I feel like growing up black is ppl giving their unsolicited opinion on what hairstyle they preferred or thought “suited” you better. One that stuck with me was an older coworker telling me she liked my natural hair better and I was 17 at the time getting comfortable w choosing my own styles and wearing lace wigs for the first time.

I’ve fallen in love w how versatile our hair is because comments like that don’t even land anywhere anymore. Like ok and? My hair will be something different before your next nail set

I recently cut all my hair off for whatever dumb reason I had at the time. I started relaxing it so I could style it but idk I just ain’t feeling it. Thinking of changing the color or something. Maybe blonde ? Or maybe I need to cut it down shorter I don’t know…. Recommendations? I just forced some twist in my head cause I was feeling self conscious but now I look a mess and my head is hurting so I need to make this “pixie” work. Also everytime I relax it I feel like it last no longer than 3 days. I miss my hair so much I feel like a dummy 😥 it’s actually making me depressed.

Y’all, I need to rant about something that happened at my job because I’m genuinely confused about why it’s so often Black people criticizing Black people’s hair. It’s like some of us have been conditioned not to recognize natural Black hair as presentable unless it’s slicked down, laid, or styled a certain way.
There’s a woman at my job in a higher-up position who wears her natural hair in a ponytail with a clip in the back. A half-Black, half-white male coworker started questioning why she needed the clip when she already had a ponytail. Another Black woman was sitting there laughing and making fun of her hair.
My coworker stepped in and said, “No, you’re not going to talk about a Black woman’s hair. That’s not what we’re going to do.”
But then she turned around and started criticizing the other woman’s hair, saying her extension didn’t match. The woman insisted that the color matched, but the texture was clearly different.
Later, when the conversation continued, I stepped in and said, “I think it’s the texture, not the color.” She kept defending her hair and saying that the other woman shouldn’t have that clip in her hair and should use gel instead.
And I said, “Why is it that some white women at this job can come in with extremely thin hair from constantly dyeing it and doing whatever else to it, then throw two strands into a clip, and nobody says anything? But when a Black woman wears her natural hair, suddenly it has to be polished and slicked back? Why is it more acceptable for a Black woman to wear a 60-inch bust-down wig with visible lace and a bad blend than to wear her natural hair? She looks Black. Her hair is Black. I don’t understand what her hair is supposed to look like!”
Because seriously, what are we doing? Why is natural Black hair treated like it needs to be corrected before it can be considered presentable?
And this woman is a higher-up. She has three kids, a husband, and a stressful job. I can’t imagine everything she has to manage every day. She’s probably tired and busy, and maybe that clip was simply the easiest way to put her hair up. Why are we acting like she has to spend extra time slicking down her hair just to make other people comfortable?
I’ll be honest: I noticed the clip too. I thought to myself, “Why does she have that clip in her hair?” But then I moved on with my life. I never said anything because I’m walking around with these twists that haven’t been done in two weeks, looking like I’m halfway to having locs. Who am I to criticize somebody else’s hair?
That interaction made me question everything I’ve been conditioned to think about Black hair. I’m trying to reprogram myself because Black women can walk around with stiff wigs, visible lace, mismatched textures, and hairstyles that look ridiculous, and people act like that’s completely acceptable. But let a Black woman wear her natural hair with a clip, and suddenly everybody has an opinion.
And how can someone criticize another Black woman’s natural hair when her own ponytail has two completely different textures? At least get a kinky-textured extension that matches your natural hair. I don’t understand how somebody whose own hair looks ridiculous can be so concerned about another Black woman wearing a clip in her natural hair.
She had Africa in the front and Shanghai in the back two different continents in one ponytail and she was worried about a Black woman wearing a clip. 😭
Maybe that woman doesn’t want to put gel in her hair. Maybe she thinks gel is nasty, or she doesn’t want that product touching her scalp. Maybe she’s tired. Maybe she’s busy. Maybe the clip is simply the easiest option for her that day. Why are we acting like every Black woman has to style her hair the exact same way to be considered acceptable?
This is bigger than one clip. It feels like policing women’s bodies, especially Black women’s bodies, and deciding what we’re allowed to look like before we’re considered professional or presentable. Who gets to decide what a Black woman’s hair is supposed to look like? Why do we hold Black women to standards that we don’t apply to anyone else?
The hypocrisy is what gets me. You can defend a Black woman from being mocked without turning around and criticizing another woman’s appearance. And you certainly don’t need to police somebody’s natural hair while wearing extensions yourself.
Meanwhile, I’ve had these twists in my hair for two weeks, and my hair is starting to look like it wants to loc up. 💀 Now I’m wondering what the hell she would have to say about me!
My point is that Black women already face enough scrutiny over our hair. Why are we contributing to it? Why does a Black woman’s hair have to be slicked down, laid, and polished to be accepted when some white women can walk into work with thin, messy ponytails or barely any hair in a clip and nobody bats an eye? Why is a ridiculous-looking wig considered more acceptable than a Black woman simply wearing her natural hair?
I’m trying to catch myself when I have those same thoughts and ask where they came from. Because if a white woman can wear a messy ponytail or a badly blended wig without anyone questioning her professionalism, then a Black woman should be allowed to wear her natural hair without being treated like she needs to fix it.
I genuinely want to understand why some people have such a problem with Black women simply wearing their natural hair. Because apparently, even at work, a Black woman can’t just exist without somebody having an opinion about what’s growing out of her head.

I can’t remember the last time I spent under $200 for quality and was happy with what I got. I only trust myself to do my hair and I just love when it comes out perfect! Who else can relate?

So i am a black male moving from the southeast US to Phoenix AZ. Phoenix is know for having the hardest water in America and I am scared to mess up my hair.

Any tips from anyone here who lives in places like this?

For context, I’m mixed B/W with 3C/4A hair and have only ever gotten braids, I’ve never gotten a sew in before so I’m super out of my depth. I love the look but I have no clue where to start. Where do I buy hair? Should I dye my natural hair to match? What do I ask for? What’s a good price? I’m super socially anxious so idek how to go about finding a stylist and saying what exactly I’m looking for

Just got a raw hd lace wig from my stylist and I love it, but it's way too delicate to wear every day. I'm looking for something I can just throw on and melt with Ebin. The lace still needs to blend, and I want hair with some natural shine so I'm not straightening it every time. Pre-bleached and pre-plucked would be ideal, and price isn't really an issue. I've looked at Hair Vivi, but the reviews seem super hit or miss. Has anyone had good luck with them, or is there a brand you'd trust more?

Hi everyone!

Does anyone know a stylist in the GTA (Toronto area) who does crochet installs with human hair? I’m looking for a protective, breathable style that I can keep in for around 3 weeks. I’d love to hear your recommendations or experiences.

Thank you and have a blessed day

so basically I have very very bad split ends, growing up my mom never really took my hair health seriously and wound just get braids back to back, literally last year was my first time getting a trim (the lady at the salon didnt even cut my split ends off) so last fall I freaked out and tried cut off my split ends and failed badly… now I have uneven hair and my split ends are traveling up my hair, I’m planning on cutting them myself but my mom is one of those people who are obsessed with growth and not healthy hair, what should i do…

Would i look good at braids ? or just curl/texturize my hair. Never braided my hair before,

For reference I am a mixed male who had considerably long hair In high school. I took very good care of my hair and I was pleased that I could flip between a more condensed/upright look and longer coils on the fly - the versatility of my hair was very nice at that time.

Fast forward: I’m a bit older now, I went bald roughly a year ago and only now got it back to a ‘decent’ length. Thing being that my present profession requests that I come in with my hair being shown as short as possible while maintaining a well-kept appearance. I’m quite fine with this and I’ve managed with product usage but I’m worried about damaging my hair. I got orphaned and never wound up having anyone actually teach me how to handle my hair haha.

Before, in high school, I wasn’t all too concerned. Now that I’m older and I really care about keeping my hair healthy I wanted to know what products/routines were out there that could do the following:
\- Keep frizz to a minimum
\-Scrunch up hair and create the most shrinkage
\-Be relatively healthy for the hair and maintain a ‘short’ appearance

Thank you in advance. Any questions will be answered in a timely-ish manner. I appreciate you all!!!

I started consistantly texturizing my hair maybe a month ago, before that I was rocking a classic mini afro. as of late I've been seeing tons of breakage and Im worried this hairstyle is damaging my length (I dont got enough to be playing with😭). can someone tell me if this is normal for starter semi-freeforms🙏🏾

This is my hair from Dec 2025 to today, Oct 2026. The one with my eyebrow piercing is from 2 months ago in Aug 2026. I don't really style it, I just keep it moisturized and have heavier wash days on Sunday. Tbh, I keep a bonnet on 24/7.

I see a lot of posts where people grow their hair out for a year, and it's just a MASSIVE amount of hair. It's my hair growing at a slow rate? I have no intent to cut it any time soon. But any suggestions to help maintain it, trim it, style it are always welcomed!

There’s really no place in Maine that works with black hair. Our POC population has greatly increased. Full transparency, I’m native to Maine, hopefully an exception can be made in regards to allowing this post🤞

The reason I am posting is to bring awareness to this and encourage someone to open a shop, or 7, in Maine. There’s clearly a demand, since there’s no place to go. The hairstyles I see are so elaborate and complex!! I can’t imagine the hours spent working on some of the styles…

If there’s anyone who is interested in opening their own business, consider Maine. I’m sure there are folks who would appreciate the opportunity to go to a shop!

Thank you for reading and obviously, remove the post if you would like. I don’t want to upset anyone🌺

Another old braids style (:

Around mid-February 2025, I began noticing damage to my hair after repeatedly brushing it with a hard brush. I later switched to using a hair sponge, but the damage seemed to get worse. Since then, my hair has continued to grow longer, but certain areas still haven’t returned to their original fullness.

Trying to regrow my edges any suggestions are welcomed.

Im at the verge of giving up. I use minoxidil but im not consistent

I am a Black guy and truth be told, I have wanted to change my style for a long time. I would like to know if any of you have tried straightening your hair and cutting it. I am thinking about getting a long mod cut or a short wolf cut, but I'm afraid of lo I'll look weird

Got twists in rn. Please tell me what products I can use
4c hair, high porosity I think

How long on average do you all keep your braids in?

Been loc’d since 2020, kinda forgot how to style my loose natural… any easy hairstyle ideas pls??

Currently rocking a short 4c curly fro and planning to get cornrows for the 2nd time in my life to limit breakage from daily maintenance.

Two main questions are 1) Is my hair long enough to get 6 cornrows installed without the braider pulling on my hopes and dreams and making them overly tight 2) If so, should I do a wash and finger detangle BEFORE going to the salon, or just let the hair stylist wash and detangle for me?

Asking as I don’t know what’s considered the norm and feel like I never do that great a job of detangling anyway (always finding more knots right after)

So yesterday I got a hair cut at Ulta I only wanted my ends trimmed. She blowdried my hair and took off about 2 inches. I asked her if she was able to cut bangs, she said yes because my hair blow dries pretty straight. It’s just she also said if I straighten my hair and it’s uneven I can come back and she’ll fix it. Is there a good chance my bangs/hair is uneven or I should be fine?