Hanging "10"

Black women began adopting it in the early 1970s: the venerable African custom of wearing hair woven into small, tight braids fastened at the ends with cowries, beads and sometimes feathers. But since blond Starlet Bo Derek turned up sporting the style in this season's hit film comedy "10, "women of all hues have been badgering hairdressers for what they call "the Bo look." It does not come cheap: a braiding job costs anywhere from $80 to $300, and it takes four to eight hours to finish. But once done, the hair can be shampooed daily and will stay intact for a month. Devotees praise the fashion as being "goddess-like," and "very Egyptian," but hairdressers warn that not every girl should get a Bo. Says Jim Thompson, a Florida stylist: "It might make a 9 into a 10, but it won't make a 3 into a 4."

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