Cruising the Cosmetics Aisle

[Zanelle]

White hair products are few and far between in Cosmetics.  The rainbow is getting brighter in the hair care section.  The eye makeup is evolving into very dramatic effects.  I am not sure why I was cruising the aisles in the drugstore this morning and I walked out buying nothing.

    I guess I went in there because of my hair.  It is getting so thin.  As I looked at all the options I remembered all the things my mom and I used to do in the fifties.  I helped her dye her hair dark brown with a toothbrush over the basement sink.  I used to sleep in uncomfortable rollers every night.

      I did find a few boxes of permanents.  Those smelly chemicals were actually addicting I think.   I loved getting a permanent at one point in my life.   Little Shirley Temple curls that were so socially acceptable.

      I have a theory that our beauty standards in America come from the powerful Nazi images of the perfect race.   Fortunately those ideas are dispersing but in the aisles today I saw very few ethnic products.  There was a macadamian nut hair cream that I wondered at.   Maybe Roseanne Barr markets it from her nut farm in Hawaii.   

      I didn't buy anything at the Cosmetics Counter.  I passed up the cookie and candy  aisle and just glanced at the ice cream cone counter.   I didn't buy any boxed food in the back or greeting cards.   I walked out pure and came home and took a shower with my VO5 Volumizing Shampoo and I thought that was enough.  I took a few snips at my haircut and fluffed what remaining hair I have.   A beautiful crone.

 

[Rosigami]

From your pictures, I think your hair is gorgeous. I hope mine is somewhere near that nice when I stop coloring it. 

[Zanelle]

It is always tempting to dye it red just one more time.....

[Veronica Corso]

Don't mess with a good thing-- your platinum quiff is lovely.

I saw something scary about a home hair dye gone wrong on "Last Chance Salon"---the poor thing almost went permanently bald.

[Jenny]

I'm a DIY dyer and purchase my products from Sally's. Someday I'll go au naturale, maybe someday they will invent a way to do it gracefully so I won't have to rock the skunk stripe. And maybe pigs will be flying by then.   

[James Mark Emmerling]

my sis, who is much muchmuch younger than you, dear Z...she is only 61, haw! has gone salt and pepper, now only salt, really,and she is fast and vibrant and lovely in her actions of mind and body and yknow what who gives a friggin shit about wimmin's hair as long as they make an ARTISTIC STATEMENT OF IT. my opinion.

my hair? uh at 45 and a half, like, the gray went away. WTF? i used to have gray now i got the head of hair of a goddamn Michael Landon , though without the piety.

[tgwithin]

Now this I know, Z. If you are on med that messes with your blood then your hair will thin. Anti-depressants also thin your hair and so does cholesterol med. We do in-hair-it genes from from the female side of our families. Stress plays an important part in reeking havoc on our heads and finally, remember we are what we eat, drink and ah smoke...so a multi-vitamin with A,C,E, and D are important for healthy skin and hair. I cut under 3 inches for max fullness but that only helps if you want to be short. Long hair will separate and look stringy. Remember less is more so don't overwork it.

[Zanelle]

Great advice from guys.  Vanity knows no gender.

[JMac1949 Memories]

And then, as my mother discovered, there is the exotic world of wigs... R&L ;-)

[Harp]

The degree of shelf space granted to "ethnic" products is likely based entirely upon that particular neighborhood.   If your neighborhood is is only lighted integrated, for countless socio-economic reasons, they simply won't bother carrying these specialized hair care products because they won't sell.  You'll find one or two stores who will cater to the needs of the entire Black and/or Latino community and that will be it.   Conversely.. in neighborhoods that are predominantly populated by Black and Brown-skinned peoples... it will be more fifty-fifty in the big chain stores.  They will always carry the popular name brands in addition to the specialty items.  

I'm sure you know all of this already, but I do get a kick out of noticing how differently the merchandise and stocking is handled in the same chains, but in different neighborhood.