The singlemost important thing we can do for the health of our self-esteem is to ensure that mop of hair on our heads is well taken care of and looking good!
That certainly sounds very vain, but ask any woman just what it does to her self-esteem when she walks out of that hairdressing salon after having a heart to heart with her hairdresser, who in many instances has become her confidante; had a good head massage and her hair is looking like a million dollars!
The value of taking care of and making time for one self, cannot be over-emphasised.
How can you help others if you have over-extended yourself and your cup has run empty?
The History of African Braiding
Chic, modern African braided hairstyle trends have blossomed post-Apartheid ever since 1994 when the late Madiba, Nelson Mandela, became the first president of a free and democratic South Africa.
Our housekeeper Sibongile never fails to amaze us with her grace and style, and I will be sharing with you some of her stunning braided hairstyles; one can see the joy in her face at showing off these styles!
This special woman with a heart of gold is a huge asset to our little bnb Lily’s Cottage; we on the other hand ensure that our staff’s working conditions and benefits help them live a good life.
Hair braiding has been a huge part of African culture for centuries and can be traced to as far back as 3500BC!
Braiding was used to symbolize the tribe’s family background, social & marital status as well as spirituality.
Styling was only entrusted to close relatives as it was believed that harm could come to them if a strand of hair fell into the hands of the enemy!
This was also a time for the women to socialize, much as happens when modern women go to the hairdresser.
The Himba tribe of Namibia and the Hamar Tribe in Ethiopia boasted ochre dreadlocks, whereas the Fulani & Wodaabe tribes of the Sahel region and Western Africa sported colourful beads and braids.
Hair salon during Covid
Enters a horrid little virus and the scene changes in hair salons all over the world.
I ventured out when our first Covid wave flattened; everyone sat all masked up, but that did not stop the chattering as always happens when women get together.
Conversing behind a mask is really frustrating, both for the one doing the talking and the one trying to decipher what's being said behind that mask; no guessing though what the hot topic was!
During this awful second Covid wave that's brought a new variant and the numbers are turning to names as my fellow South African @fionasfavourites put it; my hair became all unruly again till the son’s girlfriend, who is a self-taught home hair stylist for family and friends, rescued me from disappearing underneath all that hair!
Would I allow hubby to cut my hair?
Certainly not, as that would kill any self-esteem I had left after months of being masked up when I set foot outside the house or meet and greet guests!
Interesting that healthy hair was seen as a sign of fertility by African folk. Sibongile has very healthy hair, has two children and is a granny already; beat me to it ;)
Nowadays, it's all about fashion and style so before Covid hit our shores, Sibongile was going to a young upcoming hair stylist with a thriving little business which she ran after school!
These styles take on average about two hours and this young entrepreneur was much in demand for her services. Sad to think that Covid would have slowed that thriving little business down as it has done to the rest of the world!
So ladies, I commiserate with you if you're unable to visit your hairdresser right now and I'm sure you'll agree with me that taking care of that mop of hair is vitally important for our self-esteem!
I hope you enjoyed reading my tongue-in-cheek entry into @naturalmedicine's Writing Prompt, so take a peek at that link as there are a couple of really great themes to choose from!
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Sibongile's braids are gorgeous! There are times I wish I had the courage to have braids - so much easier to manage. My friend and hairdresser of the last two years had left the village (and the country) for good. My hair and I are missing her. My mop really needs attention and you know how difficult it is to find a new hairdresser one is happy with, so I'm letting it grow for a while before I decide what to do. Or the heat gets the better of me and I get it all chopped. Regardless!!
Oh no Fiona, I would hate to lose my hairdresser, been going to her for years now; she's an absolute perfectionist and such a honey! The son's girlfriend rescued me from being swamped by the mop as it's way too hot to grow it right now, but it's going to need a good cut soon; just waiting for the worse of this current Covid wave to pass. We were hearing of so many local people getting it plus I have to be so careful with bookings now as there are people wanting to self-quarantine because family members test positive! We simply cannot risk that.
Fortunately our trainees are back and we're getting other business booking again.
Hope you find a good hairdresser again Fiona, enjoy your Sunday;)
Thanks for the visit!
Thanks, Lizelle
I am glad business is picking up. I'm applying my mind to what I can do to resuscitate my little business. We shall see...
On the hair story - up, up and away is how I'm going for the moment! lol
Happy Sunday to you, too.
I thought it would be up and away at the moment with this heat;)
Hoping things improve with your business, at least the Covid cases are slowly starting to drop at last!
Such an amazingly beautiful art. Lovely designs using hair as the medium. I love the spiralling design in the 4th set of images. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
That one is my favourite too, should have made it the cover image;)
I love this post because it makes me feel good inside, makes me feel like that woman left the hair salon feeling confident. A lot of gorgeousness here.
I'm so happy that you enjoyed reading this @edouard, we need a little more feel-goodness in today's world not so;)
Yes, it's the good magic that makes us keep on going.