Lauren of La Coco Bella is Naturally Glamorous!

Please, introduce yourself!
Hola! My name is Lauren, I’m a 27-year old Southern Cali girl currently residing in Maryland. I am a lover of God first and foremost and he is working on me every day. I’m a Howard University alum, a graphic designer (full-time and freelance) and I’ve been embracing my natural hair for about 7 years now and have grown to love everything about being natural!

What is your current hair care regimen?
Well, I seriously had to step up my game because I made the huge mistake of coloring my hair (with box color at that) and my hair became really damaged, lots of breakage, dryness, etc. so I have been on a mission to re-gain the health back in my hair (without having to chop off all the colored hair). I wash and deep condition my hair once a week. I have to use shampoo or ACV each time because I get a lot of oil-build-up on my scalp. I really like doing molasses or honey treatments and leaving it on my hair for a few hours. I really feel a difference after I rinse it out.
As far as styling, I wear a twist-out or bantu-knot out 99% of the time and make sure I always seal my ends! I really want to get more creative with protective styles to help retain length. I need help in the styling area lol I try and do a light “dusting” of my ends maybe once a month (trying to get rid of this color!) and then get a professional trim 2-3 times a year when my hair is straightened.

What is your hair type and what works best for your texture?
My hair mostly consists of tight ringlets and is really thick (especially around my edges) so I’d probably be in the type 4 category. The curls on the crown of my hair are a bit looser and it gets tighter towards the back. I get a lot of shrinkage when my hair is wet and its super low porosity so I love humectant products (aloe vera, glycerin, etc,). I try to finger detangle as much as possible but I love how my Denman brush clmps my curls.

What reaction did you get when you first decided to go natural or have you been relaxer free all your life?
I had been wearing a relaxer my whole life and almost always had shoulder length hair. I have really thick hair and it was too much for my mother to deal with since I was so tender headed as a child! When I BC’d, I got a bunch of mixed reactions. Some people were like “uh are you going through a crisis!?” and some people really loved it. The best compliment I got was that I looked really distinctive. That really stuck with me. My mother definitely was shocked and took her some time to get used to it lol Regardless, I didn’t really care what others thought since I only did it for myself and I have been blessed to be a source of inspiration for others to embrace their natural hair :o)

Did you big chop or transition, for how long? If you’ve always been natural, did you ever have any curly hair girl insecurities? If so, what helped you adjust to having naturally curly hair over the years?
I tried (key word = tried) to transition, which only lasted about 4 months, and I just couldn’t take it anymore. One day, while in college, I ended up going to the hair salon and cut all my relaxer off! I had about an inch of hair when I showed up to classes the next day. I didn’t tell anyone, I just did it. I was a little insecure at first because I was like “do I look like a boy?!” lol I definitely rocked the biggest earrings I owned and a little more eye shadow. At the time, it wasn’t the “norm” to see a “Howard Girl” with almost no hair at a time when it was all about weaves and long hair.

What makes you love your kinks, curls and coils?
I love my hair and all natural hair because everything about it is SO unique. Every time I see women with natural hair I just can’t help but thank god for the beauty he gave us. I feel that hair in it’s natural state is more beautiful than any chemical or weave could ever be. Our hair is so versatile and really can be form of expression. It’s regal and distinctive. Something we can call our own. I just love it :o)

Where can we find you on the web?
You can catch me here!
Blog: www.lacocobella.com
Twitta: www.twitter.com/laurenkaley
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/sunkiissed21

Anything EXTRA you want us to know?
Stay inspired. Stay passionate. Stay true to yourself. Don’t be insecure and don’t be discouraged (with your hair and in life!). Embrace how God designed you, he knows what he is doing ;o) Thank you Alex for this opportunity and being an inspiration to me!