Yet another shaved 'do featured today. Solange killing it in Chanel earrings, neon-accented pumps, and a fringed blouse at Q-Tip's Michael Jackson Birthday Tribute.
Your name/username:
What do you like most about being loc'd?
Your advice to the readers
With all the media attention focusing on Black women and their hair, we have to ask:
Excerpt from:
The term “natural” is itself problematic, said Professor Banks, the author of “Hair Matters: Beauty, Power, and Black Women’s Consciousness.” She recently spent 14 months in black-centric salons in five cities researching a future book. Natural hair salons don’t offer chemical straightening or weaves. But she found “a great deal of coloring in natural hairstyling, thereby challenging the ‘chemically free’ label.”
This is Nigerian-German singer, Nneka Egbuna.
Today, we're featuring a great project by ERROL Photography. It's called "Do you have an afro?" This is what Errol, the mastermind behind this project, said:Sometimes the haircut can say a lot about the person. The cloud of hair around someone's head seems to be not only a hair style but a type of manifest of a person's "self".
Recently I have decided to set up an ongoing photo project portraiting Afro-headed people.
I placed an ad on the Internet and some of the people who responded were invited to stand in front of my camera. The following portraits display their individuality, style and character.
If you're in the UK or planning on visiting the UK, you can be apart of this project! Be sure to drop him a line: errol@errolphotography.com
Honey and cinnamon have served as home remedies for centuries due to their antimicrobial properties. Honey itself produces an enzyme that is able to produce hydrogen peroxide. Cinnamon has both antioxidants and essential oils that have antimicrobial properties:Considering the Brazilian Keratin Treatment? As with all methods of straightening natural hair, caution should be taken. Here's a little piece of interesting information from Dr. Ali Syed's blog regarding "keratin", "formaldehyde-free", or "aldehyde" BKT:
The truth is that they are actually using formaldehyde and in concentrations that exceed the legal limit. Two of the brands use 1.0% formaldehyde and the third one uses about 4.0% formaldehyde. The legal limit is 0.2%.
All of these brands pose serious health risks as the fumes generated during blow drying and flat ironing can cause headaches, irritation of the breathing pathways, eyes, and mucous membranes. Prolonged exposure can cause even worse problems.
In a hairstyle rut? Here are some of our favorite hairstyles that you can rock for the fall!
Rating: Excellent! (10/10)I got this conditioner along with the GPB. After rinsing my hair with baking soda and water, I DC'ed with the GPB and followed with the Honeysuckle Rose... my hair felt rough to the touch. A few days later, I tried the Honeysuckle by itself and my hair felt incredibly soft. The GPB made my hair strong so the Honeysuckle didn't really do much. But by itself, it's awesome. Try it for yourself! Has anybody tried it? Share your experiences!
Looks like Tyra read our minds. She will be wigless for the season premiere of The Tyra Show. Here's the official statement:This season on The Tyra Show we’re taking it to the next level and getting more real than ever before by encouraging women everywhere to own and rock what they’ve got and be proud! For the Season 5 premiere, I will be doing just that - no fake hair, I’m rocking my REAL hair. This will all be going down on September 8, 2009, which we’re declaring National Real Hair Day! We welcome everyone to go natural with me!
1. Bleaching - "Bleaching your hair penetrates the cuticle with chemicals and removes your natural pigment," Mirmirani says. "You are changing the structure of your hair, making it more susceptible to damage." Once you bleach, she explains, you've altered the strength of your hair, making it weaker. If you add blow drying and styling on top of bleaching, you can really damage your 'do, causing hair breakage, a dull look, and split ends.
2. Perms - "Perming refers to either a chemical straightening or a chemical curling," Mirmirani says. "It works by breaking the inner bonds of the hair and re-forming them back together in a different way."
Like bleaching, it weakens your hair, leaving it dull and damaged over time so that instead of luxurious curly locks or shiny straight tresses, your hair looks brittle and dry.
3. Highlights and coloring - Highlights and semi-permanent dyes aren't as damaging as bleach, but they aren't without consequences, Mirmirani says. They can also change the inner structure of the hair, causing a lackluster look and dryness, especially if you frequently color to hide roots or gray hair.
4. Flat iron and blow-drying - "Heat causes temporary changes to the hydrogen bonds that hold hair together," Mirmirani says, and that can make hair look dull.
Over time, the temporary changes can lead to more permanent damage if you tend to blow dry or iron on a daily basis.
5. Ponytails and braids* - "Ponytails and braids can cause hair to break, especially if your style is pulled tightly," Mirmirani says. "If you wear it that way every day, permanent hair damage can occur."
Braiding or putting your hair in a ponytail when it's wet can cause damage sooner because wet hair is more fragile.
6. Over-brushing - Think 100 strokes a day will make your hair shiny and full? Think again.
"Over-brushing your hair can cause split ends and breakage, with the over-brushing causing just too much consistent friction for hair to handle," Mirmirani says.
Cheap brushes don't help either, causing snags and tangles that are hard to get out and resulting in broken hair and split ends.
7. Over-shampooing - "The goal of shampooing is to cleanse the scalp and remove oil buildup on your hair," Mirmirani says.
But over-washing can wash away your hair's natural moisture that helps your hair look healthy, making your hair dry. Although a significant amount of research has gone into making shampoos beneficial for your hair, you can still get too much of a good thing.
"The less vigorous you are in washing your hair, the less damage you'll do to the cuticle," Mirmirani tells WebMD. "And find a frequency to washing your hair that works for you ... whether it's a few times a week or every day."
How do you know when you are overdoing it?
"I have African-American patients who wash their hair once a week to avoid drying it out," Mirmirani says. "You can tell when it's too much if it starts to get dull, which means it's time to scale back on the shampooing."
8. Extensions and weaves* - Extensions and weaves are a lot like ponytails and braids. Over time, they can leave hair broken and brittle. The difference is the damage is at the roots where it is harder to cut out.
"If you have a discomfort or ache in the scalp, that indicates that what you've done to your hair is causing too much pressure at the roots," Mirmirani says.
Worse, traction alopecia is a serious hair loss condition caused by wearing tight hairstyles like extensions for too long a time period. So either keep it loose, or try growing your hair instead of going for instant length.
(Source)
*If too tight, these styles are damaging. If done correctly, they work as great protective styles.
While watching The Martha Stewart Show, the eyelash guru, Ja'Maal Buster, caught my attention. Not only does he make eyelashes look fabulous, but his hair is amazing! I'm a little jealous... Check his website out for more on eyelashes.
About a month ago, Solange debuted her newly shaven coiff. We admired her for rockin' the new do and we love it even more now! Solange ROCKED it over in Japan this weekend while promoting Samantha Thavasa.
What technique has helped you the most?
Your name/username
Tell us your hair story. Why did you decide to BC again?
Teyana Taylor's latest photoshoot for the "Married to the Mob" clothing line.
Okay, I really wasn't willing to spend 30 bucks on a product that may or may not work. Even the cashier woman at Whole Foods told me, "You do know this is a thirty-dollar gel right? I wouldn't buy it." Ha ha. So, over the next few days, I used only the Curling Custard and Knot Today... best decision EVER! The products work sooo well together and I love the coil definition I'm getting. The only downside is that I'm almost done with the Knot Today Conditioner. I can finally see why so many women swear by these products; they're wonderful. I seriously love the feel of my hair. I added some pictures and if look, you can see that my hair clumps together better. Has anybody tried it? Share your experiences!
