Sep 234 min read

Black Hair Stories: 10 of my Go-To Natural Hair Styles

Growing up, as an only child, I had several doll heads, dolls, and little cousins who would let me do and care for their hair. All the doll head girls understand!Like Tabitha Brown, I have affectionately named my hair, Sunshine, because she stretches towards the sun, and is a handful, but isn't that what makes Black hair so special? It's ability to twist and turn, to curl and straighten, to loc and coil, Black hair is magical. Growing up, my mommy always had my hair done, from braids, to pigtails and puffs, my girl kept me very cute.

Over the past ten years, my hair has gone through a lot, from at-home dye jobs, to diy braid styles, to at-home cuts, and stress-breaks, Sunshine has come and is coming a long way. Black hair, while extremely versatile, is also extremely needy. Black hair has to be moisturized, and cared for on a regular basis. I try to incorporate my hair care days as an at-home hair salon experience. From deep conditioning, to the salon tunes, I love the moments when I can fully care for my hair and myself. Now the moment we've all been waiting for, ten of my favorite go-to natural hair styles.

Here are TEN of my Favorite Go-To Natural Hair Styles:

#1:BRAIDS

I love a good braid. Knotless, box, cornrow, braided pony, braid me up, please! Braided styles add an extra touch, plus they are extremely low maintenance and can serve as a protective style. I love to use braids to add color and accessories, like beads.

#2: Wash-n-Go

The infamous wash-n-go. Chile, I have worked several years to finally nail the perfect wash-n-go. I will say the first day after a fresh wash, the hair is poppin', but I also like how the hair grows throughout the day. I use water, a curl jelly by @Curls , a good brush for curly hair, and take my hair in sections, brushing the jelly through to define those curls and then add a little oil sheen and boom, wash-n-go. TBH, I think we as the Black Hair Community needs to revisit the name of this, because nothing is "and go" about it. It takes time and nurturing. At night, hair can be placed in twists or in a pineapple and I repeat the same steps the next day, WATER + JELLY + BRUSH + OIL.

#3: Silk Press

Just like Madame President, Kamala Harris, I too, love a good silk press. Something about a fresh wash, press, and a bump, does it for me. This style can be achieved by a good and thorough shampoo, deep condition, sectioning of the hair, blowdry, section again, straighten (in sections), and then bump those ends with loose curls.

#4: The Ida

This honestly should be a strong number 2 on this list. This hairstyle, which I've named, Ida, is my favorite. She takes less than 10 minutes to wet a bit, brush up and to either side of your head and she is done. I use Jam (which has worked for me for at least 20 years) and a curly gel by Curls or sometimes no product, just depending on the look/curl I'm going for.

#5: The PUFF

Chile, the puff is the Black girl old faithful. The more days you wear her, the bigger she grows. Secure your hair with a large hair bow, a puff-cuff, or a headband and tighten to your liking.

#6: The Solange

This look screams, "don't touch my hair." This style can be achieved by a wash and blow dry + flat iron on low heat or no more than two passes through the hair, and allowing the roots to still be thick. I use flexi-rods at night + a bonnet and this style can last for two weeks.

#7: Half -Up-Half -Down

This style is used when I need to extend a silk press or a Solange for just a little longer. Half-up-Half-Down is cute, flirty, and easy to maintain. I use flexi-rods at night + bonnet and clip or tie the hair half way, usually with no comb, just to give it a free-fall look.

#8: Press-n-Curl

Chile, honestly, you may be asking what is the difference between the silk-press and the press-n-curl, and I'll say that the curls are tighter and there are more of them. You can preserve this style by pin-curls or my personal favorite, you guessed it, flexi rods. For this style, I use 8-10 rollers for the whole head and then separate them with my fingers when taking them down.

#9: The Tracee

These curls are my "Tracee Ellis Ross" curls. This style can be achieved similarly to many above, with my shampoo and condition routine, blow-dry routine, and the goal here, similar to the Solange is to maximize the volume at the root of the hair and then a tighter curl. By now, you should know, I'm using flexi-rods and separating with my hands. I use 5-6 flexi-rods for larger sectioned curls and more fluff.

#10: Mohawk/The Rockstar

Every time I where this mohawk style, I instantly am transformed into my alter-ego, Teyonce, the Rockstar. This style can be achieved by separating curly hair into three sections, it doesn't have to be super neat either, using some Jam, three bows and a few bobby pins, this mohawk is an under 20 minute style and can be easily refreshed and rocked for several days. Throw in some accessories, like these clips pictured and wala, the rockstar.

Andddd it's only right to include some of the in-between and end of day looks, LOL. From hair that swelled due to humidity, to twists, and the release of the hair into her natural fro.