Adonya writes:
Do you think its “cheating” that I’ve been natural for the past 8 years, but rarely wear my own hair? I actually hate doing hair, so when other naturals are talking about spending entire days conditioning and styling, all I can think is “who has time for that?!” So for convenience, I wear lots of braids and sew-ins. I take very good care of my hair when I actually do it (henna, deep conditioners, no sulfates, biotin supplements, eating well, etc.), but can I really rep for naturals if I’m hardly ever wearing my natural hair?
With that, do you consider natural hair celebrities who regularly wear lace fronts in Camp Natural? What about celebs that sport curly and afro weaves and wigs, or texturizers… do you feel they’re representing for the curlies?
i will have to say do you. because i do "based on situation". in the army i had my hair cornrowed with wigs on top. because "natural hair is unautorized". now that im out the army if winter is here my hair is in kinky twists because thats my protective style. if im rushing to a professional setting i slip my wig on. if i got the money i get my hair professionally highlighted and colored. summer and spring i will wear my hair out. it all depends on whats going on in my life. i dont base myself on am i not natural because other people cant see my hair. i dont care about others. i go by im natural because i maintain my hair in its natural state as it grows out my head. i feel natural is a lifestyle similar to being vegan. its not what others see its what you do when others dont see.
Totally agree with Jackie. Do You, that is the most important thing.
Wow….I agree Jackie!!! Do what's best for you. If you wear weaves and wigs out of convenience than that's what it is. Like someone else said, people are getting too deep. Don't worry about what other naturals say. Once you're healthy. Yes, I consider you a natural hun. There is no definition to this. We are all figuring this out and some people go over board like a cult, lol. DO YOU!!!!
Amen Jackie!!!!!
Wow- I can't believe some folks are questioning whether this girl is natural or not. Of course she is- her hair is not chemically altered. Now you can dig deeper and question why she wears braids and weaves if you want to, but that doesn't change the fact that she is natural.
I am 32 years old and have never had a perm or dyed my hair. I have worn braids and cornrows my whole life. I dare someone who once had a perm to question whether I am natural or not because I wear braid extensions.
I recognize not everyone has the same reasons for wearing extensions, but in my case I love how easy they are- I put them in myself every few months, wash twice a week, wake up in the morning and am good to go. I am personally horrified at stories of how many hours per week some naturals spend doing their hair in puffs and fros and twistouts and braidouts. The styles truly are beautiful but there must be more productive uses of one's time out there. As you can tell from my comments above, I do not have the time to devote to doing my hair everyday and braids are a wonderful alternative.
Moreover, for me, there is no style that is more protective than braid extensions. My hair is thick, super healthy, and just below my bra strap. I don't have traction alopecia. I love my hair and when it is out- about 5% of the time- it's fun for a day or so before I consider all the other things I could be doing with my time other than doing my hair. I love my hair and don't understand why I – or anyone else like me-should be compelled to rock my hair in any particular way to prove that I am natural. I got nothing to prove to anyone- while most folks are out and about playing show and tell (and breaking off their hair in the process), my hair is thanking me for leaving it the heck alone so it can do it's thing.
I digress, but truly am shocked that some folks think this girl is not natural or that she has more sinister reasons for wearing weaves and extensions other than being a little lazy (or a lot lazy like me). I'm not saying it's not possible that she doesn't have these reasons, but if she did, wouldn't she have had a perm to make it easier to put in some weaves in the first place? I don't see why someone with bluest eye type syndrome would keep their natural hair in the first instance.
@ jet black
I have to agree. If wearing your natural hair under a wig is not "representing the natural team" ,because to some naturals it gives them the notion that you are ashamed of your hair, what's to say about the naturals who are rocking their natural hair but are manipulating their hair with twist,braidouts, gels,pomades just to achieve a loose naturally curly look, that some of them naturally don't have.
holla back to jet black: what is the point of being natural if one is spending hours on a daily or weekly basis to style her hair and spending hours upon hours searching for that perfect product to get curls that shine and hang? It is possible to have curls that hang and shine: it's called a relaxer. I know plenty of women with well cared for relaxed hair that acheive this without all of the "fighting the fro" so many naturals seem to go through. I have been natural for fifteen years (no weaves, no extensions) I learned long ago to accept my hair as it naturally grows. Sometimes weaving is just protective styling, but sometimes it may be a coverup due to disappointment in one's natural texture. Do I occasionally braid or twist for a texture switch up–of course! Creativity and change in ones hairstyle is part of the fun of being a girl. Is my day ruined if those manufactured curls turn into a fat old fro–Nope. Just pull it up in a puff or throw on a headband and keep on pushing.
I think wearing wigs or braids is a really good thing. Sometimes the hair just needs a break from the manipulation of trying differenty styles. Plus when left alone the hair actually grows at a much quicker speed, but then genetics do play a hand in that as well. I saw a lady on Youtube and I thought that she was just transitioning her hair or had recently cut it off.
Come to find out her hair has been natural for 1year now, but it looked to be only 3 inches long and was a hot mess. I felt bad for her because she mentioned that her hair wasn't growing any longer and that she wanted to stay natural but I was like well I guess it is true some heads grow quicker and some don't. So do what makes you feel better about your hair, and wear it in any style because no matter what it's just hair and however you choose to rock it is a good thing.
hmm, im probably going to be attacked for saying this.
But what about all those gels that are used to bring out "natural curl pattern"? if it was natural wouldn't it have existed before you used the product?
like i know some people's hair does naturally look like that. but on soooo many youtube videos you see people where their freshly washed hair doesnt look ANYTHING like the end result.
like someone spending 3+ hours shingling their hair with some type of gel to get a look they would have if they used a texturizer. the "loose curls" look.
yes you can wash out the gel but not the texturizer. but isnt it the same thing if you are going to be a stickler for technicalities and the use of chemicals? if you are gonna be a purest go all the way. you ARE using a chemical to get your hair to do something it would not do on its own. its not the same thing as adding a moisturiser or oil to improve the health of your strands. the sole purpose is (to use the most popular euphemism) "defining" (lol) your hair. you are doing the same thing that someone getting a texturiser does. even if it is temporary.
to me it doesnt matter one way or the other. i think everyone's hair is beautiful and more power to you anyway you want to rock it.
but please dont go on people using weaves and braids when you are using gel to alter the character of your hair. cause technically you arent rocking natural either. gels do alter your hair chemisty, even if its just temporary and not harmful.
Oh My GAWD………..!!!!!!!!!!
I just saw the most gorgeous head of hair on a little girl, who had to have been about 8 years old 4a/b hair type. It was so thick and long, MBL it looked like a lions mane. I just wanted to play in it or use it as a pillow j/k. Yes the little girl was a Natural as well, and her mama was black. I tell you guys if you could have seen this little girls hair, you would have dropped your mouth open and just been staring at her nonstop as I did..lol…..
LBell said it best! Beautiful … and DEEP!!!
Beautiful LBell 🙂
I wish you all would stop justifying your weave-wearing lolol. No one cares! If you want to preach the "do you" then practice the "do you".
Your weave doesn't NEED to represent natural hair! A good thing.. Because it can't 😉 It can only represent weave. And that's fine! Love the weave you're in! And be happy in it. You don't need to flip the script and call it your natural hair. Or say your repping a ~team~ that you ain't sporting a jersey for.
Let us not forget that "rep" stands for "represent" and represent means presenting for something. What are you presenting on your head?
Geez, there are a gang of Natural Nazis out here! My honest opinion: it doesn't freakin' matter.
Each of us is natural for our own personal reasons. How each of us "rep" being natural has should have absolutely no influence on embracing, nurturing and supporting each other as women of color who have a lot more crap to deal with that's a lot bigger than "repping" being natural.
With that said, people go natural for their own personal reasons. Some want the experience of rocking braids, braid outs, twist outs, etc. Some go natural for health reasons. It's a personal decision, just as one's religious and spiritual decisions are personal.
I wear my hair out about 6-8 months out of the year. And, it's incredibly time consuming and expensive – more so than when I was rocking a relaxer. While I have absolutely no plans of going back to the creamy crack, I have made the decision to wear extensions whenever I feel like it. Again, it's MY personal decision and I quite frankly spend time trying to gain acceptance for the decisions I make for me. I do what makes ME happy.
My advice to the young lady who originally wrote the post: stop worrying about pleasing others and do what makes you feel great about yourself. If that means wearing extensions every single day of the year while being natural underneath your extensions – do you! This is YOUR personal decision and YOU must do what's necessary for YOU to be happy with yourself.
I'll play along even though I resist the notion of "representation" like we're in a dang sorority or something…
You may be natural underneath but if you're hiding behind fake hair 99 percent of the time then no, you're not representing Team Natural. AND THAT'S OKAY. I don't need you to represent Team Natural. I don't need you to validate my hair choices; I'm a grown woman and I'm going to wear my natural hair regardless of what you do. Most likely you're wearing that hair because you're insecure about your own hair in some way (texture, length, or both). So long as you're honest about that, hey, do whatcha like. Maybe someday you'll get to the point where you'll see your own hair as acceptable enough to wear in public. Maybe you won't. Whatevs, as they say.
But looking at this from another perspective: The proliferation of weave amongst black women — regardless of what their hair is underneath — makes a very clear statement. What makes me sad is that there is a generation of little girls who are watching and internalizing that statement. It's bad enough that generations before them were taught that non-nappy hair is better than nappy hair…but now we're taking it all the way over to the Barbie side. We can sit up here and talk about "choice" all we want but the reality is that most black women, given a choice, will still tend to choose anything other than the hair they were born with. For our GIRLS' sakes, I want more of us to truly "represent Team Natural" by ditching the fake hair and learning to work with what we have.
Newbie Natural
Occasional Sew In Wearer
Proud Supporter of Team ME and Team DO YOU
And be confident in whatever choice you make!
Who cares about "Teams" Don't put yourself in a box. In my opinion your natural. Period. My sister is natural but she wears wigs so she doesn't have mess with her hair. Is she any less natural? NO!!
@ GT, I agree…"natural" simply means NO chemicals. It is the hair that NATURALLY grows out of your scalp. That's it, nothing more to it. Wearing it "out" is a style! People are trippin!! LOL. But yeah, like Latoya said, just rep team you. Afterall, it is YOUR hair, no one elses!!!! :o)
I have been natural for 10 years and have worn a lot of different styles including wearing it out for years. Right now, I wear wigs as a protective style and I love it. I don't have the time and I just don't feel like styling my hair everyday. That goes for ANY HAIR-I don't even get wigs that require too much styling. I could really care less if some people think that makes me less of a natural. I wonder if a lot of the people talking about "team naturals" and "you have to wear your hair out" are some of the newer naturals? I can't imagine that anyone who has been natural for a significant period of time would actually hold that belief.
Very Interesting Post. Definitely thought most people like to use protective styles to grow healthy hair and I never thought of it as cheating. Personally, it was always more economical for me to braid my own head for the maintenance was minimal, the braiding routine was kinder to my purse, and I would retain length. But, I never thought of it as cheating because I knew sooner or later I was going to have to learn how to take care of my hair if I wanted to keep it on my head. It was a lot easier to make the transition with the resources available and I am very appreciative.
I definitely feel like focusing on our differences in this light seems to divide us and cause resentment instead of pulling our resources together to inform each other. At times, I always wondered why people care so much about the hair on my head instead of the hair on their own head. On the other hand, maybe this is an opportunity for people to learn respectful and tolerant. Thank you for posting on this topic and it was definitely food for thought. LLP~OGC
I have been natural for several years and I do not want to be on team natural…"team natural" are the most judgmental hypocrites. Count me out! I am so embarassed by this so called movement. "Team Natural" is doing the same thing they are accusing "team straight" or "team other" of doing. Why can't we just enjoy our curls without all the drama, blaming, rules, and defining…
Wow, I have been struggling with this since I began "caring" for my natural hair. I tend to encourage other ppl to go natural and even pass on my knowledge of how to take good care of their hair but me myself, I have been wearing wigs since I b/c in 2007. I did not begin taking care of my hair until this past summer and I love her growth and texture, but I still like wearing wigs. I say do what you do….I spend alot of time on my hair with washing every week usually on Saturdays and co-washing half way thru the week, usually on Thursdays (before Grey's Anatomy), getting my mixing on with shea butter and a host of oils and spritzing bottles, but at the beginning of the day my wigs are on. Rep team YOU!!!!
Whats funny is that I let someone ask that question under my login b/c she & I were having a debate abt it, lol. My opinion? I HATE doing hair (and I know hate is a strong word; but I mean every letter). Im not ashamed of being natural; I tell everyone. Im not waiting 4 a certain length; my hair is beautiful & a great length. I have even found a great natural stylist. I really rotate. Winter-my hair will not be out. Spring-out. Summer-nope. Fall-sometimes. I rep 4 team natural all day everyday regardless of what u see. And I appreciate all of the feedback! I enjoy reading other opinions 🙂
expanding the original question and a nod to chez cherise's comment: can you really rep for natural if all you ever wear are "stretched" styles that simulate a socially acceptable curl pattern and would not even dream of leaving the house with shrunken kinks and curls?
I think you can still play for "team natural" If you wear weaves, wigs, etc. I consider myself natural, and I use wigs during the winter to protect my hair. They are also a fun accessory, because I can wear different styles without cutting or straightening my hair. I can also revisit my "permed styles" if the mood strikes me. I regularly wash and condition my natural hair, and I wear it out sometimes even in cold weather. When it gets warm again, the wigs go back in the drawer, and my hair is out again. I see no problem with it. I think of wigs as hats, LOL.
"…can I really rep for naturals if I'm hardly ever wearing my natural hair?" NO
HAIR IS HAIR and if you are is natural underneath the braids, wigs and weaves then yes your are team natural. I have a friend who does the same thing because she does not like to spend a lot of time messing with her hair she just likes to get up and go.so I say has long as you are taking care of your NATURAL hair underneath then Yes you can still call yourself a natural. there are no levels of naturals so no need to ask about if you count or not. Do you girlie and rock the styles that work best for you.
-from one natural to another:)
Are we a family of strong black women or are we creating classes/levels of "naturals"? Who are we to determine the characteristics of another person…just embrace each individuals journey as unique and KIM!
I love Komirra's point about there not being all of these rules to be relaxed so why are there so many rules to being natural. I represent team hair.
Do you think its "cheating"…? Yes.
Now let's move on.
honestly i dont know why it matters wat you classify yourself as. i dont think their shud be so many rules to be considered "natural enough". its really simple. dont relax or texturize ur hair and ur natural. ppl dont have all these rules for being relaxed, why are there so many to be natural? ur natural, so i dont know what the problem is. u take care of it, so im sure its healthly. u basically just wear it in protective styles all the time
Why is this becoming a question of "what is natural"? No where in the OP does the author say that women with weaves are not natural. Y'all sure are anxious to defend something that wasn't attacked lol. Anyhoo…no, if you're wearing something that covers up your natural hair, you're not *repping* natural-ness. You're representing the weave #kanyeshrug. There's no value judgment there. It's just a fact.
To sum it up…who cares? I don't….Do what's best for you and don't judge the next…U don't know anyone's struggles until you ask, and they may not want to share…so be it…Hello…Good morning…
Too many rules! Weaves, color, braids, kinks, curls…you should be representing yourself anyway!
The question was "am I cheating?". I say YES! If you weren't born with it, you're cheating. I say that about people who wear weaves, contacts for different color eyes, buy fake boobs, butts, etc… and that includes celebrities. But so what? If that's who you are- so be it. Honestly I don't think most people care. The only thing I don't like about celebs is they advertise for relaxers and color like their hair is healthy but they are often NOT abusing their own hair with such chemical mistreatment. They know better.
@AusetAbena, well said!
@ Latoya…you said it! The better question for the poster is why are you trying to "rep"any team besides "Team YOU"! Honestly, didn't you make the choice to wear your hair unrelaxed because that's what YOU wanted to do with YOUR hair?
Jesus be a fence! Who is the official rule-maker for what is "natural"–your hair is natural because____ vs. yours is not because____? Is there an official rule book? How can I get in touch with the committee to find out if I am even on the "team"?
Whether a person wears a weave or not, does not constitutes whether they are natural . When you are a celebrity, sometimes certain performance or appearances may request certain looks. Being that I have modeled, in my younger years, dealing with clientele, sometimes they want a certain look that may be damaging, like a different color or straightening and may not take into consideration how it may be damaging your tresses. If I was a celeb, I would want to be able to change up my look without commitment, so I would prob wear wigs and extensions as well.
A LOT of ya'll are going too deep… The questions isn't whether or not her hair is natural, rather is she repping for team natural.
There's no doubt that underneath the weave, her hair is natural. But in my opinion, someone who wears weave all the time is not repping for team natural at all. Repping, or representing team natural means wearing your natural hair and learning to style it, love it, embrace it etc. like everyone else does with their hair. If you have weave in all the time then you're repping for team weave or team sew in or whatever… Instead of spending money getting sew-ins and weave, try finding someone who could do your natural hair.
But, if you're wearing weave until you get more length, that's a whole different story. But if you just wear it because you don't wanna do your hair, then you're not really repping.
I personallly don't think it even matters whether you represent "team natural" – although you asked. All that matters is that you represent YOU.
I'm told that I'm not really natural since I wear my hair braided. One lady thought that natural was just an afro (she was a black woman). I wore braids when I was relaxed too. Who cares? Why debate it? It's just another opportunity to create division among us.
While I agree that she is natural but not representing for the naturals, I don't get the "what's the point of being natural then" comments. Would you rather her be relaxed with weaves and extensions?
I've been told that I'm "not natural" because I don't wear my hair out. Instead I chose to sock bun it or do a twist out and put it in a bun.
Some people thing that spending days styling your hair to define your curls is not "natural".
I can't do all of that. Aside from deep conditioning, 10-15 minutes is all I have give.
Regardless of what others may feel, this woman clearly asked if we consider if she is part of the natural community if she wears weaves most of the time. We are sharing our opinion after she asked. I am not understanding why people are getting offended that we are answering the question that she asked. After all that, I want to stand by the belief that she is natural, but she is not representing being natural if her hair is covered with weaves most of the time. I also come from a place of being tired of hearing "I'm natural under this weave, wig, etc." The term natural may not be cut and dry, but we shouldn't have to wonder for every woman who wears weaves. And what is up with this "weave is a protective style", which can be true. But it is (a) not the only protective and (b) not the healthiest option for protective style depending how the weave is put in. But to wrap this up, please stop getting offended that the women here are answering an opninion based question that this woman asked, because all you should do is answer whether or not you consider her natural or not, repping for naturals or not, and move on, but don't condemn particular opinions.
OMG….this is sad.
I have been natural for 7 years. I wear weaves, twists and I straighten. I have no color or chemicals in my hair. I wear my hair free of chemicals, because I want to, not to be apart of some "Team Natural". I am a grown woman and have my own reasons why I choose to wear my hair in this state. My hair is in twists and weaves MOST of the time. True, no one has seen my real hair in awhile….but does that make me not natural? If my real hair is not natural …what is it? Is it not natural because I wear extensions or I straighten it??? I am a licensed cosmetologist and I KNOW how to style my own hair, so I’m not lazy, I like variety….Guilty.
I think alot of "team natural" women get frustrated with people like me because of their journey, which is understandable, but just because my journey is not like yours, does that make me wrong??? I have natural hair that I don’t let others see all the time…..Guilty!
Celebrity does not celebrate the average. Badu (pictured) is not representing the average natural, rather an exaggerated idealized version of natural hair. That's show business.
i wear weaves as a PS sometimes (and to get some relief from the awkward "not a twa, but still cant wear ponytails and buns stage", so i dont have to do wash n gos everyday)…my weave hair is the exact same texture as my own natural hair…it looks just like mine, besides the length…when i took the weave out, so many ppl that had never saw my short natural hair out actually thought i just cut my hair…i still considered my self reppin for team natural because the hair matched my natural texture, but not my natural length…i also think it depends on your motives…if your wearing weaves or covering up your hair because you dont like the texture or think its unmanageable or whatever, and then you sew in some silky bone straight indian remy, and you never let your own hair see the light of day EVER, then while you are still natural underneath, your not really reppin team natural like anon 1:36 said…because a representative "[serves] as a typical or characteristic example" according to merriam-webster, and ppl would have no way of telling if you're natural or not because the characteristics are hidden…celebs that sport curly and afro weaves and wigs are not reppin team natural if they're own hair underneath isnt natural too…they're repping the natural look, maybe, but their still part of team creamy crack if they're still get relaxers underneath…and texturized hair is not natural…although it may look natural sometimes, its not…you're still part of team creamy crack jr.
What is this? Divide and conquer?! I'm natural, because I do __, but you're not because ___. Come on folks. Why doesn't everyone just worry about themselves and let others figure out what works for them. There is more than one way to skin a cat!
Honestly, you are not repping for natural. Part of being natural is flaunting your tresses. And i'm sorry, but the whole "I don't like doing my hair:" is not gonna fly. Many naturals have very low maintenance hair styles, but wear their hair out ALL the time. You need to get familiar with a wash-n-go and protective styles that involve your hair if you want to rep for CAMP NATURAL.
yea. You're natural technincally but if you weave like ALL the time. What's the real point?
I understand to switch up to play with textures but if I only see your hair once a year. Your not really Repping team natural.
I'm with anonymous (1.36 PM). If the hair does not have a relaxer or texturizer in it. It is natural.
However, I would like to say that part of the reason many women who are natural have struggled to get the courage to wear their own hair is because afro-textured hair was rarely seen out in public. So I think even though it is one's right to wear weaves, wigs or braid extensions all the time, they aren't really "repping" for natural hair since what they have on is artificial. As for celebrities, I think everything they do is to cultivate and maintain a certain image. I think this question applies more to the average woman who does not have an army of stylists and has to do her own hair or find a salon that can.
But at the end of day, it's your hair, do whatever pleases you. I also hope this does not then become a bone of contention that will create division.
To me being natural is wearing your natural hair in the state it grows out of your scalp. So if you are hiding it constantly between weaves and wigs than that is not natural. Plus it is still extremely damaging to your hair. A weave that is to tight can also cause perminent damage. I believe straightening, weaves etc is to much maintenance.
I do the same thing. I like to surprise people and wear my real hair out, but I'm weaved up most of the time. I do it because my hair is in that in-between stage where it's no longer a TWA but it's not long enough for me. Whenever I tell someone I'm natural, I always add "underneath the weave" because I don't think of myself as all the way natural with it in. If a woman with natural hair wants to wear weave, that's her decision and it doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks.
It could also be that some people who always wear the weaves and wigs and whatnot are just doing this until they can get their OWN hair to the stage/length/health they want. But I do also kinda see the other side like, why bother being natural if you're only gonna wear weaves and stuff to hide it? But again, to each her own!!! I have had fake hair in my head twice –once while in high school for box braids and once about 5 years ago when I was about to have my 3rd daughter and didn't feel like being bothered (my hair was natural then but had hair added for cornrows.) I only kept them in for maybe 2 weeks. I don't particularly like fake hair and amd pretty sure I will never do it again. I have never had a weave in my life although I have thought about it before for the sake of giving my own natural hair a rest. But never did.
Do You.
LOL… @ Anonymous….we must have the same mind as we pretty much said the same thing!!!! I totally agree with you!! :o)
If you do not have chemicals in your hair (i.e.: a perm or a texturizer)…you are natural…weather you wear weaves or not…
Now, if do not wear your real hair out then, in my humble opinion, you are not "repping" team natural… BUT REALITY IS YOU ARE STILL NATURAL
How do we know you are natural if you wear weaves all the time?
Hmmm this is a good question. I dont think so. I have a friend that does the same thing. I say that she 'does not count' I dont even ask her about natural hair… heck I have not even seen her real hair.
Whats the point if you just wear fake hair all the time. You dont really experience it and you dont let others see it.
Weaves to me, definitely do not represent naturals. Curly or not. This is because the hair you are wearing is not growing out of your head and has more than likely came from the head of a woman from the middle east with a completely different texture than yours. So thats not natural.
Interesting question you pose…. If you have no chemicals in your rae (other than color) than yes, you're natural. But my questuion is why (other than the time factor) do you choose not to wear you own hair? Do you not like it or do you just choose it as protective styling?
I totally understand about how time consuming it is. But maybe instead of, say, once a week, you can condition and treat every 2 weeks. I have been doing it weekly forever but amd thinking about switching to every 2 weeks. I am wondering if this will help conserve my moisture.
But now for the celebs who may be wearing texturizers I say that is NOT natural. It's still a chemical that's making the hair curly.
But to each her own. If you like to rock your hair in braids or what have you than rock it girl!!! And you said you're taking care of your hair so…. I don't think anyone else's opinion really matters when it comes to someone else hair. Do you. And I don't necessarily think it's cheating. Like I said, to each her own.
Keep wearing your hair the way that makes you happy!!
Peace!
🙂
Yes, you are representing natural ladies if you don't have chemical in your hair. I don't think there are rules on this topic, so you need to do what represents you and your lifestyle (saving time is important others may enjoy the deep treatment process). As far a stars/celebs – I don't give them much credit, because they can drop as much money as they want to achieve a certain look. Texterizes – absolutely no in camp Natural. The other styles (weaves) are again personal preference and we have to get away from making ourselves fit into little piegon holes. Do you and you will be fine. Good question.