Her Hair Stories by The Lower Eastside Girls Club & Salon

HER HAIR STORIES

FEATURING

THE LOWER EASTSIDE GIRLS CLUB

A SALON STUDY

An active research center focused on the intersections of hair with culture, science, and art through a public library and studio space.

Our library invites you to re-evaluate the way you look at hair. Analyze the stories you know, your opinions on beauty, your skills, and how you arrived there. What stories are missing from your beauty education/archive? Who was guiding the knowledge you were exposed to?

We invite you to visit, contribute to our research, and help curate the printed matter within so that together we can uplift stories that will lead to a more comprehensive and accessible beauty education.

Our collection will never be complete, we aim to continuously grow with our community’s contributions.

To share books on hair with the Girls Club and then turn their own stories on hair into a book that will always live on these shelves is a dream come true.

THANK YOU

Rubi and Salon team

BRAIDED BEAUTY BEADS

JAIELLE ALEJANDRO- WELCH

Today I was excited for my hair to get braided because it’s a new hairstyle! My mom drove me to the salon and I walked inside feeling pretty good. The hairstylist told me to sit down in one of the chairs and she begins.

First, the hairstylist dried my hair puffy. As I played games on my iPad waiting for my hair to be done, I looked up and saw my hair was only halfway done. One side with my hair braided, and the other side is still puffy.

A couple of hours have passed…

Now, I got to choose what color beads I wanted in my hair, “Pink and dark pink please!” I said enthusiastically. She then placed the beads at the bottom of my braids.

I was worried that it was going to take a long time for my hair to be done. But after hours of waiting it was almost done.

When my hair was finished, I looked like a brand new person. All the braids were on the right side of my face with my pink and dark purple beads. My mom took a beautiful picture of me in the car with my new hairstyle. At least the hours are finally over.

Afterward, my hair sometimes would pull me to the right where all the braids were hanging. The braids were long and pretty heavy, there were at least 30 beads in my hair. But it felt good.

A couple of weeks later when I arrived in Rhode Island for my summer vacation, all of my cousins were shocked about my new hairstyle. My grandparents loved it.

I didn’t even know the name of the hairstyle… After months of not knowing I finally found out… Lemonade Braids.

I love having braids because it makes me feel beautiful! ●

“I feel like I’m going to have my head set on fire from the hairdresser. I feel that way because when the hairdresser is straightening my hair they put it too close to my scalp and it feels like it’s actually touching me.

I also feel afraid of my hair getting cut too short because they sometimes mishear me and cut off more than I wanted.”

— ARABELLA LENKER

“There’s no better feeling than when I’m in a salon chair and I’m excited about a new hairstyle. It can be scary though, especially when I don’t have enough stored up confidence to say “No, I don’t like that.”

We should feel empowered and pampered in a salon chair, at least that’s how I aim to feel. I truly enjoy getting my hair done by someone else, laying back in that shampoo chair, getting a great scalp massage, and in the end leaving feeling beautiful.”

— JAMILA HARRIOTT

“I have wash day on Sundays. It feels sooo good to scrub my hair. I can’t explain how it feels, but it somehow feels good. When I put conditioner and shampoo in my hair, it feels natural and extra soft.

Sometimes I get annoyed when the water gets in my face.”

“How I feel on wash day is… not very happy. I don’t do wash day often, but whenever I do, it’s not very fun because wash day comes with combing and brushing which is an absolute pain for me. When my mom combs my hair it’s painful because she holds no remorse whenever she brushes through it.”

“I feel apathy because I don’t want to wash my hair but at the same time, I have to. I feel that way because I just feel like sometimes it’s just too much work (I know I am lazy). I do feel better after washing my hair though. It feels much cleaner afterward.”

“I feel happy! Especially if I had my hair in section hairstyles, it feels really good to let my hair out again. I also love to put my hair into two braids and then take it out in the morning and feel the goodness in my hair. Afterward, all I have to do is put oil in my hair and then go.”

“Wash day is a sport. Pre-poo, shampoo, deep condition, detangle, rinse, leave-in conditioner, styling cream, oil, and lastly style. That’s the routine that I am forever entrusted to do. While wash day can be exhausting, I try to make the best out of it. After all, I feel refreshed and ready to conquer the world after every wash day.”

— JAIELLE ALEJANDRO- WELCH

— ALYSSA RAY

— ARABELLA LENKER

— LANESE MEIJA

— JAMILA HARRIOTT

it makes me feel:

when my mother combs my hair

“Sometimes I feel irritated because it hurts when my hair gets pulled by the comb. But I know that combing my hair is important and my has to detangle my hair to get all the knots. I do get really annoyed though.”

— JAIELLE ALEJANDRO- WELCH

“When my mom combs my hair, I feel hurt. Whenever my mom combs through my hair, she usually doesn’t care if it hurts or not… She just wants to get it done with it. She claims I have ‘a thick head of hair!’”

—

ALYSSA RAY

“Now when my mother combs my hair I feel like a child again. There are so many hair stories and fond memories. I would sit and she would put on my favorite TV show to help distract me from the pain. She would ask what hairstyle I wanted and sometimes do the opposite. Looking back, I would get restless but be happy once she was done and walk around ecstatic with my new hairstyle.”

— JAMILA HARRIOTT

HAIRSTYLE MISTAKES

by Lanese Meija

On an early Tuesday morning around 7:30 am, my mom and I were in the bathroom doing my hair like she does every day. She was doing my hair in two buns and had my hair separated in two. She was brushing one side of my hair up when she scratched me in the face with the brush. It hurt a lot and I got so mad when I saw the scratches on my face in the mirror. I was so upset because it left a mark on my face. My mom tried to make me feel better and told me I still had to go to school. She put cocoa butter on my face to fade the scar but it still burned a lot.

I remember I was in third grade and my teachers asked me what happen to my face. I told them it was a hair accident and I was ok but it still hurt a lot. They told me I could go to the nurse if I wanted to and I said sure because it was still hurting me.

When I got to the Nurse’s office, she called my mother from work and she had to come and pick me up because the nurse said, “Lanese is in too much pain to work in.” I spoke to her on the phone and she told me that she was coming to pick me up. I was happy and cheerful but in the back of my mind, I knew I was going to hear my voice. She told me not to make a big deal about it but I did because it hurt a lot.

In conclusion, this hair story taught me a lot about myself, It taught me how to love my hair. Now I’ll be able to look back and see how my hair plays a big part in my life. I will like to thank this program and Jamila for helping me and keeping me writing and being creative. ●

MY FIRST AND LAST TIME AT A BRAIDING SALON

by Alyssa Ray

On a loud spring afternoon, I was in the park with my friends and other schoolmates. They were spraying water everywhere. It was one of those hot days. I was in the fifth grade and I was playing with my friends while waiting. After a while, my grandma picked me up and brought me to a hair braiding salon for the very first time.

When she picked me up, she came with this person that I’d never seen before. It was her friend.

We took the train to Brooklyn and we started our hunt for a hair braiding salon. We found one, but they said they couldn’t take us, so we rushed to another one. We continued our hunt for what felt like forever. Finally, we found one. It was this huge place with lots of chairs and mirrors and it was lined with wooden floors.

After we got in, one of the ladies led me to a chair, and she started doing my hair. During this entire process, this lady was breathing in my ear, loudly. I didn’t bring any headphones with me and I sat during the ENTIRE braiding process, which might’ve been like four hours.

This lady was braiding my hair so tightly, I think it damaged my skull. It hurt for probably a week. I’m pretty sure at one point my braids started falling out.

My hair looked really cute for my 5th grade graduation pictures, but it wasn’t worth the pain it caused me. My mom ended up having to take them out 2 weeks later right after graduation

My mom continues to do my hair now, and I’ve never been back to a hair braider since. ●

“I wear bows, hair ties, scrunchies, and pins. These are all really great for my hair. Most of the time I use my hair accessories if I am going on vacation or if I am going to a special event. I hardly wear hair accessories.”

— JAIELLE ALEJANDRO- WELCH

what are your

favorite

hair accessories

“My favorite hair accessories are butterfly clips because they are so easy to use. They are so late 90s and 2000s and they come in so many colors. They are so cute to look at and fun to talk about!”

— LANESE MEIJA

this is how i feel when my hair is OUT!

“When I wear my hair out I feel comfortable because my hair isn’t hurt from the tightness of the braid or ponytail. I also kind of look like willy wonka but I don’t care honestly. I like how my hair looks when it is out it is nice honestly.”

“Whenever I wear my hair out I feel scared, only because I’m scared of my hair shrinking. It’s rare for me to wear my hair out, and whenever I do, it faces a huge risk of shrinkage.

Shrinkage is something that I’m constantly reminded of by my mom. But whenever I’m not thinking of shrinkage, I feel powerful.”

“I feel like sunshine because I am me and no one can be me! I also feel like I could walk down the street and not get made fun of and or talked about because I feel powerful!”

— ARABELLA LENKER

— ALYSSA RAY

— LANESE MEIJA

When I was younger, my godmother had her own hair salon. I can remember my parents picking me up from school on a Friday just so I could get my hair done. If not a Friday, then definitely that Saturday.

As much as I was afraid of my hair, I loved going to the salon. It was my first encounter with feeling pampered. To this day, whenever I go to the hair salon, I get happy, and I can’t wait for my trusted hairstylist to do my hair. It’s like handing off a baton in a relay race.

As far as grade 1, my hair was texturized. My mother couldn’t manage my hair and I was what the masses call a tender-headed child. Combing my hair hurt, a lot. I know, most children say this but it is true. I would always cry and scream whenever I got my hair done.

At the salon, my godmother would detangle my hair, and then start the process of texturizing. I can still smell the strong chemical scent. Once that cream touched my hair, it was a countdown to see when it would start burning. “Wait a few minutes” my godmother or mother would say so my hair could be properly processed.

Once it was time to wash my hair I was happy. That meant neutralizing shampoo, deep conditioner, blow drying, and then straightening. I loved when my hair was freshly done. I felt empowered.

My hair journey has taught me how to properly care for my hair myself and now I can hopefully raise a generation of children will know the same. ●

JAMILA

THE STRUGGLES OF BRAIDS

ARABELLA LENKER

It was November 9th, 2022. I was at home and then I heard quick but subtle footsteps.

Then my mom burst through the door. “Are you ready to do hard work!” I was silent then then groaned “Noooooooooo… This is why we call you rain on a sunny day.”

She walked jollily and stopped right before me and turn to face me. “Oh well, time to get up and suffer!”

She walked me to a chair and pushed on my shoulders so I could sit down and then she said, “Time to braid the hair of a mannequin!”

I sighed and began.

Pretend there’s 80’s montage music playing in the background -

“Step one separate the hair into 3 sections.”

“3 sections; got it”

“Now take the right side and the middle section and cross them!”

“God the voice for this video is annoying. Ok, done.”

“Now take the new middle section and cross it with the left side!”

I pause the video

The montage music stops -

I look up at my mom just to see she has disappeared.

“Oh well,” I said and pressed play on the video.

The music continues -

“Now all you have to do is do this until you run out of hair. See you next time!”

The music is done -

I sighed again and yelled, “MOOMMM THIS VIDEO IS USELESS AND I DID A BETTER BRAID THEN THE PERSON HERE DID!”

“Oh well continue on until you have it engrained in your brain.”

I ended up doing braids for the rest of the day until I did one on my mom and she approved.

THE END. ●

LOWER EASTSIDE GIRLS CLUB OF NEW YORK

SALON

JAIELLE ALENADRJO- WELCH

ARABELLA LENKER

LANESE MEJIA

ALYSSA RAY

JAMILA HARRIOTT

RUBI JONES