Lock It Up! Support Thread (Sisterlocs, Dreads, Freeform, Etc)

TeeKay21

Well-Known Member
@TeeKay21 ...your Sisterlocks look beautiful. Have you asked your consultant about the steam rollers?

I forgot I have some from way back in the day I may have to pull them out again.

I ask because I asked my consultant if I could use my steamer now and she said not yet. I'm 10 months in. She said my Sisterlocks were too new and not fully locked yet. I know it's more steam than the steam rollers but I Would ask to be sure. These locks are an investment. I don't wanna do nothing to mess them up.

If I curl my locks I use old fashioned sponge rollers or lock loops. My consultant even showed me how to pin curl to get a soft curl.
Yes, I asked her. Steam from a steamer would cause unraveling and slippage because it's saturating loose hair, she said. The rollers are sponge rollers that get 4 or 5 secs of small puff of steam. She told me my hair is progressing fine, but warned against using a steamer cause it would slow my progress.
 

Arian

Loc'ing Up!
Has anyone tried the ACV rinse? I REALLY want to try this on my locs. They are looking a bit ashy and I can see some gunk in some of them.

Can this be done on locs that are not mature yet?
 

Platinum

Well-Known Member
Has anyone tried the ACV rinse? I REALLY want to try this on my locs. They are looking a bit ashy and I can see some gunk in some of them.

Can this be done on locs that are not mature yet?

I have had the ACV rinse a few times and it is amazing! I have pics in this thread ( I think it was posted about 6-9 months ago). I'm Not sure if it's a good idea to do it for locs that haven't matured yet. How long have you been locked?
 

Arian

Loc'ing Up!
@Arian you should been fine. I think I was about 1.5 to 2 years in when I did my first ACV rinse and I was so surprised at the amount of gunk that was in my hair.

@Platinum, thanks! I was hoping that you would say I could do it. I can feel how oily my strands are and think they would benefit greatly from this treatment.

Did you wash your hair with shampoo/condition afterwards? (I'm too lazy to go back through the thread, lol)
 

msdeevee

Well-Known Member
I took the Sisterlocks retight class yesterday.

It was ok. I learned how to do my rotations but that Sisterlocks clip tool is a problem. Too tiny and unwieldy.

Good thing I already have the nappyloc tool and the easy loc tool and the O locker is on the way. I hope I don't mess up my grid!!
 

Foxglove

A drop of golden sun
I took the Sisterlocks retight class yesterday.

It was ok. I learned how to do my rotations but that Sisterlocks clip tool is a problem. Too tiny and unwieldy.

Good thing I already have the nappyloc tool and the easy loc tool and the O locker is on the way. I hope I don't mess up my grid!!

My consultant is a master consultant and uses the nappyloc tool on herself. She says the clip tool snags too much

ETA I got the nappyloc tool before taking the class and I'll try it out again once I go back to self retightening
 

Arian

Loc'ing Up!
Did the acv rinse and my hair was filthy...

Now I have another problem... apparently, I have more lint than I thought embedded in my locs. Tweezing it out will surely damage my locs (I have already picked out quite a few this way)

I'm really feeling some type of way about this and ALMOST want to forget the whole process. I am going to try dyeing them tonight and see what happens. I am also hating having to rely on someone to retwist it for me. That is a pain...
 

mz.rae

Well-Known Member
Just watched this video and it really encouraged me. I was getting so hung up on length and wanting my hair to grow. That I am missing out on the joy of the journey of being being this length. I am going to start trying out different styles and just enjoying the journey. The same way I took the the time to enjoy my relaxed hair journey and the different stages, and my loose natural journey. Is the same way I need to be enjoying my sisterlock journey.

 

Oasis

grabbing life by the pussy
@Arian, i'm far from an expert but that seems like an excessive amount of lint. what do you cover your hair with? what products are you using?

i've never covered my hair in the 3 years i've had locs and have never had an issue with lint. i get lint occasionally but it's hardly ever embedded in the loc. it just sits on top of my hair and is easily removed.
 

Arian

Loc'ing Up!
@Arian, i'm far from an expert but that seems like an excessive amount of lint. what do you cover your hair with? what products are you using?

i've never covered my hair in the 3 years i've had locs and have never had an issue with lint. i get lint occasionally but it's hardly ever embedded in the loc. it just sits on top of my hair and is easily removed.

@Oasis, I cover with a satin cap. I also have a satin pillowcase. I suspect that the winter time got me. During the colder months, I tend to wear a LOT of sweaters and cardigans. I guess I wasn't watching my hair as I should, but I have scheduled a retwist and color for Saturday. It is going to take a lot just KNOWING the lint is there, even if I am covering it up.

As for products, my loctician uses a gel-like product to re-twist and oils my scalp with a mix of natural oils. I wash with Trader Joe's shampoo and do not use conditioner. I oil my scalp whenever I feel like it needs it and that is with a natural oil like olive or avocado mixed with peppermint oil. That's it. Should I be using conditioner at this point? I get mixed answers on this. I know that I can do a hot oil treatment, though. (Sorry going off on a tangent...)

I did do a little experimenting in the beginning with different products/sprays and that could have a lot to do with some of my issues. I also incorrectly believed I had to put oil on my actual locs rather than focus on my scalp. That was pretty early on too.

Is there anything I should do differently? What would you do in my situation? @BillsBackerz67 , I am asking for your input too. @Platinum
 

Lady_NakoPenda

Length goals!
I'm starting again but I'm not going to lock my hair just grow it back out as a loose natural. I recently cut all of my Sisterlocks off after 9 months. Looking back, I believe that my consultant used the wrong pattern for my hair type. She left a lot of my hair loose at the ends which wasn't an issue for the coil curls on the back of my head but it didn't work for the top and sides of hair that are kind of like a kinky straight type of texture. I'm glad that I did it so that I know for sure that Sisterlocks is not for me. My consultant was charging 100 to 150 dollars every 4 weeks and that also got to be too much esp. because she was working out of her home salon and couldn't offer any other services like shampooing. My area does not have a lot of consultants so after some unprofessional experiences with her I learned to do it myself. It took me 10 days to tighten my hair (678 locks). It was just too much time that I didn't have to keep giving.
 

Platinum

Well-Known Member
@Oasis, I cover with a satin cap. I also have a satin pillowcase. I suspect that the winter time got me. During the colder months, I tend to wear a LOT of sweaters and cardigans. I guess I wasn't watching my hair as I should, but I have scheduled a retwist and color for Saturday. It is going to take a lot just KNOWING the lint is there, even if I am covering it up.

As for products, my loctician uses a gel-like product to re-twist and oils my scalp with a mix of natural oils. I wash with Trader Joe's shampoo and do not use conditioner. I oil my scalp whenever I feel like it needs it and that is with a natural oil like olive or avocado mixed with peppermint oil. That's it. Should I be using conditioner at this point? I get mixed answers on this. I know that I can do a hot oil treatment, though. (Sorry going off on a tangent...)

I did do a little experimenting in the beginning with different products/sprays and that could have a lot to do with some of my issues. I also incorrectly believed I had to put oil on my actual locs rather than focus on my scalp. That was pretty early on too.

Is there anything I should do differently? What would you do in my situation? @BillsBackerz67 , I am asking for your input too. @Platinum

I don't think you did anything wrong. I really can't recommend a conditioner because I haven't really found one that works for me. I have a hard time rinsing out creamy conditioners, even if I dilute them. I'm going to ask my loctitician next time. (I'm way over due for a visit).

As for lint, you may have to try putting a satin cap on your hair before you put on your sweaters, to keep your sweater from gliding across your locs. I don't really have an issue with lint, my problem is dust and pollution. I'm always around 18 wheelers. I usually due an ACV rinse 3-4 times a year. I follow it up with a shampoo and hot oil treatment. I can't remember the name of the shampoo that my loctitician uses but it was a clear, sulfate-free clarifying one and it made my scalp feel amazing!
 

nothidden

TeamNatural95-Fractals/Zigzags
View attachment 399411
Here is a pic of some of the lint... I'm hurt! I have been pretty diligent about covering my locs, but wow! I don't like the way that looks at all.
Oh, wow! I know me. I'd pick thru one loc per day wrapping any hair I've loosened back around the loc.


My first thought was 'from sweaters maybe'.
 
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mstar

Luxury bacon
@BillsBackerz67 I finally made it in here! I'm only a couple years late. :lachen:

Friday was my 2 year anniversary! I've come a very long way, from here:

20170723_161437.jpg


To here:

20170526_124746.jpg

20170526_124806.jpg


I wigged it the first half of the way. Because I don't know about y'all, but mstar was not about to go out in public looking like that first picture. :look: No ma'am. This is what it looked like in Sept 2016 (15 months in), when I first started wearing my hair out from time to time:


20170723_161145.jpg

I had a couple small trims because the back growth was outpacing the front by too large a margin. I'm still not happy with how short the front is, but that's just my hair's growth pattern and always has been. I've also had extra hair rolled in to thicken up my locs, since my hair is ultra fine, and my locs were just too small and scraggly for my liking. I don't know why I thought that locking my hair would somehow magically overcome my hair's natural properties and growth pattern. :lol: But it's all good.
 
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mstar

Luxury bacon
Oh, I forgot to mention that I'm 3 years loc'd! :yahoo::yahoo: My loctitian is out of town so I wasn't able to book an appointment for a retwist. :( I'll have to do it myself because I have to go back to work on Tuesday.
Congrats @Platinum! I've been following your thread since the beginning, so I knew that you and I had around the same anniversary date. You've come a long way as well!
 
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