Keeping munchkin loving her natural hair
Tis’ the season! Hey everyone, quick check in with you guys! I wanted to share with you my two cents on a new Dove™ campaign called Love Your Hair. Even though this post is sponsored, please know that these thoughts are all my own as you know how passionate I am about grooming my little munchkin to love her natural hair. She’s the whole reason I went natural in the first place!
In this post you'll find:
Special Place <3
Hair has a special place in our hearts, am I right? Bad hair days change our whole mood and good hair days put a pep in our step. Living in Jamaica, many of us grow up with our natural hair but we’re all just counting down the days until we can “cream” it out and get that straight look. I made it all through high school before running the creamy crack through my strands in my boyfriend’s mother’s backyard, subsequently ruining my long tresses and ending up with a haircut immediately. SMH. What I didn’t want, was my daughter wanting to rush into the creamy crack just like I did. No rush to straighten her hair please! I may have made the decision to straighten mine myself, however it still wasn’t a very informed decision. And I still didn’t love and appreciate my hair in its natural form. I succumbed to peer pressure without knowing exactly what I was getting into.
Changing The Hair Cycle
If munchkin wants to relax her hair with chemicals, it will be because she just wants a change. It won’t be because she doesn’t like her natural hair. That’s why I wear my hair natural most of the time, to show her that our kinky, curly hair can be beautiful too, despite what the images on TV and in the magazines show us. That’s why I am grateful for campaigns like the #LoveYourHair campaign from big brands such as Dove™ reinforcing on the TV that she watches so much that all hair types are beautiful, whether curly, straight, black or blonde or anything inbetween. A positive role model can greatly impact a girl’s confidence. In fact, a recent Dove™ study found that 82% of girls learn to care about themselves from their mother so I’m trying to make sure that experience is a loving and positive one.
Positive reinforcement
I do love munchkin’s hair. It is kinkier than mine which means it holds the twists and stays neat and tidy for longer. Which means she has bomb twistouts! Whenever we leave the hairdresser after her hair is freshly done, I always ask her, “Do you like you hair Marley?” The answer is always yes and she tells me why, which is usually because of how much it has grown. She generally doesn’t like to get her hair done so this little session helps her to feel good about the end product and know that her hair is fly! We take pictures and selfies after because that’s what this generation does when they’re feeling fly, am I right???
So even though natural hair is very prevalent in Jamaica already, it kinda just… is… there’s not much thought put into caring for it and loving it as is. We were mostly just waiting and wanting to relax it. These little ways of opening up the conversation with munchkin, asking her specific questions about her hair, teaching her how to twist it and how to care for it is a key part I believe in her learning to love her hair and boost her confidence as a little girl coming into her own. Now that major brands are paying attention to us and providing hair care products that work for us, it’s just that much more affirming. No more scouring the shelves for hair care that works for us too. I love it.
What ways do you encourage your daughter to love your natural hair? Please share as I’m always down for creative ways to bond with munckin! And if you want to create your own cute selfie Dove™ video, go here now!
I do hope you enjoyed this sponsored content written by me on behalf of Dove™
All images are linked to the Dove™ #LoveYourHair image creator, go have fun making your own!
Some images from Depositphotos. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.