Sunday, January 15, 2017

MY SISTERLOCS ARE ONE YEAR OLD!



 

My SisterLocks made one year old on 11/28/2016. The third time is almost a charm. I did not do anything to my locs. I kept it simple. I wash them every three weeks with Suave Daily Clarifying Shampoo. Sealing the moisture in with apricot kernel oil infused with tea tree, peppermint and rosemary essential oils. I spritz my locs twice a week with Jane Carter Leave In conditioner.  I also spritz my locs everyday with water.

 

I re-ti every 6-8 weeks. Since the front and top of my hair are fine and grows quickly, I re-ti that portion, once every four weeks to prevent tangling.


After my hair began to settle, I dyed it. I use Garnier Nutrisse 535 Medium Golden Mahogany Brown. I maintain it Clairol Beautiful Collection Advance Gray Solution, Mahogany Red Brown. I now use Joico Color Endure Sulfate-Free Shampoo or Avlon KeraCare Moisturizing Shampoo for Color Treated Hair. When I curl my hair, which isn't often, I use Lotta Body Coconut Shea Oils Setting Lotion.


            Bunching

I have close to 500 locs. Most are between small and medium size locs. There are some micro size thrown in. I guess my consultant either got tired or misjudged the parts. Its all good. I think she did an excellent job! It took her 3-4 hours to re-ti my hair. It takes me a few days to re-ti! When I had 200 locs, it me a few hours to re-ti. Everyone loves my hair! I do not like all these tiny locks! They remind me of medusa! I know as micro locs age, they begin to narrow in the middle. That is why I opted to combine my first set of locks. My next re-ti, will be a combine loc session! After all, I`am approaching 56 yrs, in three months. My fingers are not what they use to be. I will have to train my husband and my niece who express learning how to reti my hair. LOL!

 

 I noticed I did not experience the locking process as the first and second set of locs. Maybe because these set of locks are smaller.  My first set of Sisterlocks took 18 months to fully lock. They were the traditional set. Small locs in the front, medium locs at the crown and large locs in the back. My second set of locs, were large sisterlocks. They went through the locking process within a year. I have noticed larger locs lock faster than smaller locs!

My current locs are settled and don't slip or unravel after I wash them. I have curly Q and the end of my locs like all of my set of locs. My hair never locks at the bottom. I had to cut my curly Qs under the locked portion of my locs, so that the ends will draw up into the loc.

For the most part, This loc journey has been the least stressed! I have learned a great deal about my hair over the years. I have embraced them and allowed them to do what they do! 


1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (ESV)

19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.














Tuesday, July 5, 2016

SEVEN MONTH SISTERLOCKED AND LOADED!

 
Yes, Cheleski68! I`am still locked and loaded LOL!
This time I`am embracing the journey, Curly Qs and all! I could not take my two tone hair. Half gray and half red. I wanted to grow out my grays and dye the bottom part black for an ombre look. I discovered a new way to dye my hair.  I loosely braid and band my locks, then apply color only to the loose hair! I rinse, rinse, rinse and then re-tighten! No bunching or swelling of my locks. That was my problem with the last set.

 

It feels like I have one million locks! I`am back to doing my own hair. It takes me days to re-tightened. I have small-medium and some small locs. I discovered my hair likes the medium locks. They have started budding in the back. The small locs are not doing anything. The smaller locs are fragile and are more prone to breakage and thinning. I dread re-ti! I`am going to combine locks in  September. I want to  transition to gray hair. The color has definitely has helped roughen my hair to help it locked. Chasing gray is stressful! My hair grows very fast! In less than two weeks, I can see the grays growing in! The color helps me see my parts. With gray hair, my scalp blends with my grays and I cant see my parts!





Hundreds of curly Q`s! My hair does not coil like tightly coiled hair. My hair never locks at the end of my locs. it starts in the middle and locks three quarters down the loc. I usually have to let my hair lock, then cut the curly Q`s off. If I do it too soon, my loc will start to unravel.




Neat locks? What? I always will have strands of hair coming out of my locs. No matter how hard I try to keep them in place, they find their way out. They say when they lock, the hair will pull into the lock. Not mine. I will never have neat locs like the tightly coiled girls.

 

                                                  1st set of locs (2011)

                            I cut my locs off in April 2013.


I`am enjoying my locs! Like I said, the third time is a charm!


Monday, February 1, 2016

SISTERLOCKS: MONTH TWO! MY HAIR FLOW!

 
 
I completed month two of my SisterLock journey! I went to my consultant for my one month follow up. I had enough growth for a re-ti. It took my consultant four hours to re tighten my hair. My consultant recommended that I come back to her in two months.



A month later, month two, I had enough hair growth for 1-2 rotations! One of my locks at the nap almost slipped out, so I decided to re-tighten it. Before I knew it, I had re-tighten back of my head! I really wanted my consultant to manage it for the first six months! I could not resist! After all, I`am a DIYer!
I plan to keep my appointment with my consultant at the end of February. It took me three damn days to re-ti my hair! I do not know about all of these locs! I`am getting to old for this, but I love my locs!



I changed up my hair flow! I tried the new Sisterlocks shampoo! Girls, it was horrible! My hair felt so stripped and dry! I reached for the Suave Daily Clarifying Shampoo that I use to clean my makeup brushes! It is really nice! It actually placed moisture back in my hair. When my hair dried, it did not feel dried out! My scalp did not itch. Suave will be my new best friend until I`am locked. Then, I will go back to Taliah Waajid Total Body Black Earth Shampoo.

 


 I have no problems with hair growth. I could not resist the claims of Jamaican Black Castor Oil! I placed a cap full of JBCO in a small jar with five drops each of Tea tree, peppermint, and rosemary essential oils. I apply the oil only to the scalp with my finger tip! Castor oil is thick, so it stays where you place it!

Enough on my hair! Until Next Time! Stay Blessed!
 

 

Sunday, November 29, 2015

My New SisterLock Journey!

 





In August before I went to Aruba, I decided to dye my locs! Bad decision! My locs began to do strange things! A few unraveled, a few began to bunch. I had problems in the past with my locks not locking at the ends resulting in curly Q`s.
I wanted larger locs, but I did not really feel them when they began to swell. I tried to talk myself out of picking them out to no avail. In October, I began to pick out my locs.
It took a week to pick out my locs. When my hair was loose, I had no idea what to do with them. I tried to curl, twist and style my hair. I did not like the results! Anyway, loose hair is too much maintenance! I do not have that time! HERE I GO AGAIN!

I went to SisterLocks.com to find Trainees and consultants in my area. One trainee moved to another state. The other, were not installing SL. I called three consultants. one never returned my call. One well known consultant, gave me an appointment for a consultation. The third consultant, she and I bonded over the phone. I felt so comfortable with her, I cancelled the consultation with the second consultant.



When I arrived for my consultation, my consultant had the most beautiful SisterLocks. She asked me what I knew about SisterLocks. I told her I had two sets and showed her pictures. I told her I wanted the traditional SL grid, but I did ask her what would she suggest. She pulled out the SL sizing card! She had suggested locks that were in between small and medium. WHAT!!! I NEVER HEARD OF, OR SAW A SL SIZING CARD!

 
After we decided on a date, she gave me a SL INSTRUCTION SHEET! WHAT!!! I NEVER RECEIVED ONE FROM MY LAST TWO CONSULTANTS! I actually received a RECEIPT!

 


My 450+ SLs were installed with a reversed 4 pattern on November 27 & 28, 2015 after 27 hours. My consultant says she will tighten with a 3 pattern. I do have to say, I`am very happy! the third time is a charm!


My consultant gave me my SL starter kit, She also gave me 
a free SLs Natural Wonders Fresh Hair for dry scalp and dandruff.  Ingredients: Distilled water, Rosemary, Lavender, Pepperment, Ylang Ylang, and Tea Tree oil.
 I never used my SLs  shampoo. The formulation is different from the original shampoo. May try the new shampoo before my first re-tie. Knotty Boy bar shampoo is my choice for baby locs.





I`am happy that I did not trash my Soft Spikes Curlers!













 With anything, do your research! No two Consultants are alike. Make sure you are getting what you are paying for! We assume just because someone takes a SLs consultant training class you are getting what you are paying for! 
 Interview your future consultant and ask questions. There are many SisterLocks blogs telling their experiences. 
During instillation, take breaks so you can look at the progress of your hair. If there are problems, talk to your consultant then, so she correct your problem before the instillation is done. Installing sisterlocks is time consuming. No one wants to waste time and money!



Wednesday, July 8, 2015

ALMOST EIGHT MONTHS LOCKED!

July 20th, will be my 8th month locked. So far I`am not as stressed as my first journey! Quite truly, I have been getting pretty tired of my gray hair. I have been getting the color bug! I have been contemplating coloring my hair! I truly want to wait until a year. I`am vacationing in Aruba in September. I do not want to place excess stress on my hair by coloring my hair then dipping it in salt water! When I get restless with my locs, I wear a wig. It`s getting too hot for that now! I rather not wear them!
I have been doing nothing to my hair! I wash it every three weeks! I spritz it with water every day! My loc routine is quite boring!
Here are some of my 8th month pictures!




They are transforming, but I don`t feel buds or see hair balls yet! My hair looks so unruly and wild! I can`t wait until this phase is over! Why did I cut my original locs off in the first place! My hair type does not like locking! It takes forever!
Post something soon!

Blessings to you!


Monday, April 20, 2015

UPDATE! FIVE MONTHS AND COUNTING!

Five months and counting! April 20th marks my fifth month locked! I have cut off my glued tips. Some of my loc tips unraveled slightly and formed curly Qs. Some stayed closed. I have some locs that are settling and some that are slipping!
I notice when you do something the same way, you get the same results! When you do something different you get different results!

I believe I will be locked by my first year! My first journey, I dyed my hair prematurely and alot of my locs unraveled! I used cream conditioner on my hair and my tips opened. Yes, I diluted it with water! You should use products for locs. I used Taliah Waajid`s shampoo and conditioner.  I did not have any adverse issues with my hair until I used regular cream conditioner. I do not believe that one should not condition your hair! This should be done when you are fully locked. My first consultant used Jane Carter leave in conditioner on my hair since day one! My hair felt conditioned and moisturized without the fear of unraveling!
My locs are filling out nicely! As I wrote in a previous post, I do not wear my hair out. It is always safely tucked away under a satin cap! That way, it can do its thing!

My hair is responding and acting the same way it did the first time I Sisterlocked. The difference is I did not place dye and a lot of hair care products in my hair as I did in the first loc journey! I use Knotty Boy bar Shampoo, Apricot oil with essential oils to my scalp and a spray bottle with spring water and Aloe Vera gel to my locs daily.

My hair is still a bit too short to braid and band. I braid and band what I can and bundle and band the locs that are too short! I towel dry, remove the rubber bands, separate and air dry!
 CAUTION: As your locs grow long, it will take longer to dry predisposing you to moldy locs! To prevent this place your locs under the dryer until they are damp. (15-20 minutes) Then allow to air dry. Never had a problem using this technique!
                                    

I have unruly hair! It takes time to do it`s thing! I will continue to wear hats and wigs as protective tools for my hair! I will give another update in July. Until then, stay blessed!



 


Sunday, March 15, 2015

COVERGIRL QUEEN COLLECTION LIP COLOR

 
OK! I`AM A LATE BLOOMER WHEN IT COMES TO KEEPING UP WITH MAKEUP! I live in an AREA that DOES NOT CATER TO WOMEN OF COLOR.
 I work in a large city, but when I leave work, I want to go home! When I was in North Carolina to attend a wedding, my husband and I stop in Walgreen`s for something. What did I see! A CG Queen collection display! They had a BOGO for 50%! I left with over $100 of makeup from the Queen collection! I exclusively wear their foundation! 
After spending $60 of MAC foundation because I have to mix two colors to get a close match to my complexion, I`am very happy to find one that perfectly match my skin tone!
All my friends were raving about MAC lipstick. I really did not want to pay $16.00 for lipstick! I caved in and purchased a tube. I was not impressed! The Pigment is great, but it does not last all day. When you eat, it comes off like any other lipstick!
Walgreen`s had a great 50% off sale on GC. I purchases two lip sticks. When I got home and applied the lippie, I was in love! I purchased every color I could fine online! I was not disappointed when the lip colors arrived! The pigment was great! The lighter colors covered my dark lips without a primer. The dark colors leave stain my lips after I eat! They keep my lips moist and last a few hours! I can purchase three tubes of lipsticks for the price of of one tube of Mac! Since I do purchase Mac Products, I usually get my Mac Lippies when I return empty Mac makeup containers.
I have been trying out different brand lipsticks. I will be reviewing those brands I tryout!
Let me know what you use and why you like them!
BLESSINGS! 




Blessings my friend!
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