“This hair style is called Irun Kiko. It’s done with a rubber thread. It’s a natural way to stretch your hair with no heat. It’s a traditional style that is not as common as before.”
Photo: Courtesy of Omofolarin Omolayole
Texture Diaries is a space for Black women across industries to reflect on their journeys to self-love, and how accepting their hair, in all its glory, played a pivotal role in this process. Each week, these women share their favorite hair rituals, products, and the biggest lessons they’ve learned when it comes to affirming their beauty and owning their unique hair texture.
Tolu Oye’s love of her Nigerian culture is apparent throughout her work. Oye is the co-founder of Oye Green, an African beauty and wellness brand which carries products like shea butter, specialty hair combs, and Cowrie shells. Most recently, she launched Oye Green Prints, an initiative selling prints by Black artists—60% of the proceeds go towards organizations and individuals working to end SARS in Nigeria. She also has a clothing brand, Meji Meji, through which she recently launched a hair protective, silk-lined bucket hat and face masks. “My inspiration is rooted in my identity and culture. It is displayed in everything I do,” Oye says. That includes her ever-inspiring beauty and hair looks, too: Oye rocks braids of all kinds; from those that are green dyed and cheekbone-length to cornrows that cascade into a billow of coils.
“I am inspired by the beauty of Nigerian culture,” the Lagos-born, New York-based entrepreneur says. “I use my hair as a moodboard to share a story about the past and the present. My hair is a form of art and my way of channeling my inner being.”
It took time for Oye to feel completely comfortable with herself, and her hair. Growing up in Ohio, “I was often the only person of color in the room, and when I wasn’t, I was the darkest shade,” she recalls. “I had to toughen up really quickly. For so long, I did not identify myself as beautiful. I hated the skin I was in.” In the 6th grade, her teacher made her read The Skin I’m In. “I saw myself in the main character, Maleeka. That book was a turning point for me. From that day forward, I spoke with my head up,” she says. “To this day, I always hear my mother’s voice in my head, saying, ‘Tolu, you’re Black and shine!’ I had to learn how to love every piece of myself.”
“Me and my mom. She’s been braiding my hair since she gave birth to me. It’s amazing how we still bond over me sitting in her salon chair or on a pillow on our living room floor. Sometimes I even travel back to Ohio just so she can run hands through my scalp and play catch up. If my mother isn’t doing my hair, it’s my friends Helena Koudou and Chinna Njoku.”
Photo: Courtesy of Kyle Meeks
Her mother, a cosmetologist who worked in a braid shop throughout Oye’s youth, has been a strong pillar throughout her hair journey as well. “It is through her that I found my love for braids,” Oye says. But around 6th grade, Oye began dreading getting her hair braided, wanting to assimilate into her Ohio surroundings. It wasn’t until she went back to Nigeria in 2016 that she found her love for traditional African braid styles again. “I started expressing myself through braids. I started yearning to learn about conventional Yoruba braid styles and Nigerian culture as a whole. A [missing] puzzle piece within my life was finally here.”
Now, as her daily reminder, she reads the message engraved on the Oye Green comb she designed: “Irun ré ni òge re,” meaning: “Your hair is your glory.” For further inspiration, she looks to hairstylists Jawara and Fesa, photographs taken by J.D. Okhai Ojeikere, Rihanna, and books like African Hairstyles, Styles of Yesterday and Today by Esi Sagay. Oye loves to recreate old hairstyles “with a modern twist,” she says. “Braids are heavy symbolism and a fashion statement. Each braids style represents a form of societal status, tribe, age, marital status, wealth, power, and religion,” she explains.
Her go-to hair products include the Oye Green Rubber thread, a traditional method of stretching hair without heat. Oye notes that one of the oldest methods, “Irun Kiko,” or hair threading, is a traditional African hairstyle that originated among the Yorubas. “The sculptural style was once used to depict wealth and class, and to commemorate events, but is also a very effective method of stretching and protecting hair without heat and excess manipulation,” she explains. She also often reaches for the Oye Shea Butter: “It’s an all in one product that can be used as food for my skin and food for my hair.” She also uses it to nourish her edges. Kera Kare Dry and Itchy soothes her scalp when she has braids in, while Shine ‘N Jam is perfect for hold and Murray’s Edgewax shapes her baby hairs.
Up next, Oye is working towards adding a shampoo and conditioner to her line, while also expanding her Meji Meji collection for 2021. Otherwise, she’s focused on finding time for self-love and softness. “Self-care is important to me because I am always working,” she says. “When the pandemic happened, my body didn’t know how to react to the stillness. But especially during this pandemic, my value for self-care increased.” Whether she’s working on her beauty and fashion brands or planning her next hairstyles, she’s staying afloat through positive self-talk. “If you affirm great things, they will indeed come to pass,” she says. “Love yourself, talk to yourself, and tell yourself how beautiful you are daily.”
The post How Tolu Oye Pays Homage to Her Culture Through Her Hair appeared first on Honk Magazine.
from Honk Magazine https://ift.tt/3eErCqy
via gqrds
No comments:
Post a Comment