African Hair Braiding

Sep 2014

St. Paul the Apostle in 1 Corinthians said: "if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her, for her hair is given to her as a covering." Mine was given to me by Miss Pat in Smyrna, GA, and it is a glorious thing indeed. After 4 years of growing out my hair, I decided I wanted to cut it, keep it and make a wig out of it. I'd donated to Locks of Love a couple of times already, so it seemed doable in theory, but reality required a little more work. I was reminded of that Planet Money series where they're trying to make their own tee-shirt, starting with cotton seeds. I had to do some research. Step 1: Watch Chris Rock's documentary Good Hair ( Find out that a lot of wig hair comes from Indian temples, where ladies are sacrificing their hair to Visnhnu, and the temple is selling the hair to the wig industry. Wonder how the ladies might feel if they knew, on both ends of the transaction. Step 2: Find out how wigs are made exactly. Like, how does the hair get onto the wig without a big mess? I've cleaned my brush before, and that sure as hell doesn't look like something I'd want to put on my head. Step 3: Discover wefts. These are the first stop for most hair pieces. Wefts are long fringes of hair sewn in by hand, on sewing machines. They can then be sized and cut into extensions, or styled onto a wig cap. Step 4: Realize you're never going to be able to sew your hair onto a fringe. Get honest with yourself. Also decide you want extensions instead of being stuck with a certain hairstyle a la Flight of the Conchords ( Step 5: Discover Miss Pat. There are only two wefters I've found, via multiple rabbit trails of extension makers and hair stylers. The other is a gent who only takes COD, doesn't like publishing pricing, and has no website to my knowledge. This does not work for me. Miss Pat was great at communication, from the ease of access via website, to the quick replies via email. She even remembered me 8 months after I first reached out, when I was finally ready to make the cut, and gave me tips on how to cut, store and ship my locks. She was also super fast. It took me 4 years to grow my hair but less than 2 weeks to get it back in a weft. The estimated wait time is more like 4 - 6, so what a pleasant surprise! And I got a lot back, too! They charge by the ounce of finished product, and mine cost about $30, including shipping. Being one of those things (hair, nails) that are lovely when connected but so gross when unattached, folks have understandably mixed reactions to my snap-on hair. They are fascinated and yet repelled. Perhaps St. Paul would feel the same. But I surely see it as my glory. Glory on a hanger that I can put on whenever I want, without all the hassle of nightly maintenance. All thanks to the lovely Miss Pat's Hair Wefting.