She’s your favorite influencer’s influencer. The OG, if you will. Afrobella has been at the forefront of helping women embrace their textured hair & redefine beauty standards. We caught up with Afrobella, the Godmother of Brown Beauty Blogging, for an exclusive chat about her natural hair journey, hair tips & the growth of the natural hair movement. Whether you're on your own natural hair journey or just curious about the movement, Afrobella has valuable wisdom to share.
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Q: You’ve given so much great advice & recommendations over the years, but for someone just starting their natural hair journey, what would be your biggest piece of advice?
Afrobella: "Be patient. Embrace your hair for what it is, not what you think it should be. Everyone’s hair is different, so you have to take the time to learn what works for you. And most importantly, take care of your scalp! People forget that the scalp is skin—it needs just as much care & moisture as the rest of your body. Healthy hair starts with a healthy scalp. Steam is also really great for your scalp. It helps open up the pores on your scalp, which allows for better product absorption & keeps your scalp moisturized, which is super important."
Q: That’s such solid advice. And I think a lot of people are still understanding how steam works for hair. How do you feel about using steam in your overall routine?
Afrobella: "From my perspective, steam helps to open up the hair follicle, allowing your hair to absorb & retain moisture more effectively. It really locks in the benefits of the products & the rest of the hair care routine, making everything work more efficiently. It creates that lasting hydration that we’re all looking for, especially with more textured hair."
Q: Hmm... how does steam improve hydration for textured hair? How does that work?
Afrobella: "Hydration allows for greater flexibility in styling, less brittleness & less damage. Steam really locks in the moisture & makes products work more efficiently, ensuring our hair is truly moisturized from the inside.
Q: Any thoughts on PATTERN's new Hair Steamer?
Afrobella: "I really am so excited about the Steamer just because I think that it makes the whole experience more travel-friendly & home-friendly. In some ways, I’m not going to be tied to a chair that I have to sit in, you know, but that was part of it. During the pandemic, I was sitting under a chair & using a seated dryer & seated steamer.
I like that you’ve got two different attachments! You can speak to a deeper, or you can speak to a more surface level of steam here. The Diffuser Attachment is going to be the one for me. Just being able to kind of holistically hold it from a further distance, get that steam, and be able to then exfoliate my scalp and use my shampoo and use my light styling products."
Q: Love it! It sounds like steam is helpful for nurturing hair health & growth. What advice would you give to someone on a personal hair growth journey?
Afrobella: "Know that you’re not alone. There’s so many of us on this journey. Whether it’s due to health or just a personal choice to go short, embrace every stage & focus on loving yourself holistically."
Q: What do you hope for the future of the natural hair movement as we go forward?
Afrobella: "I hope we continue on this journey of self-love & acceptance. I want us to break free from the boundaries that were set for us. We’re getting more comfortable with our textures & I hope we keep pushing back against those old beauty standards. The Crown Act, for example, is so important in addressing how our hair has been policed. We’re taking the reins back & telling our own stories now & that’s beautiful.
I really hope that we truly recognize hair as part of our holistic health & beauty. We need to continue questioning: Why am I doing this? & for who? The same thing I asked myself in 1999, we need to keep asking now."
Q: Any favorite PATTERN products?
Afrobella: "Oh, my favorites? I absolutely love the PATTERN Intensive Conditioner. It’s so rich & hydrating & it leaves my hair feeling super soft. The Styling Cream is another one that’s really good because it defines my curls without making them feel weighed down. Oh, & the Scalp Serum! I can’t forget that one. It’s been a lifesaver, especially during the colder months when my scalp gets dry."
Q: It’s definitely about choosing to prioritize hair health, first, not just length. How do you define healthy hair?
Afrobella: "Healthy hair to me is hair that gives you that feeling of beauty we’re all looking for. It can be that your hair is long, but it doesn't have to be. I want to be able to run my fingers in it, I want to be able to rub my hands on my scalp & not have a lot of flaking or product buildup. So, I want my hair to feel clean. I want my hair to feel fluffy. I want my hair to feel healthy & to be a reflection of the rest of me."
Q: What’s your final message to the PATTERN community?
Afrobella: "I just want to say thank you to Tracee, honestly, for being the face, being the representation of this. There are other celebrities that she has inspired to join the hair care community as well, & it’s wonderful. Coming from the beginning, where it was hard to find products, you had to go online once a year when that brand had the sale & cop what you could, to now you can walk into a high-end beauty store & be treated as an equal, & find products that are made for us, with people who we have grown up loving & admiring as the representation of it. It is a game changer & it’s a beautiful thing for the whole community."
Want PATTERN's new Hair Steamer? Shop Here.
