Loc Surgery: Combining Locs by Sewing

Hello all! I know it's been forever and a day since I talked about my locs. Let me update you. I am now over ten months into my journey, and I am fully loc'ed. My longest layer of locs reaches my collarbone when stretched while the shortest touches my shoulder. My bangs are uncooperative and reach the bottom of my nose.

On to the point of the post. For the past ten months, I've been living in fear for my skinny locs. My babies range in size dramatically due to the way I started them. It's fine with me, but I don't want to have to worry about losing some of the smaller ones as my hair grows longer. That being said, I decided a few months ago to combine two of my smaller locs in the back of my head. The part closest to the root is already loc'd, but the at bottom was the dreaded two headed dragon. I personally do not want any, so I've been retwising them together and keeping a rubberband on them at all times. About a week ago I gave up hope. A revelation hit me today in class that I could sew the bottom into one loc! It was a brilliant idea! I ran back to my apartment where the roommate who sews and fixes all of the clothes in the apartment was waiting. I immediately asked her to sew my locs together, and she said yes! The process was very intense, so I called it loc surgery. She said it was very interesting and to name the loc after her. Now I have one named loc! Check out the pics of her awesome job!

Before

After

Is my loc growth at a standstill?

*sigh* I've been taking pictures to track growth and doing everything I should be doing, but I feel like my locs aren't growing anymore. I have noticed that my locs have become much more firm. I think my locs are in that compacting stage where they look short. I know a lot is actually happening inside my locs, but I want to see growth! My locs have shrunken so much they do not look like they're growing. There's nothing I want more than long, healthy locs. A growth plateau is not the business. I think I'll be pinning my hair up a lot more often. That way, I can stop focusing so much on length. Y'all know how much length has always meant to me. Hopefully I'll get past this stage soon! After all, I am nine days away from my eight month locaversary! Anyway, I haven't shown you a retwist in a while. I'm due for my next retwist Saturday, so I'll be sure to post pictures.

Until next time!

Ashamed of my Short Locs? Me?

Lately, I've been hearing from fellow loc'd friends that I am ashamed of  my short locs. As you all know, I've had two sets of yarn braids since I started loc'ing including the set I have in now. I love seeing myself with long hair, especially long hair that resembles locs. My scalp is itching like crazy even though I keep my yarn braids clean and moisturized. I was thinking about taking them out, but I'm not sure how my locs will look. What will I do with them? *sigh* I love my locs, but I want them to be long. I know it's my hair and my journey, but I want long hair! Missing my own hair might make me sacrifice my long hair (yarn braids).

Has anyone else had similar problems?

Bad Energy and my Locs

*sigh* I'm in a very weird place right now. I've recently decided that I'm not meant to be in any meaningful, in love type relationships with guys. I've become numb to all feelings of infatuation. I doubt that I am even capable of loving anyone in that way. Unfortunately, my feelings towards everyone are getting worse and worse. I want to be alone more often, and everyone is just straight annoying. I know that I've changed since coming to college. An agreeing, calm, chill attitude has replaced my once argumentative, stand-your-ground attitude. At first, I thought this change was good. Life is a lot easier when you're not angry. The only problem is that, when I do get angry, I don't know how to display it anymore. I pretty much just walk away instead of letting my feelings out. Maybe all of this is making me want to be alone more.

Anyway, the recent mishap with dyeing my locs has me even more on edge. I have a terrible urge to get rid of them. Of course, I love my babies; but, now I see why people say that there is so much energy wrapped up in locs. People who have had multiple sets of locs often state an emotional bout as the reason why they cut their locs. I'm going to let this awkward time ride out. Maybe it's just a phase. Maybe I'll call my mommy and see what she thinks.

Until next time...

First Time Dyeing my Locs! Part 2

 As I rinsed the dye out of my hair, I knew that absolutely nothing had happened. There was no change in my hair color in the slightest. Maybe the back of my hair has a tiny red tint, but it's virtually undetectable. I probably should've used HiRez, Textures N' Tones, or Dark and Lovely. I think my fascination with dyeing my hair is gone now after this mishap. Oh well. At least I got it out of my system right? My texture loosened a little bit because my longest layer is reaching the base of my neck without me stretching it. None of my locs unraveled, which is a good thing. Before and after pics after the jump...

Locs: To Wash Or Not To Wash

I think one of the biggest stereotypes around locs/loc'ing is that one is not allowed to wash their hair. Of course, that is ridiculously incorrect. Hair of any kind, state, texture, whatever needs to be clean. Locs are no different. As a loose natural, I loooooved washing my hair. Loc'ing and washing has proved to be a challenge for me, though. Before My First Trip to the Loctitian, I washed my hair whenever I wanted. I was naive to how professionally retwisted locs felt and looked. I am now a semi-frequent client at a professional natural salon. I literally JUST got my locs retwisted two and a half weeks ago, and I'm ready to wash my hair. My roots are still pretty fresh, but my scalp is itching so badly. I find myself going back and forth, trying to decide whether or not I should wash my hair.


To take the edge of, I sprayed my locs with a water and peppermint oil mixture I made. It felt amazing! I want more! I need to wash my hair!!! Should I sacrifice how fresh my locs look though? *sigh* Decisions, decisions. Maybe I'll just wash my hair, wear it under scarf or the style from this post until my next self or professional retwist? I'll sleep on it and sort everything out. 

Until next time!

Five Months and a Retwist

Hey hey! It's March 22, 2012, and I'm officially five months and two days into my lovely loc journey! On March 20th, my locaversary, I got my hair professionally retwisted. It was awesome. It felt great having someone else scrubbing my scalp, and I mean scrubbing. My locs stayed amazingly in tact. They rarely unraveled in the past, but this time was amazing. I didn't look like I had a very separated fro!

My First Trip to the Loctitian: Part 1

Hey lovelies! As I've told you all before, my birthday recently passed aaand my family isn't super supportive of my new decision of loc'ing my hair. I made the decision to start and maintain my locs myself because I feel that doing so would bring me closer to my hair and help me work on patience. My mother and other loose people, however, disagree completely. They think that my locs are messy because I am doing them. Nevermind the fact that my hair is going through the many stages necessary to loc'ing. Anyway, my mom decided to "surprise" me by taking me to our natural hair stylist who is also a loctitian. I absolutely love her! She did my loose natural hair for about two years, and my hair reached exciting new lengths with her. In any other situation, I would love having her fingers in my hair again. Buuuut, my loc journey was supposed to be mine! *Disclaimer* I do not believe that loc'ers who are regularly maintained by loctitians do not have their personal relationships with their locs.

Here's a picture! Not the one's that I've been promising, but just a picture.

*Sigh* My appointment is tomorrow at 9am. I'll update you on my feelings, what she says about my progress so far, etc.

Life and Times of the Lone Loc'er

In a family full of naturals, you'd think that there would be a few loc'd ladies. Nope, there's only me. The one with the awkward family position. I'm was the first born of all my cousins. I was sort of the guinea pig child to most of my family. I'm the first to experience high school graduation, moving into college, changing majors, wanting and getting piercings, now locs. I feel like I'm driving my family crazy with all of the new things I want to do. Only yesterday I told my family that I'm in the process of loc'ing my hair, and the uproar has already begun! Here is a brief list of reasons/sayings I've heard so far about why I shouldn't loc my hair, especially not by myself.

•  Layci, you must want your hair to fall out!
•  I'm not even sure how this is relevant to loc'ing. In actuality, you keep A LOT of hair, even the ones that you should naturally shed. This statement is the complete opposite of loc'ing.

•  "Dreads" are dirty and gross.
• I get really upset about this one. The fact that locs are dirty is such a misconception. Locs are just hair! Pressed, permed, kinky, curly, any kind of hair can be dirty and gross! Most people I know with locs and read about on the forums wash their hair waaay more than loose people. 

• Locs are not professional.
• It is a shame that people feel this way. This is still a common view on natural hair. I believe that the world is changing. Locs are professional when you make them professional, like any other hair style. They laid this on me then followed up by saying that I'm a black woman, making it even harder for me to find a job. Great! I guess I'll be a housewife which is my dream. I want to work for myself anyway. What a rebel I am. I know for a fact, though, as a loc'd black woman, I will be able to begin an excellent career. I am educated, well-spoken, confident, and hard working. Locs cannot overshadow those things.

• This is just a phase. Wait 'til you get older!
• My birthday is literally twenty days away. I'll be twenty years old. I know that I am not extremely wise or mature, but I'm pretty sure twenty years old is old enough to make a decision regarding my hair. Here is my real problem with this statement. As I continue this loc journey, I will be natural! I cannot understand why my family has a problem with me continuing to be natural. If I were contemplating a perm, I would want my family to be concerned and begging me not to do it. I'm so confused.

• I can't do locs by myself.
• Alright. This is a tricky one. My family is completely aware that I am a college student. Who will be paying for those expensive loc maintenance sessions every month or however often? Not me and certainly not them! I understand that some people enjoy going to their loctitian for professional loc maintenance, but I don't feel like that is for me. I want to experience my hair at every point in this journey. I want my locs to be my own. No disrespect to those loc'ers who do not DIY. This is MY journey, and I want to keep it that way.

• My locs will never look good because they will not be done by a professional.
• *Shaking my head* No, my little darlings do NOT  look their best right now, but they are only nine days old. Locs go through phases and stages that anyone outside of the loc'ed community simply does not understand. All that my family sees are women with mature locs. "They're locs look nice because they go to professionals. Look at your hair," various family members said. They seem to think that people who get their locs professionally done completely bypass any weird, awkward, not so pretty stage of the loc journey. That is so wrong! 

I'm still trying to explain everything to my family, but they are not taking it too well. They think that I will be done with this before Thanksgiving anyway. Any advice on how you dealt with family, friends, randoms who were not so happy about your loc journey?

Grrr!

It's been five days since I started my loc journey (yay!), but my locs still look pretty much the same as they did the day I started. I know, I know. Hair doesn't loc instantly, but GEEZ I'd at least like to see some progress! I want those weird stages NOW. I'm so impatient lol. Some of the coils in the back are loosening up, and I am resisting the urge to retwist them. I heard that constant retwisting causes weak roots. I talked to a guy in the Commons who's had locs for five years. His locs are beautiful and down his back. He recommended I only get them retwisted once a month. ONCE A MONTH?! I'm not sure about that lol. We'll see. For now, I am constantly checking for little buds, but no sightings yet. :(