An absolutely transparent rant about the pros and cons of being a curly girl.
Firstly I’d just like to highlight the fact that while curly hair is cute, being a curly girl isn’t all fun and games. Natural curls are beautiful, yes, and make a lot of us happy to see and happy to have. However, it’s not as easy as it looks, and it sure as hell ain’t cheap! See my curly girl pros and cons below.
Curly Girl Pros & Cons
Now, the pros are pretty self explanatory right? However, the cons, I might need to explain to you.
The “Rules”
The rules is a good place to start, I use the term rules loosely here. The curly girl method has rules, which are guidelines to help you get started on your curly girl journey. These include products to avoid, ways to detangle your hair, ways to wash your hair, etc. I stuck to these rules for a very short while because as I’m sure I’ve said before, I lack patience for certain things. Once you’re “in” you can adapt them to fit you – well I did anyway.
Expensive
Working out your curly recipe can be a very costly thing. You can watch all the YouTube videos you want, but what works for your favourite YouTube curly girl, will not always work for your curls. If you’re lucky, you’ll find your holy grail of products straight away; and it might only cost you £30! However, if you’re like the majority of us, chances are you’re going to go through the trial and error process with a lot of products. Trial and error aside, you might just be a straight up product junkie, don’t worry it’s common!
Effort, Energy, Patience
I’ve put these three together, as they go hand in hand in the curly girl process. If you’re going to do the curly girl method right, you’re going to need a lot of patience as it takes plenty of effort and energy. First of all there’s the finger detangling (insert side eye here). Then referring back to “the rules”, there’s the ingredients scroll – no parabens; no sulphates; no silicones. Admittedly, this was a lot worse back when I first started as there weren’t as many curl friendly products on the market. Especially here in the UK! Then there’s the “wash n go“, which many have already touched on, is far from the simplicity the name suggests.
Knots
Knots, knots, knots; regular and single strand. Whichever ones the are, they are the bane of my life and detrimental to length retention. I made a decision to refrain from using heat in my hair for at least 6 months. This lasted almost 2 years! When I finally straightened my hair, I noticed a bag of single strand knots up and down my tresses. Prior to my heat ban, I would straighten my hair every 3-6 months and trim my ends. During the ban, I did another DIY Deva cut and cut off way more than required this time. I also went back to using my Denman brush, then my beloved rake combs. Finger detangling and Tangle Teezing got a bit too long for me. Especially after a wash n go. My ends really paid the price!
Don’t Touch My Hair
Let me be clear, this statement (for me) isn’t just directed at white people. Believe me. It pisses me off; I do not like other people’s hands in my head, never have done. Not without permission anyway. Once I was comfortable to do my own hair, around the age of 8-9yrs old, my mom left me to it, unless I wanted single plaits or cane rows of course. My friend’s from school will tell you! I was the queen of the dip; whenever I sensed a hand coming for my hair, I was gone.
When you’re a curly girl, it’s 10x worse! Everyone wants to put their hands in your head! EV-ER-Y-ONE!!! Sometimes I have it, so as not to seem rude – especially when it’s one of your mom’s longtime friends. When in reality, I might actually have a Hank break out (Me, Myself & Irene reference, I love Jim Carey, sue me). Don’t get me wrong, I love the compliments and I love that people appreciate my curls. I was elated when I discovered my curls! However, with some people, it’s not just a touch – it’s a grab and a pull to examine “HOW THOUGH?!”. It’s part and parcel, but I’d love it if they would just imagine it was under high security and there’s an invisible laser alarm system protecting it.
It’s funny coz it’s true; with all of that said though, I do love my curls so much. I love that I can have tight natural ringlets one day, then bone straight tresses the next. My curly hair is unique to me, and while the journey can be expensive, it can also be fun!
I’d rather be a curly girl than anything else!
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