My Hair Broke a Professional Down

Given all of the hair self-reflection I’ve done over the past few weeks since I started this blog, it’s no surprise that I had a dream about my hair last night. I dreamt that I cut off my dreadlocks and went back to wearing a TWA. This time around, I used products that allowed me to enjoy the natural curl of my hair as my afro grew. I was loving life. Then, I went to some misty outdoor event and, POOF, my style shrunk. I woke up thinking, “Is this a sign?” I’ve gone back and forth about whether I should cut off my hair and start over. Honestly, part of the reason I locked my hair was that the maintenance of my two strand twists just got to be too much. In fact, my hair made someone cry. No joke.

My husband and I used to live in Atlanta and I got my locs maintenanced by a fabulous stylist at Nseya Salon and Spa (when I looked for it, just found out that it closed! Oh no!). Nseya was an upscale salon that used fabulous products and provided great customer service. One time, my stylist was on vacation and I made an appointment with another person. BIG MISTAKE! The new stylist took one look at my hair and excused herself. I could see her talking to the owner through the glass exterior window. She was visibly shaken and…wait a minute, is she crying? “What in the world is going on?” I wondered. In a few minutes, the owner came over to me and said something to the effect of the stylist didn’t specialize in my type of hair and that they’d be contacting my regular stylist to come in. WHAT!? I couldn’t believe it. My naps had broken the stylist down. That was too funny to me. And a little embarrassing. You mean my hair could make a professional cry? Wow! Anyway, my regular stylist came in (bless you wherever you are) and hooked my hair up.

I’d always loved locs and thought that they were gorgeous. I felt that locs would be a way to keep my hair natural and minimize the salon stay. That is what happened, but sometimes I still wonder what my hair would look like in all of its puffed out, afro glory.

I’d love to hear your stories. Why do you pick the hair styles that you wear? Creative exploration? Convenience? Habit?