Curly Hair Has a Renaissance

The New Feminine Ideal 
by guest blogger @lindsayleboyer, Lindsay LeBoyer

Currently modern women favor hair as sleek and straight and possible. However, that modern ideal has not always been in fashion and curls are starting to make a comeback. Since many salon straightening treatments contain formaldehyde, women everywhere are embracing their natural textures. Curls and waves are on the rise, and celebrities like Rihanna and Taylor Swift are getting in on it too.

The Birth of Venus 

Painters such as Botticelli and Titian depicted their ideal of feminine beauty with luscious, curly hair. Botticelli’s “The Birth of Venus,” depicts the Greek goddess Venus emerging from the sea, sporting a mane of flowing, golden curls. She is a vision of natural beauty with hair floating in the wind. Had Botticelli painted Venus with straight hair, the pictures would lose it’s pure, magical quality.

Taylor Swift

The name Taylor Swift is pretty much synonymous with gorgeous, banana curls. The Grammy winning country singer credits Bumble and Bumble curling balm for her frizz free hair, and Babyliss conical curling wand for touch ups. On tour she rocks her curls loose and wild, but sweeps them into a soft bun for award shows.

Rihanna

Hip-hop singer Rihanna has made quite a few headlines with her hair. At the beginning of her career she sported long brown waves, then a short pixie cut, curly blonde mohawk, and now a full head of red curls. Rihanna’s curls are tight and bouncy, forming perfect spirals. The key to her haircut is layers, which tone down the volume just a little bit and create a nice round shape to frame her angular face.

Get the Look

Young Woman Combing Her Hair by Titian DevaChan recommends not combing curly hair

If you have naturally curly or wavy hair, it’s important to use a line of products that will enhance them. DevaChan promises soft, frizz-free curls or waves, and its system is customizable to match many different hair types. You can find DevaChan at most hair salons, or visit their website http://mydevacurl.com

Now that you have the tips to keep your curls looking beautiful, one question still remains… Are you confident enough to officially go curly? When you’re feeling tempted to pick up the flat iron, remember this: Centuries ago, painters depicted the ideal feminine beauties with curly hair. Today, fashion forward celebrities are embracing their curls, and the media praises them for it. Beauty brands like DevaChan and Bumble & Bumble encourage girls to be natural. Magazines devote beauty columns to getting the perfect curl. Don’t give in to to the next new straightening treatments when traditional femininity embraces a mane of natural curls.

Are you confident enough to go curly?

Sources:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/07/fashion/in-defense-of-curly-hair-the-mirror.html?pagewanted=all

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Femininity

http://www.teenvogue.com/beauty/blogs/beauty/2011/06/curl-power-get-wavy-hair-for-summer.html