What's some of the best hair advice you guys have received?
TKW: Patience. I learned that from our mom. That's the big reason why, if we have shoots, I always do my own hair - because nobody's going to have the patience to do my hair but me. Also, I only finger-detangle; I never use combs.
CQ: That's a big one for me too, finger-detangling. I used to comb my hair and I would experience a lot of breakage. Sometimes, people get confused because they wonder if you're actually getting all of the tangles out. Once you get more experienced, you can actually take a comb and run it straight through your hair [once you're done]. It's been a huge savior. My advice would probably be that no one's hair is alike. Even though we're twins and our texture is a lot alike, my sister's hair is a little more loosely coiled than mine... These slight differences...can mean the world when it comes to your regimen.
How does your mom feel about the conversation you're opening up about hair?
Both: She loves it.
CQ: She's been so supportive, and she's always been that way. My sister and I are best friends and that's our triplet, our mom.
Do you have any hair idols other than your mom?
TKW: Lisa Bonet...the way she wears her hair now in 'locs.
CQ: Hm... My mother. (laughs) I mean, there are so many natural hairstyles I like, and so many actresses I could name, but idol-wise it's always been my mother.
Why do you think there's so much judgment among women about what we do to our hair?
TKW: "Insecurity, that's what I think. Whenever people pass judgment...it's because they're insecure about something that's going on inside themselves...and it affects the way they view others.
CQ: I completely agree with that. I think people need to understand that everybody thinks differently, so we can't place judgment. [We can't] think that just because someone relaxes their hair, they're trying to be someone other than themselves. There's this stigma that they're trying to emulate this Eurocentric standard of beauty and, to be honest, not every woman thinks that. Some women relax their hair because they want easier management. It might not be the healthiest choice...but who am I to judge? For me, [going natural] meant more than hair - it was a psyche thing where it was affecting my well-being mentally. I was in an insecure place and, for me, transitioning to natural helped evoke all these things that helped me become who I was meant to be today.
TKW: "I'm purely speaking about women who are judgmental toward other women for being natural. I've had a lot of experience with that. I do have to say that women tend to admire longer natural hair and find it more [acceptable] than they do the shorter, Afro styles... I've had a lot of negative reactions to my hair when it was shorter and in its Afro'd state... I used to be called Macy Gray - and there's nothing wrong with Macy Gray, I think her hair is beautiful - but it was said in a negative connotation... Natural hair, then, was not cool like it is now, and I was teased mercilessly for it... For me, personally, if you wear your hair relaxed, I'll never be the person who's like, 'You should be natural because you're not accepting your true self.'' At the end of the day, it's only hair."
The natural hair movement is huge right now, and has been for the past couple of years. Where do you see it going?
CQ: There's this whole thing about it being a trend, but it's not a trend because it's what naturally grows from our heads. It's always been here; it's just that now more people are embracing it. I'm 200% sure that this is not going to fade out. I feel the movement getting stronger and stronger. The more women [come] out and [showcase] their natural beauty...it only inspires other women who might be hesitant to take that first step.
TKW: What she said! What more can I say? I see it expanding. I don't think it's a trend, and I think more women are catching on to the idea of natural hair. I know, for a lot of women, the workplace is a main concern... I've read countless stories about women in the workplace who wore their hair natural and got either positive or negative responses, so I know that's a big [reason] some women...choose not to go natural. Also, I think there are a lot of hairstyles you can wear in the workplace... In the next few years, more women are going to be more comfortable in deciding whether they want to go natural and actually taking the steps to do so.
CQ: I want to add that women who want to take the first step in going natural; it's definitely not a rush... It took me over a decade to finally become comfortable wearing my natural hair... I went natural, but then I didn't love the texture of my hair. I think women just need to know there's no guilt in not loving their hair automatically... Like TK said, it takes patience - just give it some time.