Cindy Blackman and Carlos Santana on their wedding day
CN: You were stunning on your wedding day. Did you style your hair yourself?
CB: Thank you so much! I wore my signature Afro for my wedding. My husband Carlos, actually requested it specifically! He said, ‘How are you going to wear your hair? Will you please wear your Afro?!’ And that’s exactly what I did. I love wearing my hair out. I washed it the night before, applied a couple of different conditioners, and braided it. I think I even lightly blow dried that night as I braided. The next day, I removed the braids, put some sheen on it, and I was ready.
CN: What are your must-have products?
CB: There are a few that I’m using currently. I like PhytoSpecific products and use their normal line because it has the fewest proteins in it. Otherwise, I use a natural line called Wachters. They sell chlorophyll and a lot of other natural things for the body, but they also have a lovely shampoo and conditioner. It’s called Nuti-Hair Complex. I love these products because they make my hair feel so good. I also use Ouidad’s shampoo and conditioner. Very, very nice. Between these three companies, my hair is well taken care of.
I also recently found another staple by Karen’s Body Beautiful. I use the Butter Love as a daily moisturizer. It is really nice for after I’ve shampooed and conditioned my hair, because it keeps it soft and prevents it from drying out. I like that it’s completely natural, and it smells delicious too. I also use Wild Growth Hair Oil on my scalp and a little bit of it on my ends. It keeps my hair soft and conditioned. When I’m wearing my hair out in an Afro, it easily dries out, so at night I re-braid it with Karen’s Butter Love and when I wake up in the morning, it’s soft and re-hydrated.
CN: Does the Butter Love help to set or is it more for moisture?
CB: It’s more for moisture… it doesn’t really hold, although depending on what kind of look I want, I may twist it or I may braid it. If I want my Afro to really stand up, and be edgier, I braid it. If I want a softer look, I twist it. And when I apply the Butter Love, and either twist or braid, it seems to help my hair conform to whatever shape I’m trying to achieve. So it doesn’t have hold, but it does help to mold my hair, if that makes sense.
CN: Once you’re braided or twisted up for the night, do you sleep on a stain pillowcase, don a bonnet, or a scarf?
CB: My hair is actually best when I sleep with a silk or satin scarf, but I usually forget to do it. At home I have a stain pillowcase, but when I’m on the road I just sleep on whatever they provide, which is almost always cotton. My hair gets a little bit drier because of this. When I can remember to put it on, the satin scarf holds the moisture in, and I find that my hair is even softer when I wake up.
