About a month ago I got an email from a reader named Shelby who used the contact form on my website to reach me but didn't leave her information so I had no way to respond. Shelby, thanks for writing!! Don't know if you actively read this blog but if you do, this post is for you...

First Name : Shelby
Comments : Hi, Brandi! I'm a newbie in an out-market (not LA) and just stumbled on your site. Congrats on all your accomplishments so far. Looking at your photos and web work - I must say, you are not taking advantage of the curly look. I know LA is lots of straight hair (or weave) - I have family there - but you look so cute and more natural with the curly looks. Ethnic hair is so much more popular these days. Of course, the LA market may be different but you really should consider that look. Course that is tempered with what you need to do - I'm just a newbie and not in that competitive LA market. Good luck - sistah to sistah!

Growing up I've had this on-going love affair with my hair. I've colored it {started at the age of 4 or 5 when I took my mother's hair dye off the counter, sat under the table so that the tablecloth could hide my sins as I literally poured the dye in the MIDDLE of my head!}, had an infamous jerri curl {though I was really young and cute so I wore the look well}, braided it, twisted it, cut it, wore drawstring ponytails {I still remember doing chaines across the floor in dance rehearsal and watching my ponytail fly off into a corner!}, pressed it and eventually developed a taste for that creamy crack that most black women love.

As I grew older I got really into weaves, first bonded ones {meaning they use hair glue to glue pieces to your scalp} and then sew-ins {self-explanatory}, until one day I got tired of always wearing fake hair and decided to start getting my own hair done. Well, that was back when I lived in Texas and could afford to go to the hair salon once a week for maintenance AND was still relying on using that creamy crack once every 6 weeks. But once we decided to leave the humidity of Houston, I knew I wanted to try and see if I could go natural. I kept seeing pictures of these beautiful black women with these gorgeous thick curls and I wanted that too! But going natural is no easy process. If you've seen Chris Rocks' Good Hair then you have an inkling of an idea of how hard it is to kick a habit you were raised to love and embrace. And trust me, it has been hard!

It's been 1 year and 8 months since I've been relaxer free and I'm finally confident enough to walk around with my own hair out without getting it straightened. It's actually been a little over a year since I've straightened my hair at all, mainly because I need to find a stylist who really knows how to care for natural hair before I let them put any heat on it. As you can see, I've been wearing my hair out for the last few days and I love it. It's comfortable. It's cute. It doesn't weigh me down. And honestly a part of me just feels free.

Don't get me wrong. I still love my wigs and weaves and will continue to wear them to auditions but now I'm planning on getting headshots with my hair like this really soon so that I can rock this look to some of my auditions as well. And who knows? Maybe this extra look will help me in my quest to get a commercial agent. We'll see.