AUSTIN, Texas — The Kinky Curly Coily Festival celebrated everything about Black hair.
The festival at Empire Control Room and Garage had live music and numerous natural hair care and skincare vendors. Beauticians demonstrated how to protect and care for curly hair, as well as braided hair.
Black hair is versatile. You can braid it, fro it, loc it and so much more.
"36 inches, 36 inches," said Beautician Sydnaay Worlds as she held her client's knee-length locs in her hand.
The beautician and seventh-grade teacher use hair as a common thread.
"I actually do some of my student's hair as well," said Worlds. "It helps me form better relationships with my kids. I am pretty sure I use a hair analogy with my kids to tell them why we use math in the real world."
For local artist and songwriter Ivy Roots, her natural hair is a symbol of freedom.
"We are in the renaissance of rediscovering who we are as a collective, as Black people, as women as the intersections that intersect. It's beautiful," said Roots.
The intersection of love of music and honoring Black hair is what inspired artist Lauren Riggins, known as Cha'Keeta B, to start the Kinky Curly Coily Festival in 2017.
"It's important to me to have this type of environment not only to show people how to protect their hair but to accept it and love it ourselves," said Cha'Keeta B.
"We like to change our hair up," said Worlds. "I wear wigs all the time."
No matter how you wear your hair, the common thread is the beauty in every style.
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