Cardi B's Hairstylist Cliff Vmir Teaches Us How To Properly Finesse A Wig
Celebrity hairstylist Cliff Vmir is a bonafide badass working with some of the top talents in entertainment, including Cardi B, who months ago crafted Cardi's icy blue hair color that lit social media ablaze. Recently, the millionaire hairstylist gave his 700K+ followers an up close and personal look into his life by starring in his own BET web series Wig Out. At only 21 years old, Cliff holds the reins as a premier stylist and has gained a loyal following on social media as well as from his classes where aspiring hairstylists learn valuable techniques and expert advice for mastering the latest looks.
Luckily for us, we were able to snag Cliff for a moment to talk about what he knows best: Wigs! From advice on purchasing our wigs to caring for and maintaining them, Cliff has us covered, and we are definitely taking notes.
Courtesy of Cliff Vmir
It’s All About the Lace.
"When purchasing a wig, you should make sure that the lace is pretty thin and the color of the lace matches your skin and [that] it's a swift lace," Cliff told us. "You also want to make sure that you are getting a nice quality wig. You don't want to get a wig that's kinda cheap because you get what you pay for."
Quality Matters.
Quality over quantity is a life mantra that goes double with wigs. "There [are] so many different types of hair you can use for a wig and that (quality) is something you want to pay attention to when purchasing a wig. You don't want to get a wig that you spend a lot of money on or feel is a lot of money but it's not great quality. You just want to keep your eyes open and do your research, especially from the company you're purchasing your wig from."
Cliff also added that sometimes spending more money on hair upfront can save you money in the long run. "[With] synthetic hair, you can't curl it, you can't straighten it, you could probably color it but it just doesn't give you that flexibility or that movement that human hair does," he explained. "Synthetic hair swells up after a week or two in the end… That same money you're using to buy [and replace] those synthetic wigs, you're gonna be using the same amount of money that you could've been spending on an expensive wig that would last you about six months."
Prep Your Wig Properly.
"When you're doing a wig, you just have to make sure that you bleach the knots, you're plucking it, you're tinting the knots and lace to make sure it matches your skin color. As long as you pluck it well and apply a nude stocking cap underneath to make sure that you have the scalp-like look, then you'll be fine."
Cardi B styled by Cliff Vmir
Courtesy of Cliff Vmir
Keep It Clean and Dry.
"Make sure that you're very gentle when it comes to shampooing the wig. Make sure you use a mild shampoo and conditioner as well as putting the wig [under] the dryer. That's a lot better and makes the hair feel a lot softer, opposed to blow drying it or air drying it. Air drying it is fine too but you want to make sure that the lace is fully dry, so put it [under] a hooded hair dryer."
If you're looking to wear your wig long-term and prefer to sew it to your head, Cliff has a tip for that too: "Shampoo, condition, and rebraid [your hair], that way you're not putting any heat unto it, really giving it time to grow."
The Way You Store Your Wigs Is Important.
In order to preserve your wigs you must store them properly. "You can get a dome head, the styrofoam heads, or you can even put your wigs in a silk bag. If you are sleeping in the wig, just make sure that it's a silk bonnet or silk scarf. Make sure that the wig has some kinda silk around it, but if it's not around silk, then it needs to be propped up somewhere because cotton does dry your hair out."
Wear The Hair That Works Best For You.
"I wear my Mink Brazilian hair. That's the only hair I really wear out of my company [Hym Hair]. It's very expensive but it lasts a super long time. You can wear it for a year straight and it'll still look like you just got it. That's the only hair I wear. I've tried Indian hair, nothing really wrong with it, it's just the Mink Brazilian hair is less maintenance. If I press it out, I can sleep all on it, and then run a brush through it and it'll still be straight [for] two full weeks."
Tune into Wig Out every Sunday on BET Digital, YouTube, and BET Facebook and the BET App at 6pm. Follow Cliff Vmir on all social media @cliffvmir, and look out for his new EP in March.
Featured image courtesy of Cliff Vmir.
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London Alexaundria is the contributing editor for xoNecole. She is an alum of Clark Atlanta University, where she majored in Mass Media Arts and has worked in journalism for over ten years. You can follow her on Instagram and TikTok @theselfcarewriter
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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Wellness And Spiritual Coach Koya Webb On Taking Up Space As A Black Woman In Yoga
There are some misconceptions about yoga and people who practice it, such as it's only for people who are flexible, thin, and/ or considered elite. However, none of those things are true, and Koya Webb is the perfect example. Koya is an international holistic health and wellness coach and yoga instructor who represents much of what yoga can do for others by allowing it to manifest in herself. The former track athlete began practicing yoga after a sports injury that affected her not only physically but mentally. As she was trying to push through the pain with yoga, she was facing another obstacle: isolation. There weren't many others who looked like her in her classes, so she felt alone.
She reflects on that tough moment in an exclusive interview with xoNecole. "When I started, it wasn't that many of us in there, and it was painful, to be honest. I couldn't touch my toes. No one looked like me. I was mentally hurt. I felt like I was gonna get my scholarship taken away. I felt hopeless," she tells us. I felt like I didn't belong there. This is not for me, and I could barely breathe, and I just wanted to cry."
However, her yoga instructor was very encouraging and helped her through her practice. "And the teacher came to me and she was just like, just breathe with me. And she just took this deep inhale, exhale, and I felt the Holy Spirit like in my body— that I identify as spirit which is full body chills. And that's how I knew I was in the right place."
"And the teacher came to me and she was just like, just breathe with me. And she just took this deep inhale, exhale, and I felt the Holy Spirit like in my body— that I identify as spirit which is full body chills. And that's how I knew I was in the right place."
She continues, "So, even throughout the pain and throughout the stiffness in my body, and even though I felt like I didn't fit in, I didn't belong. I just did it anyway, and I cried through the pain. I breathed through the pain, and after a year, I completely healed my body, strengthen my mind, and I came back to win the conference championship in the heptathlon and was ranked 13th in the nation."
But like many of us have done, Koya fell back into old habits, such as not taking care of herself and stopping yoga altogether, which resulted in another injury. This time, however, when she returned to yoga, she stuck with it and got certified as a yoga teacher. From there, she created her own online certification to encourage more Black people to teach holistic health and yoga. As a Black woman in the wellness space, Koya was in the minority and had to do some soul-searching to effectively make a change.
"It was really hard because I experienced a lot of microaggressions that I had just normalized. And I had to normalize it just to be safe, and I didn't realize I was doing it at that time. I really realized a lot during the pandemic. When I started reading like Caste, and I started going deeper into my own journey of, like, life and what does it mean to be a Black woman? You know, and what does it mean to be a leader? You know, because I would just say yes to people who would reached out to me," she says.
"I got very far in my career and then I realized it's time for me to reach out to people that are afraid to reach out. Until I start focusing on other Black women and reaching out and saying, 'Hey, let's do this.' You know, and I think that was a really pivotal point because I feel like a lot of times because we've experienced so much trauma, we're just afraid. We've been hurt so much. We're just afraid and not just the the people that don't look like us but even each other."
It was really hard because I experienced a lot of microaggressions that I had just normalized. And I had to normalize it just to be safe, and I didn't realize I was doing it at that time. I really realized a lot during the pandemic. When I started reading like Caste, and I started going deeper into my own journey of like, life and what does it mean to be a Black woman? You know, and what does it mean to be a leader?
Through her many efforts, Koya has become well known throughout the wellness community with her yoga classes, coaching, podcast, The Lifestyle Design podcast, and events like the Mind, Body + Sol Retreat. She also has a new book coming out focusing on lifestyle design, which she describes as intentionally incorporating wellness in every aspect of your life. Koya also uses her social media to motivate others to live a life of joy, love, and wellness. While she promotes positivity through her work, she also wants others to know that they, too, can start on their holistic journey by adding these simple yoga principles.
"I feel like just waking up and breathing, just mindful breath. You know, of course we're breathing all the time, but like, deep inhale, deep exhale like 10 deep inhalations and exhalations when they wake up and then just some gentle stretches in bed," she says.
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Feature image courtesy