What is the hair situation in your city?

[fatimablush]

Fatima Blush reporting from Olrlando

Few twa's, (me and my sister included) few cesars( my sisters bff) I saw to ladies sproting them and they were fierce.

A couple of fros...twists. twist outs. braids and micros. a few jheri curls! yep you read correctly.

Wigs...too big and too fake..what i notice are more and more scraggly ends and no edges..-that is the majority.

I used to work with a lady who transitioned under her wig..by the end of june she had the best hair..natural and shiny twists.. She looked better with the natural hair..

 

[Crystalicequeen123]

This is a very accurate forcast Just to add you do see a lot of nice short relaxed cuts. Precision styles. Not everybody needs to have hair down their back.

Yep yep! I forgot the asymetrical cuts, and the nice shorter do's (relaxed or natural).

Let me also add....a lot of women (and some men!) aren't afraid to wear locs, sister locs, and braids here...especially if you go to the metropolitan Washington DC area.

 

[dafnie]

Reporting from Gainesville, FL -

-- about 1/3 of them are natural and 1/2 have TWAs (recently Big Chopped)
-- The other 1/3 is relaxed/texlaxed... NL to APL (most of them are damaged)... some random past BSL relaxed folks here and there but not much.
-- The final 1/3 is always covered in a wig/weave and it's usually on point.

Most people either do their own hair or get them done when they go home for breaks. Most of the blacks who are actually from this town wear a lot of weaves/wigs (usually not on point) or have NL to SL length relaxed hair... I've noticed that the college students have healthier heads of hair..

Either way... within the college population... I feel like everyone's going natural, most people don't have 'freshly' relaxed heads. I've also noticed how a greater population of the freshmens come with unhealthy hair (natural or relaxed) and as they get older... their hair gets better...

 

[Harina]

Interesting thread.

My city's already been reported on. But I will report on Ireland as I studied there. Not many black people, but I saw one of the most beautiful puffs I've ever seen. Many wearing braids, bad weaves (like just pieces of matted hair sticking out of the Hawaiin silky), some relaxed (it was actually a good mix of healthy relaxed and not so healthy).

Men always cut off their hair. There's quite a few biracial people with their big curly hair.

I only saw dreads on two people and they were white. I wish I could say I represented well when I was there but it was a hit or miss for me, I usually just put it in a bun.

 

[NikkiQ]

New Orleans,LA here...

And its weave as far as the eye can see. Its a mixed bag though. Some look pretty amazing while most are...total lost causes. Girls are getting bold with their hair choices too. No more bone straight hair that looks NOTHING like their natural texture. They're not afraid to rock the thicker and "bigger" looks(which I love),but I wish they weren't just glueing it in!!!

 

[dafnie]

anybody from Houston out here? I visited earlier this year (2010) in March and I saw A LOT of lace fronts... they looked better than the usually jacked up highly noticeable lace fronts I'm used to seeing here in FL but either way... I knew they were lace fronts...

 

[Kneechay]

From Houston where I think I may SCREAM if I see one.more.Lacefront!!

I HATE Lacefronts and how they're too accessible. Ugh.

Most women are relaxed and even more are weaved up. Naturals too like to get weaves. Texans like things big and so the weaves are big, curly, and long. Think Toya Carter, Kim K, Ciara type hair.

When I do see naturals, their hair is always beautiful and full and thick. I wonder if they're Nikos' cousins.

 

[BlackGeisha]

Originally Posted by ronalisa
Here in Miami, FL it is a rarity to see a woman wearing her natural hair. In fact when I do, I usually give a friendly nod or smile as a silent kudos for those going against the grain. It's all about the deep wavy weave, the longer the better here. Lots of lacefront, mohawks and styles petrified in spritz... they don't even bother to make it even look like real hair. I went to a club on South Beach last week, my first time at a club with short natural kinks and I got NO love from the dudes. It's all about the "exotic" latin look here. I used to sport the deep wavy weave but grew tired of stressing my hair and accepting compliments mostly about my hair, the one thing that didn't belong to me. I decided to value the health of my hair over ignorant people who think kinks are ugly.

Originally Posted by Scorpimini14720
Representing Miami....

In the hood, out of the hood, on the beach, at the store, Weaves and Lacefronts!!!

The weaves are... creative? Mostly Seaborn like. The weaves that look nice are all Kim Kardashian styled, long 20 something inches with barrel curls but not just worn by just AA women. The lacefronts... Lets just say that with it being so hot here, I expect that their forehead has to be 2-3 shades lighter than the rest of their face.

Not many natural heads that I see and if they are not wearing weave their hair is usually short and overprocessed.

The men, my bad, goons have a birds nest of locks on their head that looks unkempt and scary.

Miami here to cosign, these are very very accurate descriptions.

 

[SimpleKomplexity]

Reporting from Jackson Mississippi

Lots of short Keri Hilson and Rihanna styles here. They look really nice and polished.

There is currently an outbreak of braids of all kinds (micros, kinky twists, sengelase) with sprinkles of dreads here and there

There are a lot of natural usually TWA size for now

But a lot of what I see on a normal basis in Jackson (not Madison, Ridgeland, or Flowood) are shoulder length shiny greasy rollerset hair. Or gelled up little bitty ponytails that look like a bird's tail. Ew.

 

[chasturner84]

Reporting from a Nashville, TN Walmart:

NL chewed up ends, SL-APL transparent strands, MIA edges, and many "unweavables" abound....ahhhh but the sprinkle of healthy relaxed & natural heads just made this trip worthwhile.


Wait, did she just say that I needed a relaxer? Nahh, she was talking to her bald friend.

 

[BriDa5242]

reporting from New York (Queens)

where I live um...Parrots (as my husband calls them) 8 different colors glued, sewed, braids, gelled down to make something all in ONE HEAD.Relaxed hair chewed up , weaves, weaves , and more weaves, places that use to be pharmacy's now sell weaves..I see a few naturals, but when i go to brooklyn/harlem I see alot more naturals in their glory its like a nesting ground I love it

 

[PlatinumBronze]

I'm from SW Louisiana and most of the women here are relaxed. A couple of naturals are starting to pop up but very very few. Most ladies wear wigs/weaves, some look good and some don't. Most women where I'm from have no idea what healthy hair is .

 

[PlatinumBronze]

From Houston where I think I may SCREAM if I see one.more.Lacefront!!

I HATE Lacefronts and how they're too accessible. Ugh.

Most women are relaxed and even more are weaved up. Naturals too like to get weaves. Texans like things big and so the weaves are big, curly, and long. Think Toya Carter, Kim K, Ciara type hair.

When I do see naturals, their hair is always beautiful and full and thick. I wonder if they're Nikos' cousins.

I just got back from H-town yesterday and yes, Houston is the lacefront capital for the Southern Region, lol. Everybody from around here go to Houston to get a really nice lacefront (I'm gonna start saving my coins for one soon ). I saw SOOOO many lacefronts but I must say, some of them were really cute, and some not so cute, it's just too dang on hot for that this summer, lol.

 

[arosieworld]

Reporting from Columbus Ohio--- You see a lot of naturals they are everywhere but I dont know if they all are really ours because we are such a college town. You see the full range here in all ages most of the time. Bad weaves, burnt hair, long hair, curly hair, straight hair, good weaves anything kinda goes here. There is this bleach blonde natural who lives across from me. I <3 her hair.

 

[lovelexi]

Reporting from CT
Mostly relaxed ladies. In my area its mostly neck length to APL hair. Nothing outrageous. Just relaxed hair. Then I venture out of my town and the relaxed heads can get ugly. All diff types of jacked up rainbow colors in the hair stringy ends no edges. And I can smell that 2 weeks of no washing smell when I get real close to a relaxed head. Its bad out there. Honestly I see a direct correlation between money and hair. In my neighborhood and some of the other middle-upper class black neighborhoods the hair isnt bad at all. But let me go to Hartford...complete diff story.

On campus in Long Island,NY
A lot of the females are from the boroughs...lawd i've never seen so much weave in my life. And not just APL weaves...MBL weaves to. I couldnt even tell you about their real hair because I've never seen it. NY is like Weave City to me.

 

[Miss*Tress]

Reporting from Jackson Mississippi

Lots of short Keri Hilson and Rihanna styles here. They look really nice and polished.

There is currently an outbreak of braids of all kinds (micros, kinky twists, sengelase) with sprinkles of dreads here and there

There are a lot of natural usually TWA size for now

But a lot of what I see on a normal basis in Jackson (not Madison, Ridgeland, or Flowood) are shoulder length shiny greasy rollerset hair. Or gelled up little bitty ponytails that look like a bird's tail. Ew.

Great comparison - that's exactly what they look like.

 

[fatimablush]

Here in Miami, FL it is a rarity to see a woman wearing her natural hair. In fact when I do, I usually give a friendly nod or smile as a silent kudos for those going against the grain. It's all about the deep wavy weave, the longer the better here. Lots of lacefront, mohawks and styles petrified in spritz... they don't even bother to make it even look like real hair. I went to a club on South Beach last week, my first time at a club with short natural kinks and I got NO love from the dudes. It's all about the "exotic" latin look here. I used to sport the deep wavy weave but grew tired of stressing my hair and accepting compliments mostly about my hair, the one thing that didn't belong to me. I decided to value the health of my hair over ignorant people who think kinks are ugly.

I hear you..my last twa was in 2008..Me and my sister went to a club looking all cute..cute sundresses and make up en pointe confidence and all that and we got no love...

 

[cocoaluv]

I hear you..my last twa was in 2008..Me and my sister went to a club looking all cute..cute sundresses and make up en pointe confidence and all that and we got no love...

Dont get upset. A lot of the guys I saw while in Miami looked like they are out of a Rick ross video....big clumps of dreads and scary looking faces.

The worst weaves I ever saw was in Miami. I mean I have seen some bad ones in Jersey but the ones in Miami...its like they dont care what the heck the hair looks like as long as its long and flowing. its like they all went to the same blind hair stylist. Just a messerplexed

 

[kandiekj100]

Tampa, Florida checking in.

Mostly I see wigs and weaves and relaxers. And the relaxed heads that I see are often not cute. Heat damaged and overprocessed.

I am slowly starting to see an increase in naturals, but most people definitely have the mentality that you have to have a certain hair type in order to even think about going natural.

 

[Dayjoy]

From Chicago again: rode through the city and I had forgotten about a new "trend" I've been seeing--women walking around with NIGHTCAPS on their heads during the day in public like it's a legitimate accessory. I get so mad!!! Really now??? DD thinks they are crazy and I agree.

 

[andromeda]

Reporting from Natural Haven, Brooklyn

Naturals, naturals and more naturals! A variety of textures. A variety of sensibilities - from ostentatious styles that are evocative of strutting peacocks to those that are low-key but still appealing. Sleek, defined curls with hang. Shrunken, cottony, undefined tufts in all their nappy glory. Curly and coily fros. Funky frohawks and braided/twisted styles. Teeny weeny afros. Immaculately maintained and styled dreads. Voluminous puffs. Twistouts and braidouts hither and yon. No matter the style, most heads are fairly healthy. Dried up naturals are rare.

Women with heat and chemically-straightened APL hair are also quite common. The prevalence of dominican salons means that healthy relaxed hair is even common among those perched on the lower rungs of the socioeconomic ladder.

However, upon wandering outside the haven, into certain areas or shopping districts (Fulton Mall *shudder* ), one might exclaim "weaves, wigs and chewed up ends, oh my!". The weaves and wigs aren't generally bad - there's a substantial amount of good and decent ones. They generally strive for believability rather than rainbow-briteness. There are still those who opt for the "hair hat". And there are also a smattering of those who appear to be dueling devotees of two different schools of hairlines - those who worship at the altar of theresa guidice (the low-lying lace fronters) and those who worship at the altar of naomi campbell (wefts without edges). There are isolated cases of teens with high side ponytails; the hairs on their head can be heard screaming "let me in, let me in!", to which their ponytail holder gruffly responds, "Not by the hair of my chinny-chinny-chin!". Civilians are advised to approach with extreme caution.

Over and out.

 

[Tamster]

From Chicago again: rode through the city and I had forgotten about a new "trend" I've been seeing--women walking around with NIGHTCAPS on their heads during the day in public like it's a legitimate accessory. I get so mad!!! Really now??? DD thinks they are crazy and I agree.

OMG Yes! I was on the train today... and the night owls made an appearance ....


I was embarrassed for them.

 

[JJamiah]

Right NOw I am reporting from Orlando FLorida, where I see alot of everything, I see nice braids with extentions, I see lots of black girls with Waist length and lower Relaxed hair already like 6 in almost two days., I see Weaves, I see wash and go's, I see bleached blondes, Nice Hi-lites all pretty decent healthy hair GO Florida Ladies. WHen I get home in NJ I will let you know my report

 

[Duchesse]

There are still those who opt for the "hair hat". And there are also a smattering of those who appear to be dueling devotees of two different schools of hairlines - those who worship at the altar of theresa guidice (the low-lying lace fronters) and those who worship at the altar of naomi campbell (wefts without edges). There are isolated cases of teens with high side ponytails; the hairs on their head can be heard screaming "let me in, let me in!", to which their ponytail holder gruffly responds, "Not by the hair of my chinny-chinny-chin!". .

Over and out.

at this whole post!

Brooklyn has the best natural hair hands down, Queens has some good Dom. blowouts. Manhattan some good weaves. The other boroughs I rarely visit.

They all have plenty of dusty chewed perms, and plastic wigs/weaves that look like they will spin like a record. Many of the ghettofabolousness brigade choose the blunt China bang and shiny black weave look.....many.
But I don't find myself retching that often, and often find myself thinking heads look good.

 

[hiphoprocker]

yet another CHICAGO cousin checking in.. HEY YA'LL!! LOL

So lets see:
In the hood i see alot of 27 pieces, lots of chewed up relaxed see through ends, rattail combs and stiff dollar bristle brushes being the preferred styling tools.. lots of lace fronts, the synthetic variety.. a friend of mine referred to these as the screen door lace fronts because the lace is as hard as a metal screen

lots of color. the rainbow variety. i once saw a flyer in my local bss for a hairstylists. her name was SKITTLES . she offered 27 pieces in every color of the rainbow. as you can imagine this was a very colorful flyer.

BUT on the other hand, there are LOTS of healthy relaxed heads that are full SL, APL, and BSL.. not many WL that i've seen.. relaxed ladies are learning to take care of the hair more and you can see the difference.. its not unlikely to be somewhere and be one of a few in the room with healthy relaxed hair thats at least SL..


other than the rainbow explosions, weaves here have come along way.. not many silky shiny synthetic baby doll weaves anymore.. lots of sew ins ala nicky minaj with the bang.. more and more remy hair extensions, they are everywhere now.. and MOHAWKS.. EVERYWHERE.

lots of micros, cornrows, kinky twist, flat twists, regular individuals, we have african braid shops every two blocks, more than one on the same block on the west side

lots of naturals, maybe some are weaves.. lots of wash and go's, lots of recent BC's and twa's..

recently theres been an increase in the "doughnut bun" they are everywhere all the time now.. i'll see at least 5-6 a day. i know some are niko's cousins or nikos cousins cousins but the bulk majority of the ladies/kids i see in these buns are wearing them as a style trend that will blow over eventually.

 

[PistolWhip]

La-La Land:

Weaves, weaves, weaves! Shellacked gel to flattened bad edges and "baby hairs".

Once in a while, you will see a natural getting their hair pressed, sporting cute braidouts/twistouts or a twa.

^^^^^co-sign on this.:covereyes

 

[cocoaluv]

at this whole post!

Brooklyn has the best natural hair hands down, Queens has some good Dom. blowouts. Manhattan some good weaves. The other boroughs I rarely visit.

They all have plenty of dusty chewed perms, and plastic wigs/weaves that look like they will spin like a record. Many of the ghettofabolousness brigade choose the blunt China bang and shiny black weave look.....many.
But I don't find myself retching that often, and often find myself thinking heads look good.

AMEN I'm in jersey so natural isn't that big yet but whenever I go to brooklyn I am in AWE. The women out there for the most part are doing it very well. Loose hair and dreads always look good!

 

[ashleymichelle1]

Columbus, Ohio.

The hair around hair is a mess...I see mostly dry, short , broke off relaxed hair. Every now and then I see pretty relaxed hair but it's a rare to see hair past sl. I see tons of weaves and wigs.. I don't see much loose natural hair but i see a lot of dreads. Like every guy I know is starting locs lol. I was at wal-mart the other day and saw a group of 3 women with waist length locs...I couldn't stop staring! lol....oh yeah and lots of women rock kinky twists or micros...a lot of women have short rihanna type hair cuts. overall I would have to say like 65% of the hair I see is badly damaged or lust looks HAM smh

 

[ashleymichelle1]

Reporting from Columbus Ohio--- You see a lot of naturals they are everywhere but I dont know if they all are really ours because we are such a college town. You see the full range here in all ages most of the time. Bad weaves, burnt hair, long hair, curly hair, straight hair, good weaves anything kinda goes here. There is this bleach blonde natural who lives across from me. I <3 her hair.

Geez I must be hanging out in all the wrong places ! I hardly ever see natural hair.. but i totally agree with the bad weaves and burnt hair part ! lol but for every bad weave I spot a good weave...They love weave in columbus..

 

[I Am So Blessed]

i know im wrong for this but... i was standing in back of this lady at a cvs today and i just wanted to ask her, WHY DOES YOUR HAIR LOOK LIKE THIS?!!!!!! it was all chewed up and relaxed straight. DAMMITT, WHY. some pieces were short and some were shorter . straight UGLY YO!!! im not being mean, im just not going to front.