My Journey ~ by Lady Tamara

As many of you already know, I am a natural sister and have been, long before rocking head wraps and big hair were a fad, if you'd call it a 'fad".

I was born with long, thick, beautifully textured hair and at 12, I wanted a relaxer like all the other girls. Now mind you, my Mom always took great care of my thick beautiful hair but she also wanted to please me and she put my first relaxer (some of us by habit called it a 'perm' until we learned that perms were used by primarily Caucasian women who wanted curly hair).

Anyhow, I didn't need a relaxer but instead, to imitate Janet Jackson, I wanted and she put me an Ogolvie perm and my hair was just as curly as it was wavy. Before, it was just wavy and shiny with straight roots. People compared my hair to Ms. Chaka and Lady Diana as a young girl because the length and thickness were just that beautiful!

I experimented with my hair when I become old enough to do it myself and from the relaxers, it lost some of its thickness but it never lost much length.

I remember putting a relaxer every month, when I was in college for almost 2 years, and then I decided to do every other month. That was a bit much for my nicely textured hair but it was able to tolerate the harsh chemicals.

This was in 1994-1996. From 1996-1998, I continued touching up my hair and then my cousin (like my blood sister) was married in 2003. That was the second to last time that I relaxed my hair, since 2010, when I tried to put a relaxer and it failed epically and didn't take after using 2 jars and having to rinse it out over 25 times to be sure it was all rinsed out. My hair refused to straighten, so technically, that relaxer didn't count because it didn't take! I vowed that I would never put myself and my hair through such a process. I felt like it was God trying to tell me something. Since then, I refuse to use any harsh chemicals with alcohols, sulfates, and any other products that are not vegan or all natural.

Recently, I decided to grow waist line hair and I am now there. It didn't take long because I wear head wraps but I should have much more hair than this. I lost a lot of hair do to not conditioning it and keeping it as moisturized as I should and for that, I paid the price.  It should be at my hips

now actually. SMH! (Shaking my head!)

 

So, I have vowed never to mistreat my hair ever again. I wear head wraps daily, though I am a Christian, and many assume that one who wears a head wrap is either Muslim or Buddhist, but that is not the case. Stereotypes! Ugh! Head wraps are my way of protecting my hair by not having to abuse it with heat or harsh chemicals. I do not wear weaves or any extensions and to me, my head wraps are God-sent in that I am able to protect my tresses!

As it stands right now, I have waist length hair but I am determined to get hip length hair by this time next year. If not before, so stay tuned...

I'll be posting videos, vlogs, and so many other special treats about hair and makeup.....

P.S. This is not a blog to hate on relaxers or chemicals. I am boldly saying it, "I dislike relaxers and all harsh chemicals. It only tames the hair. It doesn't do anything for my texture!"

I said that here and you will never read about me 'bashing' girls or women who relax their hair. I did it, for years, so I cannot judge them. But God delivered me from stereotypes and told me to stop putting lye and other harsh chemicals on my scalp.

I live to obey God, not man. So I stopped and I am never going back!

:)

~Lady Tamara

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