Natural Hair in Scotland? - Part 1



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Did you know that there is a growing population of black people in Scotland? I didn't, but now thanks to Holly, I've learned something new. Please read these posts about international hair, and please feel free to share your story as well. I love to hear about viewpoints on natural hair around the world. 

Demographics

	Total Population	% White	% Black	% Mixed (includes all people identified as mixed race)
Scotland	5.26 million	98.19%	0.16%	0.25%
Great Britain	51.81 million	87.50%	2.9%	1.90%
United Kingdom	62.48 million	90.94%	2.0%	1.20%

Holly Coco (also known as @AfrodisiacHair on Twitter) sent in her thoughts as a response to a tweet about hair and hair products. She currently lives in Scotland but was born and brought up in London. Her family is from Kinshasa, Congo and moved to England in the ‘70s. She shared her thoughts on hair, hair care and products, the black community in Scotland, and just about her hopes for the future. I was so interested in her story (and the thought of black people in Scotland - birthplace of golf) that I researched some stats. 



Scottish Flag

Holly writes:

Your Hair is Your Glory

It is an old African tradition that the hair is your crowning glory, your soul.  Many Africans believe as your hair is the closest part of your body to God that it is spiritual and anyone who touches your hair is privileged.  I believe that afro hair is the most beautiful type of hair - there are so many styles and options available to us, yet we argue with it regularly.   Afro hair tells a story – you can demonstrate your creativity and your soul through your hair.

When I first moved to Scotland five years ago I worried about the weather, the distance from my family back in England and the weather some more! But when my boyfriend asked me to move in with him I didn’t think twice, I especially didn’t worry about hair! Although the Black community in Scotland is steadily growing, (admittedly still a small concentration compared to the rest of the UK though), living here has made me realize that there doesn't seem to be a great deal of options for hair salons, hair products, or even African food/restaurants. 

Hair Troubles...

Scottish Moors

The weather in Scotland is very cold, windy and it often rains, so a protective hair style is important.  A frizzy afro is never a good look but the lack of products is causing us a real headache.  I have still not seen a satin hair scarf or even an afro pick in any shop! There are 3 small African shops in Edinburgh which sell a very small amount of African food and beauty products (lots of bleaching creams, hair relaxers etc, but very little natural products). Only one shop in the whole of Edinburgh and its surrounding areas sold a blow dryer with a pick attachment! I found a shop which stocked Organic Root Stimulator’s Lock n Twist gel and religiously stuck to it for a couple of years. It seems there isn’t a market for natural hair products though – I was the only person buying it and it quickly got discontinued.  The only other natural product on the shelves was Beeswax! I find beeswax leaves a horrible sticky residue to the hair and also feels quite greasy and heavy on the hair, not to mention the build-up on the roots.

...Hair Solutions?

It is not only difficult to find hair products but also oils too.  Between my travelling back and forth to my family back in London I found myself buying all my hair products there as I had enough with driving around Edinburgh from shop to shop looking for (and not finding any!) natural hair products. Internet shopping for hair products is not ideal – firstly I cannot see the product in front of me, I can’t read the ingredients, and I do not really know what I’m getting until I have bought it! Unfortunately, many hair products’ descriptions contain the word “natural” but will be full of sulphates, alcohol and other moisture stripping ingredients. But I have managed to make a hair mist myself by ordering the oils over the internet and mixing with water at home.

Read more about Natural Hair in Scotland in Part II coming soon. 

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Write by: Unknown - Friday, August 24, 2012