Problem
For years, people with curly and coily hair have faced a significant gap in knowledge from professionals on proper hair care, alongside societal stigma. This project is deeply personal to me as I grew up feeling the pressure to fit in, leading me to chemically straighten my hair, which damaged it and resulted in hair loss. That experience highlighted the harm of conforming to external expectations. My goal with this project is to create a space where individuals can learn about their natural hair and feel confident embracing their true selves, free from fear or shame.
Solution
NaturalU is designed to create a supportive platform for open conversations about natural hair, allowing users to share videos, ask questions, and learn from each other. Whether a professional or a beginner, everyone can engage in meaningful discussions and gain valuable insights into hair care. By addressing the social stigma surrounding natural hair, NaturalU fosters a community that promotes open dialogue, learning, and growth. The app empowers users to confidently embrace and celebrate their natural hair, normalizing diverse hair types and promoting inclusivity.
My Role
I served as the sole UI/UX designer for this project; therefore, I handled the research and design
Before brainstorming and designing, my main objective was to understand how women, particularly Black women, feel about their natural hair and whether their experiences reflected my own.
Key findings included from primary research from the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology
- Frustration and embarrassment about natural hair
- Healthcare professionals' limited knowledge of natural hair types when addressing scalp-related care
These insights highlighted the need for open dialogue and better education surrounding natural hair.
74%
Black women felt frustrated by their hair
47%
Black women felt embarrassed by their hair
68%
Black women felt that their doctors did not have a good understanding of their hair
41%
Black women report chemically straightening their hair between the ages of 1-15
Persona
Based on my research, I developed a persona named Nia to represent the struggles faced by many women, especially Black women, regarding their natural hair. This persona is rooted in insights from the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, revealing common feelings of frustration and embarrassment about natural hair. Additionally, the limited knowledge among healthcare professionals regarding various hair types underscored the importance of deeply understanding user needs.
Nia embodies the challenges women face when prioritizing themselves, such as practicing self-care or managing their hair. This persona was instrumental in shaping my ideation and decision-making process by:
- Empathizing with core user pain points: The persona helped me internalize the emotional and practical challenges these women experience, ensuring my design choices were user-centric.
- Guiding feature prioritization: Knowing that users like Nia often feel overwhelmed or defeated by self-care routines influenced my decision to create features that promote support and encouragement.
- Tying research to solutions: The persona emphasized the need for educational and interactive components in the app, fostering an environment where users could engage confidently and learn in a relatable way.
This foundation ensured that my design approach resonated with real user experiences and addressed specific issues found in my research.
Sketches
Based on my research and the persona of Nia, I aim to tackle the frustration and embarrassment many women, particularly Black women, experience regarding their natural hair, along with the limited knowledge many healthcare professionals have about different hair types.
To create a more supportive and informative space, I'm sketching features for the NaturalU app that will:
- Encourage users to ask questions about hair care, making it easy to get personalized advice.
- Showcase videos demonstrating techniques, providing fun and practical tips.
- Offer informative content on various hair types, helping users feel more confident and informed.
These educational and interactive features are designed to empower users like Nia, turning their experiences from frustration into confidence .
User Flow
Now that I have a clear understanding of the features needed to address users' frustration and embarrassment about their natural hair while enhancing educational resources, I began to visualize the key tasks and decisions that users like Nia would encounter in the NaturalU app. By identifying specific scenarios that Nia may face, I created a user flow from her perspective. This ensures that the design focuses on essential tasks that facilitate learning and empower users in their hair care journey.
Style Guide and UI Components
After defining the app's key screens and features, I focused on branding as well as building UI components NaturalU to reflect ambition, independence, confidence, fun, comfort, and introspection.
I chose purple as the primary color for its associations with independence and self-reflection, encouraging users to embrace their natural hair and enhance their confidence.
As a secondary color, I selected orange to evoke comfort and fun, inviting users to engage with the app in an interactive way.
These color choices are intended to create an empowering user experience that fosters confidence and a positive relationship with natural beauty.
I chose Nunito as the typography for NaturalU because its rounded sans-serif design conveys a warm and friendly tone. This inviting style not only enhances clarity but also reflects the supportive personality of the NaturalU brand, making users feel comfortable and engaged.
High Fidelity Screens
After utilizing my ideation and research phases to inform my design decisions, I established a clear style guide and defined UI components. This groundwork enabled me to create my final high-fidelity screens for the NaturalU app. I ensured these screens featured essential elements such as:
- Interactive Q&A Forum
- Video Tutorials
- Informational Articles
This approach not only enhances user engagement but also addresses the core needs identified during my research, making my designs both user-centered and effective.
I'm excited about the progress I've made on the NaturalU app and the potential it has to empower users to embrace their natural hair. As I move forward, my next phases will focus on enhancing the hair discovery pages to make them more interactive.
I plan to incorporate additional features, including:
- Personal hair journals for tracking hair journeys
- Supportive message displays to motivate users
- Hair quizzes for personalized insights
- Gamification elements to encourage exploration and learning about various hair types
Ultimately, I want this app to create a welcoming space where users can feel comfortable learning about themselves. Knowledge is a powerful tool, and I hope to inspire people to take pride in their natural crowns once the app is launched.
