Texas Water Project





        Black Hair, Hard Water

          Asia Estelle

            February, 2024

           












As a child, I remember wash day vividly. I hated it. I would scream and yell and plead that my mother be gentle. I smelled the burning hair as my mother passed a blow dryer and flatiron through my natural curls. I felt the hot sting against my scalp as the hair products burned and filled the air with a thick cloud of smoke. Occasionally, I would cry as my mother demanded I “turn my head,” or “stay still.” 

After she was done, I had damaged, “manageable,” boring, “perfect,” socially acceptable, straight hair.

In my adulthood, and after lots of personal deliberations, what was missing from my hair was authenticity, honesty, and embracing the beautiful hair I was gifted with. Having been natural for about three years to date, it is the best decision I have ever made: the little black girl in me began to heal.

Because my hair is a part of my Blackness and my Blackness is such a big part of my identity, as I began to explore my hair journey through photography, it made me question and internalize a lot of traumas I experienced as a young girl. 

Since I began my photography journey seven years ago, I have photographed Black issues, but mainly, I have photographed various topics surrounding Black and natural hair. My Blackness allows me to wear my hair in an afro one day, in Bantu knots the next, and a week later have it in twists, but it is also because of society’s perception of my Blackness that I must worry about straightening my hair for job interviews, having limited access to Black hair care products, and potentially being expelled from school for wearing my hair naturally. 

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to Black hair: fashion, identity, politics, and community all contribute to our understanding and perceptions of Black hair and Blackness itself.




Bemenet Assefa at Rio Vista Park in San Marcos, TX, with dry hair.                



                 Bemenet Assefa at Rio Vista Park in San Marcos, TX, with wet hair.      


As an adult, wash day looks a lot different for me now. Though it is very rigorous and exhausting, I have come to love all processes of caring for my natural hair. 

I love washing my hair. I love the definition of my hair texture as the warm water from the shower head saturates my curls. I love feeling the suds of my shampoo cleanse my scalp. I even love the thirty minutes I have to sit outside of the shower as my deep conditioner rehydrates my hair (followed by rinsing out said conditioner). 

Years of doing my hair have helped me to realize and to be grateful for the substantial role water plays in maintaining the health of my hair, though as of late, I have noticed a trend of hard water patterns in Texas. 

Hard water is water that is high in mineral content. This kind of water presents many health risks for drinking, dry skin, and mineral build-up within hair.

Kinky, coily, and curly hair in general takes lots of maintenance, diligence, and care. In combination with the effects of hard water, this can make caring for curly hair types significantly more difficult—although this issue does affect all hair types. 

A similar concern of hard water is the effect it can have on your hair’s porosity. Hair porosity is a measurement of the hair's ability to absorb and hold moisture. 

Porosity can also be described as an indicator of how easily moisture can penetrate the hair. It is important to know your hair’s porosity to know how to manage it to keep your hair as healthy as possible. 

Once again, this is an issue that affects all hair types, and our hair’s porosity can change due to several factors such as chemical processing, heat damage, and as mentioned, hard water.                              
                          


    

An example of medium or normal porosity hair.                        




                                    An example of high porosity hair.
      





One way to know your hair’s porosity is to conduct a test. Simply fill a glass halfway with water, and put 1-2 strands of your hair in it (your hair should be clean and dry). Next, wait for about 15 minutes, and take note of where your hair is located in the glass. 

If your hair remains floating at the top, you have low porosity hair. 
 - Having low porosity hair means the hair cuticle is relatively closed off, and has a harder time absorbing water. 
 - This hair porosity allows for product and oil build-up will happen at a faster rate (it will also dry slower).

If your hair remains floating in the middle, you have medium or normal porosity hair.
 - Having medium porosity hair means the hair cuticle is halfway open and can absorb and lose water in the hair at a relatively equal rate.
 - This hair porosity makes it easy to style hair, and it does not take too little or too long to dry.

If your hair sinks to the bottom, you have high porosity hair.
 - Having high porosity hair means the hair cuticle is wide open and easily absorbs water, but also struggles to retain it.
 - This hair porosity has a hard time retaining moisture, and usually appears dry, frizzy, and tangled. 
 - This hair type is more prone to breakage and dries fairly quickly.










    


                
                                  

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.

These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.






These images show different faucets in my apartment, here in San Marcos, with mineral build-up and hard water debris.
  

Once again, hard water can leave mineral deposits on your hair and scalp. This build-up can strip your hair of its natural oils and leave it dry and prone to breakage. 

I have always only had access to hard water. From my childhood home, to my friends houses, even to my apartment now in San Marcos, I have encountered hard water. 

Personally, I have high porosity hair, probably from years of heat damage, so the hard water doesn’t help to hydrate my hair. My hair is at a growth plateau, and it’s taken me a while to realize that hard water could be a potential cause. Even in it’s hydration my curls are still dry, brittle, and dull at times: my TLC isn’t enough!

Understanding and paying attention to the water quality within your home and within your city is so important. With water comes the growth, healing, and nourishment of all things. Clean and pure water is the first step to maintaining the health of your body, your mind, and equally as important, your hair!