#TBT: It’s All Natural Social Day

 

WHERE DO I EVEN START!?

Let it be known that the social day was LIT. It had the vibe of a massive family reunion, except without the family drama, like there was no aunty making comments about your “hella kroes hare”- quite the opposite. Waves, curls, kinks, coils, braids, knots, locs, it was all being celebrated 😀 It was so refreshing to see the melanin magic in full display and it just cemented what we already knew; our natural hair is a gift.

Now I could get emotional and wax lyrical for years about this, and put everyone to sleep, or I could just recap the day for those who were not able to attend. Yes, your feelings of FOMO were valid because you should have damn well attended!

That’s your own fault, sit down , read and be sad.

The Venue: La Bella Trattoria, Durban North

Checked all the right boxes, and Durbanites know that La Bella know their way around good food 😉

The Vibe: 8 more than 92, the vibe was 100 😀 The Facebook group is always such a positive place, and nothing had changed in reality. The hosts Maxine, Bryce, Kim and sponsor Taryn were amazing and pulled out all the stops to ensure everyone had a great time. Good music, food, free cocktails #drank and a freebie from The Perfect Hair- what more do you need?

The Theme: “A Touch Of Africa” was the theme of the day, and thanks to us natties it became more like “A(ll of the things) Touch Of Africa” XD Everyone fully embraced the theme and had African queening vibes all over the place. With all of that it was no wonder the photographer was so enamoured by a certain someone *cough cough*

The Swag: The Perfect Hair was the official sponsor for the day, graciously giving everyone a sample of their famous co-wash. (Side note: You need to try this stuff, your hair will thank you!). Founder Taryn Gill (fresh off her victory at The M-Net Shark Tank) made the case for #buylocal so well, she could have dropped the mic at the end, ain’t no thang.

The Speakers: Why are there so many beautiful AND talented naturals in this world? Seriously, you guys need to pick a struggle and stop making us potatoes of the world look bad XD The poetry had #blackgirlmagic resonating in every line which put goose bumps on everyone until we all just became one giant goose bump #noseriously. No boring fancy pants speeches here, the bloggers Merlene and Sne had us in stitches relating their natural journeys. When Danielle spoke it was like chatting to a friend, who just happens to have volume for days #justsaying XD

The Perfomances: Between Jennifer taking us to church, Danielle schooling us in soul, EVO doing the beatboxing like it’s never been done before, and Kofi (“to beeee TUK TUK”) I can’t even choose :O These multitalented ones, God gave you too much XD Have a look-see at all of it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YQrwFtmkGc&feature=youtu.be

There was a LOT to be had here, but my favorite part was just getting to meet the wonderful people in this online community. Listening to these beautiful women, talking to them, TAKING ALL THE SELFIES, and simply being in a room full of natural hair wonder- priceless. If you were there, it was great to meet you. If I acted strange it was probably because I stalked you online and I was wondering if you could tell from my face XD If you weren’t, it’s okay- the organizers (viz. Bryce Arnold) has promised another one and we’re holding him to it 😛

CC: Bryce Arnold for that impromptu speech