(L) The Curly Kids Coloring Book cover (R) Creator Akira Byrd or CurlCentric
Hello loves! I'm excited to introduce you all to a new initiative for children that embodies self-awareness and acceptance of curly and Afro-textured hair types. The Curly Kids Coloring Book was created by Akirashanti Byrd, creator of the natural hair website Curl Centric as a way to show her daughter the beauty of her natural curls. The Curly Kids coloring book is filled with 30+ pages of young girls sporting various natural hair styles such as Afro puffs, bantu-knots, locks, braids, updos, twist-out styles and many, many more. What's also great about the coloring book is that it's not only perfect for little girls of all ages but also for adults!Q: Hi Kira, it is a pleasure. Please, introduce yourself!
A: I’m Kira, Birmingham, Alabama. I am an Auditor by day and the author and co-blogger of CurlCentric.com by night. This is where I get my super powers- LOL! I’m the naturalista you meet in the beauty supply store that is probably more excited about your natural hair journey than you are! Its all because I want you to win in journey and love the hair you have.
Q: What is the motivation behind your blog, Curl Centric?
A: Curl Centric is a blog that is dedicated to natural hair and giving our 2 cents to make the natural hair journey easier. Being Curl Centric is accepting your natural hair and being unapologetic about it! It’s about looking in the mirror and loving what and who you see. Being Curl Centric is about redefining the term beautiful to make sure it includes characteristics that you and your hair embody...
Q: For as long as you've been a "curly girl", were you ever faced with naysayers when you made the decision to wear your natural curls?
A: I have only been natural 21% of my life. There weren’t a lot of negative naysayers but there were people who didn’t understand what I was doing. They didn’t understand why I would want to stop relaxing my hair, why I’d want to leave this (see relaxed pic)
Kira with chemically relaxed hair
This was before all the awareness and commercials that are present today. Handling their comments were easier than expected because I knew my why... they didn’t know. My daughter needed me to show up, she needed me to be present with her, on her journey with her. So I showed up. I stopped relaxing my hair and showed up for her in Kira’s fashion!
Q: Tell me a little about your transition to wearing your naturally curly hair.
A: I think the biggest difference with my journey was that I transitioned in thought well before I transitioned physically. I removed the kinks from my mind, so to speak. That made the biggest difference. My feelings were hurt with my daughter.
The days she’d come home with her feelings hurt, my feelings would hurt. After overcoming with my daughter, we went through the transition in thoughts, together. You know, this is the first time I realized that I needed her during this time, just as much as I have always thought she needed me. Looking back, I wouldn’t want to go through transitioning in thoughts alone.
Q: Was there ever a time when you weren’t proud of your curly hair, or were you ever faced with a time when your hair affected your self-esteem?A: By the time I’d decided to stop relaxing my hair, I had already placed my stake in the ground. I don’t think it was anything anybody could have said to me that would be a blow to my self-esteem because by now, after dealing with teasing children and my daughter, I’d pretty much heard it all. So, I walked around with confidence in my kinks, coils and curls boldly. I’d learned to accept the person that looked back at me in the mirror because she is all that I have, she was the 2nd member of #TeamKira. Jesus Christ was first, He knew me and was down for me before anyone else.
Q: Tell me a little about how you learned to care for your own naturally curly hair?
A: Learning to care for my hair has been trial and error. I took ownership of my hair and learned to care for it by making mistaken, keeping a natural hair journal, building on what worked, reading books and learning from other women’s experience. I didn’t rely on a stylist for things I needed to learn for myself. I stayed away from things that were too drastic but experimented and made a lot of concoctions in the kitchen.The Curly Kids Coloring Book
Q: You created the Curly Kids Coloring Book to demonstrate children with curly hair in a positive manner. Where did the inspiration come from to start the coloring book?
Curly Kids Coloring Book
A: My youngest daughter is the inspiration behind the coloring book. When the idea of the coloring book first came up, I wanted to surround my daughter with images that were relevant and relatable to her. I wanted her to have something to help her see natural hair in a positive way. She is so crafty and creative, a coloring book was fitting for her.Q: There are some phenomenal images of the diversity of curly hair, where did your character inspiration come from?
A: The thoughts were in my mind. I had asked God what images would resonate with my daughter? What images would resonate with other girls. I knew what I saw in my mind and the struggle was getting it out of my mind and on paper because I don’t draw. Scratch that… I have not become a student of art. That sounds better :-)Q: Why do you think it’s important for children to see more relatable images in a positive and uplifting light?
A: I think it’s important for children to see more images that look like them because everyone wants to feel as if they belong and have a sense of self and community. It’s important for them to be secure with themselves and to be able to work in their gifts and talents vs focusing energy and time trying to overcome the labels that have been placed on them that doesn’t represent who they are.
Curly Kids Afro Puff style
"Naturally kinky, curly or Afro-textured hair is who we are. Our hair is a natural characteristic that we have to learn to accept, first. The person looking back in the mirror is all we have. So in order to be more than what we ever thought was possible, we have to learn not to look down, feel ashamed or conflicted about who we naturally are."
Curly Kids Locked style
Q: How were the characters in the Curly Kids Coloring Book designed? Were they created from your own drawings?
Q: When you first decided to design a coloring book, who would you say was your first supporter and how did they encourage you to pursue the idea?
A: Definitely my husband was first! He supported me by helping me to gain clarity on what I needed to do. Sometimes, the help was just words of encouragement, “Kira, that is great! Keep working on it, you’ll have together in no time!”
Curly Kids Twist-out style
Curly Kids TWA style
Q: Were you exposed to positive images of naturally curly hair while growing up?A: In my household growing up, my mom was very pro-natural hair. I recall her having natural hair for the majority of my child and adulthood. She planted some positive seeds that began to root as I grew up but definitely blossomed later in life when I became a mom myself. LOL! I understood better.
Q: Why do you think it is so important for us to instill a sense of pride and consciousness in our children when it comes to naturally kinky, curly or Afro-textured hair?
A: Naturally kinky, curly or Afro-textured hair is who we are. Our hair is a natural characteristic that we have to learn to accept, first. The person looking back in the mirror is all we have. So in order to be more than what we ever thought was possible, we have to learn not to look down, feel ashamed or conflicted about who we naturally are. We have to teach our children that our hair is not a problem, we don’t need to be “fixed”. We are who we, we have to learn how to respect and accept that and teach them how to as well.
Q: What is the message that you want children to take with them from your coloring book?
A: The one thing I want the kids to take away is there is nothing wrong with their hair.Q: I LOVE to color, are there adults who enjoy the coloring book as well? How about a coloring book specifically for adults?!
A: Yes, I love coloring too! In fact, adults have [also] purchased. Moms have told me they purchased two books, one for them and one for their daughter. That is a great idea. Definitely worth seeing if the market is available.The Curly Kids Coloring Book has over 34 pages of naturally curly and Afro-textures hair inspiration that your little girl will enjoy for hours! You can download the images seen above here, or get the full coloring book on Amazon for $5.50. Keep up with Curl Centric on Social Media: Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
What do you think of the Curly Kids Coloring Book? Is this the type of resource that you would be glad to get for your little one?
