In an epic “Where are they now?” moment, several child perm box models went viral after a nostalgic Twitter post about them began trending recently.
It all began when Twitter user @prettiestluxury posted a throwback tweet about wanting to be one of the girls on perm boxes. The packages in the post date back to the mid-’90s to the ’00s.
“I remember wanting to be the face of a hair relaxer so bad,” she tweeted on Oct. 2.
i remember wanting to be the face of a hair relaxer so bad pic.twitter.com/T0HxnO9EZ2
— ًًً (@prettiestluxury) October 2, 2022
The post quickly went viral, as many Black women and some teens retweeted it and reminisced about wanting to look as perfect as the models.
That day, user @AshTheDonLeon retweeted the post and encouraged the now-adult models on the boxes to reveal themselves.
“Where are these girls today? Show yourselves,” she said.
Much to everyone’s excitement, quite a few emerged with pictures of how they look today alongside their corresponding perm box photo. Even more remarkable is that most of them still have healthy and amazing hair.
“Heyy [heart face emoji] (the one on the right),” @big__lexx wrote.
https://twitter.com/big__lexx/status/1576995236382855169?s=20&t=DaE36d_5PzTrunSoWwxwRg
“Present,” @jellywap tweeted.
Present
pic.twitter.com/eOBWzVSY1Z
— jo mo (@jellywap) October 3, 2022
“Present [laughing and wave emoji],” @createdbyjoce wrote.
Present
pic.twitter.com/coPiJcs6B7
— The Analytical Artist (@createdbyjoce) October 3, 2022
“I’M HERE [heart face emoji],” @itssvictoria__ wrote.
IM HERE
pic.twitter.com/uj0FSqbawK
— jordan
(@itssvictoria__) October 4, 2022
“Here! [angel emoji,]” @Dimplydee tweeted.
Here!
pic.twitter.com/l96IhncwOj
— Mama D
(@Dimplydee) October 3, 2022
“HEREEEE !!! Lol (18),” @Crayraee replied.
HEREEEE !!! Lol (18) pic.twitter.com/XXSmYUTDcS
— Crayrae (@Crayraee) October 4, 2022
“I’m number 27,” @mskiachanel tweeted.
I’m number 27
pic.twitter.com/xcpjYp3uKe
— BIG MAMA 3:11
(@mskiachanel) October 4, 2022
“Heyyyyy (on the left),” @Aleaahdavvis13 wrote.
Heyyyyy
— Aleaahdavvis (@Aleaahdavvis13) October 3, 2022
One Twitter user pointed out that Atlanta rapper Yung Baby Tate was also featured on a box.
“The girl on the left is still iconic @imbabytate,” @5STARSHEBA tweeted.
https://twitter.com/5STARSHEBA/status/1576733429667807236?s=20&t=DaE36d_5PzTrunSoWwxwRg
While relaxers were widely used amongst Black women in the not-so-distant past, they’re now considered dated to the newer generation. According to global research firm Mintel, perm sales dropped to just 36.6 percent between 2012 and 2017. Not only do Black women wear their natural hair a lot more in 2022, but wigs, braids, faux dreadlocks, and silk presses have become popular alternatives.
Ironically, most of the girls didn’t have relaxers.
