Summertime, and and your hair roots are sweaty; Scalp feels itchy, and your split ends are dry. Your curls are knotted and your pockets are empty; But hush, little bellas – don’t you cry A little badly misappropriated music to kick off a new weekly feature, miladies! I’ve lived all my life in climates that…
Hair
Baldhead, Rasta, Bold And Beautiful
After my post on Zahra Redwood, Miss Jamaica Universe 2007, I got a comment that really gave me pause. It says: “Miss Jamaica’s dreadlocks might make some people feel good but they will eliminate any chance of her winning. Entering a dreadlocked contestant represents typical Jamaican arrogance. That stuff is just too way out there.”…
Caribbean Queens
Beauty pageants are a big deal in the Caribbean. Or at least they were when I was growing up in Trinidad. When it came time for the annual Miss Universe pageant, the family all gathered round to root for the hometown heroine together. Trinidad and Tobago has a long and proud history of beauty pageant…
Ask Afrobella: Own Your Fro!
I get quite a few e mails from new-on-the-scene afrobellas, or transitioning bellas, who are concerned about how to style natural hair. So many of the traditional straight hairstyles go out the window once you go natural, and in certain environments there’s a pressure to conform to silly style rules and regulations. Take for example,…
Don’t Call It a Haircut
After years of my hair being the same lame chin length (couldn’t grow much longer than that, thanks to the overprocessing) followed by an overgrown, shaggy pixie cut, it was really weird when I noticed my hair actually growing again. But after I made the big decision to go natural and took a long break…
Afrobella of the Week — Titi Branch, Miss Jessie’s Entrepre-bella
More of you have commented about my first Miss Jessie’s post than any other thing I’ve written. As of today, the original post has 75 comments since I first wrote it in August, and my recent review of the products has gotten 45 comments so far. Few other products have produced so much debate within…
Miss Jessie’s Product Review
I bet you didn’t even know you were waiting for a product review, did you? Well it seems many of my readers have been! Since I went natural, the drumbeats have slowly been building. When I started Afrobella back in August, they almost became deafening. Must. Try. Miss. Jessie’s. Curly. Pudding! And I wanted to…
Afrobella of the Week — Nadia Turner, Afrobella Idol
Sanjaya, Sanjaya, Sanjaya. Bloggers can’t get enough of him, he’s gotten all sorts of press because of an acute combination of bad singing and funky hairdos. Sanjaya was already a star for those who choose to Vote For the Worst, but there’s one hair style that propelled him to top story status on celebrity blogs…
Ask Afrobella: Wedding Belle Do’s
I’ve let the Ask Afrobella questions stack up too high. I apologize. Allow me to get back to Afrobella basics. I post this photo with a disclaimer: it took me a LONG time and a lot of back and forth discussion before I decided to post this photo. I don’t aim to be one of…
Respect to the Afrofellas
Way back when I interviewed Lisa Price of Carol’s Daughter, she shared a natural hair trend she’d been noticing. “More and more boys are growing their hair out,” she said. Now I’ve been noticing that myself. There’s something about a guy who’s brave enough to grow out his hair and fly the natural flag high…