by Portia of huneybflyy.com
The natural hair community is larger than ever and long, luscious, strands are what most women covet. Every woman is watching and waiting for any product that can help them grow their hair to unimaginable lengths. There’s always a company toting a pill, oil, or cream that will allegedly give their consumer the longest hair they’ve ever had in their life. However, there is something inspirational about a woman who desires to keep her natural hair short.
The natural hair community has become so obsessed with length, that they aren’t truly enjoying their natural hair at every stage. Some are forgetting that there is beauty in all hair lengths and textures. Some even assume that if a woman has been natural for years and her hair is not down her back, then that means that her hair is not healthy. Conversely, that is far from the truth. There are woman within the community who choose to keep their healthy natural hair fierce and short. Brandy Gueary and LaToya Chenelle Hudson are natural ladies who disprove every short natural hair myth and rock their short locs with confidence.
Brandy Gueary
Brandy Gueary from Houston, TX has been natural for a total of 4 years. She proves that long hair isn’t everything and short hair can be very versatile. Gueary decided to do the big chop after he sister sent her YouTube videos of women and their natural hair journeys. She was very inspired and sought her own natural hair journey.
“I stayed up until 2 a.m. (on a work night) watching more hair journey videos than I could count. From then on, I was hooked and stopped relaxing my hair,” said Guery.
Gueary is no stranger to long hair. Before becoming natural, her hair was long and healthy. She received countless compliments on how beautiful her hair was. The compliments were nice, but her long hair was not as important to her as it was to others.
“It was the hair I always had, so I worked to maintain it,” she said.
She originally wanted to transition her hair from being relaxed to natural by gradually trimming off the relaxer. A method some women adopt when they’d rather not go through with doing a big chop However, after seeing two different textures of hair that needed two different regimens, she opted to do the big chop. When she cut her hair, her first goal was to grow it long. What she didn’t realize was that she had the option to keep her hair short. Gueary received a lot of backlash for her decision to big chop.
“Some of the looks and comments I received after cutting my hair were surprising. People would say, ‘Why would you cut all that long hair?’ People tried to make me feel like my long hair was all I had going for myself. Others really think that their opinion and input about your choices are valid based on their life experiences. If you aren’t strong in yourself and with God, it can get to you and make you feel like your physical appearance is everything,” she said
Once Gueary’s natural hair grew to the long lengths that she was used to, she became bored. After she married and had her son, she became creative with her hair and shaved off hair from both sides of her head to form a Mohawk. She later became bored with that style as well and decided to do the big chop for the second time in January of 2014. Gueary realized that she wanted to wear her hair short for the first time in her life.
While Gueary doesn’t know how long she’ll keep her fierce, short cut, she is certainly enjoying its versatility. It might even be more versatile than longer hair. Having short hair has made Gueary much more open to different haircuts and colors. She used to have a fear of dying her hair, but now she’s lost that fear because she no longer has to worry about maintaining length. If she gets tired of looking at a certain color, she just gets rid of it by getting a new haircut and trying a new color.
Short hair is chic and Gueary proves that you don’t have to stick to one cut. Her natural hair styles consist of trying various haircuts with varied lengths, including parts. At the moment, Guery isn’t interested in growing her hair any time soon.
“My best advice is that a TWA doesn’t have to be a phase. It can be a style. It’s easy, convenient, low maintenance, and so sassy!”
If you’d like to follow Brandy Gueary’s natural hair journey follow her on Instagram,@naturallybrandyysmith, Facebook, Brandy Gueary (Smith), and YouTube, Brandy Smith Natural Hair.
LaToya Chenelle Hudson
When LaToya Chenelle Hudson decided to embrace her natural curls in 2008, she was super obsessed with having long hair in the beginning of her natural hair journey. Like most naturals, she wanted her hair to be massive. However, cutting her hair made her realize that women sometimes hide behind their hair or feel less feminine without it.
“The sheer thought of cutting our hair sometimes sends shudders down our spines. I have women come up to me every day complimenting my hair and the confidence to do it. They say ‘I wish I could, but I don’t have the nerve’ or ‘My head is big’, said Hudson.
The San Antonio, TX native is no stranger to receiving compliments from men as well. If you thought that short hair would somehow make you less appealing to the opposite sex, guess again.
“I mean, the amount of men that give me kudos is crazy especially because you would think that most men would loathe a woman with a fade. My hubby loves it and is the one that cuts my hair”, she said.
As a fashion designer and web host, Hudson enjoys being creative and she needs to express that creativity through her hair and clothing. One day, she found herself bored with her look, so she started coloring her hair. It wasn’t long before she decided to cut her huge, fire engine red afro down to a sassy fade. While she did a big chop in 2008 to kick off her natural hair journey, she didn’t keep it short for long.
As for her hair regimen, Hudson keeps it very simple. She makes sure to shampoo or co-wash her almost every day. After washing, she applies coconut oil and Paul Mitchell Barber’s Classic. Hudson also gives her hair a good brushing. She may believe in keeping her hair regimen simple, but she likes to keep people guessing when it comes to styling her funky mane.
“Short hair can be very versatile because you can do different cuts, fades, designs and colors more frequently. When my hair was longer, I found myself always trying to think of a style to create,” said Hudson.
She has certainly donned some incredible haircuts. She’s had everything from lines, stars, and hearts etched in her head. You name it and she’s probably done it or will do it one day.
“I am the queen of barber designs in my head,” she said.
Hudson also has some important advice for women who are in the TWA stage of their natural journey and for women who just want something different.
“Find a really good barber and get a good fade around the nape of your neck and ears, so that it looks neat and pretty. Many times I see new TWA’s with no shape and even with a longer fro, a great shape makes a world of difference and creates fashion forward style.”
Hudson also believes that wearing a good bold lip and a gorgeous pair of earrings doesn’t hurt either.
If you’d like to follow this beauty as she continues her natural hair journey, you can follow her blog latoyachenelle.us/fashionetcetc. You can also follow her on Instagram and Twitter @latoyachenelle.
Were you inspired by Brandy and LaToya’s hair journey? Do you have any plans for a short, sexy cut?
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