Black Hair Styles Braids

Afro-Colombian women braid messages of freedom in hairstyles

Ziomara Asprilla Garcia remembers the click, click, click of her mother’s hands quickly braiding strands of hair and twisting them into neat rows under a mango tree in Colombia.

Click, click, click in the fresh breeze in the city of Istmina in the state of Choco. Her mother’s fingers seemed wondrous and magical, moving as though they were extensions of thought. She watched quietly as her mother parted her sister’s hair and twisted it into elaborate hairstyles, continuing the centuries-old tradition of hair braiding by Afro-Colombian women.

“I was always curious and captivated by the way my mother moved her hands,” says Asprilla Garcia, who has come to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival to represent the Afro-Colombian women of Choco.

The way her mother braided was the old way, a way that came with her people from Africa. As she demonstrates braiding, Asprilla Garcia, 34, explains its history in Colombia. It is where Asprilla Garcia lives in a caramel-colored house, near a mango tree, with her husband, son, mother-in-law, two servants and a young boy who was so poor that she took him in to care for him. It is where she still braids in the breeze, on the porch or under her mango tree.

“I love to braid,” she says.

Asprilla Garcia was 8 when she learned to braid. As she grew up, she created more elaborate hairstyles that include birds, butterflies and even musical instruments. It was with these styles that she won first place last year at a braiding festival in Bogota. A few months later, the Smithsonian curators who canvassed the region looking for representative cultural activities called and told her she h

On the Mall, crowds press close to Asprilla Garcia’s table and watch her braid. They seem to be in awe of her intricate designs.

She works under a sign that says “Tejiendo Colores,” “Weaving Colors.” Behind her, a second sign says that “the art of hairdressing has become an icon of Afro-Colombian identity.”

“How long does that take?” asks Betty Belin, an onlooker holding a snapshot of a complex design.

“Three hours,” Asprilla Garcia says in Spanish, through a translator.

A little girl with blond hair climbs into a chair, and Asprilla Garcia takes strands from a green, acrylic hair extension and wraps them around shocks of the girl’s hair, intertwining them into a long, single braid. The girl climbs down from the chair and smiles.

News Blog Inspired: Hairstyles for black girls - New Style 2011

The hairstyles for black girls help minimize hair damage due to over styling and over processing. Both braids and bob cuts provide black girls the opportunity to cut down on styling time and subsequent hair breakage. These types of styles can also be worn to give hair a rest between more complex styles. Reduction in the amount of split ends and improved hair luster is often achieved with braids and bob cuts. For example, braids are easy to moisturize due to the parts present between them. Hair coloration can be an extremely difficult process - beware. Using the wrong chemicals or even the wrong hair specialist can result in poor coloration, unintended coloration, or hair damage. Everyone can remember a story about a loved one who attempted to have their hair dyed blond and ended up with orange or even purple hair. The hair coloration process is an extremely tricky process. It is best left to trained professionals who have had significant experience coloring hair.

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