BRAIDS BABY

So, when i was 2 years old i started dancing and did so up until the age of 16 (competitively) and we always had to have our hair braided for competitions and exams and I've always loved having my hair like it ever since.I always have colourful hair braided in for nights out or festivals, only recently i had long red locks platted into 4 dutch braids for Forbidden Forest. (Which was MADNESS) So when i came across @thebraidbar 's instagram you can imagine how fascinated i was with all the different braids, colours and even glitters they've put on people's roots!

However i couldn't help but notice an article on the internet the other day which featured radio 1 dj Clara Amfo absolutely slating the the new found company. The braid bar offered a free appointment for her was an almost peace treaty although while she made it clear she had 'no malice' towards Braid Bar, the presenter said their offer had been a 'prime example of very entitled cultural appropriation, that has to be called out.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-4175700/Radio-One-DJ-Clara-Amfo-slam-Braid-Bar.html#ixzz4iZpLQWuc

Braid Bar, based in Selfridges in central London, has become hugely popular for its fashionable plaits in recent years. However features only white and european models on their instragram page, which is what has upset some people understandably. She continued: 'To explain further @the_braid_bar general creative aesthetic is clearly influenced by popular R&B, Hip Hop and Dancehall culture,which originates from black women (braids, cornrows and dreads)....yet there are barely any black women, particularly with hair texture like mine on their page."

This can be a very touchy subject, though i feel the Braid Bar genuinely means no harm. They are simply providing a service to us white and european girls that wouldn't usually be available. Surely this is a compliment? We love your style! Although i do completely agree with clara in the sense that public figures like Kylie Jenner can make a legit earning showcasing of all the styles mentioned above,without the perceived burden of whooole lot of melanin!They are praised for being avant-garde and trendsetting.So I say this,to girls and guys of ALL races who want to try these looks,by all means go ahead, because black hair styles are beeeeeeautiful! I will be having 24" grey locks braided into 6 rows for parklike next week!

Its not only The Braid Bar which have come into the firing line Several big names have found themselves accused of cultural appropriation - defined as 'adopting elements of one culture by another culture.' In September last year, designer Marc Jacobs sent dreadlocked white models - including Bella Hadid and Kendall Jenner - down the catwalk at New York Fashion Week. The stylist behind the show, Guido Palau, was forced to defend the fact that the show consisted of predominantly white models and was widely accused of cultural appropriation on Twitter. One user wrote at the time: 'Why does Marc Jacobs think it's okay to use dreadlocks on white people?'And in December, lingerie goliath Victoria's Secret found itself in a similar scenario after it showed models wearing 'exotic' lingerie influenced by Asian and Mexican designs. Cosmopolitan Lifestyle Editor Helin Jung suggested that the company was being derogatory for thinking it might sell more lingerie in a country if it aped their cultural designs.She wrote: 'What condescension, for Victoria's Secret to think that by wrapping a model in a dragon, it could connect directly with a new consumer in China.

SHARING IS CARING GUYS! BE FLATTERED AND BE BEAUTIFUL.

3CB0F40700000578-4175700-image-a-57_1485869123527