Tomorrow it will have been 2 weeks of my unbeweavable hair journey and tomorrow i will be removing it.
Its been a very interesting 2 weeks of discovery and embarrassment (silently to myself) at the fact that i have actually enjoyed discovering myself through my hair do...more about that shortly...
Can we talk about the itchy scalp please! As it is not natural to have something sewn onto ones head and left there for more than 24 hours it is only natural that ones scalp will rebel and form a protective layer (as a good friend pointed out) also known as dandruff. It has been very difficult for me to access my scalp to moisturize it let alone wash it. I have managed however to find the perfect finger to use when i need to get through all the thread and scratch - as much as i would like to i would rather eat my left leg than have to reach for a toothpick to get in there (I'm sure my weaved-up sista's are thinking 'your itch isn't severe yet').
With all that said the last 2 weeks have been a sexual awakening for me. This thing on my head has made me feel sexy - i think its all the attention I've been receiving. It has made me question what beauty is and how far we have come in seeing our natural selves as beautiful (unfortunately not far at all). People i have known for years have been commenting on how 'hot' i look, which makes me wonder what they thought i must have looked like before. More importantly what did I think of myself before?!
As sexy, fabulous and gorgeous as i felt i miss my own hair, i miss its thickness, its blackness and its me-ness. I am happy to be going back to a self that i recognize. I would love to alternate between the many selves externally but i know that i cant do this again - it physically doesn't make any sense and its uncomfortable having a sealed scalp 24/7. I am a product of my environment in many ways but when it comes to my hair i am happy with my own.
Now lets see what happens when i return to factory settings...
Wednesday, 11 May 2011
Sunday, 1 May 2011
Weave Chronicles
I woke up a few days ago and decided i want to try a weave! I have had braids, Dreads, a clean shaven head and in my early teens my Mom relaxed my hair - that was 19 years ago. So I called my wonderful hairdresser and said 'Monique i want a weave' my exclamation was met with silence then 'okay when can you come' to which i responded 'tomorrow' and off i went.
Driving to the salon i was a bit nervous about my decision, what if i liked it? What if this became my hairstyle of choice? Would i then become 'that girl'? I knew i wanted to just try it out and see what all the hype was about but i really didn't know how it would 'change' me if at all. After an hour and a half of feeling what type of 'hair' i want, the color and deciding on a style, my natural hair was cornrowed back and with a needle and thread my new hairstyle was sewn onto the cornrows. I was fascinated with the transformation process and Monique's precision. I chose a neck length piece (i didn't want to shock myself too much with Rapunzel locks) the color of my natural hair black.
The finished product was not as bad as i anticipated and i didn't look as different as i had hoped to look. It actually ended up looking like i was part Indian (the darker part of Indian). The only thing that brought me back from the reflection in the mirror was the fact that i felt like i was wearing a furry hat that was glued to my scalp. I paid Monique and off i went. My first stop was to a good friend of mine, she began by laughing then said but it looks like your hair - through out the course of the evening she kept looking at me as though there was a stranger in her midst - she actually said she felt like she was looking at a stranger. That evening we went out to an old school party that happens once a month that her husband co-runs and DJs at. This was to be the real test of my new hairstyle.
I arrived and immediately i was told how 'hot' i looked. Those that knew me well were completely taken aback that I would have a weave, at some point in the evening someone told another friend to hurry and find me as i have a weave on, in disbelief she walked around looking for me and when she saw me she was stunned silent. Men were hitting on me in a manner i had not been accustomed too pre-weave and i was treated differently...having been told and believing i am unapproachable i was all of a sudden, not only very approachable, but also stalk-able. As i am not used to the levels of attention i received i was quite uncomfortable with the whole thing but i think i played my discomfort off with grace :)
Its my 3rd day with my furry hat and i have decided that i will write about my experiences and share my thoughts and journey as a woman that is faking-it.
I will close this post with something my male cousin said to me 'women with Afro's and natural hair are deep and like poetry, Women with relaxed hair and weaves like expensive things and cocktails. Now you are the poetry girl that also likes cocktails'
Watch this space...more chronicles of weavedom to follow...
Good night!
Oluko
Driving to the salon i was a bit nervous about my decision, what if i liked it? What if this became my hairstyle of choice? Would i then become 'that girl'? I knew i wanted to just try it out and see what all the hype was about but i really didn't know how it would 'change' me if at all. After an hour and a half of feeling what type of 'hair' i want, the color and deciding on a style, my natural hair was cornrowed back and with a needle and thread my new hairstyle was sewn onto the cornrows. I was fascinated with the transformation process and Monique's precision. I chose a neck length piece (i didn't want to shock myself too much with Rapunzel locks) the color of my natural hair black.
The finished product was not as bad as i anticipated and i didn't look as different as i had hoped to look. It actually ended up looking like i was part Indian (the darker part of Indian). The only thing that brought me back from the reflection in the mirror was the fact that i felt like i was wearing a furry hat that was glued to my scalp. I paid Monique and off i went. My first stop was to a good friend of mine, she began by laughing then said but it looks like your hair - through out the course of the evening she kept looking at me as though there was a stranger in her midst - she actually said she felt like she was looking at a stranger. That evening we went out to an old school party that happens once a month that her husband co-runs and DJs at. This was to be the real test of my new hairstyle.
I arrived and immediately i was told how 'hot' i looked. Those that knew me well were completely taken aback that I would have a weave, at some point in the evening someone told another friend to hurry and find me as i have a weave on, in disbelief she walked around looking for me and when she saw me she was stunned silent. Men were hitting on me in a manner i had not been accustomed too pre-weave and i was treated differently...having been told and believing i am unapproachable i was all of a sudden, not only very approachable, but also stalk-able. As i am not used to the levels of attention i received i was quite uncomfortable with the whole thing but i think i played my discomfort off with grace :)
Its my 3rd day with my furry hat and i have decided that i will write about my experiences and share my thoughts and journey as a woman that is faking-it.
I will close this post with something my male cousin said to me 'women with Afro's and natural hair are deep and like poetry, Women with relaxed hair and weaves like expensive things and cocktails. Now you are the poetry girl that also likes cocktails'
Watch this space...more chronicles of weavedom to follow...
Good night!
Oluko
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