Popsbaby!!!

Hi Ladies~
I've been meaning to do this for a long time, so here it goes. Firstly, let me say that I am so happy and proud be a part of such of positive, beautiful group of ladies. You rock!! My name is Stacey Hall and this is my first Curl Street post! YAAAAYYY!!

The first time I went natural, I was in my early twenties and it was somewhat of an accident.
I had a short, relaxed, "Nia Long" haircut that I loved. It was so low maintanance and sheek, especially when I wore a wash and go. Eventually, all of the relaxed hair was gone. I wore my hair natural for about 1 year. With little education on how to care for my growing fro and ridicule from my friends for being natural, I relaxed again and let my hair grow out.

Fast forward 10 years.

Once entered my thirties, my self image changed a bit. I didn't care about anyone's opinion of me. I discovered my beauty in a whole new way. In my familiy, the Halls, the elders described the texture of our hair as "Hall Hair". If you didn't have "Hall Hair" then the OTHER DNA in your blood overpowered it. "Hall Hair" is type 4a, very cottony and fluffy. I inherited it from my mom who got it from my Pop-pop. My whole life, my poofy, cotton ball hair was a pain in the behind, it never laid right. But once I turned 30, I learned to appreciate it and everything about me. It was part of my geneology. I planned to go natural at 35.

My grandfather and my mother both had cottony "Hall Hair". In my Pop-pop's last years, I would sit next to him and rub his hair. He had dementia and the hair rubbing would comfort him when he got agitated and confused. In his eighties, his hair was totally white and fluffy, just like a cotton ball. I was glad to have those quiet moments with him. He was the only father I ever knew and I was his baby (hence the name Popsbaby ).

My mother had been natural for a long time. She was diagnosed with a condition called Myesthenia Gravis (an autoimmune disease that weakens the muscles) in her late 30s and a natural TWA was easiest for her. When I was natural in my 20s, she loved it because we looked like twins. She was a bit disappointed when I relaxed again and always encouraged me to go natural again. I told her that I would think about it. She passed away last July, one year after Pop-pop and just short of her 51st birthday . I remember telling the funeral cosmetologist "Do not curl her hair, she wears her hair natural. Just comb it back and leave it curly." I decided to go natural a month after she passed. It's my homage to her and my Pop-pop and my lineage.

I have been transitioning since August 2009. My big chop is scheduled for this coming Friday, 5/14. I am uber excited!!!! I have purchased my Punjabi Prime henna and I am ret to go!! My plan is to let it grow until it can't grow no mo'.

Sorry for the sadness, but rest assured that I am okay. This is the story of why I decided to go natural. It's because of the love of my family and my pride in who I am.

Thanks for reading. Love you muchly!!

WELCOME!!

Thank you!!

That is a beautiful story!!

Welcome to the Curl Street Journal!!

I look forward to see those BC pics next Friday!!

That is a wonderful story! Welcome!

Thanks ladies!!

What a touching story! Welcome to Curlstreet!

Welcome Popsbaby! Your story was very heartwarming and thank you so much for sharing with us. But the main thing to remember is to POST PICS OF THE BC!! I am so excited for you.

Popsbaby, that is a beautiful story. I'm glad you are finding a way to pay homage to your family and have embraced yourself.

I look forward to reading your thread!

Hey y'all. I am 100% natural. YAY. Charging the camera batteries, so pics are a'comin.

But let me tell y'all about my day!!

The hairdresser did a really good job with the cut. She didn't cut too much off and it was shaped nicely.

But...
She did not do a good job with the wash and she put activator (YES, JHERI CURL GREASY ACTIVATOR) on my hair. Yuk!

I came home and washed that crap out of my hair and noticed that I had a 1985 Kool and the Gang shag on the back of my neck. NO THANK YOU!

So I got dressed and went to my barber friend to have the back tapered and shaped up.

So I say all of this to say, I AM IN LOVE WITH MY HAIR!!!
It's so soft and curly!!

I ran a few errands after leaving the barber shop and ran into this older lady that I know. She is also natural, rocking twists. She said "Oh you cut your hair. It looks nice, but why did you put a curl in it?" I just laughed and said "This is my natural curl" and let her touch it.

Now why can't a black woman have a nice curl pattern without folks thinking it's chemically treated?

Taking a nap, but thank you all for your help and words of encouragement. Love ya.

Congratulations!!!

I cant wait to see the pics!!

I am so in love with my hair. It is growing like a weed. I love her so much that I decided to name her "Jubilee". It means celebtation and is also my favorite from X-Men.

AWWWW JUBILEE!! SHE WAS ADORABLE ON X-MEN!! Even though I never understood how fireworks help them save the day. LOL!! Congrats on the BC.

I like Jubilee! I am an X Men fan myself. My hair is Rogue!! It's nice to meet you both.

So I did a caramel treatment today using the E'tae product. My hair is super soft, but the treatment did relax my curls a bit and I do not dig that at all. Overall, I like it and may do it again in the future, but not anytime soon. One 8oz bottle costs $20 dollars and I used half the bottle for one treatment.