You need to get ready for a fancy dinner. You wash your hair, take 2 hours to properly define your curls because you want them to come out looking great, and after you’re all done, you let them dry.
You arrive at the dinner, and you realize that you’re the only one with big, natural hair. Everyone around you has their hair flat, neat, and straight.
You realize that you don’t really fit in anymore, and now you stand there with voluminous curls having no clue on what to do.
That’s life with curly hair, no matter how hard you attempt to embrace it, something comes in the way to make you feel bad about it.
At the NYC iSchool, student’s hair textures are as diverse as their background- varying from straight hair, wavy hair and curly hair. The following iSchool students will be opening up about the process of embracing their natural curls, reflecting on beauty standards, sharing their favorite tips and their experience of adjusting and discovering their curly hair.
Sherlyn Mata:
Sherlyn is a freshman here at the iSchool. She was born and raised in the Dominican Republic for the very beginning of her childhood. She has embraced and worn out her curly hair ever since she was little all the way to now. Her journey with curly hair has contained many up’s and downs, but she has been able to move past them and it all worked out for the better.
When she was young, she had a hard time adjusting to her hair type and finding out what was best for her. Attached to that adjusting came the feeling of being different in comparison to all the others. She says, “ In elementary I felt like I didn’t fit in, especially because my curls were really dead and I didn’t know how to style them.” As she began to grow up and style her own hair, it became more difficult. She expresses how she struggled and did not have any confidence in herself.
Over time, Sherlyn began to research and attempt to discover what worked out best for her.
Researching what’s best takes time, but once you find the right information you’ll realize that it was worth it. Mid Town Curls, finding out which products are the best for your hair is a crucial step in maintaining healthy and beautiful curly hair. It is important that the products applied contain the right supplements and ingredients to benefit your hair.
She expresses that along this journey she has reached out for help from close family members and friends. Contacting other people allowed her to be open to different methods and techniques for her hair type.
Sherlyn has come to learn how to love her curly hair and appreciate it for what it is. As she walks around in the hallways of the iSchool, she notices how everyone has different hair types and we all embrace it and several different ways. Her curls are a part of her, and she has the ability to let others know that by embracing her hair. Coming so far she encourages those who are ashamed of their hair type to wear it and feel confident with it because your hair is a part of who you are.
Valery Sanchez:
Valery Sanchez is a freshman at the NYC iSchool; she was also born and raised in the Dominican Republic. She shares that her curly hair trait is something that was passed down from her family, and she has come to love it no matter what it brings to her.
Her journey with her curly hair has had many bumps, but she has worked a long way to appreciate this unique trait of hers.
She affirms, “My hair is definitely a part of me, it’s a part of my identity and I like wearing it because it just shows who I am.” Illustrating that without her curly hair she would not feel like herself; it would almost be like a part of her was missing.
Even though at this moment she feels really confident with her curly hair, it was not always like that; she had to work around her struggles to build that confidence. When she was younger, she battled with doing her hair and actually making it look, “presentable.” Her hair wasn’t always shiny, frizz-free, and coily, it was frizzy and voluminous.
Being in a world with frizzy hair surrounded by people with perfect curls can become a challenge. But it is important to acknowledge that your hair does not have to be perfect in order for it to be pretty. Embracing the frizz is part of the journey, learning to love your hair even with its defaults.
As she has grown in knowledge with her curly hair and what suits her best, she’s shared some general tips that anybody struggling should consider following.
- “Figure out your hair porosity.” Whether your hair has high porosity or low porosity, this will help figure out the way your hair absorbs water and how much water it absorbs.
- “Experiment with different products and see which ones give you the best results.” Products can either range from moisture, volume and heavy hydration etc.
- “Lastly, find a routine.” Once you develop a specific routine you won’t have to worry about not knowing what to do.
A long difficult journey can lead to the best results.
Adrianna Gutierrez:
Adrianna was born in the US, but her family originates from the Dominican Republic. She has been identified with curly hair ever since she was little, but it was never a big thing in her family.
She experienced some struggles when beginning her curly hair journey. Involving frizz and using the wrong products, which did not turn out good for her hair. Learning how to style her hair was a challenging experience, but she was able to educate herself correctly for the best results. She mentions, “I would see a bunch of like products that people were promoting or like other people’s routines and I would like to copy it and see what works best for me”. Demonstrating her ability and willingness to try new things and figure out what’s best.
Having curly hair comes with its own problems, and feeling insecure is one of them. Many young girls happen to feel different from the rest because of their hair type. The European Beauty standards of having flat and straight hair invade the mind and begin to create confusion. Either one believes that they stand out, or they don’t feel pretty enough.
Adrianna is a perfect example of working around those standards. As she went on in her curly hair journey, she believed that having curly hair made her unique in the best way possible. She mentioned that she saw her feature of curly hair as something good because not many people around her had that hair type.
She learned to be okay with being distinct from others, and that’s one of the best things that anybody with curly hair can do. Loving and appreciating your hair despite how distinctive it is.
Angel Tejada:
Angel Tejada is a sophomore here at the NYC iSchool, another member born in the Dominican Republic but raised in Puerto Rico. He did not realize he had curly hair until his second year of middle school. Ever since he was young, he would always have a short haircut; having short hair for most of his life did not bring awareness to his specific hair type.
One day he decided to grow out his hair and see how it would turn out. As his hair grew, he began to notice that it was curly; longer hair meant having to find the right way to take care of it. This one decision changed his whole life in terms of how he took care of his hair.
Angel faced a process of confusion in the beginning of his journey. He expresses, “When I first discovered I had curly hair, I genuinely didn’t know what to do, I was like should I get hair products, should I wash my hair less often like what should I do?.” Millions of questions were wandering in his head because he was highly uneducated about what having curly hair was like. 
As a boy with curly hair, Angel faced some issues that impacted his self-confidence. While figuring out his hair type, he felt like he stood out from the rest of the boys. He imagined that others saw his long curly hair as too “girly.” Angel was accustomed to seeing boys with short straight hair, the complete opposite of his hair type.
Growing up with curly hair and not knowing how to manage it may develop a sense of insecurity within yourself. To grow up with curly hair is to feel the harm that brings down self-esteem. Making it a difficult task for you to learn how to admire and embrace your hair.
The same way hard challenges are faced, Angel was able to get through his confusion and grow consciousness in regard to curly hair. Learning what worked out best for him allowed him to become more comfortable with his hair and love the way it looks, embracing it in every way possible.
We should all feel confident in our bodies with our special features. Things like our hair are what make us who we are and make us one of a kind.
Valery Sanchez remarks, “Different hair types should be seen equally as beautiful and nobody should be less than or more than due to something they can’t control.”
