Zoe Saldana covers the InStyle Magazine’s annual issue dedicated to hair. It’s called InStyle Hair, which… I understand what they’re doing and why they’re doing it, but I just think it’s funny. I had a moment of whimsy where I just sat here and thought about all of the other special editions that we could have. InStyle Wrists! InStyle Boobs! InStyle Belly Buttons! InStyle Knees! I would actually pick up an edition of InStyle Boobs, just FYI. And Christina Hendricks better make the cover. Anyway, Zoe gives an exhaustive interview about her hair, of course, and I actually found it interesting. Go ahead and call me naïve, but I didn’t realize that Zoe had been chemically straightening her hair this whole time.

Zoe on Latina hair: “In Latino culture, hair carries a lot of history, a lot of weight, and a lot of energy. I always liked my hair. I never wanted to have any other skin but my own, any other hair but my own. Women who spend so much of their lives wanting to have something else miss out on learning to appreciate what they do have.”

Her mother’s words of wisdom: “My mom raised my sisters and I with a strong sense of self. [My mother] always said, ‘Honey, there is nothing that a red lipstick and a pair of red shoes can’t heal, cure, or solve.’ And I absolutely believe that. They can get you out of anything, even the biggest funk of your life.”

She dreams of pixie cuts: “At some point I might just want to chop it all off and go really short. I’ll just wake up in the morning and, well … you know. [I want to] learn to enhance my other virtues, instead of depending so much on my hair.”

She cuts her own hair sometimes: “If I want to chop off my hair, I’ll take scissors and do one side before I even go to the hairdresser. It’s all about trusting my instincts. Plus, that way I can’t change my mind!”

Letting her chemically straightened hair grow out: “It’s been eight months since my last straightening treatment, and I’m going to let it all grow. It’s been a long time since I’ve woken up with my hair looking like an Afro. I can’t wait to have that again.”

[From People & InStyle]

I’m not trying to be nit-picky about something I clearly know nothing about, but I think there’s a contradiction between “I always liked my hair. I never wanted to have any other skin but my own, any other hair but my own” and her admission that she’s had chemically straightened hair. I’m not saying that Zoe shouldn’t do whatever she wants to her hair – seriously, go wild, I have no judgment – but if you’re going to go in for heavy chemical processes, don’t try to convince me that you’re all about owning your natural look. I can’t claim to be “natural” anymore – I’ve been dyeing my hair for a few years now to cover the grey. Therefore, I’m not going to give some thundering “love thyself” speech about how we should all accept and embrace our natural selves. I hate my grey, so I dye it. I’m still me, I still accept myself, but I also acknowledge my own vanity.

Photos courtesy of InStyle Hair, WENN.