In our Hair Q&A series with hair experts, we connect Madame Noire readers with various experts and stylists to answer their most pressing questions about hair care. In this edition, Cindy Tawiah, founder of DIVA BY CINDY , responds to reader-submitted questions about jumpstarting curls and flat ironing hair. If you have a hair care issue you’d like to have addressed, Facebook us or email us at editors_at_madamenoire.com. 

Question 1: I was hoping to get some good recommendations for fine curly hair, to keep it hydrated? Also a way to jumpstart the curls after the hair has been straightened a couple weeks in a row, please?

Fine curly hair needs body and volume. Any mousse or wrapping lotion with a foam dispenser should provide you with great results. If you have straightened your hair for weeks, jump start the process with a great deep conditioner. Search for products which don’t rob the hair of moisture and products which contain panthenol ( vitamin B derivative which helps hair retain moisture).

Question 2: I have short natural hair (almost 3 inches long) and I’ve tried a flat iron and a root iron on my hair to straighten it and nothing works. What am I doing wrong or what shall I try? I get better results when I band stretch my hair.

Hair can be straightened with a Marcel iron or by using a hot blow dryer to blow dry hair first. It is about technique and products. Use products which will detangle your hair in order to make the process easier. If all else fails and you need it straightened or a hot pressed for an event,  have a professional straighten it for you and watch the process closely. Good luck.

Cindy Tawiah is the founder of DIVA BY CINDY product line for all women who desire natural based products that will give them longer and healthier hair. A motivational speaker and advocate for women’s rights. Cindy has been featured on WBAL TV, Shecky’s media, Beauty Store business and Hype Hair.

You may recall a few weeks ago when I talked about What Not to Do When You Decide to Weave it Up. It was a recollection of my friend’s weave nightmare from earlier this year. Well, Bre finally decided overnight to do the big chop and she is owning it! I’m a relaxed girl and her new look is tempting… not sure I’m that brave though.

I decided to get into her mind a little bit and share with you all her thoughts and feelings about the whole experience. If you are contemplating doing the big chop, this just might be your motivation.

Here’s what the Bajan beauty had to say…

How long had you been relaxed before the Big Chop?

My first relaxer was at the age of 9, I’m 25 now….so 16 years.

What made you decide to do the Big Chop?

1. Maintaining my hair became intolerable. I tried it all; short and long. My short relaxed cut had me at the hairdresser once a week and weave was just becoming too expensive. Every three months, I was paying $300 for hair and $125 for application.

2. I’ve reached a pivotal moment in my life, I’ve decided upon a career path and I’ve gained a new wave of confidence—I’ve found myself and my direction. My big chop exemplified my strength, courage and confidence.

What were your fears beforehand?

My greatest fear was losing my ‘DIVA CARD’. I was also afraid of not being pretty enough to go bald and that I wouldn’t be found attractive. Since my big chop, I’ve been called ‘Beautiful’ more times by random people than I have in my 25 years of living. I now FEEL beautiful, a feeling that’s not too familiar.

About This Episode

For “Weave Wisdom”, our mini-series on how to install and maintain a fabulous hair weave, we tapped the award-winning hair stylist Anthony Cherry to host. In this third installment of our series, Cherry shares tips on maintaining a great-looking weave and keeping it lookin fresh and healthy til your next weave appointment.

Check it out and let us know what you think!

About Anthony Cherry

You only need to look at Anthony Cherry’s celebrity client list to understand just how good he is at his craft. Having worked with with the likes of Lala Vasquez-Anthony, Evelyn Lozada, Claudia Jordan and Paris Hilton, the St. Louis-bred, Los Angeles-based stylist has been working his hair magic for over 10 years. Along with his celebrity weave styling duties, Cherry also works as an ambassador to the packaged hair company, Sensasionell.

Want more Madame Noire Hair Videos….check out links below:

NATURAL HAIR

• Noire Naturals – The Natural Twist Out
• Noire Naturals – Maintaining Your Twist-Out Style
• Noire Naturals – Creating A Sophisticated Elegance
• Noire Naturals – Accessorizing a Sophisticated Updo

RELAXED HAIR

• Relaxed & Real – From Daytime To Evening
• Relaxed & Real – How To Prep Your Hair Before A Relaxer
• Relaxed & Real – Protective Styles For Working Out

WEAVES

• Weave Wisdom – How To Prepare For A Good Weave
• Weave Wisdom – How To Install A Hair Weave
• Weave Wisdom – How To Maintain A Hair Weave

This week on The Truth @bout Natural Hair With Anu, Ms. Prestonia helps a reader learn how to better care for her infant’s natural hair. Here’s what our resident natural hair care expert has to say.

Hello, Anu,

I need some advice.  I have an eleventh month old baby girl and need some advice on caring for her hair. I have been told everything from “brush her hair before she goes to bed so it will grow” to “use hair care products specifically targeted for babies.”

This is my regimen.  Currently, I use olive oil in her hair everyday and when I part her hair in barrettes, I use coconut oil. I have read in the past not to use mineral oil.  I have noticed her hair is a little dry.  When I wash her hair, I use the baby shampoo, specifically for curly hair.  I wash her hair every two to three weeks because she does not like her hair washed and cries.

To make matters worse, I have a five-year-old daughter, so you would think that I would know what to do.  No! I have had her going to the beauty salon for about a year now, and her hair has doubled in length.  Why is that?

PLEASE HELP A CLUELESS MOTHER! Oh! and by the way we have 100% negro, African-American hair that is very curly or some would say “kinky.”

Thank you
Cathy, age 39

Weaves, wigs and extensions are all the rave with women- especially black women.  They’re great on one hand, because they can be used for protective styling while letting you maintain an incredibly fabulous look. But on the other hand, if worn incorrectly, they can (1) make you look a hot mess while (2) slowly but surely balding you in the process.

Last week I read an article in The Grio about a recent study that concluded very tight weaving is linked to a permanent type of hair loss that affects black women. The clinical term is central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia, which means “scarring hair loss.” It is something that occurs only in black women. And to date, there is no treatment for it.

As a doctor, I wasn’t surprised by this recent study. I’ve shared this information about weaves with family and friends for years. Prolonged pulling at hair strands, which primarily happens when wearing tight weaves/wigs, causes scalp inflammation, hair breakage, and ultimately balding. And if going bald wasn’t bad enough, black women also add insult to injury when we rock hair pieces that also look a hot mess because we choose not to pay attention to important things like styling, maintenance and hair hygiene. We’ve all seen those ratty, bird nest-looking weaves and wigs. Not a good look.

Weaves, wigs and extensions are not just something you should slap on your head without much forethought, care, or even precaution. A lot can go wrong if you do. But does this mean that you can’t rock a fierce weave, wig or hair extensions? No- of course you can! But if you do, you have to pay very close attention to your hair, as well as the styling and maintenance of your weave/wig. It’s all your hair- even the part you paid for So take care of it- and love it! Here are six tips on how to rock a weave and not look a hot mess or go bald in the process.

By Alexis Garrett Stodghill

For many black women, maintaining the perfect hairstyle is a central goal. Using weaves or braids to achieve a look without thinking of the consequences is common, but the damaging results are far from pretty.

Recently, a shocking study reported on by CNN revealed that weaves and braids may contribute to a type of permanent hair loss known as central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia, or CCCA, a form of baldness that begins at the crown of the head and leads to scarring. A staggering 59 percent of black women who participated in the study had hair loss on the top of their scalp.

Dr. Monte O. Harris, a renowned African-American doctor and hair care expert who addresses balding in black women, noted that “black hair has a morphology that makes it more susceptible to damage, because there are many breaks along the shaft of the hair,” he said. “It’s amazing that our hair is probably the most susceptible to trauma and we do the most damaging things to it. It’s like a double hit.”

Our extra susceptibility to CCCA was explicitly linked to traction hairstyles, such as weaves and braids. There was no correlation found for relaxers or hot comb usage. While Harris is pleased with the findings, he is concerned that “people are receiving mixed messages from this study.” He is particularly excited that the study “highlighted the increased incidences of hair issues in black women linked to traumatic grooming practices,” which might help black women rethink adopting potentially abusive styles. At the same time, however, the misconception that weaves and braids are uniformly injurious could cause more harm than good.

“I’m concerned about it because it’s making it seem like relaxers are good and weaves are bad,” said Harris. “Things need to be put into a context, particularly with weaves [since they] are done in a variety of ways.”

Anu Prestonia, president and owner of Khamit Kinks natural hair salon in Brooklyn, has over twenty years of experience observing the many variables that affect the impact of traction styles. She was hesitant about the results of the study.

We give you daily tips about African-American hair growth and hope that you heed this fab advice! Check out African-American hair tips…

Read the rest of this entry »

Want to learn more about growing long African-American hair? Check out our tip of the day, after the jump!

Read the rest of this entry »

Stay tuned for more topics, comment or write us at editors@madamenoire.com if you have suggestions!

The notion of “good hair” is a misconception that dates back to the days of American slavery, when European culture and standards of beauty were used to disparage the self-esteem of Black women…ultimately causing divisiveness that has damaged our appreciation for what could be described as ‘black beauty.’ Naturally, some developed a desire to look like the white women in the main house—well-groomed and sweet-smelling with long, flowing straight locks. It was made clear that thick, coarse hair was undesirable and worth less.

Read the rest of this entry »

Despite stereotypical and erroneous information, there are a lot of strong, intellectually astute, spiritually sound, progressive and handsome Black men who are still embarking on their search for their beautiful queen to spend the rest of the abundant lives with.  In addition to looking for the internal beauty, these kings quite naturally look at the external aesthetics of prospective queens.  And, believe or not, hair is one of the components of external aesthetics that these men pay attention to.  Based on personal discussions with solid, single Black men in my everyday microcosm and from across the country, here are some realities associated with women’s hair and some myths that need to be debunked:

Read the rest of this entry »