This Instagram Zine Is Dedicated Entirely To Celebrating Black Hair

There's always hair magic whenever it comes to FKA Twigs. Whether she's rocking a braided mane, messy locs, or space buns, girlfriend always her baby hairs laid to perfection and the most alluring hair designs. Now that FKA Twigs' created an Instagram zine that celebrates black hair, it's obvious the beauty icon has a passion for the history and culture surrounding her 'dos.

Using Instagram's multi-post feature to create swipeable "pages", the songstress' IG-only zine, AVANTgarden, showcases the beauty of Afro-textured tresses through the most glorious hair porn. Its inaugural issue, entitled "Roots. Shock. Beauty.", is dedicated to a hairstyle Twigs knows and slays all too well: Braids. In just a few days, the post has already received over 43K likes.

It's not just striking visuals that make the zine a masterpiece, but rather Twigs' mission of embracing her hair texture and heritage, while encouraging other to do the same. More than anything, this powerful publication will be a conversation starter, beautifully showcasing black hair on artistic and historical levels.

With Twigs' plans to create content on a monthly basis, perhaps, future issues will explore the complex history of natural black hair or address critical topics like bias against Afro-textured hair. For now, followers can drool over every braided 'do featured in Twigs' debut post.

In an interview with Dazed, the braids lover herself revealed what inspired her first issue. Although she felt comfortable rocking braids and twists at red carpeted events, the public always made her style choice seem like such a big deal.

"I was kind of like, ‘hang on a minute, people have been doing this for ages’. I am a businesswoman and I can wear a suit and a braid with beads," voiced Twigs. "It was normality and it felt very natural to do it as the first issue of AVANTgarden."

The issue features a lineup of various braided styles— long and short, colored and embellished, in up-dos and cascading freely— composed in a manner reminiscent of the kind of hair posters hanging in black barbershops and salons. It's refreshing and so familiar for anyone that has ever walked into a beauty shop, stared at the wall of posters, and picked 'number four'.

But the singer isn't just focused on aesthetics. She's also well-versed in the history of braided styles. "There’s braid patterns which are for fertility, or because you want to get married. You know cornrows started because slaves would draw maps in the braids of how to escape the plantations," Twigs shared in her Dazed interview. "I think it’s important that we own our heritage and we know these things." Well said!

It may come at a surprise that these images of beaded, cornrowed, and durag-ed perfection weren't taken at some stuffy photoshoot. Photos were shot in Twigs' own home, using her friends as hair models, giving the zine a personal touch.

It's also worth commending Twigs for doing something as original as creating a social media based publication. A unique medium choice, Twigs was sure to inform Dazed, "As far as I’m aware, no-one’s done a monthly magazine with a beautiful layout and thought of it that way on Instagram."

One thing's for sure: The style icon definitely took her time creating something truly unique and authentic to black culture. Whether it's the best beauty moments of Beyonce's 'Lemonade' visual album or Pantene's latest Gold Series campaign featuring people of color in such a positive light, black hair is being showcased in such stunning ways.

AVANTgarden is yet another phenomenon sending the message that black hair is as equally beautiful as any other hair type, though it doesn't always conform to beauty norms. Black hair is always worth celebrating and publications like Twigs' newest gem are the perfect tribute to ethnic beauty.