Sisterlocks maintenance

Hello fellow bloggers!

I'm sitting here watching Tele and I felt he urge to write and I couldn't of thought of a better place to start. First of course I checked out my good friend Miz Nai's blog and lo and behold she has written two blogs in August (thought you were suppose to get notification when a fellow blogger updated her post ummm) and that gave me the inspiration to update mine.

At this moment I have nearly 8 weeks of re growth eek!  I have never gone this long and there is a reason a simple reason. I have booked with Liz my consultant for a change so she can have a look at what if any damage I have done. I am a DIYer.  My regular routine is to retighten my locks every 6-7 weeks.  I usually do this over a weekend and in total it takes about 10 hours.  I don't rush it and I must admit initially there is the feeling of urghhhhhhh got to retighten my hair sigh. But once I start I do find it therapeutic and a sense of achievement once I have finished.   I really wanted  Liz to do my hair before I went on hols bit she was busy so I booked for September. I came back from hols the second week in August and if I had Retightened then there wouldn't been enough time in between so hence 8 weeks of regrowth.  By the way it is recommended that you see your consultant at least once a year.

Regrowth.

By the way handsinyourhair has returned. I love feeling the regrowth. But I have to be careful not too much tugging at my hair as there is a lot of regrowth there is a danger of pulling at it too much and actually breaking your locks. I actually hear my hair breaking (don't panic just a little) when I have caught it in my coat, cardigan, necklace! Yes it is at that length when it gets caught in everything my main line is "urghhhh mind my hair" as my hubby or son go to hug me and lean on my locks.  So a
word of warning be gentle when it come near to retightening time.

Holiday and the sun

I mentioned holiday yes I went to the carribean. Nice hot sun. I went with brown hair and came back with blond hair!  Yes the sun changed the brown colour in my hair to blond! I only realised this  when while battling in Ochi market I heard "blond ras" "blond ras". At first I thought somebody was cursing me so I asked him to repeat "blond ras" he said "cos your hair blond". Well that was news to me as  certainly didn't leave Great Britain blond!!   As I said the sun was very hot so this means my hair had to be kept moist.  I achieved this by my daily spritz which contains:

Water, rose water, almond oil, avocado  oil, aloe vera gelly and peppermint essential oil. Sorry measurement wise no idea just a capful of each, 10 drops of peppermint oil and a couple of squirts of aloe jelly (great moisturiser). The main ingredient though was water.

I mixed the above in a bottle and spritz my hair every day. I washed my hair more frequently than I would normally because I was in and out of the pool. I washed my hair with Sonya Hydrate shampoo.   I love this shampoo it smells devine and leaves your hair smelling so fresh.  It's a moisture enriched shampoo with a unique ultra-hydrating formula that nourishes the scalp and invigorates dull-looking hair. Made with aloe vera and royal jelly eliminates dryness which is brilliant for my hair as I colour my hair. Details of where to get both the aloe gelly and the shampoo below.

With the routine above my hair was never dry. So that's a simple but effective routine that I find works for me. Oh of course remember your intake of water!

Both products mentioned above can be brought from:

www.cedwards.flp.com.

First picture was before hols last pictures during hols....

Three years lock anniversary

Happy lock anniversary to me.

Day one to 3 years later..

3 years anniversary this month

Well what can I say it's been so long since I updated my blog that it has taken me over an hour to remember how to use it!

Thanking Ms Nai for bugging me about my blog and reminding me that are people out there who are starting out and will be looking for my type of hair, styles, colouring, maintenance etc.

It has taken me three years to realise that the simplest maintenance is all that is needed to maintain my sisterlocks.   The first few months of my sisterlocks journey I used nothing just water but from what I read you don't need any oils, you don't need to put anything on your locks. So I put the bear minimum a little jojoba oil on the scalp every now and again and a little on the air and by a little I mean a thimble full which I had read about.

There is nothing wrong with the above routine but the only problem is I colour my hair!  Now we all know that colouring your hair dries it out so the moisture needs to be replaced not necessarily with conditioners but it needs something.

So for months my hair was brittle but I was unaware of this cos I had no idea how locks were suppose to feel.  It took two comments "it feels dry" "I'm going to cut my hand".  Umm I thought really!! So I felt my hair ok it didn't feel particularly soft but aren't locks suppose to feel like this.  NO!! Locks do not have to feel coarse. So my challenge was to get these locks feeling soft well at least not brittle.

How I achieved softer locks

Jojoba
Coconut
Lavender
Essential oils
Drinking more water
Back to the days of sprizting
Shampoo for colour treated hair by Holland and Barrett

Yes I tried all of the above on my hair on my scalp but I still wasn't happy my scalped itched. Something was irritating my scalp but I couldn't think what. So you know what I did?  Eliminated all the oils and found Jamaican Black Castor oil. Kept the spritz and the shampoo and continued to drink water.

Routine now

JBO on the scalp probably once or twice a week. Spritz most mornings with JBO in water with a few drops of peppermint essential oil about 7.  Washing once every two weeks. The result softer touchable locks.

I retighten my hair every 5-6 weeks and colour with naturtint (Holland and Barrett) every 8-10 weeks

Dying my hair

Yes I'm pure self maintenance spend hardly anything on my hair and it and I feel good.

Now there is a reason I have been so busy and unable to blog. This same reason is responsible for my growing healthy hair. This is the same reason I am feeling so good and energised. My profile picture is all natural but as somebody said look at my skin. The reason Aloe Vera.

Serene

I have started my own business promoting products made from pure Aloe Vera. This business has given me inspiration, given me energy and a healthy glow just by drinking 60ml of this drink per day. I also use the Aloe Jojoba shampoo - beautiful my hair feels like silk when I wash it

I'm going to leave my website below and just look at my hair and skin for verification. Enjoy the pictures.

All natural

www.cedwards.myflpbiz.com

Two Years sisterlocked

The very first day

Day 1

Year 1

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....

19 months...

Well it has been a long time since I have been on here.  Time flies.  Since the last time I blogged I have retightened my own hair three times, experimented with pipe cleaners, lost a few locks (eek), curled with curling rods....

Lets go back to one of my comments above "lost a few locks".. don't worry they have not just fallen off and I am not suffering from alopecia.  These lost locks have all been my fault due to carelessness when retightening and just trying to make my locks look perfect.

Tips for retightening:

1. Patience
2. Take breaks
3. Section off your hair
4. Make sure the lock you are retightening is completely free from the other locks
5. Untangle as soon as you notice you have caught up another lock
6. Get someone else to untangle you hair if you can
7. Breaking of bits of hair from the roots of a lock will cause the base of one of them to lessen and weaken!!!
8. Dont leave too long in between retightening your locks

I am guilty of number 4, 5 and 7.  I have started a lock not made sure it was free from others and continued then battled to get it loose by snapping the hair - yes I know "lock abuser".  This left the base of some of my locks weak and hence they broke off big sigh and sad face!

Another reason for losing locks too much styling.  I have occasions when I just leave them alone but once I start experimenting there is is not stopping but my locks suffer as a result.  Remember at 20 months I am not quite a mature locker.  Those locks that are still very slim tend to suffer with more slippage and tend to need retightening earlier than others.

Anyway they say you live and learn - and I have made a promise to myself that I will not be losing anymore from abusing my locks!

As you see from the title I am now 19 months into my sisterlocks.  I have lots of compliments and sneaky looks from women.  Friends who have known me from the beginning are amazed at the length and the styles.   I use the simplest methods to style my hair but people seem to think I have spent ages creating these styles or gone to someone professional to do these styles.  No I haven't sisterlocks are so easy to style and maintain if you only they knew.

Styling aids used for different occasions...

1. Perm rods
2. Bendy rollers
3. Water - spritz
4.  Taliah Wahlid setting moose (not really needed but good to give a firmer set if water alone doesn't)
5.  Pipecleaners (tried once doubt if I will try it again - curls really tight and takes ages to put in)
6.  Plain old two strand twist...

My view on pipecleaners....a bit too much hassle for my liking - can get the same effect with perm rods...

See some of my styles below...

A Simple pin up but still nice 

And with perm rods..

15 months stage?

I put a question mark at the beginning of this because I am not sure what stage my locks are at.  I can only described them...no longer fluffy, no longer fizzy, harder to touch, bumps in some of them, doesn't shrink as much.  Not all of my sisterlocks are lock oh now the front is still open but not as much and not as fuzzy.

I have retightened my hair twice so far but this month I am going to Liz for her to have a look to see what/if any damage has been done.  I think then I will go every three months we shall see.

So what's the story this time last year you couldn't keep me away from updating by blog but this year I can count on one hand how many times I have written in it Why? No particular reason just time yes time life seems to be getting busier and busier not with anything too traumatic but just with myself.  Yes  going to the gym, going away for a few days visiting friends and sometimes just generally just sitting in my room under the duvet watching tele yes normal things that normal people do but for me relaxation was never an easy thing for me to do but i am trying.

My hair

Some people complain that there are certain stages of their sisterlock that they dont like "ugly stage".  To me I say "What's then and when's that" as I am still waiting for that stage.  There has not been one day when I have got up and thought I don't like my hair today not one.  There are times when i might be feeling a bit sort of I want to do something with it and when them moments come I curl, it with my bendy rollers and hey presto Miss Glam Puss arrives. I bounce down the street shaking my head like the English girls enjoying the movement I can feel in my hair.  Yes movement.  For years I have wanted long hair that moves and sways and now in my late 40s I have hair that moves.  It isn't long but it is growing and it moves.




My routine

I think I have it a routine after a year of not routine I think I have one.  I don't wash my too often why?  Because it washes out all the little oils that are in there.  As I don't put a lot of oils in my hair when i wash it it takes ages to get the moisture back and it itches like mad. Also I dye my hair and the more I wash it I think the more it washes out the dye -I think I will give an update on this later.  Also the more I wash it the fizzier it becomes not sure if I like the fizzy look!!

So so far I have been washing it twice in a month but this does vary and depends on my mood.  As my hair gets longer I notice it more, i notice if it smells and if it feels heavy so if I can smell that it is dirty then I am will wash it.

When i do wash it i have a little mixture of Jojoba oil with lavender and peppermint essential oil, I rub some in my hand and massage my scalp with it.  It tingles a bit but it feels good.  I then spray my hair with Taliah Wahlid spray with one with menthol in it again to help my itchy scalp.   Thats it.  I might have to repeat this again until the moisture comes back but that is it for now.  At the moment this works.   It may change as my hair matures.  I may need to start using conditioners as my hair matures but at the moment this works.

Occasionally I curl my hair on the £1 bendy rollers and the result is a lovely head of bouncy curly hair...see above picture.

Dying my sisterlocks

Yes I dye my hair cos I can't stand the grey hair I don't think it looks good but that is just me.  I have changed dyes from Dark & Lovely Cinnamon Brown to Naturtint light copper bronze.  Why?  Because I found that the Dark & Lovely didn't stay in my hair very long within two weeks them grey hairs were fighting their way through.  Now it could have been because I was washing more regularly then and I was using a clarifying shampoo but I thought no.  If I am going to dye my hair with a dye that has ammonia in it and it is going to come out after two weeks I might as well use one that is BETTER for my hair that I can use more regularly....

The result well see for yourself...it is now three weeks and although the colour is a bit lighter than when i dyed it them grey roots aren't winning the battle so easily this time...

13,14 months

What two months gone and no blog....you may think I am getting bored with my hair....You couldn't be more wrong.  I still love my hair and the intention to write updates is always there but you know life has become so busy and I spend all day on the computer at work by the time I come home a computer is the last thing I go on.

Another thing is once you get on the computer you just can't come off.  I was meant to go on her for 30 mins the most and an hour later I am still on it so I thought hey I might as well.

So what's been happening well.. I attended the sisterlocks retiightening class.  That was such a laugh there was 6 of us all different stages of our locks.  We all looked at each with other with great interest.  It was 8.30 on a Sunday morning, not my idea of fun so early in the morning but it was worth it.  Liz taught us the lingo and we all looked at her confused WHAT 3 o'clock, 12, o'clock, 9 o'clock, 3 pattern, 4 pattern huh?!!!!  OK a diagram please - any clearer urhhh no...Well after all the terminology, diagrams explanations we were all ready to give it a go on each other heads... Liz demonstrated and we tried, and we tried, and we tried oh boy no on your own head eeek what oh now.

Let me know when you do the first one says Liz....10 mins later Carol is still stuck on the first one joined up nicely with the one beside it HELP Liz I can't undo this..."have you done one yet" Liz asked "urr no" I reply.  But after the first disaster I was away hey i am doing it I am doing it this is fun....One client declared there and then she ain't doing this herself it is not for her...Others persevered...One lady (who was not a client of Liz) had so much regrowth it was impossible for her to retighten but you know what Liz was patient and showed her but said it was advisable to get it retightened by someone first then tackle it...

Well we left a few hours later with our little silver tool and one mirror with the warning not to expect to finish it in a day.

Well see for yourselves..yes it took a a week to complete a couple of hours every evening but I did it and I am proud I did it...

PS I also coloured it again as the grey hair was fighting to come out and looked like specks of dandruff...

1 year (well a little over)

Boy this year has been busy.  This time last year you couldn't keep me off my blog I couldn't wait to write the next up date - my locks was all I could talk about.  I couldn't wait for my 1 year anniversary to come and guess it came and went.

Due to unforeseeable circumstances ie the company going into administration, the stress of not knowing what was going on then finally moving jobs my one year anniversary came and went.  But I hadn't forgotten I just didn't have the time to write an update.

The progress well it has definitely grown (see pictures below) but I have still have problems with the roots being very soft and loose.  I have worked out if I wash it too much (and I mean like three times in a month which to me is nothing) it does become very loose.  Conditioners also make it loose and soft.  Although I haven't used that much but when I have I have noticed a difference.

Itching - well only if I put too much products in it and I wash it too often.  Also must remember to drink more water this really helps.  I have worked this out because in the beginning when I didn't wash or condition I had no problems with itching - it was still loose but didn't bother me at all.

So 1 year down the line I am more or less still following the same routine I did in the very early days.  Washing probably at the most twice for the month spritzing with water with a few drops of essential oils, lavender or mint, occasionally massaging my scalp with some natures shine oil and that's it low maintenance it is.  I try not to twist and curl it too often either.

You would think that after 1 year I should be well on the way to being locked well yes in a way i am but the front seems to be the softest and that is where it is taking longer to lock but it will get there.

On the plus side my hair is bouncy, thick and full.  I have such pleasure when I am working out in the gym looking in the mirror and seeing my hair bouncing all over the place beautiful.

One thing though although I dyed my hair about 6 weeks ago and I swear there was no grey hair left well I think I imagined it because them damn grey things are back.  No idea how come could it be the sisterlock shampoo?  No idea so any clues let me know as I don't want to have to keep dying my hair...

Day 1

Anyway enough of my chatting take a look on progress:

1 year

Day 1

1 Year 

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Say no more.....