In the latest installment of our Natural Hair Diary series, Afrobella.com’s Patrice Grell Yursik profiles Julia Coney, a DC area beauty blogger who sports chic, short coils.
Natural Woman: Julia Coney
Age: 38
City: Washington, DC area
Occupation: beauty blogger, creator of AllAboutThePretty.net
Hair Journey: As a child, Julia’s father was the hairstylist of her household. “He grew up with sisters, and he was better at doing hair than my mother,” she says. “He pressed my hair until I got my first relaxer in middle school.” She finally stopped chemically straightening her hair in 2009, before a vacation to St. Croix. “It was a convenience thing,” she says. “I love the beach and I didn’t want to worry about getting my hair wet! So I stopped relaxing then and there.” She went eight months before doing the big chop, and now sports a chic, low natural. “Now I’m growing out my hair with my niece,” she says. “I can’t wait to see how big it can get!”
Favorite Products: Carol’s Daughter Hair Milk Curl Shampoo & Conditioner ($19 each, carolsdaughter.com), Mixed Chicks Leave-In Conditioner ($16.99, mixedchicks.com), Kinky Curly Curling Custard ($17, kinky-curly.com), Oyin Handmade Juices and Berries Nourishing Herbal Leave-in ($3.50, oyinhandmade.com), Phyto Phytophanere Hair & Nail Vitamins ($45, amazon.com), and olive oil for daily conditioning
Hair Icons: Afrobella’s Patrice Grell Yursik, Tanika Ray, Corinne Bailey Rae, Karen Tappin-Saunderson of Karen’s Body Beautiful
Advice to Aspiring Naturals: “Go natural for yourself and no one else. Life is too short to be worried about what you can’t do because of your hair!”