Natural Hair Journal/Sisterlocks

Updo/Short Hair Fakeout

2011-06-30T05:24:00.001-07:00

I did the updo with just using Lock Loops, and a large rubber band to hold the large curls up. Then pulled some down on the side and swooping the other front side up and back. Makes it look like it's cut this way, but nope. All my length is still there.

Almost 3 Years

2011-06-26T22:33:00.000-07:00

Not much to say...so on with the pictures.

What Month Is This?

2011-04-24T19:44:00.000-07:00

Hello fellow lockers and lurkers,

Gosh I'm not sure which month in my journey this is. I should have checked before starting this entry but was being lazy, lol. So what's new with me....not a whole lot. The pics here are from today after a shampoo. Just love that I look good even after a wash without having to do anything. That is so liberating in that when I was a loose permie would take me forever to blow dry my hair out and get it straight. My hair is so thick and course that it was alot of work. Now I can wash and braid it up if I want, take it down next day and good for the week.

My weightloss is at a standstill but still feel good. Need to change things up I guess. I get lots of compliments. My oldest daughter tells me I don't need to lose more weight, but I beg to differ, lol. I still want to lose more and maintain. Maintaining is the hardest part I think. Trying not to fall back into bad eating habits is essential and keeping a regular exercise program. Well that's it for now. Maybe I'll try some different styling options for the next post. I tend to fall into the same habit so will need to search YouTube for ideas. Stay blessed everyone, and Happy Easter.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Hair Pics - Vacation 2011

2011-03-03T18:21:00.001-08:00

Here's some hair pics from my vacation. Hubby and I went to Trinidad & Tobago. My hubby is a "Trini", and we had a wonderful time.

Too Far Behind - 32 Months

2011-03-03T18:15:00.000-08:00

Howdy folks,

I'm ashamed of myself, lol. I didn't realize it has been since October since I last put up post. I have plenty of pictures to show. I also did well in my weightloss and overall in life. My Sisterlocks have gotten really long. So with no further ado.....check out the pics. I'll make another post too....I just recently got back from vacation with the hubby from Trinidad & Tobago.

Long Time, Still Rep'n

2010-10-31T11:14:00.000-07:00

Hello all,

I know I'm several months behind, but life has been busy. Also I hadn't noticed much of a change in my Sisterlocks until recently. It's like suddently at 27 months, I noticed crazy length. Has things been a piece of cake, no, not at all. I have learned a few things and one being...it's hair and it will do what it will do, lol. I'm still self maintaining my Sisterlocks. Also not loc related, I'm now down 60 lbs. That right there is amazing and still have more pounds to go. I can now take full body pictures without feeling self conscious and wanting to hide behind my kids, (some of yal know what I mean). Anyway, a few pics for your enjoyment pleasure, with one being a little styling.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Almost 2 Years

2010-07-05T20:03:00.000-07:00

Well folks, on the 26th and 27th of this month I'll be celebrating my 2 yr. mark. It's been a sometimes frustrating, but also exciting journey indeed. Do I regret making this decision to get Sisterlocks? Not in your life. This weekend I retightened my own locs, and it only took me from approx. 7 pm, to about 6 am. the following morning, with a break of about 2 hours in between. Yes I stayed up all night doing it because I wasn't sleepy. Anyway, even with the clipping of my permed ends, I have experienced so much growth. A few locs have sealed, but of course majority have not. I was initially told my Therza 2 years ago that it would probably take 3 yrs. to be fully loc'd. Well looks like she was right. It's ok though because I love my hair. I love the ringlets on some ends, the fuzzy ends of others, but those straight permed one's will be defeated! LOL. Anyway, I hope that my journey over the past two years have inspired others to take that leap, especially those who start off will a lot of permed hair like I did. I think I understand myself and my hair so much more with taking this journey. This journey has also sparked other journey's too, like my weightloss. So far I have lost 40 lbs. since the end of February this year. I feel liberated by my hair, and renewed by my size. God bless you all and don't forget....

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Q & A Temporary Color Spray

2010-05-10T12:41:00.000-07:00

Ok, isn't this special. I'm posting two days in a row. So I had two questions regarding my last post. One was what did I use for the color. I purchased the product from Sally's Beauty Supply. It's called "Streaks 'N Tips" Temporary Highlight Spray in red. I think it cost about $6 or so. Since it's in a spray can, you can control how much cover you want and where.

The other question was how long I've maintained this look. Well I only purchased the product yesterday. I used the product last night, and today was the first full day out and about with this look. It's quite humid here in Austin, but the color has not bled on my clothes or flaked off. We'll see how the rest of the week goes. Also, someone who possibly sprays more of the product over the hair and closer to their collar may be able to determine if the color rubs off. I didn't notice anything on my scalf that I wear at night, if that helps. Also I didn't retouch my curls when I did my grooming/maintenance. Therefore the curls I have now are leftovers from using my Caruso rollers last week.

Thanks for the compliments ladies. Keep posting responses. I love it!

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Almost 21 Months

2010-05-09T18:15:00.001-07:00

I am so shameful : ) I'm so behind and slacked on my blog. Life has been so busy that my blog was put on the back burner. Well this post is to help make up for that. Yep, got pictures this time. Let me start by saying a couple of weeks ago I decided to do my own retightening. It took me two nights over the weekend. Went pretty smooth. Saved myself some duckets too, yal know what I mean. Then last weekend I decided to wash my Sisterlocks, but give them a bit of extra TLC. Well I did a stupid thing. I thought since I'm so far into my journey now, that I could just this time, wash without braiding (stopped banding months ago). So I washed with my Sisterlock starter shampoo, still using that. It felt so good to really get in there and wash my hair freely. Then I towel dried it a bit and applied the Sisterlock moisterizer cream mainly to the scalp and the rubbed excess down the locs. I let my hair air dry and later I used my Caruso Steam rollers to put curls in my locs. Well..........next day I noticed bunching in a number of my locs. DANGIT! It didnt' look cute yal, not at all. See I started out with pretty much all my hair going down my back as permed except for about 3 inchs. Well of course I've cut my hair numerous times, including last night to get rid of the permed hair, gradually. Anyway, I had to fix that mess. Pretty much what I did was later in the week, I took down my locs up to where the bunching was. All that hair that was bunched was permed anyway. I braided these back down. Now for the Sisterlock purest, don't get upset with me, but I had to do something and waiting to see my Consultant in four more weeks was out. Then last night, I realized that I needed to just cut some more. I started working on those permed ends. I cut off the parts I braided too. I also realized that instead of grooming those hairs that stick out our locs, they should be treated as gold and reincorporated back in the loc. The top of my head looked a mess this week and I realized that it's because those hairs are sticking out on the top of my head. So what I did was go through my locs and wrap those hairs sticking out right back onto the individual locs. I would say that after doing the front half, and only retightening the front edges, my locs look so beautiful and refreshed. Who would have known that just doing that bit of maintenance which also helps to reinforce the strength of my locs would be just the simple and free thing to do? So yal, here's some pics from last month and today. I used a spray on haircolor that wash's out to just give me a bit of change and have fun since I don't dye my hair. Enjoy, and share what you think of my new maintenance technique.

I Know, I'm Late

2010-04-19T12:09:00.000-07:00

Hello fellow locers and lurkers. I'm late in posting. Life has been hectic with lot's of life challenges and busy, busy, busy with school, work and kids. Last month I also developed walking pneumonia. That really sucked. Now allergies are hitting me up. Oh well. My Sisterlocks are doing there thing. I hope to post some pics soon. I did my own retightening over the weekend. First night took me about 5 hours. The second night about 2 or so. I've also purposely combined a few that were thin. Well that's it. This was a guilt blog more than anything : )

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

18 Months

2010-02-06T20:49:00.001-08:00

I know, I'm a couple weeks late posting this. I have passed the 18 month mark in my journey. I remind myself that it's truly a journey. I have experienced a few weeks locs, but otherwise it's all good. I'm still enjoying my Sisterlocks. Not much else to say, but I do have some new pictures for you all. I'll try to be on time when I reach 19 months in a few more weeks.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Happy New Year/17 Months

2010-01-03T08:45:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone!!

I trust that everyone had a great start into the new year. I went into the new year with a new addition to my family. No, I didn't have a baby or adopt one. Two days before Christmas I got married! Yes, I'm now a Mrs. It's quite an adjustment. I think transitioning into Sisterlocks was easier, LOL. Anyway.......back to hair.

At my retightening appt. before Christmas Gregory told me I'm about 88% locked. That is exciting news. I've notice so much change over the past 17 months. It's been amazing with the changes and feeling the difference in my hair. I still every now and then cut some ends off that are permed. I don't have much left from what I can tell. The down side is that a few locks in the front had to be cut down due to damage. Not sure if the grooming contributed to thinning in areas or too much manipulation when doing bantu knots. Therefore, I'm more careful with my locks now. I don't plan to get another grooming for a long time. During my grooming several months ago a lock was damaged and had to be repaired temporarily. Do I think grooming is a necessary or good thing? Not sure. What are your thoughts? Have you had a grooming that went bad? Were electric clippers used, or scissors?

Til later,

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Trying Something New/Style

2009-12-15T20:15:00.000-08:00

So what do you all think of this look I tried for a formal event? I was just messing around trying to experiment, so it's not perfect, but not too bad.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Missed Post 16 Months

2009-12-13T17:25:00.000-08:00

Hello fellow lockers and lurkers. I must apologize for missing my 16 month post last month. Things have been crazzzzzzzyyyyy! LOL I will just say this. After the 26th of this month I'll have a wonderful update for you all. It will be a surprise so hold onto your seats folks. In regards to my Sisterlocks, I have a retightening appointment next Sunday. I normally don't schedule my appointments on Sunday but that's the only date I could get in regards to the announcement I'll post later on. Last month I retightened my own locs. I think every other month I'll continue to do so. It helps save money and increases my skill level.

Till later,

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

15 Months

2009-11-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

Howdy loc'd brothers and sisters. Last week marked my 15 month locaversary. Yep, things are moving right along. I have noticed that my sisterlock loc's are maturing quite well. Now everything isn't quite perfect though. I have noticed a few locs around my front hairline that are a bit thin along a specific length of the loc. They don't look like they will break, but I do prefer my thicker locs over these few. Matter of fact I love my medium and large locs over the small. So has the years go by, I'll keep monitoring these few locs for a possible combo. For now though, it's all good. If anyone who's had their Sisterlocks for a while experienced a few thin locs, please share what you did or didn't do.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Month 14

2009-10-02T20:29:00.000-07:00

Last weekend marked 14 months into my Sisterlock journey. I'm still clipping away a few permed ends. I find they are mostly towards the front top area. Otherwise I think about 95% or more has curly q's on the end. At my last retightening I asked Gregory Day if they would lock, and he stated they would. I'm excited to notice the change in my locks, they are getting thicker and feeling more like locks instead of that pattern feel through the length of the locks. I still lurk some of my favorite blogs to see others journey's as well and learn from them. I even try to do a little styling here and there after watching a few YouTube vid's. I'm not as talented as some of these wonderful lockers, but I try. My next retightening is later this month. By that time I will have approached month 15. Time is flying by. As each month passes during this journey, I'm also getting closer to earning my bachelor degree in Psychology. Therefore I'm on multiple journeys. I'm also getting more serious about my health and exercising more and eating less bad foods. I think all these things will help my overall self and I'm excited about it. Have a few more pics for you all. If you are researching locking, Sisterlocks is a wonderful method, but their are other methods too. I suggest doing your research, ask questions, lurk blogs and do all the mentioned again. This is a lifestyle change, not just a hairstyle, at least for me it is. I'm proud to be a woman of color and I embrace every thing about myself.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Month 13

2009-09-05T18:56:00.000-07:00

I hit 13 months into my journey on the 26th of August. I had a retightening appt. Thursday, and my locs are coming right along. At this appt. I had my first grooming. If you don't know what a grooming is, it's where each loc is taken and the loose hairs sticking out are cut off. You can think of it as cleaning up the locs. One must be very careful to not cut INTO the body of the loc, otherwise the loc could weaken. Also more ends were cut off. I'm getting closer to being completely natural as we get rid of permed ends. I'm not totally ready to cut them all off, due to wanting to preserve some length. I have noticed that my locs are really trying to mature as the months pass by. Other than that, nothing else new except just enjoying the journey.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Retightening

2009-08-09T17:55:00.000-07:00

Hello loc family! This month just on a whim, I sat up last Saturday night and started retightening the back half of my head with my Nappyloc tool. I didn't plan it but just did it. It felt good to to this since I scheduled my next retightening for September which would make two months since my last one. Then I kept working on my loc's through the week, until........... I dropped my tool down my sink. Now I knew better than to stand in front of my sink doing that. What in the world! LOL Oh well, I went ahead and ordered another. Should have it sometime this upcoming week. Also I realized after my Friday shampoo, that I need to order more Starter Shampoo. I know some ladies have mentioned that it didn't work for them for one reason or another, but I haven't had any problems.

What I have noticed about my Sisterlocks, is that it truly has loc'd over this past year. My middle child and I just measured a few of my locs and came up with 4 - 4 1/2 inches loc'd. So that's the growth in one year. Then I have approx. 3 inches to on some 4 inches of permed ends. My hair if pulled down hits my shoulder since my little chop July 3rd. So when I hit my 2nd year anniversary, I think I'll have about 8 inches loc'd. Oh gosh that will be so nice. Hopefully my then, after a final cut of all permed ends, then the ends will seal, and all the locs will hang straight. Due to having the different textures I don't freestyle. Anyone with permed ends freestyling? If so be sure to comment so I can check out your blog with pictures. My hair is so thick, I haven't even tried to see what it would look like. I continue to curl with Bantu Knot's, Caruso Steam Roller, or due Braidouts.

A final note. I'm considering having my middle daughter who just turned 9 last weekend, get Sisterlocks. Her natural hair hangs down her back when pulled straight. I've talked to her about it. She's quite tenderheaded and hair combing if not straightened out with a flat iron is a whole lot of drama. If anyone has loc'd their daughter's hair, let me now how it's gone. I have read a few people's blogs about their little girls journeys. All I can say is wonderful! Well that's it for now yal. I included a crazy picture I did with my Photo Booth program on my Macbook laptop. It was fun. See....Sisterlocks look good in all kinds of ways. LOL

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

1 YEAR!!!!

2009-07-26T14:00:00.000-07:00

Hey yal I just wanted to acknowledge that today marks my 1 year anniversary of being Sisterlock'd. It has been an awesome journey so far. I'm amazed to observe the transformation of my hair into beautiful locks. Also my mind set has changed on how I think and feel about myself. I love being a part of the Sisterlock family, and I so, so appreciate Dr. Cornwell for creating this type of locking process. I look forward to continuing my journey into year two. Gosh I think I'm looking great now, wow, what will I look like in the next couple of months? LOL

I also want to acknowledge Therza Yearwood who maintained my Sisterlocks for most of this period until her move back to Memphis. I want to thank Gregory Day for now keeping my Sisterlocks looking happy and healthy. Thank you to the Lock It Up group and the Sisterlock group on Facebook. Thank you to all the ladies who have been viewing my journey and encouraging me during the difficult period in January after the passing of my friend. Thank you all, and let's keep locking!!!!

Love, peace and no hair grease

Pictures from the meetup

2009-07-19T14:42:00.000-07:00

I promised pictures and here they are. We had ladies with Sisterlocks, Traditional locks, Twists, locks started by two strand twists, and one with an Afro puff. We also had two permies which was my mom and oldest daughter. Oh and one of the attendees brought her pretty daughter as well. We all shared about our journeys and discussed other things on our minds about our natural hair experiences. I also gave out bags with gifts donated by some great vendors. We appreciate all the vendors that were represented. I'll list them below. We plan to gather together again August 29th to view a film called "400 Years Without A Comb". We'll also talk about our products and share any natural product recipes with one another. It will be potluck style. Yal, those who know me, know I don't cook. (LOL) I'll have to hit my mom up to make something for me.

Vendor List:
African Visions - Unique African Decor/Natural Hair & Skin Care (Texas) www.youbuttabelieveit.com 512-821-1824
Ododo Originals - Beaded Flower Accessories/ododooriginals.etsy.com
Tomoka's Twists - Fashion Accessories/www.tomokatwists.com
Lock Scrunchie - The Classy Trend of Hair Accessories/www.lockscrunchie.com

Ladies, let's support our black business owners by purchasing their products. We must uplift them, and in return, we will look fabulous!

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Sisterlock/Natural Hair Gathering

2009-07-18T21:33:00.000-07:00

Ok, just a quick note. We had the gathering today in Austin, TX. We had a great turnout. Will post pictures tomorrow. For those who couldn't make it, we are planning our next gathering for August 29th of one of the attendees. It will be a potluck style and we're planning some fun things to do. Update tomorrow.

Love, peace and no hair grease.

A Little Styling

2009-07-12T19:20:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

Well I tried something a little different. I'm enjoying my shorter look, and liking how sassy it looks. So after washing my hair last night I decided to make a slight change with my braidout style. I still braided my hair into bundles, then took my Lock Loops and wrapped them going up for a flip type of look. When I got up this morning I took them down, but my hair was still a bit wet and the ends looked a hot mess. So I took my Caruso Steam Rollers out and rolled my hair up. Turned out really full.

On another note, the Austin Sisterlock/Natural Hair Gathering is this coming Saturday, July 18th at 12pm. I hope to see a nice group of ladies (see info in previous post). I met Naijean today whom has been helping me with organizing this event. She has the most beautiful set of long Sisterlocks. She has been maintaining them herself. She is truly doing her thang! So I hope to post after Saturday, some pictures of the event. Also, those of you in the Dallas area, if you are planning your next gathering soon, let me know... I would love to drive up and participate.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

A Little of this and that

2009-07-08T17:59:00.000-07:00

So one of my guilty pleasures is watching YouTube videos on all things of interest, especially locs. I don't care what type of locs, Sisterlocks, traditional, braidlocks, whatever. What I DON'T like is when someone titles their video as Sisterlocks, and low and behold they don't have Sisterlocks. It's something they did all on their own, and God bless them for being able to DIY, but don't fake the funk. Just call it what it is and be proud. This is how I feel yal, I respect all flavors of locs. My issue is that I went to a trained individual who attended the official Sisterlock training so that I could get Sisterlocks. I paid the price and keep them maintained by someone who has over 14 yrs of experience doing Sisterlocks using the Sisterlock tools. Ok, enough of that, just annoys the heck out of me.

A patient came into my office today for her daughter to be seen (work in a dental practice), and she said something like this, "You still have your Sistercurls." Yal I thought that was so funny. I told her it was all right, that yes I still have my Sisterlocks, but yep, they are curly. She's a cool lady. I even invited her to come to the Austin Sisterlock/Natural hair meetup for next Saturday.

Final thang, yal I love this new cute short look. I think it's sassy. This will though be the last cut for a while as my locs grow over the next year. Will see when it's time to cut more permed hair off which is mostly towards the front. The back is pretty much all natural except for approx. about an inch. on some. I love being natural, it's so liberating and makes me proud to be a black woman. I have all my life battled my hair, even with my grandmother pressing it out with a hotcomb sometimes. I've always had lengthy hair, but never truly been happy with it. Please tell me why we black women put perms in our hair to "straighten" it, but then turn around and add hairweave to add thickness??? Crazy huh? I can't help but laugh at that thought. Like the patient's mom today thought maybe I had added hair to my head because it's so full. I told her no, it's all mine. She said her's is so thin. I said it's thin because you put perms on it. She agreed to that. She also said "you have good hair", I told her.... good hair is healthy and clean. She smiled on that. Come on ladies, let's stop fighting our natural beauty and accept ourselves as God intended, NATURAL. You're beautiful, I'm beautiful, whether your hair is thick, thin, short or long. It's all a gift from the Almighty.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Chop Chop

2009-07-03T14:38:00.000-07:00

So fellow ladies, gentlemen, lurkers, and bloggers, I have just come home from my retightening appt. I feel refreshed and anew. At this appointment, well...... I allowed Gregory Day to do a little chop chop of my permed ends. Look at the difference below from prior to the appointment and now. I like my new chin length look. Of course Gregory would have liked to cut more of the permed hair off, but I just couldn't do it. This was a big step for me already. For those of you who started with permed ends, share your journey of how you have dealt with cutting them off, or if you still have them and why.

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Retightening

2009-07-03T09:49:00.000-07:00

This is just a quick note to just say I'll be leaving to my retightening appointment in a few minutes. So later on I'll post a new picture or two. I will though post this some what of a close-up of my Sisterlocks.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

11 Months

2009-06-27T13:23:00.000-07:00

Well folks, I'm now 11 months into my journey. I can't believe how fast the year has gone by. I won't post a picture this time, but will next weekend after my retightening on Friday. Not much else to say other than I'm excited about the response of the ladies in Texas who are planning to attend the Austin Sisterlock/Natural Hair gathering scheduled for July 18th at The Cheesecake Factory, 12 pm. We have some great vendors that have donated their products for give-a-ways. Awesome, awesome! So if you live in Texas, you won't want to miss out on our first event. Send me an email at Lalaboobaby@yahoo.com if interested in attending or if you are a vendor and want to get your products in the hands of some wonderful ladies that will help your business grow.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Styling Supplies

2009-06-16T16:44:00.000-07:00

So I was asked how I achieve my hairstyles. Well let me tell you first that I'm no true stylist. I like things simple and quick. Some things I do to achieve my curls is doing Bantu Knots. I was my hair and then let it air dry a bit. While still wet I put it up in Bantu Knots all over. Then the next morning I take it down and fluff. Another thing I use is Lock Loops. Now months ago I used them for the first time, and hated the tight curls (look for earlier post of the loops). I didn't take a picture of the finished products because I wasn't pleased. Now that my locks have fatten up quite a bit I like the results better. I also do braidouts. I'm sure you all know how to do that, if not let me know or check out YouTube, plenty of videos of lady's braidouts and tutorials. Last and my favorite is using my Caruso Steam Roller system. I learned about this item before I had my installation last year by reading Brunsli's blog. I went right out before my installation and purchased one. I have since replaced my original since it fizzled out. To achieve the curls in the previous post from Monday, I put my hair up in a ponytail. Then I used the medium size steam rollers. In the front I left out some hair for bangs and used a large roller. I actually slept in the rods, which usually isn't necessary if you have enough time in the morning to do it. Otherwise I take it down in the morning and have curls that usually last more than a week. If a few locks straighten out, I just spiff it up with the steam rollers. I also have pictured some of the things I like to use sometimes to accesorize my hair. I didn't take a picture of my headbands because their nothing special. I do love my Tomoka Twists (thanks Carmen). Well I hope that answers the question on how I style. I have done some updo's too, and they are simple too. Mainly using a skinny scrunchie to hold the hair up that was previously curled with the steam rollers.

Love, peace and no hair grease.

No Comb

2009-06-15T15:22:00.000-07:00

So it just struck me that I haven't used a comb on my hair in almost 11 months. So liberating. My hair is clean and the most healthy it's ever been. I look at my 16 year old daughter and wish she would go natural. Alas, she won't even consider it. She believes wearing a weave is where it's at. My middle child Olivia who is 8 yrs. old though has all natural hair. I swear to never put chemicals in her hair although she's quite tender headed. Then I have my son Anthony. Well since he's a boy I just keep his hair cut which makes him look so handsome at the tender age of 4. I hope to change the mindset of my oldest as she see's how wonderful natural hair is and hair that is healthy will grow with no hair weave necessary.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Braidout and Sisterlock Meetup

2009-06-14T21:13:00.000-07:00

Howdy folks,

Just a little update on my journey to fabulosity (LOL). My Sisterlocks are doing their thang. I did have a little slip out in the front along the hairline in one spot. It was a tiny lock where my hair has been growing back from my braided period. It's ok though. At my retightening next month I'll get it fixed. I'm almost 11 months into my journey. I can't believe how time has flown by. I can't seem to keep my hands out of my hair and continue to get compliments. The pictures above are from a 1 1/2 week braidout. Loved it!

Now onto other things. The Austin Sisterlock/Natural Hair meetup is scheduled for July 18th. I'm hoping to have a great turnout. So if you are in Texas and reading this or know someone who's in Texas who would be interested in attending. Let them know about this fabulous event.

Date: July 18th
Place: The Cheesecake Factory - Arboretum/NW Austin
Time: 12 pm

Love Peace and no hair grease.

Sisterlock/Natural Hair Gathering

2009-05-31T21:53:00.000-07:00

I'm in the planning process for a meet-up July 18th. This will be the first time for me organizing such an event. Anyone reading my blog is open and welcome to participate and offer suggestions. I'll be keeping everyone posted via my blog, Lock It Up group and email to those who write me there. I look forward to finalizing the event in the next couple of weeks. Oh, I'm open to vendors coming that have products for natural hair and body too. So come on folks, let's get Austin, TX. on fire for locs/natural hair of any type, and have a great time. Depending on how things go, we may do it again.

P.S. Folks from San Antonio, Houston, Dallas and surrounding areas are more than welcome to come.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Retightening

2009-05-16T22:30:00.000-07:00

I had my first retightening session with Gregory Day at his South Austin salon. Let me tell you, it was a relaxing experience. I was able to read my book on my Kindle and we chatted a bit here and there. No pain, and he even set his salon chair to recline back when he was ready to retight the top front. Ok, that was nice yal. I almost thought I would fall asleep. Yes his charge is higher per hour than the previous consultants I have been too, but it was well worth it. He finished my session in 2 hours and also cut some of my permed ends off. We'll gradually cut them off at each session. I was just thinking that my next retightening is scheduled for early July which will be a few short weeks shy of my 1 year lockaversary. I can't believe how fast time has flown by. I'm considering at that appointment to have him give me a little grooming, or the next appt. after that. Overall my SL experience has been positive. I now have had two great people maintain my hair which is Therza whom again moved back to Memphis, and now Gregory.

Oh on that point I will say their are some differences between having Therza maintain my hair compared to Gregory. With Therza it was like hanging out with an old girlfriend. She is good at what she does, and we chatted the whole time about life. With Gregory, he's good with 14 yrs. of experience, but since he's a guy, mostly I just relaxed and read my book. We chatted some, but not the same as with Therza. I'm not complaining though because sometimes I prefer to just sit back and relax without conversating. I work all week and like that little bit of pampering and peace. Yal know what I'm talking about. So now I have a man who takes care of my nails, and another my hair. LOL

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Differences in my SL's

2009-05-13T17:51:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I wanted to show some of the differences in the length part of my SL's. Remember I started off with only a few inches of natural and the rest of my length past my shoulders is permed. The picture I'm showing demonstrates the differences in some of my ends. Some are curly que's, and others have ends that are straight but with the upper portion expanding open. Of course these permed ends won't lock, therefore eventually will be cut off, but gradually. I have approx. 3 inches or so of my hair locked now. We all know that this is a journey which I'm enjoying seeing what my hair is doing and will do. One day I'll have a head full of beautiful locks like so many of my beautiful sistas.

Love, peace and no hairgrease

Mother's Day

2009-05-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

Just posting an updated picture from Mother's Day. I was going to where my Sisterlocks down and had put lots of curls in the night before. In the morning, well it looked cute up in a curly pony and sweeping one side up and letting curls dangle down on the other. What yal think? : )

Question Answered

2009-04-26T06:57:00.000-07:00

A lady asked a question on my blog about Sisterlocks. Her name is Cdominica. I'm feel humbled to be asked a question in that I'm only 9 months into my journey and still read so many of my favorites to become knowledgable about this journey. Anyway, she wanted to know about not having to cut her permed hair off. On the Sisterlock website you'll have to search a bit to find the FAQ section. Here is the excerpt from the Sisterlock website to answer that question:

Q: Do I have to cut my relaxer off in order to get my hair done in Sisterlocks?
One of the great things about Sisterlocks is that you don't have to cut off your relaxer in order to start them. All you need is 1½ inches of new growth at the scalp to start the locks. Then you can trim the relaxed ends gradually over time as your natural locks grow in. There are some things to watch for here though. For example, if you have a relaxer you know that when you let your natural hair grow in at the scalp you increase the chances of breakage. You will need to take measures to protect your hair while you're letting the natural hair grow in. Some options during this transition period are: · braided extensions; · natural braided styles; · frequent moisturizing and conditioning; · always dampening the hair before combing through it; · gently finger-combing only for de-tangling and styling. Once the locks are put in, work closely with your Consultant to ensure that the relaxed ends stay as smooth as possible during your transition into fully natural locks.

That should answer your question. Also be mindful that some consultant may require a little more natural hair to start the locking process. I am now 9 months into my journey and will have my new consultant Gregory Day start cutting an inch every now and then off my past the shoulder length hair. In my pictures it looks like my hair is shoulder length, but it's actually longer than that when pulled straight down. Also I had decided to DIY. I purchased the Nappylock tool and have retightened some of my locks. I accidently combined some and had to call Gregory Day to fix them. He did on Friday and we had a mini-consultation. He has 14 years of experience providing Sisterlock services. Since my wonderful consultant Therza moved back to Memphis, I had to find an alternative or DIY. I will still keeping working on doing some DIY, but will see Gregory Day to do most of the maintaining. He's no longer listed on the Sisterlock website. I asked him why, on Friday and he just decided not to recert. His shop is located in South Austin and named "Your Best Image", 512-280-3731. His shop is nice and very pleasant. After he fixed my combined locks for me, he retightened them with his Sisterlock tool, can you say gentle hand. That is key folks because my last retightening session (not with Gregory Day or Therza), was so painful and that was part of the reason why I had considered doing my own retightenings.

So hopefully this helps answer this lady's questions. Good luck to you on starting your own journey. Any one else living in the Austin and surrounding areas, we should consider a natural hair meet up. I know on the Lock It Up yahoo group, folks all over the place have done these meet ups and have a great time. Austin needs to step up (LOL).

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Just A Picture

2009-04-04T19:47:00.000-07:00

I have said my hair doesn't look any different, but I do have this one picture for you all. Took this one about a month ago. Hope you all like.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

My Birthday Gift

2009-04-04T19:40:00.000-07:00

This post is not Sisterlock related. I just wanted to share what my friend (yes a guy), got me for my birthday. I will be a year older on the 21st of this month, but got the gift a bit early. It's my very first, ever Dooney and Bourke handbag. I picked it out and now that it's hear, I love it! It will look good as an accessory with my Sisterlocks (LOL). I plan to get a matching wallet by this summer. I did find a matching cover for my Amazon Kindle (ereader) on eBay. I plan to order that for myself this coming week. So that's about it yal. Oh, on the issue of probably starting to do my own retightenings, I may try after my next visit on May 2nd with a new consultant. We'll see. Of course I'll keep you all posted.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

8 Months

2009-03-26T16:20:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

I am now 8 months into my journey and my Sisterlocks are coming along. I had my retightening appt. last weekend. Since my consultant moved back to Memphis (miss her so much) I had to see someone else. Let me say that I won't be going back to that person. It was the most painful retightening ever and it took way too long. I'm used to my appts. taking only about 2 hours, to the very longest 2 1/2 hours and pain free and pleasant. Well this wasn't the case. So....... I made my next retightening appt. with the only other person here in Austin. His hourly charge is steep but I have no other solutions. I just can't see driving all the way to the Dallas or Houston areas where they have more consultants and trainees. I have also considered learning how to retighten myself, but I have arthritis my in left shoulder, so that doesn't appeal to me. If I ever get desperate, I may have to just suffer through the DIY. I watched a video on a fellow lockers site (sorry I don't know the name) and she made her own tool with a paperclip. I tried it and it works. She shows how to do the 4 point rotation with ease. Anyway yal....pray for me (LOL). I did call my previous consultant in Memphis and told her I miss her. I'm happy that she's doing well. If anyone here is from Memphis reading my blog, yal are blessed to have Therza back.

Peace, love, and no hair grease.

Changing of the guards.

2009-02-14T21:36:00.000-08:00

Hi folks. My SL consultant called me a few weeks ago and informed me she's moving back to Memphis. I had mentioned last year at one point she was moving back, but ended up staying. This time it's official. I will miss Therza very much. She has been a wonderful consultant and friend. We have shared many thoughts together during my retightenings. Wouldn't you know it, I didn't take a picture of her after my last session with her today. She is though on the Sisterlock website gallery wearing a purple/pinkish outfit with headpiece. It's an older picture of her, since her locks are much longer now than in that picture. Memphis is getting back a wonderful, professional consultant. I will be going back to the original consultant that did my install. I believe she's still a trainee. Therza did visit with her recently. Therza has been letting the local consultants know that her clients may come to them. As far as I know their are only two here in the Austin, TX. area. One is no longer listed on the SL site, but I believe he was previously a master trainer. The other is the one I mentioned. Maybe I'll post some new pictures again soon. Nothing new happening. I am heading towards my 7th month. Gosh time is flying. Till later....., oh and I want to express my gratitude to you lady's that have either posted on my blog or sent personal emails to encourage me during my time of grieving. Your words of love have meant so much to me. Thank you. I'll share one picture of my friend James at my grandmother's house before he was diagnosed with colon cancer. Folks, love much and cherish life.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Late Post

2009-01-24T22:25:00.000-08:00

Well folks, I'm sorry. I was suppose to post some new pics after my retightening on January 3rd. Unfortunetly after my retightening session, on my way to my mom's I got a terrible call informing me my very good friend had died. James was more than my friend, he was family. He had been battling colon cancer and issues related to it since 2007. His passing came as a complete surprise, especially since I had just spoken to him the previous Sunday briefly due to him telling me he would call me back since he was talking to his mother. Anyway... I just haven't felt like blogging. My heart has been so heavy with the loss of my friend. I can't even bare to remove his number off my speed dial on my iPhone. I loved him very much. I try to lift myself up by saying that one day I'll see him again in glory.

Ok, on to something more positive. Next week I will have been on lockdown for 6 months. How exciting is that! My SL consultant did acknowledge that my hair is starting to lock, but......of course I still have a whole lot of perm on the length of my hair. This is and will continue to be a journey, a long one. I've been debating about if I'll want my consultant to start cutting my permed ends when I reach my 1 yr. lockerversary this summer. Then I think, well I'll just leave my hair alone and let it do it's thang without touching it. For those of you who have started with permed ends, share if you will or have cut off your permed ends, or if you are debating the issue like I am. Otherwise enjoy the pictures above. I did a little styling for my friends funeral. Turned out pretty cute for my first updo.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

P.S. Rest in peace James, I love you.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T18:03:00.000-08:00

Well first I want to give out Happy New Year shout out to everyone. I am praying that everyone experiences some wonderful blessings this year and beautiful growing locks. I am officially 5 months locked. I don't have a picture because I don't notice visually any difference. On the other hand when I run my fingers along the first couple of inches from the roots, I'm feeling some locking folks! That's right. What I mean is that I'm starting to feel on some of them less of a pattern feel and it's thicker than the rest of the length. Remember I started out with a lot of length going down my back that was still permed. I only had about an inch or two that was natural. On that note as well, as of this month it has been two years since my last perm. Gosh that makes me feel so good knowing that I haven't put that junk in our hair and bloodstream.

About two weeks ago I got my Sisterlock Welcome certificate. It took a long time for that to show up. Although it's just a piece of paper, I felt like I had truly accomplished something by having that in my hand. A sense of pride of first doing something wonderful for myself, being an example to my daughters of how beautiful being natural is, and belonging to a wonderful group of locked individuals (braidlocks, SL's, traditional, palm, etc).

This Saturday I have a retightening appt., after I come home I will try to take remember to take some pictures. Otherwise God bless you all.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Yes they are.....

2008-12-02T18:57:00.000-08:00

Ok, I went to Sally's Beauty Supply to purchase a replacement Caruso Steam Curler set. My current one fizzled out on me. While waiting in line I heard a voice behind me ask, "How long have you had your Sisterlocks?" Oh my gosh! I couldn't believe that someone knew I had Sisterlocks. It was the greatest feeling. Anyway we chatted for a bit. She's a young lady deciding about getting locks. I told her about who does Sisterlocks here in the Austin area and about the Sisterlocks website. The other lady with her said, "Your hair is beautiful." I was beaming yal. I told her thank you and went my merry way. Gosh I wish I had one of my consultants cards at that moment, but didn't. So folks, feel free to share how you felt when someone noticed you had Sisterlocks.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

4th Retightening

2008-11-28T21:49:00.001-08:00

So fellow lockers......my appt. is in the morning. I enjoy my appts. I can't believe it's been four months since my installation. I truly love my hair. It's so freeing to be able to get up in the morning and not have much to do. I'm amazed that I don't use any products on my locks other than the Sisterlocks Starter Shampoo.

I hope to make a post after my visit tomorrow to give any updates. Till then......

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

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Few Update Pictures

2008-11-17T17:49:00.000-08:00

So by next weekend I will have been Sisterlock'd for four months. I'm still in love with them even with my permed ends. I purchased another Tomoka Twist. It's so cute! I still would like to get some Brunsli hairties. I hope she get's them up for sale soon. Anyway here's a few pictures for you. I tried to do a texture pic, but my camera on my Macbook only does a so-so close up job.

Three Months

2008-11-01T20:40:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

I have officially been locked three months now and still loving my Sisterlocks. I of course have lock envy when I'm checking out some of my favorite blogs and discovering new ones. What a great community we have in the lock world. Yesterday I did my early voting and saw a young lady with locks. They were small and beautiful. I wanted to ask her if they were Sisterlocks, or locks created by braids or some other form, but too chicken to approach her. Oh well. I don't have any new pictures for yal this time because I don't look any different. I still mainly wear my locks curled either by doing Bantu Knots, or my Caruso Steam Curlers. I have been using a clarifying shampoo since I was told I could, but don't quite like it. So I went ahead tonight and ordered two bottles of the Sisterlock Starter shampoo. I say...stick to what works whatever that may be. I know that some ladies had itching issues with the SL shampoo, but it works great for me. I actually had itching issues with the clarifying shampoo. I think it was too drying.

So last weekend I had my retightening appointment and all is going well. My consultant says that my hair is beautiful, and I agree (LOL). My hands are always in my hair, yep I got the desease (LOL). I went ahead and pre-scheduled my next two retightenings, so I'm set for the rest of the year. Well folks if I do some new look I'll take pictures for you.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

I got it, I got it!!!

2008-10-16T16:24:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm so, so happy this evening. My Tomoka's Twist and earring set was in my mail. Ok let me tell you that I so, so love this set called Toffee II. This is quality craftmanship ladies and gentlemen (LOL). Oh yes, I will be making more purchases from Carmen. This girl has it going on with her products. Well with no further ado,take a look at my picture.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Made a purchase

2008-10-12T10:47:00.000-07:00

I don't have anything new to share. SL's still doing their thang. My still wash every week, but ran out of the SL starter shampoo. So I purchased a clarifying shampoo for now. I was told by my consultant that using a clarifying was ok. So Friday night I used it and I experienced no slippage. Seems to work just as well as the starter shampoo, but easier on the pocket book. I'm sure I will continue to use the SL shampoo too, but will use what I have for now.

Now another purchase I just made a few minutes ago is my first Tomoka Twist set. I can't wait till it arrives. When it does then I'll have a new picture for you guys. Anway, that's it for now. Look for a new posting hopefully by the end of the week.

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Brunsli Hairties

2008-09-28T19:57:00.000-07:00

Ok, I was looking at an old post off Maryee's blog. She was showing off her Brunsli Hairtie. I am so loving it. I read Brunsli's page often. Unfortunetly I'm wanting one of her hairties, but none have been for sale in a long time. From reading her post, her mom was running the store, but has been very busy. Brunsli, if you every read my blog, girl hook a sista up with your store on ebay. I want to purchase. Your hairties I've seen on folks blogs are gorgeous. Now that I'm so loving my baby SL's I'm wanting to try different things to accessorize my hair. I plan to make a purchase from Carmen too. Hopefully in two weeks, I'll purchase one of her set's that has the matching earrings and hair accessory. I think it's great that those who have the skills and talent know how to make items for us lockers. Oh I've included a picture of my nice clean "kitchen", LOL.

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Consultant is leaving

2008-09-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. I just got home from my second retightening. I got the news that my consultant is leaving Texas and going back to Tennessee. I'm heartbroken. She's an excellent certified consultant. I wish I had more time to experience her expertise. I am grateful for being able to get my hair retightened before she leaves. We have tentatively scheduled another retightening for next month. I'll be calling her in two weeks to see if we'll be keeping that appointment. She did give me a card for another person that used to be listed on the Sisterlock site. He's not on there anymore, but I have heard through the grapevine that he's good and has many years of experience. He's actually the one I called last year when I was in my research phase for Sisterlocks. I did give him a call on my way home to inquire on his pricing for retightenings....wow was I shocked! He charges $50 an hour. Goodness! Oh well, if I must pay it to get the job done, then I will. My retightening today only took 2 1/2 hours at $30 an hour. See my reason for the price shocker? Anyway, I've been keeping my hair regimen easy. I shampoo with the starter shampoo once a week. Then after taking the bands and braids out, I separate. I let it air dry a bit, then put my hair in Bantu Knots. The next morning I take the Bantu's out and have curls that last me all week till I wash again. I haven't been using my Caruso's unless a curl goes straight on me. Well that's it, check out my fresh pictures taken a few minutes ago.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Been A While

2008-09-20T21:13:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone. I know it's been a few weeks since my last post. I've been so busy with school back in session. So I won't post as often as I would like. With working full time, attending school and being a mom, my plate is quite full. So in regards to my SL's they are doing fine. I haven't noticed any changes, so I have no pictures for you. This coming weekend will be my second retightening. I'm looking forward to it.

Do pray for my loctician as her husband suffered a stroke the other week. My heart goes out to her during this difficult time for her and her husband. Well folks, I hope to give you a better post next week.

Love, peace, and no hair grease.

Suspense Is Over

2008-08-30T22:07:00.000-07:00

Ok folks, so I kept yal in suspense all week long. I'll be nice and tell you what's up. I was concerned about some of the sizing and parting of my locks. I had some issues resolved at my retightening, then after leaving noticed another issue with a lock and that more of locks that needed splitting weren't. So after one lock issue was resolved during the week, I got well.......concerned. So take into consideration that I'm using a trainee who has over all done a great job and is very, very nice. Anyway I called the original SL consultant who is certified and talked to her about my concerns. She encouraged me to inform my consultant about my concerns which I did to a point. I scheduled an appointment with the certified consultant for her to look over my locks. See...I can't see the locks on the very top and back. Yal know what I mean. Only way you can see your scalp in those areas well is if someone helps by holding a mirror or taking pictures for you to view. Well I don't have anyone to help me on either of those fronts. So today I went for my appointment. She looked through my locks and listened to my concerns. She told me with all the hair I have that my consultant actually did a great job. She did notice and agreed some more locks could be split. She also encouraged me regarding the parting concern I had. Pretty much due to the density of my hair (have alot all over the place), that it's ok if some of it's not exactly perfect. She did agree to take some down and split them in the front for me.

I asked her if she felt it was ok that I used the semi-permanent color (used on my front hairline to cover grey). She discourages using anything other than the shampoo and water during the immature period. Well, what's done is done. So in the end, I got the assurance I needed regarding my locks. Now I do feel a little guilty not telling my consultant that I was seeking advice from another, but you know what....it's my hair, right? I have to do what feels right for me. It's my personal journey and I want it to be the best it can be. So I scheduled an appointment with the certified consultant so she can fix me up with the other locks we decided should be split at my 2 month retightening. I bet you want to know when I'll tell my current consultant and what I'll tell her. Well...she's nice and I'll call her this week. Now I'm a kind person, and hate to dissapoint someone or hurt their feelings. So I'm not quite sure how I'll tell her I'm cancelling my scheduled retightening with her. Now I'm not saying I'll never go back to her. In fact I may for the 3rd and rest of my retightenings. We'll see how it goes with the phone call at first. So yal know the news now. Give me your opinion on it all. Have you ran into a similar situation with your SL consultant or had a friend that has. How did they handle it? Oh and just in case you didn't know...I love my SL's!

Love, peace and no hair grease.

New Picture

2008-08-24T19:55:00.000-07:00

So yal I tried something new so excuse the bad parting on my end of the deal. After I took the picture I saw where I made the parting mistake and pulled those baby's to the right lane (LOL). I'm no big hairstylist so I give it a good ol' try. The other thing I noticed after using the semi-permanent color on just the front was that I had some it on my scalp. So if you look closely on the bottom row near my ear close to the front is a black spot, LOL. I just rubbed it off, goodness.

I may have some interesting news to share with yal after this up coming weekend. I think I may have to go on my gut feelings on something. Curious aren't yal? Hmmmmm what could I possibly mean. Well hope to not keep yal in suspense too long. Til later, yal know what I'm about to say............

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Lock Loops, Nope

2008-08-23T20:55:00.001-07:00

Ok so I tried the Lock Loops and didn't like the tight curls. Maybe after my locks mature and grow in length then I'll try them again. For now though I will stick with my Caruso's. One thing I will say positive about the Lock Loops was they were ok to sleep in since I put my hair in two pony tails and then rolled up with the Loops. I'll post a new picture probably tomorrow.

On another note I had my first retightening today with hardly and slippage. My head felt so refreshed afterward. Also my consultant split a few to make them smaller. She gave me the ok to use a semi permanent hair color. I just couldn't stand all the gray hair across my front hairline. I've been using one of those color wands but heck it's hot in Texas, so I sweat it right off. Ok that's it for now.

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Geolocate this post

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Finally Using Them

2008-08-22T18:26:00.000-07:00

Ok folks I just finished washing my SL's and decided to use my Lock Loops. Ok one of the suggestion on Carol's vid on You Tube is to push your thumb through the hole so it's easier to loop the other end in.......My crazy self put my finger all the way through one, LOL. Anyway I prefer to put my hair up in two ponytails, and then roll the ends up. In the morning is my first retightening so my fingers are crossed that this will turn out ok. I love using my Caruso set, but let's see how this turns out. Also I'll tell yal how it was to sleep on them. I was asked that on my comments.Love, peace and no hair grease.

Lock Loops

2008-08-18T16:30:00.000-07:00

Hi SL and locked family. So guess what arrived in the mail today? Yes, I ordered 2 bags of Lock Loops which is 60 loops total. I decided after watching some ladies' You Tube Vid's and reading blogs where the ladies reviewed them. I've been using the Caruso Steam Roller system and really like them. Now I want to try something else because there is no way one can sleep in those hard rollers compared to the Lock Loops from what I've found out. Ok, I haven't used them yet. Probably will before the week is out due to last night I just freshly rolled my hair with the Caruso's. So I'll post pictures when I do use them. If you have used the Lock Loops please feel free to post a comment on them. On another note this weekend will be my first retightening. I mentioned on a previous post that my consultant will split a few that I want smaller. Then I will officially be locked up for 1 month!

Love, peace and no hair grease.

Lock Count Response

2008-08-11T17:10:00.000-07:00

So someone asked today in my comments area what my lock count is. The reason it was asked was because I mentioned on an earlier post that my consultant is going to split some of my locks and make them smaller, (newborn SL's). Ok so I counted approx 307. I have read others blogs and they have mentioned from 400 on up to 600. I think once we split some of mine I still won't be at over 400, which is ok with me. Right now I have a lot of teeny ones. Mine are small, medium and large. I decided that especially a few on the top front that felt a bit on the large size that I want them small only. A few in the back my consultant mentioned she wants to split in the back which is fine with me also. I do know that the more locks you have, the longer your retightening sessions can be. So next weekend on the 23rd will be my appointment and I'm looking forward to seeing my consultant again. I love her personality. So ladies, please share if you with how many locks you have and mention any pros or cons or anything on your mind about it.

Peace, love and no hair grease.

Braid Out

2008-08-02T06:06:00.000-07:00

Ok so I did a braid out after washing my SL's last night. I kind of like it. I put on a headband and pulled it back further on my head. I think this is a great weekend look with some pretty earrings. Also too, it' been almost one full week with my SL's. This has been the easiest hair week ever without extensions and hairline pulling braids. I'm so glad I made this choice. Also possibly next weekend I'll have more SL's to count since my consultant and I agreed to split some that seem a bit large. I think what I want is primarily the small and medium only, no large. This is one of the great things about SL's is that they can in a way be customized to your liking in way of size, and pattern due to need. Although we that have SL's that were created by one woman, we all look a bit different, special. I'm looking forward to the next stage of my journey no matter what comes up. It's natural, it's me, and all beautiful as a nubian black woman. Thank you Dr. Cornwell for creating something that is more than just a hairstyle but something that is liberating to so many of us women.

Peace, love, and no hair grease.

First Wash

2008-08-01T17:56:00.001-07:00

Ok so tonight I washed my SL's for the first time. I did as my consultant instructed. She did tell me I could just bundle them and then band, but I opted for the extra protection in braiding and banding. All went well. I used the SL starter shampoo. Since I banded by turning the ends up and then banding, just pulling the part that I had turned up, the band just came off easily.
Ok so that pick isn't cute, but who's cute when they are going through the wash part, (LOL). After taking down all the braids I let my hair air dry. I'm planning on trying to do a braid out. I'll re-braid my SL's with them being a little wet and then take it down tomorrow. Wish me luck. I know the braid out's look great on the ladies with mature locks, so not sure how this is going to look on my newborn SL's.

Need An Adjustment

2008-07-31T18:49:00.000-07:00

Ok so after counting my SL's last night I noticed a few, just a few needed to be made smaller. Since I'm using a new trainee I'm ok with this small issue. I emailed her and she responded promptly and said that their may be a few in the back that would need to be made smaller also. This is cool. I'm glad that we can communicate with one another and that she's willing to make the necessary adjustments. I wanted to share this with my SL and natural hair community because as I've read a few blogs and discussion board issues, sometimes things may happen. It's so important that instead of getting upset and just running off to find another consultant, to instead talk to them about your concern. Your consultant may not even know their may be an issue if you don't speak up. Give them the opportunity to correct this problem and also learn from the experience. I'm grateful for my consultant and that I am one of her clients that she will have to help perfect her craft. Although just a few SL's will have to be split, heck my hair still looks fab!! I'll of course post a response after we meet up hopefully within the next week.

Love, peace and no hair grease.

New Way To Blog From iPhone

2008-07-30T20:18:00.001-07:00

So I'm posting twice tonight, but wanted to test out a new way to post. So yal can ignore this one. I will say that blogging through my phone will be an added asset for my journal when I'm not home. My locks will be my addiction like my iPhone : )

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Loving My SL's

2008-07-30T16:55:00.000-07:00

So I'm totally enjoying wearing my baby sl's. I feel so free and straight up liberated. It's funny though...I have all this hair but my hair feels so light that I have to look at my reflection to see if I'm ballheaded (LOL). I think this is the best decision for me. A lady on the Lock It Up Group posted about wearing Kinky Twist and a twist coming out. Well Kinky Twist was my main transitional hair style and yes....it tore my hair line up in the front. I have a lot of short hairs across the front but then the rest is long. If you are wearing a transitional style please ask the person doing your hair to take great care in this area.

First Day

2008-07-28T16:29:00.000-07:00

So today was my first day at work with my new SL's. Last night what I did was flat ironed the permed ends and then pulled my hair up in a pony (Salkis Re recommended this). Then I used my Caruso Steam Rollers on the ends. I left them in overnight and took out this morning to beautiful curls. I received so many compliments, even from the ladies at my kids daycare. I'm wearing these locks proudly. I'm excited about seeing my locks change over the next several months and years to come. If you're someone who just recently had your SL's installed, I say congrats. If you're someone who is on the fence I say give it a try, you won't regret it.

PS. I don't have the plucked chicken look due to the density of length of my hair. YIPPY!

SL Birth

2008-07-28T16:19:00.000-07:00

So this weekend July 26th and 27th my SL's were installed over 23 1/2 hours on 9 inches of hair. I was so happy and still am about my locks finally being installed. My consultant is Timothi here in Austin. She's a trainee and I think she did fabulous job. We watched plenty of movies and chatted like old girlfriends. A few times I was able to nod off for a little nap. I brought myself some food but my wonderful consultant also brought us some food and drinks. She's so thoughtful. Enjoy the picks and please feel free to leave comments.

This Weekend

2008-07-24T19:54:00.000-07:00

Well this weekend is the start of my new beginning. Yes....I have my SL installation. I've very excited to start this new chapter in my life. I think I'm well prepared mentally for some ups and downs of my journey. Hopefully the downs will be minimal like....the plucked chicken look. Hopefully due to my lengthy hair and thickness I won't have much the scalp showing. I did purchase this past weekend the Caruso roller set to add some curls sometimes. Also on Sunday my consultant checked my sample locs. She said I had a little slippage put all is quite well. So yal pray for me (LOL) or I should say pray for my consultant because the poor woman has a whole lotta head to loc.

New Consultant

2008-07-13T18:29:00.000-07:00

Ok so I kept checking the SL site for consultants. The reason being was due to cost factor. The consultant I was going to use...well her price was quite steep. One day I checked the listings and saw that now a trainee was listed for Austin (yes Lord). Ok so we talked on the phone and after a few days I called back and scheduled a consult. Well that was for today. She's nice and seems to know her stuff. Very informative. She does traditional locs also. She put in 7 sample locs and gosh they are so tiny. They are in a 4 pattern. She also measured my hair (quite lengthy). So guess what ladies and gents....I'm scheduled for installation on July 26th & 27th. I'm quite excited yal, and a little nervous. Ok she told me what to with my sample locs till we meet briefly after a week for her to check them. Check out my pic below.

Transition Look

2008-06-29T10:11:00.000-07:00

So I decided last year that I would no longer put perms in my head. From the time of being a little girl my mom kept my hair permed. I have always had lengthy thick course hair. As my life has taken on some changes culturally, so has my mind set regarding natural beauty. After stumbling across Sisterlocks, I decided after reading numerous blogs, especially Maryee’s, I knew Sisterlocks were for me. I made a call to a local consultant here in Austin last year from the Sisterlocks list. He and I talked a bit. I wasn’t ready yet last year but decided that I would set up a consultation with him when I was financially ready. Until then my transition style has mainly been Kinky Twist with the added hair. Now that it’s 2008, I’m now ready to have my SL’s installed this summer, but guess what....the local consultant is no longer listed. So now I would have to try finding another consultant. Unfortunately no on else is listed for Austin. All other consultants are mainly in Houston and Dallas. Too long of a drive, but if I had too...I
would choose someone in Houston since I have family there I could stay with over the weekend for my installation. So I started making calls a few months ago to consultants in Houston. They all sounded very nice. For some reason I looked at the SL listings and saw another name and this person is much closer. Thank God! This person is listed for being in Kyle, about 40 minutes away instead 3 hours. The number for the consultant wasn’t local which was weird and it didn’t work. Darnit. She did have an email, so I tried . After about a day I think, she responded, thank you Lord. She not only responded by email but sent a link to her website and gave her telephone number. Matter of fact she’s one of the ladies shown on the SL photo gallery. After talking to her on the phone we scheduled a consultation. When I met her she was very nice and seems very knowledgable. I had been wearing my own hair down for a few weeks so she was able to examine it. She said it was very healthy.

So now it’s July and hopefully I’ll be getting my SL’s next month. I’m very excited. I’m still reading people blogs and checking out the Locked Hair Exchange for peoples updates. So many women have embraced their natural beauty and that in itself is wonderful. I find that when I’m out and about I know right away when someone has locs whether traditional or otherwise. Do you also?

The first two pictures are of my own hair down. I tried to make it decent with a hat on because I was going out. As soon as I go outside the humidity makes it puff up. I have about 5 inches of natural hair and all the rest is still perm. The other pictures are my transitional styles. Mainly I wear the kinky twist. The other is with braids I wore for about 2 months.

June 29, 2008 12:40 PM