Three Months Gone

I know I just posted my 10 week update but that went by a while ago. While work had me all over the place and stressing out, the day marking my 3 month anniversary (for lack of a better word) passed by without me noticing.

Originally, the plan was to create and upload a video to YouTube outlining the changes and how the journey has been so far. But that idea went up in smoke. I could not care less about recording and editing a video around that time simply because of work. Oh Heavens, help me! I have not been in the sun this much since I was eleven and thought it was fun to get away from being inside all the time.

Now, I have had my third retightening done and I am excited to report that the slippage has been drastically reduced thanks to one simple trick I've been using. Instead of washing my hair every two weeks like I was doing before, I am now washing it once a month. If my scalp is dirty before then, I use a mixture of vinegar, water and witch hazel to gently cleanse the scalp. On a side note, please remember that the recipe for this concoction was given to my by my consultant so it isn't something I made up by myself.

Anyways, by reducing the amount of manipulation to my wet hair, I managed to have only 3 locs slip during the first week. On the other hand, I did have to retighten the one loc four times before my last appointment. By the time I made it to the consultant'c chair, all that remained of that one loc was a knot near the tip. Up to now, I am still completely baffled by my hair's ability to unravel from the root and leave one of two knots in tact. Smh.

Oh well, maybe it won't be so bad next month. Til next time - Lata!

Summer Update

So it's summer here and I have been busier than ever at work. Several things went wrong with my car and I've been trying to sort that out while keeping up with the greater demand at work.  My hair has taken a back seat to everything else and I have barely styled it. The main problem I have is slippage from sweat. 

I have redone the same loc three times since I got the retightening two weeks ago. I have been spending a lot of time outside and this Caribbean sun ain't easy. I have basically stopped all the bantu knots and braid outs. My roots are growing in quickly and I'm praying for the call to schedule my next retightening. 

In the meantime, I'm gonna stretch my curled ends to make sure my length is still there. 

Til next time -  Lata! 

Growing Locs Quickly

If you do enough research on YouTube you will come across my loc god Damien Walter. He is a firm believer of having a establishing a healthy hair regimen. According to him you must use a clarifying shampoo followed by a moisturizing shampoo then a deep conditioner with protein. I am a firm believer of this method. By clarifying, moisturizing and conditioning you increase the strength of the hair on a superficial level. If the hair is not properly moisturized, the individual strands will break and by extension, the locs with thin or break. 

To truly moisturize and strengthen the hair you should ensure you drink enough water. This varies from person to person so experiment until you hit the perfect amount. Strong hair is less likely to break and will assist with hair growth. Avoid products that have waxes or that are not water based. They may feel moisturizing but actually add nothing apart from build up to your hair.

Speaking of less likely to break, monitor the amount of tension you place on you scalp. Locs may be thicker than individual hairs but there is still a very real risk of losing hair due to the stress. Constant pulling of the hair at the roots will lead to balding in the areas where the pulling occurs the most. 

Let your hair grow free. Over manipulation of the hair can cause breakage. Relax every once in a while. Use hair bands or scarfs to cover your wild looking roots. You can also experiment with semi-free forming. Checkout Jasmine Rose on YouTube to get an idea of how to keep locks looking neat when not retwisting. Do not be afraid to leave styles in your locs for two weeks at a time. Believe me, your hair will do its thing and in no time you'll start to notice growth when you least expect it.

The final secret to growing your locs is to be patient. Don't measure your hair growth every two weeks. Ignore them particularly during the initial phases of locing. Your hair will shrink while it locs and take up to two years to regain the length you lost initially. If you want long flowing locs now or within the next six months, forget about growing them and invest in loc extensions or faux locs. 

That's all for now. 

Til next time - Lata!