Natural Spotlight: Jessica
Meet Jessica, a naturally pressed diva who is sharing her story of how a bad perm can motivate you to go natural.
1. Introduce yourself to us (are you: loc'ed, newly natural, natural-n-pressed, etc.)
At the moment, I wear my hair naturally curly and I actually prefer it that way. I usually wear it natural and pressed at work so that I can pull it back in a ponytail if necessary.
At the moment, I wear my hair naturally curly and I actually prefer it that way. I usually wear it natural and pressed at work so that I can pull it back in a ponytail if necessary.
2. How long have you been natural and why did you decide to embark on this journey?
I went natural in November 2008. The weird thing is that I never planned on going natural in the first place. Wanting to try something new, I used a Dr. Miracle's perm kit and before I got through half of my hair I had to rinse it out because it burned so bad. I woke up the next morning and couldn't unwrap my hair. I was in tears it hurt so bad. It could have been a bad perm, or my friend could have put it on improperly. I did not know or care, I just knew I was NEVER getting a perm again.
I went natural in November 2008. The weird thing is that I never planned on going natural in the first place. Wanting to try something new, I used a Dr. Miracle's perm kit and before I got through half of my hair I had to rinse it out because it burned so bad. I woke up the next morning and couldn't unwrap my hair. I was in tears it hurt so bad. It could have been a bad perm, or my friend could have put it on improperly. I did not know or care, I just knew I was NEVER getting a perm again.
I had my sister give me a sew-in in the meantime while I grew my hair out. After a year of wearing those (August 2009), I finally decided to wear my own hair out. I'm fortunate enough to live near a salon that specializes in and encourages natural hair. (They do all types though). They have their own special products and ironed out my hair to where it looked and felt relaxed but I was still able to keep my "naturalness." I wasn't ready for the big chop, so I did this for another year.
In February of 2010, I did the big chop and cut the rest of my perm off. My hair hung just below my ears and was growing out of control (with a little help from the hair, skin and nails vitamins I had been taking). Today, my hair is just past my shoulders and healthier than ever.
4. What's your hair regimen?
I usually go to a salon and they take really good care of my hair. I, like most people, assumed that having natural hair would be easier to maintain. It is NOT. I usually wash my hair and leave the conditioner in for a few days with my natural curls. I’m rather lazy when It comes to ironing my own hair, so I let the salon do it every 3 weeks. I bounce between Organix and Design Essentials products. I love them!5. Do you have any hair goals?
I started out just wanting healthy hair after that perm disaster. Now that my hair has reached my shoulders and back I want to see how long I can grow it. I want to eventually wear a long curly ‘fro. I LOVE big hair.6. Do you think you will ever revert back to relaxers?
I actually got a small relaxer once in the middle of transitioning. I got super busy with school and working two jobs I simply didn't have the time to care for my hair like I wanted to. I was sleeping without a scarf at night, not conditioning my hair…it was awful. On top of that I got tired of having to tame my hair after working out. I missed my curls and body that I had to my hair, so I started over. My hair before I started getting relaxers was somewhat curly on it’s own but that very first relaxer made it different from then on. I won’t say that I won’t but it won’t be for a very long time.
7. What's one piece of advice you want to leave readers with?
LOVE and take care of your hair no matter what it is. People love to offer unwanted opinions about how I wear MY hair. It’s MY hair I can wear it any way I want to. Experiment with it and find what you like and what works for you. Since I started going natural and experimenting, I have become OCD about taking care of my hair. As long as it’s healthy that’s all that matters.
8. Sweating is a major issue for many naturals that play sports. Any advice for naturals (or transitioners) who live very active lifestyles and want to maintain their hair? Wrap it up if you can. I know it looks really tacky to wear a hot pink head scarf, but they make one that look like headbands that let your hair breathe while you workout. If I don’t wrap it I put it into a high loose ponytail and wrap it as soon as I am done.
9. Is there a blog or website we can follow you at?
I have a blog (spaceshiphaslaunched.
