They Called Her - Wild Woman

My hair has always seemed to have a mind of its own. Before I was born my mom wished for a girl with curly hair that would sit on her lap, and being the crafty witch that she is, ta-da here I am! (Of course I’ll have to explain more about why I refer to my mom as a witch but that’s for another story).  My mom didn’t think about what kind of care curly hair would require as it began to grow-in.  My mother, along with friends and family, watched as the madness of curls, began encircling my head in a halo of fuzz and fluff that seemed to have no rhyme or reason, and with it my family nick name of “wild Woman” was coined.

My mom’s friends would stop by and ask why she hadn’t brushed my hair yet that day and my mom would explain in exasperation, that she had just brushed it and that is just what it does. Since my older brother and my mom both had what I would call normal straight hair, there was no point of reference for what was growing out of my dome or how to tame the beast sitting on top of my head. Little did I know that my hair was passed to me from my father, but of course he always had worn his hair short and over the years there was a little less of it, therefore he never experienced the kind of hair wrangling problems I would deal with in the coming years. I grew up trying to figure it out on my own, after horrible haircuts, fuzzy ponytails, and a short infatuation with bonnets (hey, I was five, give me a break) and an especially awkward period in middle school, I did eventually figure out how to deal with the wild curls and frizz that followed me everywhere like my shadow.

Over the years I have not always embraced my natural texture, having discovered how to do a good blow-out and becoming friends with a trusty flat iron. I have tortured my hair into submission and wore my hair that way for years. However, the past few years have seen a change within the beauty and fashion industries re-embracing natural texture and the natural hair community growing by leaps and bounds, I found myself embracing my natural texture more often. Today I very rarely heat style my hair and have slowly been able to fall back in love with my hair’s real texture. Of course my hair is no longer as curly as it used to be, many curlys will tell you that your hair’s texture can change over the years and mine definitely has, but I am truly embracing that little “Wild Woman” I used to be and I find that I have a new found confidence and freedom because of it.

Since I have worked within the beauty industry over the past several years I wanted to give a shout out to some of the products that I am currently using that I think are doing a great job of taming my wavy/curly dry and high porosity hair beautifully. I did go through a phase where I used the Curly Girl Method but have recently found that it was a lot more work then my actual hair texture required and have now simplified my wash day routine dramatically. I only wash my hair once a week and have been loving the Shea Moisture 100% Coconut Oil Daily Hydration Shampoo, I like to follow that with a very rich moisture mask and the one that has been doing a great job for me is the Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Butter Masque, it leaves my hair intensely hydrated and soft. For post-shower, I usually apply a leave-in conditioner and love just about any of the OGX Hair Butters and I am currently using the Shea Smooth leave-in/rinse out and it smells absolutely dreamy and I usually add a little tiny amount of Marrakesh Oil as well to help with frizz. As for styling, I am super low maintenance and having grown my hair out a bit longer has made styling a lot easier, I allow my hair to air dry and then apply a styling cream to the ends and any frizzy sections to help define and smooth, Pacifica Salty Waves Beach Hair Balm, has been a winner for me lately and I love how it transforms my tresses into beachy messy waves and curls.  

I hope this hair story inspires any of you with textured hair to put down the heat stylers and let your inner wild come through, it could be just the freedom and change you have been waiting for!