As a natural, you should always keep money tucked away for events because the FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) is real. I sadly fell into the deep, dark hole when I wasn't able to purchase the ticket to the "Celebrating Our Hairitage High Tea". Fortunately enough, I expressed my FOMO with a church friend, Jermaine Solomon (she is a body positive body activist and blogger, so click on her name to check it out), and she immediately bought a ticket for me. But that's not all, a few days later I got a notification that I won double tickets which I shared with two of my friends.
What a better way to celebrate Hairitage Day than on Heritage Day! The event was more than just showing off our natural hair, the event was all about coming together and sharing stories of our natural hair journey from when it began, all the way to where it is now.
The ladies began the support groups as a platform for naturals to share their ideas, tips, ask pressing questions and motivate one another. These ladies are going places, well they are there already, but make sure you follow them as well as the Cape Town Naturally on both Facebook and Instagram.
BEE'S TOP 5 HAIRLIGHTS
1. The Intimacy
The second I walked in, my friends and I were greeted at the door by ladies who gave us options to get "Amachokoza" (dot patterns made on the face with calamine) on our face, and I obviously got mine did. Inside the hall, the tables were set up in two rows with just enough space to move around. Usually, natural events have little or no sitting place so this was very different and I loved it. The hall itself is generally small but this worked in our favour as it presented a very warm and intimate environment. The space allowed for us naturals to converse and laugh. I know this is off topic but I have to commend the food; the tables were literary filled with food such as wraps and cupcakes as well as hot beverages and juice. Not only were our souls fed but our stomachs too. There wasn't a moment were I sat hungry or thirsty.
2. The Items
When they said they had a lot in store, they weren't joking and I did mention that our souls were fed. We had four beautiful, natural-haired ladies who were not afraid to use their talents to make everyone's evening enjoyable and share their stories. We had Melania Burke who spoke about her natural hair journey as a coloured woman. She shared about the stares she got from her community which resulted in her conforming to society and straightening her hair. But she, fortunately, returned naturally a few years ago. Her story was beautiful and many related to her, and she left everyone laughing.
The hall went so quiet the second that Karen Petersen began playing the piano and singing for us with the aid of her human microphone holder, Simone Thomas. Her beautiful voice sang to our hearts and left us speechless. And bonus, she's a natural.
Antho Speaks (right) recited a poem about embracing who you are. The poem spoke about embracing our natural hair, body, skin, culture etc. I've never been a fan of poems but I loved her poem, mainly because there are so many women and men who are afraid of showing who they really are. I'm guilty of this too so this poem :
hit home.
Lastly, we had Zeldene McDonald (Left) who has sung back up singer for many local artists and Chantal De Kock kindly organised for her to sing at our event. She shared her story growing up and sang two songs for us which linked to her story. One of her songs being the famous "Survivor" by Destiny's Child. Zelda had all the naturals singing along with her. With her voice, she belongs in the front-line and I can't wait until that happens.
3. The Diversity
In a room full of beautiful hair, it's hard not be jealous. The men and woman of all ages rocked their natural hair with pride. Everyone had different hairstyles such as Teeny Weeny Afros (TWA), braids, puffs and doeks etc. Did I mention that there were men there as well? Men tend to shy away from female-dominated events but not at this event! Although there were a few, it was amazing to see them rock their curls. Despite all the diversity and different backgrounds, we all share one thing, the love for natural hair.
**Please Note, all the above pictures were taken by Avron Plage Photography**
4. Competitions/Giveaways
What is an event without competitions and giveaways, one can never have enough products and we all love freebies! Before even sitting down, I made sure that I entered the Style Studio competition (those who follow me can testify), all I had to do was take a selfie in front of the Twisted Sista banner then tag Style Studio and Twisted Sista. And guess what? I won! I won a Twisted Sista hamper worth R600, this includes: clarifying shampoo, curls cream gel and 30-second cul spray. The winners of other competitions won Cantu and Shea Moisture hampers worth R1000 as well as Buuya and The Perfect Hair products.
5. Goodie Bag
I literary had a mini heart attack when I didn't get my goodie bag at the door when I entered, like at most events. But towards the end of the evening, they told us that we can collect our goodie bags at the door as we leave, my heart was restored. I know I may sound ridiculous but goodie bags are life. Goodie bags always have samples of products, which all naturals need when on the search for the right product. The samples help you find your holy grail product rather than spending money on products that will only end up collecting dust.
The gift bag included a Cantu bag, Cantu curling cream samples, My Natural new hydrating mask, True Love magazine, Jamaican Black Castor Oil and more. What's a natural hair event without a goodie bag!
[NEXT EVENT]
Cape Town Naturally is holding a Cape Town Naturally Hair Fest on 17th December at Canvas Events Space in Pardeen Eiland and you definitely don't want to miss this one. The tickets will be on sale from 15 October 2017 via Quicket. The first 400 ticket holders will receive goodie bags. So make sure you go follow Cape Town Naturally on both Facebook and Instagram for more details.
Photographs of what I wore and how I styled my hair:
 |
 |
 |
| My hairstyle: Photograph by Lynn Washaya |
 |
| Photograph taken by Jermaine Samuels |
No comments
Feel Free To Drop Your Comments! Your Opinion Matters!