If I ever heard Teyonah Parris utter the words “bad hair day,” I’d probably have to stop following her on Instagram and unfriend her in my mind. The actress who has come to be known as much for her beautiful mane as her acting chops on shows like Mad Men and Survivor’s Remorse, has yet to have a bad hair day in the public eye. But when we got a chance to chat with the Julliard grad about her hair routine and any hair risks she’s taken, we asked, on the off chance it was possible, if she ever had a hair disaster and it turns out she’s had quite a few, behind closed doors of course.
Now that she’s a brand ambassador for Dark and Lovely, those mane mishaps are far behind Parris, But we appreciated the good laugh over the “what was I thinking?” hair stories. Check out our chat below as Parris also reveals her hair inspirations, how her character Missy’s natural hair journey came about, and why she loves what Dark and Lovely stands for.
So many women look to you for hair inspiration, who inspires your hair choices?
Man, I am on Instagram clicking the hashtag #NaturalHair like everybody else! When I see myself I’m like, “Girl move.” Social Media is a huge part of a lot of our journeys and watching girls on YouTube, I really look everywhere.
What’s your weekly hair care routine?
I use Dark and Lovely’s Knot Out Conditioner as my co-wash just to get my hair nice and clean and then I use the Clumping Curl Creme Gel. I put it in two-strand twists and then I pin it up and keep it that way for a few days until I’m ready to have a twist out and then I use my curl refresher spray to bring it back to life. Dark and Lovely also has a Clay Cleanser and I use that for my deep clean about once per month.
Women love the updos that you wear on red carpets, but what are your personal favorite hairstyles to rock?
I don’t have the skill, technique, or patience to do an updo on myself, but certainly when I go to events I’m able to work with some amazing artists who execute those updos and I absolutely love them. Those are particularly special because I didn’t feel like I saw a lot of women with natural hair in upos and the more polished looks. I didn’t see that reflected in the media as options for us so I especially love wearing those hairstyles.
Personally, in my normal, regular life, I love a protective style — box braids, Havana twists, I’m all about that. Being on set all the time, they’re always in your hair so a protective style is essential for me. And when I just want to wear my hair out and have fun I love a good twist out. I get in the shower, wash my hair, use my Knot Out conditioner, get out and do chunky twists — I love a good chunky twist — and a good one for me is letting it dry for about two days. Then I let my twists out, hit my hair with my curl refresher spray, and I’m on Instagram poppin’!
Have you ever had a hair disaster?
Yes, absolutely! One time I got braided down for a wig. The girl braided my hair in this beyhive so tight she took out the whole center of my head. I was bleeding! And I felt like Boo Boo the clown for letting her do it! That was probably the most dramatic and worst disaster, but then you have the ones where you’ve just grown out of that stage. Like when I had orange hair that I thought was kind of blond-ish, copper-ish and then I found out it was about four shades of orange — in that moment I thought I was killing the game.
My latest disaster was maybe six months ago when I had Havana twists and I called myself cutting them out but I cut them in a bob — way shorter than my hair. I went back to my lady so she could put the twists back in and she was like where is you hair? I said, “You know what I was standing in the mirror as I cut them and was like I should get these Havana twists in a bob. The other lady told me that wasn’t possible because my hair’s too long, look!” And then I realized, Oh, I just cut off the entirety of the length of the back of my hair. That was pretty stupid, but it’s just hair. It’ll grow back. It’s fine.
What’s the biggest hair risk you ever took?
I would say going natural. It’s not really a risk in hindsight, but when I was going through it it was the most dramatic thing ever for me. I was getting opposition from my some of my family members — lots of support from friends — but if anything I would say that was my biggest hair risk. I started growing my relaxer out in ’09 and I was fully chemical free in March 2010.
On set, how much input do you have into your character’s hairstyles?
It’s so funny because generally those kinds of character concepts are collaborative between the showrunner, the network, and myself. You talk about it and you land somewhere, hopefully, if not in the same place, somewhere in the middle. With Survivors Remorse, it was so interesting because when I booked that job I looked at that character and thought, ‘There’s no reason she can’t be a natural girl,’ but I was too afraid to say anything. But once we came back for a second season I was like, “Okay I got the job, I’m alright, let me try bringing it up” and my showrunner was totally on board and supportive of it and the network also agreed. The journey of a woman going natural had never been on television and I thought it was a great platform, that women would be able to see themselves and relate to Missy’s journey and we did it.
Recently, with the Shea Moisture Hair Hate ad we saw the trouble brands can run into when they don’t rightly represent their consumers. What opportunity exists for you as a brand ambassador with Dark and Lovely to fill the void?
What I love about Dark and Lovely is this is a company and a brand that’s been around for over 45 years and I definitely feel like I can attest from my own journey that they’ve grown with their consumer. They haven’t left anyone behind, they’ve instead expanded to represent women with all types of hair, and particularly Black women. They make no excuse or secret of who they are here to take care of. I found when I wore my hair in a relaxer, they had a line that catered to those needs and when I went natural they had products that catered to those needs. What I love about Dark and Lovely is when you look at their marketing, it’s dark women with curly, tight coils like myself. It’s women with all types of natural hair and no Black woman feels left out, so that’s what I love about the Dark and Lovely Brand.
The post Teyonah Parris Reveals The Hair Disaster That Made Her Feel “Like Boo Boo The Clown” appeared first on MadameNoire.