Growing up, my natural hair was a mystery. Well, to be honest, it wasn’t even a thought. I was happy to chemically straighten my hair because I genuinely believed what people in society told me; that my 4c hair was more beautiful straight. Well, fast-forward to 12+ years of sharing my natural hair journey online and I love my hair more than ever. Now I share everything I’ve learned about natural hair care with people all over the world and I love it. Creating apparel with fun and empowering messages is my way of combining my two interests - natural hair and fashion.

Why the quotes?

Texturism is the preference for hair that is looser in curl pattern and typically silkier in texture. This usually leads to discrimination against people with kinkier hair textures within the same race. However, the origins of texturism stem from societal discrimination of people within the African diaspora beyond hair. This includes other attributes such as skin color and cultural expression.

I wanted to create apparel with words that are uplifting and empowering to black women who choose to wear their hair natural - no matter the texture or curl pattern. An effort to normalize seeing the beauty in natural hair so that important movements like, The Crown Act don’t have to exist.

A message to women

Many of us have heard statistics highlighted in the media about Black women concerning gender inequalities, workplace inequalities, and even the marital status of black women in America.

What about the positive statistics? Let’s highlight a few:

• Black women have the highest percentage of secondary degrees than any other women in their race/ethnic group.
• Women-owned businesses take up about 40% of all U.S businesses, with Black women among the fastest-growing group.
• Currently, there is an all-time high of women in executive, government, and parliamentary positions internationally.
• Literally, every human being came from a woman.

Yes, there’s still work to do, but in a nutshell, women are doing the damn thing! You deserve to be celebrated and confident about who you are and your contribution to the world. I'm on a mission to create apparel that reflects that.

sources: crown act legal jobs small biz trends forbes unwomen