Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair community

[longhairluva]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

All I know, is that when I was little the hair tools involved a big cup of water, a brush and a jar of Blue Magic. My mom would dunk the brush in the cup ( b/c I refused to let her comb it) and brush my hair soft and damp, then cover it with a dab of grease and brush that through as well, then braid it up for two weeks of peace. My hair was always long, strong and soft. I think grease by itself doesn't moisturize, but it makes a hell of a sealant -- it's hella thick! But I always hated that when people tried to touch my hair it came back shiny and covered in grease. Have you ever heard an 8 yr old try to explain grease to a bunch of white kids?

my mother did the same thing with the brush and water. If I had a daughter I would do it to her.

 

[fluffylocks]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

You have to consider that most people still dont know what 'moisturized' is. They know that water by itself just make your hair wet. Oil seems to make it shiny and easier to comb.
For generations we have used oil or grease, whatever kind we could find. Lard, vaseline, whatever. It takes time and open minds to change something like this and the best way I know is to show people.
When they ask "How did you get your hair to look like that?" The answer could be "I moisturize daily with xyz leave in and seal with oil, it does wonders for retention and dryness" and go from there.

I agree.

Before coming to these boards/reading hair books i didnt have any idea of what moisturized meant, what a moisturizer was or any of that.
So i hope we all can spread the word to anyone that asks or says they use grease/oil & thinks that is all they need for their hair...because everyone may not go so far as to search like we did to find the books and websites we have because they think what they are doing is right and thats it.

Then you have to think about how different our hair is, most other races dont even have to moisturize their hair, and it produces enough oil....our hair is just now being understood in the past 15 years with the books and such.

So everyone doesnt know about hair care, and the things people did in the past are still being used.

I think people started using oil because our hair doesnt really have any, and it can look dull, so the oil will make it shine and is a part of what we do need in a regimen. Gotta give people credit for knowing that our hair needs oil--because i know i didnt even know we needed oil or what the acutal purpose of it was.

 

[freshlikemoi]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

I believe from Madam CJ Walker. According to Cathy Howse, this is how CJ walker made her millions....

 

[KathyMay]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

my mother did the same thing with the brush and water. If I had a daughter I would do it to her.

I tried this with my daughter and it has worked wonders.

 

[southerncitygirl]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

bumping..............................

 

[Guitarhero]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

Where'd they get it from? Africa in ancient times...from almond oils, to shea butters to cow butter ghee, coconut oils, bacon fat etc. Cuz it does moisturize. If you apply to wet hair, it's like using one of the UE preps for 50 bucks they have today.

 

[Tiye]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

Actually oils like coconut oil, castor oil, shea butter, etc do moisturize .... I have coconut oil in my hair now and it's well moisturized on a cold, winter day - so it does work.

 

[southerncitygirl]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

Tiye

its all relative.....i have to moisturize and seal and evco only works in the summer for me. i moisturize with qb aohc and seal with a mixture of oils evoo, castor,kukui, meadowfoam, and a tiny bit of evco infused with herbs. i couldn't use oil alone int he wintertime, i need something extra, i guess this is why people did grease+water back in the day.

 

[BEAUTYU2U]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

All I know, is that when I was little the hair tools involved a big cup of water, a brush and a jar of Blue Magic. My mom would dunk the brush in the cup and brush my hair soft and damp, then cover it with a dab of grease and brush that through as well.

YESSSSS! Except mine used African Pride (lol) I had to fill up the cup with super hot water.

 

[Anakinsmomma]

Found an interesting tidbit in Wikipedia about the use of grease/oil. I had never heard of Annie Malone before either.

OT: She was rich going into the depression? No way "they" were going to let that slide ...... (I know some of it had to do with the divorces, but still...)

 

[candy626]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

Never been a big grease fan or a fan of any old school black hair care products really like pink lotion. They don't do squat for my hair once it has dried out. The only thing that moisturizes my hair when it starts to get dry is coconut oil. And even that has it's limitations.

My hair needs water and conditioner regularly.

 

[aicramphoto]

Re: Where did the "grease and oils moisturize" myth come from in the black hair commu

Somebody may have mentioned this before (tried to read all posts), but I think that the main issue with "grease" is the petrolatum and/or mineral oil. That is supposed to not be a moisturizer but other oils do well in different combos for different hair types. Maybe that's why some ladies have had success with coconut oil, shea butter, etc.

Also, people had a tendency to put "grease" on dry and/or dirty hair (back from when we thought washing our hair was as bad as cursing . We know now that this is a no-no, no matter whose hair can tolerate "grease". The wetting first and then applying a dab of traditional grease seems to be the forerunner of moisturizer and sealing.