exports, an independent company that buys temple hair from Tirumala, does part of its processing, then sells it to Great Lengths. “Because they understand that hair has value, they take great care that it’s collected and stored in a proper manner,” Balsara says of Tirumala’s administrators. (SDTC Exports monitors the temple’s storage procedures.) And for good reason: “We call it black gold,” says O. Balaji, the chief accounts officer of the Tirumala temple, proudly. After the hair is dried, it is sorted into grades, depending on its length. The price for temple hair has more than tripled over the past five years, thanks to the burgeoning hair-extension industry – a fact that “was really a big surprise for us,” Balaji says. “Really now it is fetching a good amount. The hair must be given lots of importance here because of the amount of revenue it produces. Our deity is now the richest deity in the world.”

Three or four times a year, the hair collected at Tirumala is sold at auction. Approximately 500 tons of human hair is sold per year, Balsara says. Before the hair extensions craze began, about ten years ago, the hair was sold to wigmakers or to furniture companies as mattress stuffing — but far less of it was sold, and for far less money. The hair now brings the temple 100 crore rupees (approximately $20.6 million) annually. The money, Balsara says, is all poured back into the temple and the community: providing the free meal that each needy pilgrim is eligible to receive upon a visit to the temple, for example, and supporting local hospitals and religious schools.

“My favorite thing about Great Lengths, which I just love, love, love, is that the hair is a huge source of revenue for these needy communities,” Butcher says. (Great Lengths is not the only company that buys hair originating from Tirumala — hair extensions makers and wigmakers worldwide purchase temple hair — but it is the biggest.) “The temple funds schools and medical centers,” Butcher says. “It maybe looks a little brutal when you see the hair being cut off, but the pilgrims feel that it’s really an honor for them to do this.”

Fair enough, but are the female pilgrims to Tirumala — whose hair fetches the money — aware of what their hair is worth, or of the simple fact that it’s being sold in the first place?

In the warm morning sunlight outside the tonsuring room, the mood among all the so-called “tonsure pilgrims” — the roughly 10 percent of visitors to Tirumala who donate their hair — has lightened, now that the ritual is complete. Hindu holy Muzak plays in the background and families mill around the gift shops, gardens, and snack stalls outside the main temple. Small children are wailing — after having their own hair cut off or perhaps confronting a bald mother for the first time — and the passersby shoot their parents warm, understanding looks. But among the adults, there seems to be a sense of giddiness and shared relief that the tonsuring ordeal has passed.

Para Sakthi, a 40-year-old pilgrim wearing a fuchsia sari and a large gold nose ring and clutching her 6-year-old daughter, Manju, by the hand, explains that she and Manju were both tonsured that morning as a gesture of thanks for the health of their cow.

“We had a cow at home that was sick,” explains Sakthi, who is from the city of Vellore, in Tamil Nadu. “Everyone was earning money from the cow — that cow supported us all. We asked God to please heal our cow, and it worked. Now our cow is better, so we have come to Tirumala.”

Asked how long her hair had been before making her pilgrimage to Tirumala for tonsuring, Sakthi grins broadly and gestures at a point on her lower thigh. “I wanted to offer it to God,” she says. “I have grown my hair since childhood. If you have a problem and God helps, this is what you do.”

Sakthi furrows her brow momentarily when asked if she knows that the hair from tonsurings at Tirumala is later sold to make hair extensions. When told that hair extensions can cost as much as $3,000 at salons in the United States — more than triple the average yearly per capita income in India, just over $800 — her smile vanishes. She rolls her eyes skyward.

“Well, I didn’t know this, that our hair was sold,” Sakthi says. “But it doesn’t bother me as long as the money goes to God.”

But the money certainly doesn’t all go to the temple. After the hair is sold at temple auctions to Indian hair brokers, it typically is sold to factories in India where it is sorted by length and goes through the first stages of cleaning, fumigating, and processing. Then it is sold to wigmakers or hair-extensions makers, who process the hair further at facilities in Tunisia and Italy. From there, it is sold to distributors in dozens of countries around the world, who in turn sell the hair extensions to salons. All involved take a cut.

After their tonsuring, Sakthi and Manju join the line to get into the main temple. “Doing darshan,” as viewing the statue of Lord Venkateswara in the temple’s inner sanctum is called, typically follows the head-shaving ritual and can take 14 hours or more. It is a deeply emotional experience for many pilgrims. When, after a very long day in line (darshan is a strictly shoes-off affair, and there’s lots of murky standing water — with the occasional rat and submerged rock), the pilgrims come within sight of the statue, many burst into tears. So many pilgrims try to sink to their knees, or even faint, in front of the statue that temple workers sometimes physically push the crowd along.

In the train station, two sisters from Hyderabad, 25-year-old Rana and 26-year-old Mangamma, shriek with laughter and clutch each other in disbelief when told, in brief, about the economics of the hair-extensions industry, with the $3,000 figure translated into Indian rupees. Both sisters wear pretty paisley scarves tied kerchief-style over their newly bald heads; both say that their hair had reached below their waists until that morning.

Mangamma claps her hands over her mouth, then over her ears. “I didn’t know this!” she exclaims, and repeats herself several times. “I didn’t know!” Rana, with delicately arched brows and enormous brown eyes, recovers her composure more quickly. She asks again for an explanation of what hair extensions are and why exactly Western women like Indian hair so much. Then she nods, as if it all suddenly makes perfect sense. “It is for the god, and we are happy,” Rana says firmly.

There is a moment of awkwardness as Mangamma absorbs her sister’s words and nods slowly. Has her joy in the Tirumala pilgrimage been spoiled with crass talk of the international hair trade, the extensions industry, the coloring and processing and fumigating and stitching that the sisters’ heartfelt sacrifice will soon undergo?

But Rana does indeed seem serenely happy: intrigued and flattered to learn that the beauty of Indian hair is known and appreciated by Hollywood celebrities, and even more proud of the gift she’s just offered to her beloved deity.

Of course, thousands of young women like her aren’t aware of what happens to their Tirumala sacrifice, their beautiful hair. Would it matter to them? Would they want to know? And if they don’t know, and are happy, should it matter to us?

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j’s response:
keeping hair in braids is a protective style because it is low manipulation style. protective styles promote length retention by preventing damage. if your hair is in braids you are not combing or brushing the strands everyday, possibly damaging the cuticle and the older/fragile hair at the ends. but it does not grow hair like many of us believed back in the day. many natural ladies see increased length retention from box braids and twists done without extensions left in for weeks at a time. to avoid matting, these shouldn’t be left in too long. be sure to cover/pin under the ends. if your hair is shorter you can cover the ends with a faux bun. if you wear hats, line your hat with silk or satin to prevent moisture loss.

as a word of caution, beware of tight extension braids or cornrows which can cause damage at the root leading to hair loss. also take care in undoing all braided styles. many of us are familiar with that “knot of dirt” that results over time. it must be carefully removed by separating the hair then combing thru before washing.

~j~

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we are too rough with our hair!

1) use the right equipment: by now most of us realize to avoid breakage, it is suggested to use wide tooth combs to detangle highly textured hair only when wet or damp. but are your combs seamless? nicole recently submitted a experiment summary on combing to BGLH. in response to this study vkb247 pointed out that all combs are not bad. i agree with her suggestion of seamless and “bone” combs (they are typically made of resin nowadays). wood combs spread the scalp’s natural oil, sebum throughout the hair during combing. “tortoise” combs look like plastic but they are made of cellulose acetate, created from wood pulp. this material is renewable, biodegradable and glides thru hair.

take a look at your comb. see that line going down each tooth? did you know that the seams on regular combs snag on the hair cuticle every time you pull it thru? over time that leads to damage. i stopped using regular combs years ago thanks to a post on longhaircareforum. go to sally’s beauty supply, tenderheaded accessories or honeyfig to check out their selection of seamless combs. are you still using “5-pack for a dollar” plastic combs? shame on you! lol! plastic combs can cause split ends, hair loss and create fragile, broken hair. seamless combs range in price from $3-$15. i use this comb to detangle. if i am doing box braids or twists i follow up with this one ($3 at sally’s) to smooth as i go along. shop around if you like. trust me, it’s worth the investment.

optionally, consider purchasing a brush designed for detangling such as the infamous denman brush or the goody knockoff sold at your local beauty supply store (bss) to clear out old hair that can cause tangles. using these brushes helps smooth out “fuzz” resulting in improved coil/curl definition. if you like your fuzz just use the brush less. if money is no object check out the mason pearson combs and brushes (tressence provides “discounts”). whatever you do, please, please please take your time with detangling. i can’t tell you how many horror stories i’ve heard as a result of impatience with natural hair.

How to Detangle Knotted Hair
(courtesy of this site)

It’s a good idea to detangle your hair before washing it. Once hair is wet, the cuticles can lift, causing hair to snarl even further.

1. First, identify the tangle and separate it from the rest of your hair with your fingers.
2. Start at the bottom of the tangle and use the detangling comb to gently start picking through the snarl.
3. Work your way up the tangle until you’re able to comb through it without tugging. This may take a lot of patience and you may need to turn the detangling comb sideways and use a single tooth on the end of the comb to work through a very tight snarl.
4. To prevent tangles in the future, be sure to comb out your wet hair after shampooing, conditioning and applying a leave-in conditioner. (Never, ever brush wet hair – hair is very fragile when it’s wet and a brush could stretch the fiber, causing it to snap).

using these tools and techniques will make detangling a breeze (or at the very least less painful).

2) death to dry combing! don’t even attempt to rake thru dry hair! (oh the humanity!) like lina40 says, “i treat my hair like they all were going to a spa.” recently, we had a lengthy discussion regarding the post “why isn’t anyone researching our hair?” jc submitted a study to BGLH which verified what i had thought for many years: we are too rough with our hair. we can’t just rip combs thru dry matted hair and expect our hair not to cry back in response. because our hair is tightly coiled, we create resistance anytime we pull a comb thru. so guess what? the more tightly coiled your hair is, the more gentle you need to be.

3) stop combing/brushing your hair so much. again, i learned this from the hair boards. excessive grooming can cause split ends. i always wondered why i had so many splits in my crown area. it was due to obsessively slicking back those ponytails with my hard boar bristle brush (oooo it felt good though). now i gently brush my edges down with a cuticle-friendly brush using aloe vera gel. i’ve learned that i can redo my box braids during the week by detangling with my fingers or lightly misting with my floral water spritz then detangling with my seamless comb.

4) dangerous styles: avoid tight ponytails and braids. don’t tie on that satin scarf so tight at night. over time you may start to notice breakage at the edges or in your “kitchen”. to avoid losing them, be sure to separate locs if they are getting too heavy. improperly done weaves and hair pieces attached with glue or left in too long may lead to damage in the most harmful area – the root. “dangerous styles” very often result in traction alopecia which i will discuss in an upcoming post.

~j~

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i’m happy to say i found another example of a really good natural weave…

kinkerbelle, who was pregnant at the time, put this in.
from her fotki page:
- Bohyme Brazilian Hair
- 14″
- 1 pack – NO split wefts (adding another 1/2 pack or so later)
- Color ’1B’, but added hair will probably be ’2′
- Horsehoe left out at the top (about 2 inches wide) and some aroud the perimeter and along the nape for blending and the ability to put the hair in a ponytail.

remember, BGLH is a NO-BAD-WEAVE zone. so no bird’s nest-ish, tryna-be-like-tyra/beyonce weave. please… take heed.

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BGLH: where are you from? where you repping?
AF: I’m from Tuscaloosa, Alabama…I currently live in Cambridge, England as a military wife

BGLH: i saw on your fotki page that you don’t use shampoo? why not? and what do you use instead?
AF: I rarely use shampoo because most shampoos over here have sodium lauryl sulfate (supposedly that’s bad for your hair). You can’t beat the results that I get from the bentonite clay. My hair doesn’t feel dried out, I just feels clean and soft and most of all, I love the appearance afterwards. It stretches my curls and really defines them. No matter how much I use it, I still say “Wow” when I see the results.

***editor’s note***
k, i did some research on sodium lauryl sulfate, and this is what i found on wikipedia:

“Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) or sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS or NaDS) (C12H25SO4Na) is an anionic surfactant that is used in industrial products including engine degreasers, floor cleaners, and car wash soaps; as well as in household products such as toothpastes, shampoos, shaving foams, some dissolvable aspirins, fiber therapy caplets, and bubble baths for its thickening effect and its ability to create a lather.”

I also found that the National Geographic Green Guide lists it as one of 12 chemicals to avoid in cosmetics and other personal-care products.
***

BGLH: i also saw that twists don’t really work for you as a protective style. that’s interesting because they are a go-to style for so many naturals. why don’t they work? and what do you do instead?
AF: Twists don’t work for me because of the texture and thickness of my hair. My hair is thin (compared to most naturals) in my opinion. Also, the texture causes the twists to unravel too quickly. I like twists that look full and thick. On me, it makes me look like a little girl with plaits. With my line of work (a school teacher), it doesn’t look to professional walking around looking like a little girl.
Instead, I do a lot of pony-puffs, but unlike it the summer, I don’t wash it as often and detangle it a lot less. Right now, I’m wearing a sew-in similar to my natural texture because of the cold. My hair grew a lot last time I did it and it is perfect for the cold weather. I also like the fact that no one knows it’s a weave (even my husband was fooled). I get so many compliments on my texture and my “growth”…LOL!

an example of twists:

and the sew-in… which i think is gorgeous

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