Mane Matters with Nwakanma Adaku

Hello Naturalistas,

Welcome to another episode of mane matters with one of our faithful readers Flora. She is pretty and her hair is gorg! Enjoy :)

AN: Can you tell us who you are and what you do?

My name is Nwakanma Adaku… A lover of music, all things deep and beautiful and also a fresh graduate of Mechanical Engineering from the Federal University of Technology, Owerri. I reside in Port Harcourt.

AN: What're your thoughts about natural hair?

There’s a saying that goes ‘No matter how long someone lends you something, what is yours is yours’ Natural hair is beautiful in all its versatile ways!!!

Relaxed Hair

AN: Why did you decide to go natural?

Relaxing my all ready relaxed strands by unprofessional stylists, flat ironing without any protection, tightly pulled braids, back-to-back weaves.. Can someone spell DISASTER!! No God had to come down from heaven for me to know that batch of hair was doomed.. then I discovered the natural community at the bottom of the deep blue sea. I was ecstatic!

AN: Did you do a BC or you transitioned?

I stopped relaxing in March 2013 and finally did the BC in July. No need to transition for a long period of time. Most of my hair had already broken off. I just didn't want to scrape off my hair in the gorimapa fashion.. Lol..

AN: Any fears about the BC?

I was a little scared of looking like a 12 year old but after about four months, with all the information I had gathered, I couldn't wait anymore. I practically greeted my mum with a scissors every morning till she cut it all off!

AN: What has your experience been?

It has really been an experience, a real attention seeker and a conversation starter! My only knowledge about our natural hair before was the one I knew by the way a particular religious sector wore theirs.. and I didn't like it. For a girl who didn't know what hair ‘being due’ really meant, it felt like scales fell off my eyes. It has really been a wonderful experience getting to know the texture God has blessed us with and experimenting with all the versatile ways in which it can be styled. At first my mum didn't understand what this weird daughter of hers meant by ditching relaxers. She would ask me several times if I knew what natural hair meant. Lol.. Now she’s totally in love with it. I think she even loves it more than I do ;)

twist outs

AN: What was/is your biggest fear about going Natural?

My biggest fear.. My only fear was the acceptance by people closest to me. Truth be told.. my mum only! She has a knack of knowing everything about everything. Especially the way they might turn out.

AN: Do you think you are in it for the long haul or is it just a phase?

This is for the long haul! No backsies!

twists. March 2014

AN: Do you have any hair regimen you stick to?

I try to make my regimen as simple as possible. I wash weekly with a sulfate free shampoo after which I deep condition for an hour. I do a hot oil treatment the night before or if I couldn't, 45 minutes before detangling then washing. Every four weeks I do a protein treatment and an ACV rinse. I moisturize during the week with a spritz mixture of water, leave in conditioner, coconut oil and Jamaican black castor oil when my hair is in a protective style and the LOC method when my hair is out.

AN: What’s your go-to protective style?

Flat twists and twists.

AN: There are people that definitely have negative comments about your hair, how do you deal with that?

I smile because I was like them once. You have to drop certain conventions in order to love the black woman’s natural hair especially when it is not pimped up.

AN: What’s your must have product and accessory?

My spray bottle!!! Oils and bobby pins.

Hair Now :)

AN: What’s your advice to anyone planning to ditch relaxers?

If you are already planning, take my advice ditch it now. But not without finding out what you are really getting into. Keep in mind that there is no black woman on earth that doesn't do one sort of maintenance or the other on her hair. Natural or artificial. Thank me later ;)

Thanks for your time!

P.S: Are you on twitter? Join the conversation and get on-the-go-tips for your hair @Africanaturalis