Black Hair for Non-Black Creators
Aug. 21st, 2018 03:54 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThis is an excellent reference. It goes into detail about different styles with some tidbits of culture and history.
When I write black characters, I base their hair on what black people do. The ones who want to fit in wear a style with straightened hair or some kind of hairpiece which mimics that. Fashionable ones often go for box braids or twists. More expressive folks may wear cornrows, dreadlocks, a big afro, or actual African styles such as Bantu knots. People who want a no-nonsense style typically choose a short afro or shave it off. It's the expressive ones -- the things that make it obvious how black you are -- that tend to upset white people and thus are worn primarily by black people who don't mind sticking up for their own hair.
Now I have an ulterior resource; despite my pale skin, my hair is loosely nappy. It comes with a kitchen. It can break "unbreakable" hair equipment. I shop for hair care products in the ethnic aisle. When braided, it loses about a third of its wet length; when loose and freshly dried, it loses about half its length and forms a giant mane. I've had a lot of the experiences which come with nappy hair, and while my skin color has spared me the worst of them, I still sympathize. If my skin were darker, I'm sure I'd have the rest of those experiences. People just didn't know what they were seeing on me.
But anyone can do a good job of writing or drawing African-textured hair simply by using references that black folks use. There are lots of articles about how to wash, dry, detangle, moisturize, style, and otherwise handle such hair. Plus a lot of talk about what the styles tend to mean, who wears them, and the whole cultural baggage train of issues around it. Handle with care, but don't ignore it. Diversity matters.
I still think it's adorable that one of the whitest characters I have, Shiv, knows a lot about black hair care because he grew up in a lot of black families, at least one of which did not entirely suck. He actually puts a dab of shea butter on his hair to keep it from flying in his face all the time.
When I write black characters, I base their hair on what black people do. The ones who want to fit in wear a style with straightened hair or some kind of hairpiece which mimics that. Fashionable ones often go for box braids or twists. More expressive folks may wear cornrows, dreadlocks, a big afro, or actual African styles such as Bantu knots. People who want a no-nonsense style typically choose a short afro or shave it off. It's the expressive ones -- the things that make it obvious how black you are -- that tend to upset white people and thus are worn primarily by black people who don't mind sticking up for their own hair.
Now I have an ulterior resource; despite my pale skin, my hair is loosely nappy. It comes with a kitchen. It can break "unbreakable" hair equipment. I shop for hair care products in the ethnic aisle. When braided, it loses about a third of its wet length; when loose and freshly dried, it loses about half its length and forms a giant mane. I've had a lot of the experiences which come with nappy hair, and while my skin color has spared me the worst of them, I still sympathize. If my skin were darker, I'm sure I'd have the rest of those experiences. People just didn't know what they were seeing on me.
But anyone can do a good job of writing or drawing African-textured hair simply by using references that black folks use. There are lots of articles about how to wash, dry, detangle, moisturize, style, and otherwise handle such hair. Plus a lot of talk about what the styles tend to mean, who wears them, and the whole cultural baggage train of issues around it. Handle with care, but don't ignore it. Diversity matters.
I still think it's adorable that one of the whitest characters I have, Shiv, knows a lot about black hair care because he grew up in a lot of black families, at least one of which did not entirely suck. He actually puts a dab of shea butter on his hair to keep it from flying in his face all the time.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 10:04 am (UTC)I mean, you've seen our hair, so you know how interesting it can get. It's horrid in the winter when static is all but everywhere. The only thing I found to tame that is Loccitane's hair serum, and it's $24 per three ounce bottle. Well worth the price (And they have Braille on their bottles!) but we can't afford that right now. :( (It worked so well for us that the very piccky Arawn approved of it for us!) ... I miss that shit so much.
*sighs* ... I'm wanting dreds, too (Mostly because Jay would feel more comfortable in here, I think, if we had them) but I'm one of these whites who's afraid of being...well...told I shouldn't be wearing them *because* I'm white.
(I'll have to read the article tomorrow when I'm not busy scrambling and getting shit ready for a long day in the spa-with probably only one client to show for it. I hate 'maybe' people sometimes.)
-Fallon~
Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-21 10:17 am (UTC)Any of the natural products meant for moisturizing control should do the trick. Shea butter, coco butter, etc. Basically you want something thick and creamy to put on it and weigh down the fine strands just a little. For most European hair, you really do need just a dab the size of a pea. Rub it over your palms, then drag your hands through your hair.
>> I mean, you've seen our hair, so you know how interesting it can get. It's horrid in the winter when static is all but everywhere. The only thing I found to tame that is Loccitane's hair serum, and it's $24 per three ounce bottle. Well worth the price (And they have Braille on their bottles!) but we can't afford that right now. :( (It worked so well for us that the very piccky Arawn approved of it for us!) ... I miss that shit so much.<<
As another option, you can try visiting an ethnic hair shop. Some of them carry crossover products made for very curly or very flyaway European-type hair, and the staff know how to help people pick out products. But you have to find a good one, because some places really don't want white people in there.
>> *sighs* ... I'm wanting dreds, too (Mostly because Jay would feel more comfortable in here, I think, if we had them) but I'm one of these whites who's afraid of being...well...told I shouldn't be wearing them *because* I'm white. <<
Which sucks when not all of you are exactly white. It would be a great hairstyle for you because it's so low-maintenance once you get it going. You might need salon help to start it felting, but it's probably doable. Very European hair or Asian hair often won't lock, but it doesn't take much African to do the trick. Hair texture is the last thing to wash out in mixed-race people. So most Americans can get theirs to lock, some is just frizzier than others.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-22 03:15 pm (UTC)and the staff know how to help people pick out products. But you have to find a good one, because some places really don't want white people in there.
I haven't tried that option. Hell, I wouldn't even be able to tell you where the closest ethnic place for that is because we haven't looked. >.> Thank you for that.
Which sucks when not all of you are exactly white.
Which sucks because most don't know about us. I've found very few people can see past the third demention, even when they're damn good at everything else. Most say they know there's something different about us (They can sort of 'sense' an energy) but they can't put a finger on what it would be.
It would be a great hairstyle for you because it's so low-maintenance once you get it going. You might
need salon help to start it felting, but it's probably doable. Very European hair or Asian hair often won't lock, but it doesn't take much African to do
the trick. Hair texture is the last thing to wash out in mixed-race people. So most Americans can get theirs to lock, some is just frizzier than others.
I've been told by one of ours who fronts on occasion-He's actually the Harley Davidson biker wbho goes by Harley-that while it would be interesting at first, he feels like our hair would be good for it-if only just. (Right on the edge, he says)
He also says he'd pay us in his world's currency to get it done because he says we'd look damn hot, sooo...
-Fallon~
PS: I'm seriously thinking about it it when I get the finances...I can't afford to lock it right now. *sighs* At least I wouldn't think so...I haven't priced it out yet, though.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-22 08:34 pm (UTC)To find them, type your city name and then something like "black hair salon" "ethnic hair care" or "natural African hair." Mix around words, and look for phrases in the first pages that come up which can tell you how people are describing it in your area. There are also search pages that let you type your location and go "find X near me." There might be one for ethnic salon and supply shops.
>> Which sucks because most don't know about us. I've found very few people can see past the third demention, even when they're damn good at everything else. <<
That minimizes the chance of people reacting violently, but also the chance of them being able to help you. :(
>> Most say they know there's something different about us (They can sort of 'sense' an energy) but they can't put a finger on what it would be. <<
People sensitive to energy can often feel the 'skip' when a multiple switches front. But now I wonder if a quantum mechanic would pick it up. They're used to thinking in more dimensions.
>> he feels like our hair would be good for it-if only just. (Right on the edge, he says) <<
Then it might need extra help and be a bit frizzy, but it's got a chance of working.
>>PS: I'm seriously thinking about it it when I get the finances...I can't afford to lock it right now. *sighs* At least I wouldn't think so...I haven't priced it out yet, though.<<
Depends on how you want it done. It is possible to make your own dreads at home; people do it. A salon can make them look more smooth and even, but that costs money. The smaller the dreads, the more work it takes and the more it costs. Think about the size you want.
I actually saw a woman with a beavertail recently -- just one giant dreadlock, so long it was knotted. I believe she's been growing it since hippie period. It's the most impressive beavertail I've seen, and she had fair skin and honey blond hair. To get that effect, she must have had African ancestry. :D
https://www.wikihow.com/Give-Yourself-Dreadlocks
https://www.curlcentric.com/dreadlocks/
http://gratefuldreadsannarbor.com/dreads-locs/
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 03:04 pm (UTC)Seems to me that that's throwing the "Cultural appropriation!" charge too far.
Well ...
Date: 2018-08-21 07:03 pm (UTC)* White people have spent centuries abusing black people and their hair.
* So now black people think that someone else's hair is somehow any of their business, because that's how white people treat them.
* Then when people who are not black want to wear hairstyles popular in black culture, some black people butt in and tell them to stop.
* This is a problem because lots of white people still resent black people's hair. (It's also a problem because some people with hair best suited to those styles don't have the black skin to go with it.) As long as only black people wear those hairstyles, bigots will continue to look down on said styles. However, the more the styles spread, the less that association will hold, so as it wears away the black people will get hassled less for those styles.
The best solution, of course, is to remind everyone that each person gets to decide what to do with their body, including their hair. It is absolutely none of anyone else's business unless there is a PRACTICAL issue (e.g. firefighters need short hair so it fits under a helmet and doesn't catch fire; food workers with hair need to wear a net). Everyone can style their hair however they want.
The closest I would come to saying there are some styles that shouldn't be worn outside of context is that a few cultures have hairstyles that work like badges or uniforms, indicating a certain social role. If you wear that style around those people when you're not that thing, it can therefore cause confusion, which is not good. But it's not an absolute, because most of those styles appear in more than one culture, either with different meanings or more often without a special meaning somewhere.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-22 03:04 pm (UTC)It's also one of the reasons Jay likes ysabet's spaces. He can talk and write any of the ways he likes and no one gives a fucking shit. xd
I mean, .litterally, he and I co run so much because he still has an inate fear of getting us in trouble were he ever to com out around certain types of people who don't knw who, or what, we are. Filk cons are the very rare exception...and it's been ny on eight months since we've been to one. Hell OVF is in a couple of months, and we're not even sure we can return to *that* one, though we'd love it if we could.
-Fallon~
Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-22 09:01 pm (UTC)That's what I aim for. I'm glad it helps. I want people to be themselves. Prolonged Adaptation Stress Syndrome really sucks. :(
>>I mean, .litterally, he and I co run so much because he still has an inate fear of getting us in trouble were he ever to com out around certain types of people who don't knw who, or what, we are.<<
That's a challenge.
Has Jay considered looking for space of his own online? Reason being, he sounds black. Online, nobody can see your skin or body shape unless you put it in your userpic or tell them about it. That can be very comforting to folks for whom the package doesn't match the contents. If he talks black in a black forum, it wouldn't have the same tension as doing it face-to-face wearing a white female body.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-22 10:22 pm (UTC)...
We're still brainstorming on ways to mitagate some of that )internal dialog is a thing-telepathy is a fucking awesome), but we don't have much energy left for much else. The move+business+other life stuff is eating us alive.
-Fallon~
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-23 02:25 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-23 03:54 pm (UTC)The thing about humans is that somewhere around 10,000 years ago the entire world's population was whittled down to just a few (hundred?) thousand humans. And so modern humans are basically very inbred compared to most other animals. (Explains all the genetic diseases, honestly.) This is a scientifically proven fact, the inbred nature of humans. There is less genetic diversity between the blackest black person and the whitest white person than there is between any two random breeds of dog. But the Ah'Koi Bahnis never had that kind of problem, so colors and body types are hugely varied by comparison. The closest thing they have to race is that they have been around on their planet for so long that they've actually evolved regional sub-species. Think of this like the difference between bonobos and regular chimps - they can still interbreed but they're very different in behavior and body. Or a better example might be the fact that, despite being counted as different species by science, genetically speaking dogs, wolves, dingos, coyotes, and several other species of canines are actually different sub-species of the same species.
(End infodump)
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-22 04:12 pm (UTC)So, it is what it is. And then add in all the doll hair fine ultrablond(e)s using sugar and whatever else to make 'dreads' and convincing everyone that dreads are dirty... When 'dirty' is what they get called every time they're Not Being White.
I once flabergasted a co-worker, a Black Fraternity brother who had been dealing with lots of white people over the years, because he'd never seen one use a paddle brush. He'd thought that was a style specifically 'black'. Most likely his 'white people sample' span the wide variations from doll nylon to memory wire.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-23 03:28 pm (UTC)I also think (but again I'm not sure) that there would be a visible difference between such "unwashed hippie psedo-dreadlocks" and hair that was kept clean and combed and merely put into shape with a little product. But I don't really have any evidence to support this in regard to such a difference on white people, beyond the fact there are definite, obvious visual differences between most "white people dreads" and the dreadlocks on Black people. Most "white dreads" I've seen on people are visibly filthy and matted, it's a striking difference from the smooth lines and obvious cleanliness of Black dreadlocks. (Seriously, anyone who can look at the dreadlocks on 99% of black people and call dreadlocks dirty or filthy is either blind or racist.)
But again, I'm not black, I'm white. So my two cents ain't worth much.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-23 03:32 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 10:49 am (UTC)Some public libraries will have magazines that are about Black Hair fashions. Also you can refer to Ebony and Essence.
Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-21 11:01 am (UTC)True. I just wear mine in one plain braid. That keeps it from doing things like grabbing random objects and throwing them around.
>> Some public libraries will have magazines that are about Black Hair fashions. Also you can refer to Ebony and Essence.<<
Ebony is a favorite with artists. It always has good pictures for hair and fashions.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-21 11:07 am (UTC)Re: Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-21 03:00 pm (UTC)Re: Thoughts
Date: 2018-08-21 05:47 pm (UTC)There's a mom that does her daughter's hair, one of those has a sunburst crown of cornrows, a number of professional ones put out by Vogue if I'm recalling correctly. The moms and other home YouTubers may be more informative since they tend to only break away when they've got plenty of doing the same thing over and over.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-22 03:18 pm (UTC)I used to get their emails because I wanted (Still want to) go to Essence Fest. Like that's a thing on our to-do list before we die. They used to pitch ethnic hair products all, the, time! in those. I just never knew which one to pick, and at the time Jay wasn't around enough to give me pointers.
-Fallon~
Well ...
Date: 2018-08-22 07:34 pm (UTC)The most recent round of my hair requiring extra attention, it started clinging to the styling brush I was using at the time, so I did research and identified products. I found a detangling brush which has widely spaced plastic bristles without knobs on the end, which works great. It took two tries to find a detangling spray that's slick enough. But none of that stuff was readily accessible when I was younger.
Also, there is now a lot more information about hair texture, behavior, and what that means in terms of shopping. Labels tell you what the stuff is supposed to do, and what hair types it's recommended for. I'm not sure if the category of butters and creams is labeled for making fine hair stop flying around, but at least the natural ones serve that purpose. *ponder* You might try detangling spray too. It weighs down my hair a bit the first time I put it on.
Also think about the type of control you want. Some products like hair spray, gel, and curling creams tend to make the hair "crunchy" and stiff. Others like moisturizing butters don't do that, but will make it heavier while still soft, so it doesn't break. That also makes it less frizzy and rambunctious.
One thing that I didn't think to try earlier: ask at a specialty hair shop or salon if they have sample sizes of anything. In a grocery store, the samples tend to be mostly for European-type products, not African ones. But I would bet that stylists and stores who specialize in African products are getting samples of those somehow. Even if it's just the kind that are stuck inside magazines, it might be useful.
If you can afford to pamper yourself a bit, you might even try going to a salon, showing them your hair, describing the problem you have, and asking them to try fixing it. That would let you explore different products and record the ones you like.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 03:19 pm (UTC)Fortunately simply keeping it in a pair of braids works well for me, and living in a low humidity climate tends to make it a lot less bushy - and hence while not as great looking, a lot more manageable.
But as a younger person, I loved the look of afros, and envied those whose hair would do that.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 05:04 pm (UTC)I _suspect_ that if stuff that doesn't work for your hair doesn't show up in the regular drugstores (it sure does here in Pugetopolis, even though African-heritage is our least populous immigrant demographic) if you wander into a store that _is_ likely to have products that work, the people that work there will know damn well you can't find it in Mall*Wart and will be happy to help you. At least, I sure hope so.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-23 03:59 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 03:25 pm (UTC)I have typical capital-W-White hair, slightly wavy if I grow it long enough. It's been lowercase-white these many years, and not that much of it any more, so this is not an issue for me. Even back in the sixties, when I tried growing it to hippie length there was a stage where it tickled my neck and made it itch unbearably, so I stopped trying.
What I do to keep it under control – when I remember to bother – is to smooth it to where I want it to go with a wet hairbrush, then add a few squirts of hairspray to keep it in place, and I'm done.
Once, when I played a mad scientist in a fannish takeoff of The Mikado (Dr. McKoko, the Lord High Evil Genius), I ran my fingers through my hair before every entrance, and it stood up wildly in every direction. MWAH-HA-HAAAHHHH!
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 03:31 pm (UTC)I wish I could get mine to do that.. it just hangs there, boring like.
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 05:07 pm (UTC)Besides, it just wouldn't look right on me, having long hair out the back and none on top.... having fuzz on the _rest_ of the face is my significator that I'm not your _usual_ white boy...
EINSTEIN HAIR!! :)
(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-21 03:29 pm (UTC)She grew up in the wild..heck, she's only just beginning to accept the idea of clothes... I wonder what her hair is like? [apart from a mess probably.] A mane seems appropriate..
Yes ...
Date: 2018-08-21 06:52 pm (UTC)If you don't detangle it, you wind up with dreadlocks. That's culturally and contextually valid, but less lion-like.
Re: Yes ...
Date: 2018-08-21 08:31 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2018-08-23 04:05 pm (UTC)Also, with Dalia having chronic depression, and dreadlocks being one of the easier hairstyles to maintain, that's a factor, too. She might wear braids when she's doing better, but you know, the stress of a new school and then all the mysterious hijinks going on that year, she'd definetely want something low-maintenence.
But yeah, I totally get how hairstyle can be influenced by personal values and personality and stuff. Like I mentioned, Nizoni and Chooli (who are both clearly Navajo, even if Chooli is technically half black) wear the traditional Tsiiyéeł bun (as it appears, in my research, to be acceptable for any gender) because though neither one of them is exactly traditional about most aspects of their culture, their hairstyle choice is essentially the hair equivalent for them of "fuck you."
Contrast that with a character I have planned for the second book, named Gad, who's full-blooded Navajo and a trans boy. He wears his hair in the Western short style for boys because he got sick of people confusing him for a girl when his hair was long. (His mother is disappointed he's not more traditional, but understands.)
Oh yeah, and Vedya - who is originally from India - has rainbow-colored hair. (Dye, obviously.) Its visual loudness mirrors her very loud and very visible personality. It will be interesting to see how Principal Park - a stick in the mud if ever there was one - is going to react to her hair style. Fae Springs has a uniform that's rather conservative, a la your typical private school. Something tells me her rainbow hair won't be allowed by the rules. Which she's not going to care much about, TBH. Though the fix to that is simple enough, if she's willing to agree to it: a glamour on a pendant to make her hair appear to be its natural black color.
" It comes with a kitchen. "
???
"But anyone can do a good job of writing or drawing African-textured hair simply by using references that black folks use."
I get a lot of my info from the black people on Tumblr. I know about hair bonnets, I know dreadlocks have to be kept very clean (likely most of their hairstyles do, but it's a common misconception that dreads aren't clean just because matted hair is the only way most white people can have something that looks like dreadlocks). I know about coconut oil's use with Black hair, and shea butter. I know box braids are a lot of initial work but I think they can be left in for days (not sure on that). I know about braiding beads into Black hair. And shrinkage. And I've got a scene where Dalia's hair goes all poofy for Reasons.
I haven't gone into a lot of detail about Black hair in the Ravenstone stuff, but Dalia is shown wearing a bonnet to bed (which honestly from my own experience would be a good idea for me, too; my hair is normal White hair but it gets knots and little balls of hair in it overnight and has to be combed every other day at least), and I think I noted how dreadlocks have to be kept very clean. I'll have to check later to be sure. I don't recall if I had a "don't touch my hair" scene or not, but that's a good idea if I haven't.
For the times I've drawn Black characters (some of my goddesses would be considered Black by Western standards of race, even though they're aliens from another world; also I've drawn Medusa and Lilith as Black), I used images from Google of black women with ethnic hair for references.
"I still think it's adorable that one of the whitest characters I have, Shiv, knows a lot about black hair care because he grew up in a lot of black families, at least one of which did not entirely suck. He actually puts a dab of shea butter on his hair to keep it from flying in his face all the time."
One of Dalia's two original friends (the two she had before going to Fae Springs) is a White ginger girl. It don't get much whiter than that, but she knows how to braid Dalia's hair in box braids (which suggests Dalia sometimes wears styles other than dreadlocks), and likely knows a lot of other stuff about Black hair, too.
Looking at the site you linked us to, I'd guess Dalia's hair is somewhere in the 4 range. Probably 4B or 4C, given how poofy it got in that one scene.
Actually, I think I've seen that thread before, in screen capture format on Tumblr.
Pt 2
Date: 2018-08-23 04:06 pm (UTC)