Just Hair

“Many women feel that a bad hair day equals a bad day.” So says Lucinda Ellery, a hair specialist.

It’s a known fact that hair has been a part of women’s identity for years and still is. There have been statements made like “a woman who cuts her hair is on the verge of changing her whole life”.

This analogy shows just how important a woman’s hair is, to the point that changing it could essentially transition her life, whereas when a man cuts his hair it is just a sign of being well groomed.

So why is hair so important and have we gone overboard with weaves or is it just another fad we love to hate?

This new trend is hardly even a thing. Fashion, beauty and hair trends have been the same for years and just take their turns to make a comeback. Hair extensions, weaves and wigs date back as far as 3400 BC. A Curious History article states that the Egyptians wore wigs, sewn-on hair pieces and braids that were made of human hair and dyed sheep’s wool.

Cleopatra, who is claimed to be one the most beautiful women of her time, and is an icon and inspiration to many women, was well known for wearing wigs.

Braids also originated somewhere around 500 BC, an indicator of age, religion, and wealth, depending on the type of knots and twists.

So in essence, the weave and extension fad has been around longer than we think. It has been a part of different eras for both men and women. So maybe the real question is: why do we wear weaves today?

Maybe it’s a forced habit, maybe it has to do with femininity or power or even insecurity. Is it simply a trend that will, in due time, go as quickly as it came or stay and evolve into something new?

Esther Iipumbu, salon owner of Beauty for Ashes, says “most women feel weaves enhance their beauty, but just like any beauty fad, it is hard to go back to the norm. Sometimes it has to do with insecurity and sometimes it is really just about emulating what is considered beautiful at the time.”

Even celebrities cannot do without their weaves these days and these are the people we most aspire to be or at least look like. There is no single definition of beauty and we could all come up with our own, but one or two ideas of beauty will always be more dominant.

Weaves are just a small part of beauty for women these days. One cannot deny that a group of women in long, straight, wavy or curly hair is just as beautiful as a group of women in their short styles, braids, dreadlocks or puffy afros.

Beauty is a multi-billion dollar industry, and the average woman spends approximately US$50 000 on her hair over her lifetime and almost two hours a week washing and styling her hair.

The statistics are real and any woman who has ever purchased a weave would probably agree. So why exactly are we buying so hard into this fad?

Women have been obsessing about hair for centuries. It is not always about appearance as a a woman’s hair represents her personality, thoughts and beliefs.

For centuries, women have been able to play different roles by changing different hairstyles, and from their stories, we can see that hair contributes greatly to women’s self-esteem, actions and motives.

Weaves are a fad, but so is everything else. It will come and go and come again. As long and we all get that beauty, along with its props, is fleeting, we will enjoy it for what it is. Just hair.