You never see straight hair on a Botticelli goddess or Rubens angel. But within the last twenty years, lots of people began hiding their curly hair, and hardly anyone talked about it. When we did talk about our curls, we usually didn’t have anything good to say. Those of us with curls used the same shampoos and styling tools as our naturally straight haired friends, and then wondered why, after twenty minutes of humidity or rain, our hair looked frizzy, unwieldy, and lifeless. In the last two decades, a quiet revolution has been unfurling. Despite the ubiquity of flat-ironed hair on makeover shows, in movies, and on TV, natural curls are starting to make their presence known.
As founder of a curly
haired salon chain, developer of a styling product line, and author of the
seminal curly style bible, Curly Girl: The Handbook, Lorraine Massey has
been at the forefront of this revolution since the beginning. Lorraine
met up with me to share her philosophy about why curls are poised for a
comeback, and the need for all women to embrace our natural beauty.
“From a very young age,
I kept dreaming that somebody would one day jump out from a bush on the street
and say, ‘I know what to do with your hair!’ I never imagined it would
turn out to be me,” Lorraine said. As an early advocate for eliminating
sulfate shampoo, cutting curly hair dry, and scrunching to encourage curl
definition, Lorraine initially faced skepticism from the hair styling
community. “At first, I was so alone in this path with only a handful of loyal
curly girls whose curls could not be contained, even if we tried. I’d go
to hair shows for so many years. I’d present curl care techniques, and
hairdressers would hurry by our booth uninterested. There was so much humidity around our curl booth they
would run by because their hair started to curl at the mere sprinkle of
hydration. Or they’d stand there with their
arms crossed, and armed with an arsenal of flat irons in their bags and on
their heads.
“Our Cosmetology schools are still
very archaic and many of them desperately need
to update their data and curriculum. The teachers tell the students that
cutting curly hair is the same as cutting straight hair. As logic
set, stylists are starting to realize that curly hair cannot be compared to
naturally straight hair. Now have a new
emerging breed of hairdressers have decided that there is more to hair crafting
than blowdrying everyone who sits in their chair. There are new ideas, new
products. Curls are becoming very
modern, and within the next few years they will be 'mane' stream-pun
intended!”
Lorraine noticed that
one group of people has always talked about curly hair: curly haired
women. “Women with curls are truly curious about this natural garden
growing on top of our heads. We look at each other on the street, Smiling,
knowing that curly girl has gone through probably the same experience as
me. It’s like a grass roots curl club.” Curly haired women ask one
another for styling tips and commiserate about their worst hair disasters minutes
after meeting each other. Lorraine points out that many women impose the
myth that straight hair is more attractive, polished, or professional, on
themselves. “But, then again, many may have heard their boss say that their
hair is not acceptable and needs to be sedated. It’s a subtle form of
prejudice. Curls are not a symptom to be treated. They need to be
understood. To me, a blow-fry with broken singe, flying strands at the front
and crown, and dried out ends doesn’t look professional at all but has become
the norm.”
"We are not born
loving our curls," Lorraine says. "To find their natural beauty,
women have to “get to know their curls before loving them,” but Lorraine
acknowledges that that isn’t always easy. “The young ones particularly are
not comfortable with the forever changing aspect of their curls (like a mood
ring). It can seem hard to manage as an adult, never mind as a child. It helps
if mum is wearing her curls with pride so her little one will follow in her
curly footsteps"
Lorraine also views
embracing natural curls as a way we can take a stand for authenticity and
diverse beauty. “I couldn't help but notice as I was at the gym, looking
at all the TV screens that are imposed upon you, that all the women
presenters were so fake-looking. Fake hair, fake boobs, fake nails, some
with fake tans. I’m interested in what lies beneath. We are brainwashed to
think this is what we should strive to look like. We may be craving to see
someone natural, someone relatable but we don't know it, because this is all we
know. I find it odd that we all want to look the same.”
In spite of the narrow
standard of beauty we often see in the media, Lorraine has seen signs that
curly hair is poised for a comeback--although she maintains that it never
really left. “I’m meeting new curly girls every day: Women in their forties and
even their seventies who are finally ready to embrace their curls. A new
curly girl is born every day.
Florida congresswoman
Debbie Wasserman Schultz has brought natural curls to the national political
stage. The singer Lorde tops the billboard charts and graces magazine
covers. Curly haired icon Annie is returning to movie theaters this
year. Lorraine herself is developing an original musical about
hairdressers with an emphasis on the need for each person to find her own,
unique inner and outer beauty. “What ultimately humbles us and brings us
all together in the end is nature. Curly hair is still not really
mainstream yet, but it will be, as our DNA cross-pollinates and transmutes with
amazing multi-textures. There will be new species of curls emerging that
we have never seen before because we were busy hiding them under weaves and
flattening them with heat. Stylists will take their craft to a very modern
cutting edge approach, once they have well trained their clients to know their
curls better than anyone else can. You’ll see individualized, beautiful
shapes. It’s going to be very exciting. You might even see some curl envy
perhaps. Imposter curly girls with perms (for the truly naturally
straight girl) might come back into style.”
When was the moment you realized that you couldn't fight your curls anymore? When did you embrace your true Curly Hair Nature?
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