The very first day |
1 year later |
The 31st May was my two year lock anniversary. Happy lock anniversary to me!!
I have enjoyed every minute, every hour, every day. There has been no ugly stage each stage as been a new challenge a new style to create. I have always been one to style my hair so having sisterlocks has not changed me if anything I probably do too much...
Retightening
I have been retightening my hair for about 6 months now. Do I enjoy doing it well starting it no but once I get going I find it quite relaxing. I have made a few mistakes in the beginning yes I must admit and due to my mistakes I have lost a few locks and for no other reason than the following:
1. retightening too tight;
2. too much manipulation when it needs retightening;
3. trying to join really weak ones together (no problem with this but you got to know what you're doing);
4. pulling locks apart too roughly; and
5. continuing to retighten when I'm tired.
These are all self explanatory except for number four I can hear you saying WHAT pulling locks apart!!! Yes sometimes when I'm tired and I accidentally join them together I use to pull them apart yes you heard me. My lovely hair was being abused my nobody but the owner. The result of this is that the base of the locks gets weak and hence three months down the line they broke off. I am now much more careful. There are still a couple of weak ones but I gently retighten them and hope they will thicken up soon.
Washing
I wash my sisterlocks every two weeks. Sometimes if I have been to the gym and sweated like mad I wash in once a week but I try to stick to every two weeks as my hair gets very dry. I mentioned the gym. Yes sweating and sisterlocks are not good...the locks hold the sweat and leaves a lingering smell which as my hair is now much closer to my nose I really notice it. I'd do a work out and low and behold sniff, sniff, umm is that my hair NO WAY it can't be. I ask me son's opinion well he retreats so fast I know it can't be good. So what was I to do? I can't wash my hair every night as it now takes a good few hours to dry. So I ask the question on one of the many sisterlocks sites "what can I use to refresh my hair between washes". There were many suggestions but one person suggested her products Almocade Peppermint Tea Moisture Mist which contains aloe vera essential oils, peppermint and all sorts of good things for your hair. So I ordered a bottle and loved it. It had a nice refreshing smell and cured the smell of sweat surrounding me.
But I thought to myself hold on I can make something like this myself.
Misting my hair
When I first got my sisterlocks installed the only product I used was water. A little spritz of water every morning and that was all and you know what I had no problems with itchy scalp, dryness nothing. I continued misting with just water well into a year of sisterlocks because nobody told me not to. It was only on my retightening class that I was told I didn't need to so I stopped.
Well you know what have using Almocade spray mist I thought to myself hey I can do that. So I put water in a 100ml spray bottle, 5 drops of tea tree essential oil, 5 drops of peppermint essential oil. Brilliant lovely fresh smelling hair da dah!!!
15 months
19 months
around 22 months...
24 months
Two years later see for yourself....