Curlfest 2015

Who: Naturalistas

What: Curlfest

Where: Prospect Park

When: Saturday, August 29, 2015

Why: Inspiration. Empowerment. Freedom. Beauty. Show the world that Natural Girls Rock.

To be honest, I wasn’t nervous about going to Curlfest by myself. I knew I would be among pure positivity and maybe going alone would make me more approachable and give me the opportunity to meet new friends. I walked into Prospect Park and saw a girl, who was also alone. She had a head full of beautiful natural hair pulled back by her beats headphones. I tapped her shoulders and asked if she was also looking for Curlfest. Once she said yes, we decided from then on we would be buddies. As we were walking, two gorgeous Latina women with curly hair approached us. They were also looking for Curlfest, so we decided that we could all find it together. #Curlfriends

Curlfest was like a Natural Hair Utopia. There was a sea of beautiful natural women; some with long hair some with short hair, some with braids and some with dreads. Hair, Hair, and More Hair.

The first thing we did after getting our goody bag, was shop!There were a bunch of vendors selling everything from vintage clothes to waist beads. There were a lot of Afrocentric garb and jewelry vendors.

Next thing on our list, was the hair vendors. Curlfest had everything from Carol’s Daughters to Shea Moisture giving out free product samples and hair demos.

I felt so free. I attended a picnic panel on Protective styling moderated by the owner of Khamit Kinks Salon. I danced to all the latest hip hop songs (and partook in a Soul Train Line), I hula hooped and even got free dating advice specifically catered to natural haired women (which was totally a gimmick but I enjoyed it nonetheless).

I don’t want to get sentimental, but natural hair is such a beautiful thing. For years, I struggled with embracing my natural hair, and that insecurity follows me. But each day that passes by, I love my hair and I love myself even more. Growing up, when you are told that your hair is not beautiful or not accepted it hurts and makes you feel denigrated. However, with events like Curlfest, you are joined by other beautiful, carefree women just like you and you have no choice but to be empowered and inspired. Natural Hair is here to stay and I am thankful for my journey and I am also thankful for the organizers of Curlfest. It’s their second year, but I know this is going to be a huge movement.