11/1/2018 0 Comments Fro-Fidence!!!Growing up as an African American woman in today’s society is so exciting, especially when it comes to hair. Now, I’ve gone through my fair share of styles but I always come full circle back to the fro. Afro, natural, whatever you want to call it, it’s the hair that you were born with, the soft stuff the grows from the root of your head, the hair that isn’t always seen depending on who you are. Recently, I just took out my fabulously red dyed tips and decided my head needed a break. I felt how physically tired it was from being in braids and tied up for so long so I decided to go natural for two weeks and honestly I didn’t expect such a revelation from it. The first day was a lot of fear. Fear and uncomfortably. For me, I’ve been doing protective styles for the better part of three years but every once in a while I like to give my hair a break. This is the first and the longest time I’ve gone with nothing but product in my hair and there was a lot of uncertainty. For the first time in three years I felt very vulnerable and I hated it. But I couldn’t help but think, “What would people think?” “What would people say?” “Would I be accepted?” I went through my fair share of horror stories in regards to my hair a few years back. Long story short, it broke off and it hasn’t been the same ever since. So a lot of those insecurities of it being too short or too thin festered and grew the more I tucked it away, tried to protect it and grow it back; but the night before, when I looked in the mirror I finally fell in love. Even still my hair isn’t the way I want it to be but the confidence is there. It’s not a total transition but I’m adjusting and I’m growing into my fro-fidence as the days go by. Going to school and having events where I need to present the best version of myself, I feared that others would look at me and think, “Why didn’t she do her hair?” But then I realized, just because my hair doesn’t look like yours doesn’t mean I didn’t do my hair. Wearing a fro takes a lot more work than just waking up and walking outside. I still spend at least fifteen to twenty minutes combing it out, putting in product so that it’s big and curly but when everyone else around me is wearing braids or their hair is straight, it’s natural to feel insecure or worried. Even still, from friends, to teachers, to acquaintances, I received a lot of love for wearing my hair out and it really made me think about how much society has changed over time. It doesn’t matter what side of the spectrum you’re on, you shouldn’t have to feel the need to hide or protect the better parts of yourself for fear of judgment or ridicule. Everywhere you go, people are going to judge you. But good or bad, there’s nothing you can do to change the way people think. There is something you can do to change the way you think. A lot of my insecurities grew from comparing myself to others who had bigger, curly afros but it wasn’t the hair I was envious of, it was the confidence. If you have the confidence that’s all you need. No one is going to look like you, and you can’t measure your looks to someone else’s because you will never look like them. Especially when it comes to hair, in all different shapes, sizes and textures, you just have to figure out what style works best for you and rock it. As soon as you start to learn to love the way you look in the mirror, the more everyone else will. So I’m making a new pact with myself to wear my afro more often and grow my fro-fidence day by day because I have nothing to be ashamed of and nothing to fear. This is me. Now, since I went an entire two weeks of going natural I had to figure out what works best for me. What styles the best, what makes it curl and most importantly, what moisturizes? So I thought I'd share the products that I've been using and absolutely love and hope they can help you when you wear your fro. So my hair has never been straightened so the hair you see here's is as natural a single they come. However, my hair texture is a weird mixture of curly and straight so I absolutely love this curl cream by Cantu which really enhances my curls. It makes them more defined which helps make my curls more uniformed. It also has Shea Butter which moisturizes so that the curls can last all day and stay soft. Thursday was picture day so I wore my hair up in a ponytail but to tame the curls I used this moisturizing gel from the dollar tree and it’s surprisingly really good! The thing I hate about gels is after it hardens it turns white and really crusty. But this is very moisturizing and holds the hair very well. The hair wasn’t hard at the end of the day and I was even able to go one more day without reapplying. The ponytail still looked fairly well so I highly recommend this product. And finally, if you’ve just finished washing your hair and are getting ready to go to bed or need a good styler, I use this leave-in conditioner as a detangler and a moisturizer. Sometimes, if I don’t condition in the shower with my shampoo I just use this and works wonders. The brand is Shea Solutions and aside from smelling amazing, it’s very moistening. It even helps to bring out some of those curls I enhance with the curl cream and I use it everytime after I get out of the shower and even right before I style my hair if I need something to loosen it up. And that’s it! I’m still on the lookout for products that help with curl control and I want to start using natural coconut oil for my scalp but these are just the things I use on a daily basis. If you guys have any products that you recommend please let me know. I’m always looking forward to trying new products and I really hoped that helped. I hope you all enjoy. Thanks so much for the support. A lot of you have been DM’ing me on Instagram that you’ve read and love my blog and I really appreciate it, so follow me on Instagram. My account is private but I usually accept all follow requests so don’t hesitate to reach out and please dm me if you don’t feel comfortable commenting below. Thanks again and Until Next Time! With love, Arianna
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AuthorI'm an 21 year old girl who lives in NY. I love to read and write and fashion is my life. Follow me to find out more! Archives
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