“Hair is creativity.”

An hour or so ago, I finished doing my hair for a special photoshoot tomorrow, and as I was putting the last little touches on it, I had the above thought, along with thinking about how my mom and Honey (my stepmom) would do my hair when I was a kid, and how they’d sometimes be so creative with the styling. I remember Honey would put my hair in different ponytails and braids that were completely different that what a lot of my friends were wearing, and now I see that same creativity in myself as I do my hair.

Today, there are all sorts of tutorials on YouTube, TikTok, and Pinterest, and while I definitely utilize these things, I wonder how authentic it was for my maternal figures to visualize a hairstyle in their mind, and then execute it. And then I think back to generations before them, how women were creating new styles all of the time to be passed down, then updated and upgraded to the current trends.

And this doesn’t just stop with women’s hair. No, I think back to when my dad had hair, and how I would sometimes watch him brush it in the bathroom, making sure his waves were perfect, his back to the main mirror while he held a mirror in his and to see the back of his head. Even now with my boyfriend, there have been so many different stages, phases, and styles with his hair in the three years we’ve been dating. From a fade with top twists to completely shaved to longer locs, sometimes twisted back and sometimes let down. So there’s a whole other avenue with men hairstyles as well.

It makes me grateful for those who do hair for a living. I think of my friends Gina and Sheena who have styled my hair in different ways, such as naturally blowing it out straight or braiding it. I think of how cutting men’s hair seems to be a science, so much so that my man has to go to his specific barber to get his hair cut the way he likes it. And maybe not all men are like this, but it must take special skills to be able to cut men’s hair in particular ways as well!

Honestly, I’m not sure where I was going with this post, but I felt the need to write about my thoughts on atypical creative outlets, such as hair. I feel like usually when you read that someone is a creative, you don’t necessarily think about hairstylists, or even clothing stylists and nail stylists (is that what they’re called? I’m writing this pretty late so my brain is lacking vocabulary).

Even now as I sort of struggle to type this because I’ve currently got on acrylic nails, I think about the skills you have to hone to be a manicurist or pedicurist, and that’s just the basics! To be able to create on such small canvases like fingernails is simply amazing to me!

I believe everyone can be creative within their own field of work. You don’t have to be a musician, writer, photographer, or artist to be a creative…you can be a hairstylist, nail stylist, even an engineer, architect, chef, teacher!

Creativity flows through the world, and it’s encouraging to see that we could all understand each other through this common thread.

Where do you see creativity flowing in your every day life? Your occupation? Your passion? Your hobbies? How do you connect with others using this creativity of yours?

Mishy 🦋🖤