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Short Natural hair and the adventures of the TWA- Teenie-Weenie Afro
I remember when I decided to do THE BIG CHOP I had about six inches of relaxed ends and what looked like four inches of "new growth" or natural hair. That was when I began to notice the soft texture and the curl pattern. When I wasn't wearing a wig or straightening it I used hair gel to slick it back into a ponytail and that was when I fell in love with the fine wavy texture of my hair. So, when I finally decided to cut off the relaxed ends I essentially did THE BIG CHOP and ended up with what looked like an inch of hair or a TWA; not the airline, I talking about a teenie weenie afro. I didn't know what to do, how to style it, what products to use, or how I even felt about it, which ultimately caused me to cover it up with wigs, and weaves and get it straightened with a hot comb. When I did wear it out, however, I loved the ease of maintaining it and even experimented with different hair colors which is why I find the TWA to be the best stage of the natural hair journey and when done right can look fabulous. Here is a list of other reasons why the TWA is the best stage
A lot of women consider going natural but they don’t because they believe the transitioning phase will be hard, or they don’t like short hair or they believe natural hair is not good enough. IT IS GOOD ENOUGH; Natural hair is the way to go! You should go natural, if you aren’t already, and here's why.
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1. It's Healthy for you – Relaxers contain harsh chemicals that will break down the structure of your hair strands and burn your scalp. This isn’t healthy for your hair or for you since you are inhaling the products and those toxic chemicals can get into your bloodstream. No matter how bomb the hair comes out or the oils that the relaxers contain, in the long run, it will affect you.
2. Versatility – Natural hair is the definition of versatility. You can even straighten it and then it reverts back to curly, you can go swimming and not have to fear the chlorine, or you can walk in the rain and not worry about your hair getting wet and changing texture. Your natural hair can defy gravity at stand straight up or lay flat and blow in the wind.
3. Fun – Natural hair is so fun because there are so many hairstyles to do such as puffs, buns, twist & braid-outs, crown braids, blow-outs, Afros, etc., and incorporate your own style to fit your personality. Hence you can look like anybody today, tomorrow, or the next day.
4. Inspiring – You will inspire the future generation, especially the younger girls to embrace their curls.
5. Debunk European beauty beliefs – Black women have been taught that straight hair is better and we constantly see images of European women all over the media as beauty icons. So go natural and debunk that myth and create a new one where natural hair is beautiful.
6. Growth – Many women's natural hair thrives when it's in its natural state. There are many stories being shared online about a woman with chin-length relaxed hair and once they went natural they reached mid-back-length hair. Not to mention the thickness and fullness that women achieve when they are natural.
7. Self-Acceptance – Being natural is showing the world that you love yourself in your natural state and that you are comfortable in your own skin.
8. Money saver – You spend less money on your natural hair because you are not doing weekly or monthly visits to wash, treat, style, touch up, etc. Natural hair is inexpensive. All you need is a shampoo, conditioner, leave-in moisturizer, and a styler.
9. Being a part of a community – Once you become natural you are fully integrated into the natural hair community where you will meet people like yourself who are going through the same struggle and have advice for you.
This post isn’t to pressure anyone to go natural but to encourage you, remember the decision is yours and you have to make the right choice for yourself, but being your natural self and natural hair is certainly the way to go; just sayin'
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