My-Cherie

My-Cherie from NauturallyCurly.com interviews Tashia about what techniques and products she uses to take care of her curly hair.

My-Cherie from NauturallyCurly.com interviews EG about what techniques and products she uses to take care of her curly hair.

My-Cherie from NauturallyCurly.com interviews Christine Moline about what techniques and products she uses to take care of her curly hair.

My-Cherie from NauturallyCurly.com interviews Phillip Solomon about what techniques and products he uses to take care of his curly hair.

My-Cherie from NauturallyCurly.com interviews hair stylist Terry Vinson about what techniques and products he uses to take care of his curly hair.

My-Cherie from NauturallyCurly.com interviews Andrea (aka Ladybug) about what techniques and products she uses to take care of her curly hair.

Welcome My-Cherie Haley to NaturallyCurly’s video blogging world. My-Cherie has been a NaturallyCurly blogger for a long time, and has now joined our vlogging ranks. We’re so happy to have her!

My-Cherie

Now that I have straight hair, my sister in-law has traded places with me and opted for the au natural mane. It’s kinda funny to me because she’s not the au natural type of girl, or at least that’s what I thought. I remember when my hair was natural. Chrissy was always very curious about my hair, but never gave me any indication that she was thinking about trying it. Last week I gave her a jingle, because now I was curious about how it felt to be on the other side of the fence.

Chrissy is a professor at the University of Houston and must maintain a certain polished look. Growing your hair out while teaching at a university is not exactly fun or easy. She told me she’s been wearing it pulled back in a pony for about a year now, but wants to try something different. When I teased her about cutting her hair off and wearing a short fro, she promptly responded with, “never the low fro.” That’s too bad, because Chrissy could rock a low fro.

Chrissy’s inspiration to grow her hair out didn’t come from me, it came from her sister who has been natural for three years. The first couple of years Chrissy was really skeptical about her sister’s hair, because she felt it didn’t quite look right. Now after the third year of growing it out, it looks great, so Chrissy decided to try it herself.

Now she’s loving it. Chrissy says, “I love my little waves!” She’s happy to be natural and says that now her hair has texture and volume, which is something she missed when her hair was relaxed. She also doesn’t have to worry about a curling iron or a blow dryer. She can just condition, pull it back and go.

I must admit, as I was listening to Chrissy go on and on about how much she loved being natural, I was a little jealous — in a good way, though. I thought to myself, “Ah man, I miss my fro.” I mean, I’m pretty happy with my hair being straight and I enjoy having the luxury of combing through it, but still nothing trumps the joy of seeing my thick and well-rounded afro in the mirror. It is such an empowering feeling.

Chrissy has been maintaining her waves with Wen Cleansing Conditioner. She says, “If you are natural, it’s the best product in the world.” That’s cool to know, although Chrissy did make that statement before she had a chance to check out the thousands of products at NaturallyCurly.com. I also recommended Mixed Chicks leave-in conditioner, since it worked so well for my man’s mane and they have similar hair textures.

We ended our conversation on a positive note, with Chrissy’s curl-power words, “There’s no turning back. I have to see this thing through.” Wow! I still can’t believe we’ve traded places. Who knows what’s next? Maybe I’ll convince her to wear a low fro and maybe she’ll inspire me to go back natural.

Email your questions/comments to My-Cherie.

Last night, at dinner, I couldn’t help but notice my man’s mane. I thought to myself, “Boy, his hair looks so shiny, conditioned and way less frizzy. I wonder what he did differently?”

As the night progressed he asked, “So what do you think of my hair?” I replied, “I love it.” Then he confessed that he ran out of his conditioner and happened to stumble upon my Mixed Chicks leave-in conditioner in the cabinet. He said, “At first, I didn’t know what to expect, but I really like the way it makes my hair look and feel.”

I said, “I’m so proud of you, baby. Your hair looks awesome!” I thought to myself, “Wow, that’s so cool.” I’ve been trying to get him to use my naturally curly products forever and now he finally tried something, only because he ran out of his conditioner. Hooray for Mixed Chicks!

My-Cherie is proud of her husband for rockin’ his curls

I love my man’s mane. He really doesn’t have to do much to it and it makes me so jealous. I have never seen him comb or brush his hair — not one time. He just gives it a wash or rinse in the shower, rubs conditioner on with his hands, and then goes about his business. His hair just curls up into these adorable little spiral curls — bouncy, like a slinky. For his beard, he just smoothes it down with a little rosemary oil, which smells divine, and then he’s finito.

My hair, on the other hand, is a totally different story. When my hair was natural, I had to work for my well-coiffed ‘fro. It took time, dedication and a lot of products to make sure my hair was well-moisturized and healthy-looking.

Some people have it easy. Some of us don’t, but I can always appreciate and respect all hair types. When I was growing up, we called people with hair like my man’s “good hair”. People used to say, “Oh, she has good hair.” or, “Her hair is straight-up nappy.” I don’t think it was right to be categorized like that, but I do think we should be grateful for the hair we are blessed with, regardless of the type.

I’m so proud of my man for embracing his mane and choosing to be natural, curly and free for all the world to see. Now that he is loving the products, I think it’s time for him to start spreading the word to other men who are not as confident about their mane as he is. Why not?

My-Cherie

My business is growing and work in the modeling industry has picked up for me significantly, so I’m all about convenience and low maintenance. I’m also big on saving time, because time is money.

I must admit, I miss my curls. I get my hair done at a salon once a week, but I don’t always have the time to sit under a dryer and wait for my curls to set.

I decided it was time to take a trip to my favorite wig shop and pick up a new and improved curly wig. I know it sounds like I’m cheating for curls, but trust me when I tell you — I still represent the curly community in the most positive way.

Wig shopping can be fun. You get to see yourself in so many different looks; it’s almost like having multiple personalities. I love it, although sometimes it’s hard for me to make a choice because I tend to look good in most wigs. Not to brag or anything, but I have what they call a “wig face,” meaning I can wear a variety of wigs while still maintaining a natural look. Everyone can’t wear wigs. Some women tend to look like men when they throw on a wig. Not a good look, unless you want to look like a man. The Asian woman who runs the wig shop I go to is very nice, accommodating and honest in her opinions of how a wig should look when it is on. I tried on a few curly wigs, and I finally found one I loved. It looked natural, blended with my skin tone and could easily be styled. I walked out of that wig shop feeling good about spending less than $50 dollars on my newfound curls. Cheating? No. Saving? Yes. Convenience? Yes.

My-Cherie rocks her curly wig at a fashion show.

I got a chance to sport my fabulous new curls in a fashion show at a charity event for the Ronald McDonald House. No one ever knew that I was wearing a wig. One model came up to me and said, “Wow My-Cherie, I don’t think I’ve ever seen your hair in its natural state. It’s so pretty.” I responded by saying, “Girl, it’s a wig, but thank you!”

I must admit, I’m pretty happy with my new curls. They’re simple, sweet and easy to complete. What more could a busy girl who misses her natural curls ask for?

Email your questions/comments to My-Cherie.