Lately, rocking natural hairstyles has been a craze most black women are opting for. As a result, there has been a decline in sales of hair straightening chemicals.

For quite a while, people have referred to natural black hair as kinky and untidy. But lately, natural hairstyles are being embraced the world over. It’s all about black women wearing these styles with pride and grace.

Looking at social media sites, their are various pages and groups which have come up talking about and hailing natural hair. Black women from all walks of life are uploading photos of themselves spotting these hairstyles. There are also ‘how to’ videos and instructions on how to achieve the natural hairstyles. They also advice each other on how best to take care of hair and which products are suitable to achieving these hairstyles.

Common natural hairstyles spotted.

Most black women are now spotting the natural shot hair after the big chop. This is easy to maintain. All that’s needed is to just wash and go. The other style is the natural afro; worn short or big.

Others women opt to go for the natural curly hairdo. This can also be done on short or long hair. There are various hair products brands such as the Eco Styler Gel or Cantu Shea Butter Coconut Curling Cream which assist in attaining this look effortlessly. Rocking this style also helps reduce breakage because there is normally less combing involved.

Braiding is also one of the styles spotted on natural hair. Its called the ‘protective style’, done mainly during the cold and rainy seasons or when one wants to take a break from combing out the hair.

braids

Crotchet style of braiding is also in this category. Hair braids are woven on to cornrows using various brands such as the ‘Marley Twists’ or straight braids. With crotchet braiding, you can achieve an afro look with braids like ‘Afro Kinky Crotchet Braids’. Below is a video of the crotchet braiding technique:

Dreadlocks, short (baby locks) or long are also in the natural hairstyles category. Faux locs are the dreadlocks look-alike like what Tyra Banks has below. For the faux locs, braids are woven around strands of hair.

Reasons for spotting the natural hairstyles.

big-chop

Some hair straightening chemicals have been known to damage black women’s hair after long period of use. The most common effect is hair breakage and early loss of the hairline. This forces the women to go for the ‘big chop’ in a bid to restore the hair to its natural state. They also go for hair products which also assist in the restoration of the hair line.

Rise in organic hair products.

There has been a rise in non-chemical hair straightening products in the market to cater for this niche market. These products are mainly made from natural and organic ingredients such as glycerine, avocado oil, coconut oil, castor oil to name but a few. These products make styling easy and effortlessly and some are known to soften and reduce hair products.

Some women have gone as far as concocting moisturizers, hair oils and conditioners using simple ingredients found in the kitchen like eggs, olive oil, avocado, apple cider vinegar… There are several testimonials women give; some posting ‘before and after’ as proof that these concoctions do work.

Besides avoiding hair straightening chemicals, black women are also avoiding heat damaged caused by hair tools like blow dryer, flat iron, and curling iron. The advice they are following is: straightening hair in low heat only when you are due for a trim.

All in all, black women are now enjoying the versatility of styling their hair best way they know how and with heads held high. Whatever style you choose, don’t forget to moisturize and deep condition the hair.

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