5 Years

I haven’t posted here in a long time. As my locs have grown longer, I’ve settled into a routine and their just isn’t as much to say. But I’ve been doing more experimenting with styles and this year will be my 5th year with locs so I am going to try to start posting on a semi-regular basis again.

Now that my locs are fairly long (below the shoulder – bra strap length, depending), I do have a bit more versatility with updos that I did not have before. So I’m going to start taking pictures of my experiments as well as my stylist’s magic.

To be continued….

Shampoo day and early product review

The cold weather has contributed to some hair laziness on my part. I’ve been going longer between washes out of dread of cold wet hair. Of course, my locs paid the price in the form of buildup and dryness.

So today, I gave them some intensive care: two washes with clarifying shampoo, two with a moisturizing shampoo, a wonderful deep condition, prolonged rinsing and then a light coat of a new product.

It’s been so long…

Between moving and starting a new job, I have completely neglected this blog. Well that, and not having much going on with my locs. I’m in a new city with more loctician options so I am thinking about stepping into the exciting world of professional hair color and intricate styles.

As soon as I find a loctician, anyway. Progress pics soon!

Curls

I’ve been experimenting with curlers during the last month. I bought perm rods in two sizes and setting lotion from the beauty supply shop and watched a lot of YouTube videos. I’ve curled my hair 4 times with mixed results.

Problem #1: I can’t sleep with hard curlers in. I’m going to get some soft curlers (either Soft Spikes or Loc Loops) and see if those are more comfortable.

Problem #2: My hair takes forever to dry. The one time I dozed off with the curlers in, I woke up and my hair was still damp. I’ve added a soft bonnet dryer attachment to my wishlist.

In spite of those two problems, I’ve been pleasantly surprised with how my hair has turned out. I use bigger rollers for a wavy look and smaller ones for tighter curls. I have only been getting the tight curls on the locs that dry completely before I remove the rollers, so I hope that better drying will improve my results.

Hair tools and accessories

A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have.

I’m a pretty low maintenance locer but there are a few tools and accessories that I find absolutely essential.

(Pardon the wrinkled background.)

Summertime – gratuitous hair pic

I love the summer. The thing I have really enjoyed about having natural hair is that I don’t have to stress about getting it wet.

3 years

I haven’t posted much due to being busy and not having much to say. But it is my 3 year anniversary, so here is a picture post!

The search for styles

Something different

I haven’t posted in a while because I just haven’t been thinking about my hair much besides regular scheduled maintenance. My hairstyles are very, very boring. My locs are usually down, in a pony, or in a half pony. My hair is long enough for a lot of the updos that I love to watch people demonstrate on You Tube, but I rarely attempt anything.

An overdue shampoo review post

My shampoo collection

Looking back on my product junkie post, I realized I haven’t reviewed any of them since I loced. I’ve cut back on the actual products in my routine – Shampoo day consists of a shampoo and a conditioner/oil leave in and I don’t use any product when I latch. I’m so happy with Oyin Honey Hemp conditioner, that I’m not interested in trying anything else. I feel the same way about the Nasabb Kelechi Hair Oil that I use (tangerine is my current favorite) I stopped using the Juices and Berries spritz because I don’t really need it. I manage most of my hair needs with a variety of shampoos.

My shampoos fall into 3 basic categories: clarifying, moisturizing, and scalp relief. I do use a couple of shampoos that contain sulfates – as long as I condition afterwards, my locs and scalp are fine. When I use a non-sulfate shampoo, I just put oil on my locs (not on my scalp) afterwards. I dilute all of my shampoos in water and wash, rinse, repeat. Occasionally, I add a tsp of baking soda to the diluted shampoo.

2 years, 7 months