Making Time to Beautify Yourself Matters

Self care is the best care!

Photographer-Christine Nazaire

Blossom Where You are Planted

Overall Love Yourself

Photographer-Sam Oht

Reflecting: On Learning to Love My Hair

wearing my hair in a bantu-knot out turned shrunken afro (thanks to the humidity!)

outfit details are in my post: Black, White, and Big Hair

I think all women have an interesting relationship with hair. We admire each other's hair, wish for what we don't have, and buy products to give us the hair of our dreams. No wonder why the hair industry is so lucrative! I've had a love-hate relationship with my hair for many years. However, I'm proud to say that the relationship has transformed to all love over the past few years. As a child, my hair was thick and hard to manage; breaking the teeth on combs and popping hair ties and bubbles (some folks call them ballies lol) were commonplace for my hair. Several people told me my hair was beautiful, but I didn't truly believe it. I dreamed of having straight hair. I was envious of all the girls at school with straight hair because I thought mine was ugly. I didn't understand why God gave me this thick and hard to manage hair that was always in braids or twists to prevent tangles. There were so many days that I woke up wishing for straight hair because I believed that was the standard of beauty. I remember walking through the hair and beauty isle as a child while idolizing the little girls on the "Just for Me" kiddie relaxer packages. Their silky hair was perfect in my eyes and I wanted to be one of those girls so badly. I begged my mother several times throughout my childhood to relax my hair and each time she firmly told me no! By my 12th birthday I continued pestering my mom to relax my hair and we compromised on a texturizer instead. She was reluctant, but I wanted it so bad that she gave in. 

After a couple of years, my texturizer turned into a super relaxer and I regretted the day I ever allowed those chemicals to touch my hair; my once thick hair grew longer and thinner. My mother gave the usual "I told you so" and reminded me that my natural hair was always beautiful. During my sophomore year of high school, I decided to give texturizers another try. My hair began to grow back thicker, but it wasn't as healthy as it could be. By my junior year of high school, I decided to stop putting harsh chemicals in my hair for good because I was unsatisfied with its health. I no longer wanted to blend in with everyone and I stopped idolizing the girls with straight hair. I wanted to celebrate my natural beauty and exercise confidence. So I gradually cut off my chemically straightened hair until I was left with nothing but my natural texture and a new found appreciation for it. I didn't see many women  rocking their natural hair, but that was okay with me. I didn't care if I looked different because I chose to wear my hair in natural styles. There were some days when I hated being natural because of the time and effort it took to make my hair look "presentable". However, I eventually mastered the art of styling my hair. I can proudly say that I look into the mirror and I love the beautiful woman with the gorgeous hair staring back at me. Sometimes my afro is huge, sometimes it shrinks up to a fraction of it's length. My hair has been called kinky, curly, nappy, coarse, tough and unruly. It has been likened to cotton candy and lambs wool. All in all, I love my hair because it is a part of me.

When bad hair days become great head wrap days

Headwrap-H&M scarf

Bracelet-African Market

Sunglasses- JustMariklo

Top-H&M

Jeans-Ivanka Trump

Bad hair days are inevitable. If someone tells you that they've never had a bad hair day, they're probably lying lol. I wore my afro out for one day last week and it was glorious! It was one of those obnoxious 'fros that demand attention. You know, the kind of 'fro where you see the hair before the person and can't help but stop and admire. After wearing my hair out for hours, it was dry, tangled, and I honestly didn't have the time nor patience to style it for the next day. As a result, I turned to my time saver for the days when I don't get around to doing my hair: a head wrap. Head wraps allow you to look cute on your bad hair days without having to sacrifice style. Oh and some chic shades can only help your look! Traci Marie Smith of JustMariklo is one of the most stylish bloggers I follow, and her shades are always chic and unique! So, when I was scrolling down my Instagram feed last week and I discovered that she has an e-store for her sunglasses, I decided to treat myself to a pair. If you enjoy eye wear that stands out, check out her e-store and tell her I sent you!

Black White and Big Hair!

 Dress- Lord and Taylor

Shoes-Nine West

Hey everyone! I hope you had a fabulous weekend! My weekend was quite good! These past few weeks have been draining with final papers and projects. However, I got some great news last week (will share later) that totally brightened my week. I wore this dress to church on Saturday and it was perfect for the weather (unfortunately, I didn't get to take any pictures outside)! I actually found it in Lord & Taylor a few months ago and my mother treated me to it (mom, you';re the best). 

I've been wearing my hair in a lot of protective styles lately because of my busy schedule. However, this week should be a little less hectic for me so I'm letting my hair out this week! I'm wearing my hair in a Bantu-knot out done on blown-out hair. How did I achieve this hairstyle? 1) washed and conditioned 2) applied coconut oil  and shea butter mixture to length of hair 3) detangled and twisted sections of hair 4) untwisted and blow dried each section 5) applied Nubian Heritage Indian Hemp and Tamanu Grow & Strengthen Herbal Custard to each section and re-twisted hair 6) Bantu knotted each twist 7) unraveled twist the next morning (about 6 hours later) 8) separated hair 

My Crown

I think all  of us women have days where we don't feel beautiful. I was having one of those days recently when my hair wasn't cooperating. I had a great vision for my hair: I washed it, twisted it, and attempted to style it into an up-do, but it wasn't working! I got really frustrated because I had a hairstyle that could not be salvaged. Then I decided to get creative and twisted some fabric head wrap. I used three pieces of Ankara Fabric that I purchased at an African market in Harlem over the summer. I felt like a queen in this head wrap!