Growing up, I always wanted hair that I didn’t have: straight and blonde. Instead, I had light-brown, wavy, frizzy locks that I absolutely hated. I did everything I possibly could to change it. There was that one time I had a friend glue extensions in. (All I really remember now is crying in the shower trying to get the glue out.) Then there was the time I insisted on dyeing my hair red with black tips while on vacation. (This was during a very questionable stage in my life.) And the time I was in ninth grade and went to a very fancy salon to have my color completely stripped and colored again. Not only did it take seven hours, but the bill was $700. Let’s just say my dad was not happy when he picked me up.
All of this got me thinking about the bonds we all have with our hair. I sure as hell put mine through a lot, but in the last eight years, my relationship with it has totally blossomed. I wonder had there been a tool years ago like the Dyson Corrale™ Hair Straightener ($500) that uses intelligent heat control to automatically control the temperature based on my specific hair type and flexing-plate technology, which essentially gives more control on each pass, maybe I would have had a healthier relationship with my hair all along. Over the years, I’ve realized just how much my hair is part of my identity, a reflection of who I was at each stage in my life, and no matter how I feel about it at any given time, the bond I have with it can’t be broken. I know I’m not the only one who feels this way, which is why I tapped three women—Who What Wear market editor Indya Brown and content creators Natacha John and Melany Rodriguez—with different hair types to share their personal journeys and how they’ve learned to accept and love their locks too.
