North Texas

Graduate's Research Leads to Natural Hair Platform

A recent University of North Texas graduate has converted her thesis research about black women and their natural hair into a website and blog called Project Naptural.

Terresa Hardaway is also working on a mobile app to allow African American women to get tips and share resources on how to style their natural hair.

Hardaway is a graduate of UNT’s design research MFA program, and decided to make her thesis project about black women and the cultural significance of whether they choose to use chemicals or “go natural" when it comes to styling their hair. 

In a YouTube video about her project, Hardaway said "I'm not against women that chemically relax their hair. The only thing that Project Naptural is against is the barriers that might restrict women to feeling like they can't go natural."

She conducted interviews with more than 100 women over about two years, and found that many African American women have questions about their hair and how to decide what’s right for them.

The result is Project Naptural, which includes the website, a traveling gallery exhibit and her next project is an app, which she hopes “will further my efforts of enlightenment, empowerment and connectivity amongst the women in the black community.”

You can also follow Project Naptural on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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