megand

I had the pleasure of being invited to Naturals Night Out in San Francisco last month, hosted by Natural Selection Blogger Cassadie Blackwell and Madusalon. I had heard rave reviews on our Salon Finder pages and was anxious to visit the renowned curly salon. Immediately upon arrival I was more than impressed not only by the diverse amount of curls that the stylists themselves were rocking (not to mention blue locs), but also by the energetic vibe that even passersby were noticing.

Owner Marie Cesar rightfully takes credit for the success of this curl haven in the bustling Bay Area. We had the chance to get behind the scenes and ask her a few questions about the successful salon.

NaturallyCurly: Tell me a little bit about how you got started as a stylist, and how natural hair became your focus.

Marie Cesar: I was born in Petion Ville, Haiti, and settled in the Bay Area. I have been a stylist for 22 years. As a black woman, I think we are beautiful and shouldn’t have to alter our looks to conform to what society expects of us. I can find beauty in everyone and wanted a salon that reflected that. I am completely against the idea that we have to chemically straighten our hair in order for us to feel beautiful.

In 1994, when I was pregnant, after several years of wearing braids, I decided to wear my hair natural. When I was was working as a stylist in a salon on Haight Street, I was fortunate enough to run into Lisa Bonet of “The Cobsy Show,” and she reinforced my decision because she no longer had her long, beautiful locks. Instead, she had chin-length curls. I remarked to her that her hair was beautiful both as locks and as curls and wanted to know what she did to maintain them. She told me “to be patient, because our hair is fragile. Don’t tug on it and don’t be discouraged. And don’t go and straighten it.”

Over the years I have worked with a number natural haircare products and have become a advocate of natural curly, kinky, wavy and all kinds of hair. I love all kinds of hair! As I believe you should care about what you put in your body, and that includes your hair as it is part of your body. We check the product lines carefully for their ingredients—much the same way you would look at the labels on your food. If you pollute your hair, you pollute your body. I have tried many haircare lines in my industry, eventually settling on DevaCurl, Jessicurl, Miss Jessie’s and Eufora.

MC: We have been in business for nine years. When we were setting up Madusalon, my husband, Russ, and I, were three weeks away from opening and we still hadn’t decided on a name. He liked the name Medusa but I felt that it was too cliché and suggested we keep looking. I thought about naming the salon after the Haitian Deity Eruzlie, when my phone rang and it was my aunt calling me from Haiti and after our conversation she called me by her nickname for me, Madudunne, a term of affection meaning “my love, my sweet, my heart.” And from that came “Madusalon.” It reflects the love of my hair, the fierceness of style and “my do”—representing hair as an personal expressionNC: How long has Madusalon been in the Bay Area? What inspired the name of the salon?

NC: Your salon boasts diversity with hair types. Is it hard to find stylists to be part of your team who know how to work with all textures?

MC: I don’t think so in my case because I take the time to train them. Almost every stylist is my salon has been my assistant until they are ready to go to the floor.

I was wandering around the World Natural Hair Show a couple of months ago and had the pleasure of finding a new line of natural hair products that I just had to share with all of you fabulous curlies. Camille Rose Naturals is the brainchild of a very health-conscious curly, Janell Stephens, who tells me that she started her journey with veganism.

Stephens’ husband, an oncologist, would come home with stories of different cancers, which got her thinking that there must be a correlation between what we put in our bodies and how we feel. Although Janell grew up with relaxers and even claims to have gotten a Jheri curl when she was younger, she finally took the plunge to becoming natural after moving back to Louisiana, where the humidity was too much for her pressed hair. “By that time, the natural revolution had begun.” Stephens says. She also wanted to be part of something bigger and to help other women with their natural hair journey no matter the texture.

Three years later, Camille Rose Naturals, a product line started in the search of better ingredients for her family (and named after her Grandmother Camille who loved roses) was born. Since then, Janell has been spreading the word about her all-natural product line for both hair and body. “My goal is to take Camille Rose Naturals international because I believe in my ingredients.” Stephens says.

Camille Rose Naturals lives up to the hype with several natural hair products that include ingredients such as aloe, avocado, green tea and shea butter.

To learn more about these natural hair products, check out the Camille Rose Naturals website.

A reader emailed me last week raving about a curly chef she had seen featured in a lifestyle magazine from Boston. A curly redhead from Boston isn’t such a rare thing, but after a few quick keystrokes, I was pleasantly surprised to find beautiful curly girl and renowned chef, Kristina Kuzmic.

Googling “Kristina Kuzmic,” I found a laundry list of sites chronicling her run for her own show on Oprah’s new network, OWN. There were plenty of people out there in Kuzmic’s corner throughout the competition which ultimately came down to her and Austin-based funny man, Zach Anner. Kuzmic says her show, “Breaks all of the rules, just like my hair”.

Getting Kuzmic on the phone to chat about her curls was surprisingly easy, and talking to her was a complete breeze. She forewarned me that she wasn’t an expert on curly hair, but my theory is that if you have it, you’re an expert! We chatted about the contest, and the fan mail she gets asking about her hair. I was a little surprised that the show’s stylists didn’t want to flatten out the new TV personality’s bouncy curls. “They loved it,” Kuzmic says, “Because they didn’t have to do much.”

She goes on to mention that Deva has one of her favorite conditioners, but like almost all curlies out there, she is still on the search for a styler, “I’m hoping to find one line of styling products that I love.” We laughed about how not washing your hair every day can be liberating, a subject that Kuzmic was adamant about. “What made me love my hair is not washing every day,” she admits.

It’s so refreshing to see someone in the media who embraces her curls instead of pressing, relaxing or hiding them to appeal to the public. We give Kristina Kuzmic our full attention, and can’t wait to learn how to cook more than a Lean Cuisine.

Keep your eyes peeled for her show this fall on OWN. In the meantime, you can follow the curly chef on Kristina Kuzmic’s Facebook page.

I am elated to be heading out to San Francisco tomorrow to attend Ms. Cassadie Blackwell’s (Natural Selection Blog) Naturals Night Out event on Saturday! This is the second event that the chic natural hair blogger will be hosting in the City By The Bay; and with this being my first time in town, I think celebrating with fellow curly girls is the way to roll!

Cassadie and two natural twins at the last Naturals Night Out!

If you are in the Bay Area, make sure to RSVP to the event that will host styling demos of all hair types. Jess McGinty of Jessicurl may even jump behind the chair to style some curls! If you’re down for a night of good music, sipping on bubbly libations, and mingling with fellow curlies, make sure to hit up the event at stylish Madusalon this Saturday night.

If you can’t make it to the big event, I will be blogging all weekend with updates on my entire trip! Stay tuned!

Visit the events page on Cassady’s blog to register for Naturals Night Out.

Capella Salon, Studio City, CA

We’ve known about the curly guru Shai Amiel, owner of Capella Salon in Studio City, California for quite a while. In fact, Capella Salon was one of the first salons to ever promote themselves as a curl-friendly salon in Southern California. Over the past years, Shai has been busy; most recently he started raising money for clean water and hosted the always-fabulous Lorraine Massey for a Curls Night Out event. And he continues to build his business one curly head at a time. We had a few minutes to chat with Shai and get his perspective on things.

NaturallyCurly: You have a huge curly following, and many stylists don’t work with curly or textured hair. How did you decide to become an expert with curly hair?

Shai Amiel: Curly hair to me is just like life. It’s always changing and you never stop learning. This curly thing just happened over the years. I never planned to have this focus on textured hair, but I believe that my dedication to the curls paid off in the long run.

NC: Yours was one of the first curly salons in Southern California; how have you seen hair change in your region? Are people moving away from the straight and narrow to embrace their curls?

SA: Many of my clients who were die-hard blowfryers are now committed to their curly hair. It is a hard sell to convince these girls that a little frizz is ok and your natural texture will always look better than that forced straight hair. Women have been told that straight hair is prettier. It has taken me many years showing some of my curly girls the benefits of the natural texture. Luckily, Los Angeles has great climate for natural curls. It’s much easier to let your natural curls air dry than sitting there with a hot blow dryer and frying your hair straight.

NC: What are the biggest mistakes you see with women (or men) and their curly hair?

SA: Curlies don’t trust their instincts. They tend to believe a story someone has sold to them that they must contain and tame their curly locks. They underestimate the value of the conditioner. Hydrating the curls is the key to healthy hair. People still think that they need volume so they use mousse, which is horrible for curls. It expands as it dries and it creates frizz. Curls need moisture and a holding product like a gel that seals the shine in the hair. We want to capture the look of the curls when they are wet and let them dry that way. After the curls are set and dried, we can fluff them and shake out any stiffness created by a holding gel.

NC: What are your go-to methods for treating damaged curly hair?

Jodi Picoult
Picoult’s “Sing You Home”

We here at NaturallyCurly are obsessed with curls, ringlets, kinks, and waves.  So, when we find out that curly author Jodi Picoult was heading to our home base of Austin, we jumped at the chance to sit down and chat with this curly girl.

Picoult has released a new novel, “Sing You Home,” and has been traveling across the country in promotion of this new and refreshing story on what modern day love is, and the evolution of the nuclear family.  The story follows Zoe, a musical therapist on a life journey who discovers her true self in the process of finding love with another woman.  The author mentions that her son had recently come out of the closet, and she felt that if she could give a voice to a certain audience, then she would.  ”Love is love,” Picoult states when I ask her about the audience that she is writing for.

But while the new book was obviously the reason Picoult came to town, I couldn’t just sit there looking at her perfectly defined curls—the kind of curls you could only dream about—without blurting out “What do you put in your hair?”  She has Ouidad—the Queen of Curls—to thank for it.

 ”I was just in New York to get my hair done,” Picoult informed me. She said Ouidad has been carving and slicing her curls for years.  We both gush about what an amazing woman Ouidad is, and I told her about the first Ouidad haircut I recently received in Chicago, which has has changed my life.

Picoult wasn’t always at peace with her curls.

“I hated my hair growing up,” she confided.  ”My mother chopped off my hair into this short shag when I was 5.”

She cringes at the memory, and we both laugh in that way that curlies instantly bond over shared hair nightmares.  I noted that almost all mothers did that to their curly daughters at some point.  We talked about how long she has been embracing those oh-so-perfect curls, and she told me that after trying every chemical ingredient under the sun, she started wearing her hair in its natural curly form right around the time she was in college.

“I finally embraced it,” Picoult said.

Sounds like the making of her next novel.

The stylists at Capella Salon.

We have known the curl experts over at Capella Salon in Studio City, Calif., for a long time and we are always impressed with the new and exciting things they bring to the salon (Lorraine Massey of DevaCurl stopped in a couple of weeks ago!).  This time when Shai Amiel, salon owner, told us they were doing something big, we had no idea how big, but we had to find out!

Shai and his team are raising money to provide clean water for developing countries through their salon.  It’s not often that we run into a salon that wants to give back, and what a better way to give back than to provide others with something as basic as water?  When asked about the charity water campaign he’s running, he said that clean water is something that everyone should have access to—water without parasites or leeches.

Many communities in developing countries need clean water.

Charity: Water is a simple, web-based campaign that permits individuals or organizations to set and meet fundraising goals to fund clean water projects in developing nations.  Capella Salon has set a goal of $2,000 which will give water to 20 families, or roughly 100 people.  To help Shai and his team of curly experts give more to this charity, learn more about their Charity: Water efforts here.

Christo: “The mood is changing from blowouts to curls and waves.”

We here at the NaturallyCurly headquarters have our own opinions on what’s hot for spring in terms of curls, color and style, but we just had to catch up with one of our favorite celebrity stylists, Christo of Christo 5th Avenue in New York, and creator of the curl-specific product line Curlisto, for his take on this season’s hottest trends.

We have been noticing a huge drift from the severe looks of the ’80s that were in last year, to the soft Bohemian styles of the ’70s emerging everywhere. The celebrity stylist claims that the braids and undone styles of the ’70s are going to last well into the summer, so be sure to master your braiding techniques or have your stylist show you how to create braids at home.

Christo notes that the “softening” trend has taken curls into the limelight, even on the sleek, polished women of New York City, stating, “The mood is changing from blowouts to curls and waves. They ask for a looser look now. People don’t want to spend the time flat-ironing—they are going for a more natural and clean look.”

Christo also points out that the shorter, more boyish looks are becoming hot right now, but to beware when asking your stylist to recreate this look for you. “It is important during the consultation to ask how long the cut will take to grow out—otherwise you can end up as a fashion victim when the trend goes out of style in 3 months,” Christo explains.

Colors that are in this spring and will flow right into summer are all the tones and shades of red. Any shade from deep wine, orange, strawberry, and added highlights this summer will freshen any color. We have been seeing red lately cropping up everywhere, but the selection is more diverse, giving curlies the freedom to keep their current color or choose one that they have been dying to try.

Stacy Hill of DyeVerCity is becoming the go to stylist for curly hair.

When we heard of a new salon, DyeVerCity, opening in Augusta, GA, last year, we knew we would like what was going on. Since the opening of her first salon just a few short months ago, Stacy Hill is fast becoming the salon to go to for naturally curly hair. We sat down with Stacy to find out a little bit more about our favorite subject: curls.

NaturallyCurly: You have a huge curly following, and many stylists don’t work with curly or textured hair. How did you decide to become an expert with curly hair?

Stacy Hill: I am borderline obsessed with hair. In 2005, when I decided to follow my passion, I prayed, and in answer to my prayers, God led me to curly hair. For me it was “natural”—I am naturally curly. I had to deal with the frizz and frustration in the ’80s when there was only mousse and alcohol-filled gel, and oh yeah—my favorite—Vaseline and water. We were so desperate and in the dark during that time. Now, there are so many great products, I just want to help give everyone options.

NC: What are the biggest mistakes you see with women and their curly hair?

SH: Shampooing daily is a big NO NO NO—I can’t say “no” enough. Curly hair by nature is drier hair. When the hair is in its natural curl pattern, it takes the natural oils (sebum) longer to travel down the surface of a circle, coil, wave or z. If you notice whenever you straighten your hair, in about 2-3 days it lacks movement and bounce. But this isn’t the case with curly hair. I recommend my clients to start off co-washing or use a sulfate-free shampoo once every 4 days—unless you are sweating profusely or swimming. You want to remove the sodium chloride from your daily routine of shampooing because it is stripping your hair of its natural beauty. If you know you will be swimming, put a slightly heavier conditioner in the hair—it will help tremendously.

UK-based clothing brand LOVE wants to spread the wealth with $50 credit for online purchases to one lucky curly! This hip (and reasonably priced) clothing line has me wishing even more than ever for a TopShop in the States. Check out some of my favorite finds below. Post a comment on this story and you will be entered to win! Good luck, curlies!