

Hair Color Inspiration From Our Favorite IG It Girls
“Beautiful hair comes in all types, not stereotypes.”
Hair is such a significant part of being a black woman. We are often told to tame, to make smaller, and to accommodate to the comfortability of others when it comes to our hair. Yes, it’s that big of a deal. It’s become so programmed in us that sometimes we don’t even realize that tendency is in our actions and decisions. In an effort to not intimidate, we constantly accommodate - and that act unfortunately extends to what we do with our hair. If there is not one thing that I’ve loved more about the natural hair movement, it’s our acceptance and our pride of our true selves and one another and embracing beauty that was not always considered as such.
In the same way that we as people come in all types, so does our hair, and that should be an aspect of ourselves that we all embrace.
ORS Olive Oil is doing the damn thing with their new line of hair care products catering to the parts of all of us that thirst and crave for a change when it comes to our looks. With their new hair color line, Hues, ORS seeks to redefine what beautiful hair looks like by incorporating our sisters that live for a little color in their life. A little hair dye never hurt nobody, and especially not with ORS Olive Oil Hues. The color it creates is long-lasting without any of the damage, thanks to their vitamin-infused formula. So color doesn’t have to mean dry, brittle, or damaged.
Hair color allows us to take our expressiveness to another level and wear our hair not only wildly, but also live and in color. Now that we're in a transitional season, it’s the perfect time to make a change in how you choose to express yourself by entertaining other colors. Hues offers a select range of colors that include Midnight Black, Cocoa Brown, Raging Red, Honey Blonde, and Light Blonde. Whatever the color, we are more than here for it!
Scroll down below for some of our favorite winter hair color inspiration from our favorite IG It Girls:
Midnight Black
Ambrosia Malbrough is one of my favorite YouTubers, but also makes a splash in the IG world as an influencer and natural hair goals aesthetic for many. She takes a minimal approach to life and her hair, relying heavily on protective styling, which is why her jet black 'do always looks full of life and luster. Check her out at @brosiaaa.
Cocoa Brown
Sunita V. is the ultimate "big hair, don't care" hair goals and has been slaying since the beginning. I absolutely love the cocoa/bronze tint that her strands have and feel like it adds another dimension to her curls. You can catch her serving #hairgoals on IG at @sunitav_
Raging Red
As Smartistabeauty, YouTuber Bri Hall teaches her viewers not only about the latest hair and beauty tips and tricks, but also shares and uses her influence to promote self-love and interior beauty just as much as the exterior, if not more. She's gone from her natural dark brown to bleached blonde to cotton candy pink, and as of late, has been rocking red/burgundy strands - all with an undercut by the way. She is daring with her hair color choices and keeps her looks bold, yet playful. Find her at @smartistabeauty.
SZA is a singer/songwriter and known as the first lady of TDE. The R&B songtress was daring in her hair choices earlier this year when she dyed her signature midnight black tresses to a bright red-orange color before dialing it down to a honey blonde and then a cocoa-tinted black. And while we await the arrival of her next full-length studio album A, we can use her hue as inspiration at @justsza.
Blonde
The Find Guru is a 22-year-old fashion, fitness, and beauty guru who is also the owner and curator of an online boutique also named The Find Guru. Her signature head of blonde curls is a combination of honey blonde, light blonde, and bleached blonde, and it all comes together making her texture and curls really pop. Find her at @goldennn_xo.
#NoStereotypes
Share your selfies and what being without stereotypes mean for you with ORS Olive Oil with the hashtag #NoStereotypes and follow them at @orshaircare!
What's your favorite hair color among the ladies? What hue do you want to try out this season? Let us know in the comments below!
Smile, Sis! These Five Improvements Can Upgrade Your Oral Hygiene Instantly
This article is in partnership with Sensodyne.
Our teeth are connected to so many things - our nutrition, our confidence, and our overall mood. We often take for granted how important healthy teeth are, until issues like tooth sensitivity or gum recession come to remind us. Like most things related to our bodies, prevention is the best medicine. Here are five things you can do immediately to improve your oral hygiene, prevent tooth sensitivity, and avoid dental issues down the road.
1) Go Easy On the Rough Brushing: Brushing your teeth is and always will be priority number one in the oral hygiene department. No surprises there! However, there is such a thing as applying too much pressure when brushing…and that can lead to problems over time. Use a toothbrush with soft bristles and brush in smooth, circular motions. It may seem counterintuitive, but a gentle approach to brushing is the most effective way to clean those pearly whites without wearing away enamel and exposing sensitive areas of the teeth.
2) Use A Desensitizing Toothpaste: As everyone knows, mouth pain can be highly uncomfortable; but tooth sensitivity is a whole different beast. Hot weather favorites like ice cream and popsicles have the ability to trigger tooth sensitivity, which might make you want to stay away from icy foods altogether. But as always, prevention is the best medicine here. Switching to a toothpaste like Sensodyne’s Sensitivity & Gum toothpaste specifically designed for sensitive teeth will help build a protective layer over sensitive areas of the tooth. Over time, those sharp sensations that occur with extremely cold foods will subside, and you’ll be back to treating yourself to your icy faves like this one!
3) Floss, Rinse, Brush. (And In That Order!): Have you ever heard the saying, “It’s not what you do, but how you do it”? Well, the same thing applies to taking care of your teeth. Even if you are flossing and brushing religiously, you could be missing out on some of the benefits simply because you aren’t doing so in the right order. Flossing is best to do before brushing because it removes food particles and plaque from places your toothbrush can’t reach. After a proper flossing sesh, it is important to rinse out your mouth with water after. Finally, you can whip out your toothbrush and get to brushing. Though many of us commonly rinse with water after brushing to remove excess toothpaste, it may not be the best thing for our teeth. That’s because fluoride, the active ingredient in toothpaste that protects your enamel, works best when it gets to sit on the teeth and continue working its magic. Rinsing with water after brushing doesn’t let the toothpaste go to work like it really can. Changing up your order may take some getting used to, but over time, you’ll see the difference.
4) Stay Hydrated: Upping your water supply is a no-fail way to level up your health overall, and your teeth are no exception to this rule. Drinking water not only helps maintain a healthy pH balance in your mouth, but it also washes away residue and acids that can cause enamel erosion. It also helps you steer clear of dry mouth, which is a gateway to bad breath. And who needs that?
5) Show Your Gums Some Love: When it comes to improving your smile, you may be laser-focused on getting your teeth whiter, straighter, and overall healthier. Rightfully so, as these are all attributes of a megawatt smile; but you certainly don’t want to leave gum health out of the equation. If you neglect your gums, you’ll start to notice the effects of plaque buildup, which can irritate the gums and cause gingivitis, the earliest stage of gum disease. Seeing blood while brushing and flossing is a tell-tale sign that your gums are suffering. You may also experience gum recession — a condition where the gum tissue surrounding your teeth pulls back, exposing more of your tooth. Brushing at least twice a day with a gum-protecting toothpaste like Sensodyne Sensitivity and Gum, coupled with regular dentist visits, will keep your gums shining as bright as those pearly whites.
Is Once Ever Enough To See Beyoncé's "Renaissance World Tour?"
Many have wondered if one time is ever enough to see Queen Bey. Some argue yes. However, many of us on the opposite end of the spectrum, including myself, would disagree. Beyoncé's "Renaissance World Tour" is a universal yet varying experience for everyone who attends. In the words of Oprah Winfrey, the concert is "transcendent." For millennials, we have over two decades of her catalog that has served as the soundtrack for many of our lives and painted a personal portrait of our most coveted thoughts. Her music provides mental clarity and self-expression by serving as a universal language that has united fans from all walks of life through community, fashion, self-acceptance, and healing.
With a multi-layered approach to her artistry, just as she did on that winter day in December 2013 with the infamous digital drop of her self-titled album, she changed the game again on February 1, 2023, when she announced her world tour in support of Renaissance, her seventh studio album. Her cultural impact set the internet ablaze, with everyone trying to gather their coins, barter for presale codes, and figure out which cities to attend. The group chats were lit, and the Beyhive was stressed trying to get their hands on tickets.
Beyoncé's Renaissance tour stop in L.A.
Photo courtesy of Dontaira Terrell
Unfortunately, I was in that number. As the concert dates passed by and the one in my city drawing near all roads led to disappointment. With time ticking on the day of the Miami show and less than two hours to spare, my wallet bit the bullet, and I purchased three last-minute tickets, costing roughly $700.00 a piece (including fees) for me, my 9-year-old and 16-year-old nieces in Section 121 at the Hard Rock Stadium. With 10 minutes before showtime, we eagerly awaited the Queen to take the stage. A sea of metallic fringes, cowboy hats, disco fans, and western boots were in full effect and filled the entire stadium.
Dontaira with her nieces at Beyoncé's Renaissance tour stop in Miami.
Photo courtesy of Dontaira Terrell
As the lights dimmed, a flood of emotions instantly overtook my body. It continued with each note she belted, along with nearly 50,000 roaring fans. The reverberating sound of the music through the stadium transported me from one era of my life to the next. As a teen girl in her bedroom daydreaming about her first love to blossoming into an unapologetic Black woman who is still on a road of self-discovery while learning to lean into the power anthem of "You won't break my soul." For over two hours, and with each set, I felt joy, love, peace, and a commanderie with fellow concertgoers. It was therapeutic as I danced like no one was watching and sang as if I were alone in my bathroom mirror.
There were no bars held, and I realized at that moment, "Nobody can judge me but me." The "Renaissance World Tour" proved to be so vast, and my Black girl joy was re-invigorated. It was magnetic and liberating, and I had to attend again, but this time, I needed to be up close and personal; I needed to be on the floor. In the days that passed, I watched more social media clips in different cities and asked myself if I would really splurge again to attend another Renaissance show.
Beyoncé's Renaissance tour stop in Miami.
Photo courtesy of Dontaira Terrell
After all, this would be my thirteenth time (maybe more because I lost count) seeing Beyoncé live, whether she was on tour with Destiny's Child, as a solo artist, or doing a live appearance. I contemplated for a while, but it worked itself out on its own. I was gifted two tickets and the next thing I knew, I was off to LA to attend another Renaissance show with floor seats at SoFi Stadium during Beyonce's 42nd birthday weekend! This time, things were different: no kids were allowed. It was adults only this go round.
Although the energy at the Miami and Los Angeles shows was empowering, infectious, and a celebration of life, happiness, and identity, they each provided their own unique experience. However, both concerts were what I needed for my well-being, leaving me with sore feet from dancing the night away, on vocal rest for the next few days from screaming at the top of my lungs, and on an indefinite high on life.
My introduction and love for Beyoncé began in 1996, while my older sister lived in Houston, TX, right before Bey hit the scene in 1998 with "No, No, No" as a budding R&B member. Her evolution twenty-seven years later as an international superstar and into womanhood has been an incredible journey to witness. As Mrs. Carter reminds each of us in the audience every night before the curtain closes, "I want you to remember this moment, where you're standing, who you came with, and take it with you. I hope you feel inspired."
I truly felt inspired, so thank you, Queen Bey. You awakened my inner child, and I will definitely remember these moments and take them with me.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for daily love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Feature image by Kevin Mazur/WireImage for Parkwood