Wash- Rinses- Interlocking and Regimens

Hey hey hey

I'm going to talk about regimen and loc maintenance today. Last night I decided to scour the internet on how to keep my dreddies from looking a hot mess. I personally like things simplified and uncomplicated, something I can use and not break a sweat to. I found that I had to dig through a lot of info so to put my many thoughts to screen here's my attempt at putting the puzzle pieces together for those who aren't ( perhaps maybe you know more then me :P) in the know about caring for them locs. Ive been locked now for 7 mths (LOving it!) and Ive learned a thing or two about keeping it tre simple. So I'm hoping that my regimen and maintenance can answer a few questions. Since there is a plethora of info on how to start locs I wont go there, I will just focus on the maintenance and on going care for those who are DIY or wanting to be. Anyhoo lets get to it:


The weekly or bi weekly wash

Washing the hair is important whatever some may say about helping your dreads to loc up your scalp needs help getting rid of residue and buildup left behind by product, elements and plain ol sebum and dirt. Washing the "scalp" helps to actually loc the hair. Water swells the hair and the more this happens the faster your desired result. Remember water is your best friend you didn't quit relaxer not to go play in the rain right?

• Wash the hair using a non residual shampoo (Suave, Nutrogena, Pantene or any clarifying brand you prefer Tresseme even has a deep cleanser that I hear is good and inexpensive brand) Instead of just adding it straight to the hair I put it in a small spray bottle so I can evenly distribute the shampoo and if your going to wash spend a good 20 mins massaging the scalp (this should definitely be your "me" time) so your scalp get a good cleaning but no finger nails.
  

1. Note: Between clarifying washes depending on your needs you can rinse your hair with plain water or you can wash as needed with cleansing bars, Dr Bronners castille soaps or any soap really that you like ( use non residual best suited)
2. Note: For those who don't interlock try using a stocking cap so you will not disturb your roots to much otherwise you'll be twisting again. (if you can let go and enjoy the fruzz more power to you)
   

• 1st Rinse the hair really well and get all the shampoo out, believe or not even non residual shampoo can leave residue behind as well, so your going to want to stand under your shower head or jet spray until your locs feel squeaky clean

• 2nd Rinse My favorite rinse and the only one I use is ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar) for a final clarifying clean. I tell you I still had buildup after multiple washing but after using this product my scalp was debris free. You can put in in a spray bottle 1:8 spray or pour it on your scalp and locs, massage it in a bit and then put a plastic bag over your head (please do not obstruct the airways please you need to be alive for the next step) Then wrap a towel around the bag and leave for 12-15 min. After that stand under the shower again until you can no longer smell the ACV or water runs clear.

After all that washing you really don't need to put anything in your hair. I can honestly say washing alone and ACV will give your locs a nice sheen that lasts. You can add stuff in there if you feel the need some people just like extra moisturizers I just choose not to because they just leave buildup I don't want. If you do proceed to twist the hair all you need is a bit of aloe vera gel or a good chemical free, paraben free, non petrol mineral, non toxic cream your tool and your fingers and BAM simple!

Loc Maintenance

OK now on to the twisting, interlocking wrapping part. I have to say that there is a big difference in twisting your roots and maintaining the locs portion of the hair. Now as you wash you will notice hair frizzing and fruzzing up everywhere this is a very normal and wonderful phenomenon. We want this to happen because this is what causes your locs to form. People get very confused and think that every time they wash their hair they must twist the roots (Not so) personally you can go a whole month or even two without twisting the roots and still maintain neat looking locs. If you continue to twist the roots (like I did every chance I got for the first 3mths) you risk the chance of weakening the roots that forms the base of the loc. Here are a few simple methods you can use: First things first however I will talk about twisting/interlocking the roots to get that out of the way.

Interlocking/Twisting Roots

Interlocking
Now Ive addressed the whole Point rotation system awhile back and postulated that the 4pt was the far superior rotation compared to the 2pt or 3pt. However as Ive progressed I have to take back those word because as your locs mature it does not matter what pt rotation you use. It has everything to do with how thin you want your locs. Earlier on I started using 2pts and noticed that my locs were getting holes all over them (this drove me batty) so pondering over this and searching the internet, I found that other people were using 4pt and 3pt rotations to keep things tight. I decided yes this is a better solution, but I did notice that my locs were getting to thin almost scary break off at the root thin (turns out my hair is just really soft and unravels easily I just needed to be more patient and let my hair do its thing). This was to much for me so Ive gone back to my 2pt rotation. Considering that the loose hair around your locs are going to fill into those holes anyway. Whatever you choose to do make sure you refrain from interlocking more than once a month unless you absolutely think you need to and preferably when damp. You will need an interlocking tool of choice (many different kinds on the web I prefer to make my own) some water in a spray bottle a little gel and that's it. You can find rotation methods throughout my blog or again in tutorials on the net.

Twisting
Most people who start traditional use this method as their mainstay. Simple and straight forward but a little long winded for my taste. I do not prefer this method because I like rinsing my hair more often then usual. It produces lovely locs however so give it a shot if your inclined. You will need a spray bottle of water, Two pronged Hair clips and some gel. If you have one a bonnet dryer is good investment for this method as well. Now all you have to do is grab a loc spray some water add some gel and twist in one direction only (same way every time)that you want the locs to lie, then clip hair at root in place. Never twist hair back and forth otherwise hair will never produce those cylindrical locs your after. Repeat all over head and sit under dryer until hair is no longer damp.

After completing both methods wrap hair in a satin or silk scarf to keep it fresh befor you go to bed or if your just about the house and your cleaning or something.


Wrapping
Now on to my favorite past time. I like to do this when I'm in the mood after a rinse in between shampoos. I take some water, little bit of gel and my fingers and you see all that fruzz that surrounds the loc? I take that and wrap around my locs in a clockwise motion. I do this while I watch T.V or when I feel I really need a maintenance check. Personally this keeps me from touching my roots and keeps my hair looking cute and neat when I need it. Personally as Ive said before you don't always need to touch the roots because its the locs you want to conform really. After interlocking my locs looked a bit chewy and bumpy (I don't like the look) but after wrapping them again and again they are starting to shape up quite nice in that cylindrical shape I adore (that's a good look) :)

Itchies

I buy a bag of Rosemary seeds and boil them, strain them then let it cool. I then either pour it over my entire head or a put it in a spray bottle and spray. I usually just leave it in no need to rinse really

So this is my regimen it took me forever to write but really its straight forward. No mucking around lets review shall we:

Weekly/Biweekly Wash
1. You wash
2.You rinse with water
3. You rinse with ACV (recommend biweekly some are sensitive, can be a little harsh)
4. You rinse with water
5. Micro fiber cloths work best to dry hair (less lint)

Interlocking/Twisting
1. Pick your poison (method)
2. Twists roots at least 1nce a month max (if you can stand it)
3. Always move in clockwise fashion (same way every time)

Wrapping
1. Wrap when needed after a rinse or whenever you feel
2. Use precaution dampen hair first and use gel or preferred cream
3. Go the same way every time (clockwise etc)

Protect
1. Cover your hair when your sleeping or doing house work to keep lint down
2. Have fun with it make them fancy when your going out ( I wear hair bands and wraps all the time they're cute)

Let me know if I'm missing anything IMO this is what I do for my hair. Everyone is different and I just wanted to share what works well for me over the course of 7 mths who knows maybe it will change again. Whatever you choose keep it positive and fun for you.

Enjoy

Peace and Blessings

NAt

Au Natural? I thinks Not!

So in my quest for naturalness and good health I find myself looking for products that will fit my budget and be a benefit to my locs. All I can say is that many companies out there are catching the vibe that more and more people want organic this and that......(wait for it) But..... companies will sacrifice quality for the almighty dollar. Our dollars to be exact and what you might happily think is organic and natural is a far cry from it. Now what I thought would be a generally easy shopping spree turned out to be a woe is me fustration fest of "what exactly do I buy?" I mean how do I get products that are great but wont break the bank? If you want something good your going to have to do research and pay out your ying yang for it. Thats what most companies want us to believe and trick us they do very well by all the fancy advertising to lure us to their products. Personally if I see a glossy add I am very tempted to purchase the product knowing very well I'm probably slathering something akin to car grease on my hair or body. Lately I have decided since I removed the lye from my hair i would do the same for my brain as well, meaning that I would choose to care and read the ingredient list on the back of my products. (I do this for most items I buy now anyway) I mean am I being weired? I dont think so. If you can not fully understand or even pronounce the stuff on the back of the jars or bottles is it really worth buying? Why trick us? Anyway I went home and contemplated what I was going to use on my head, did a little research on the net and decided that I was going to use products that I could easily make myself. Or if I did choose to buy would be almost edible or have little to no toxic ingredients in them. This is what I came up with:

So to list everything from left to right would be

~Dr. Bronners Tea Tree oil Castille shampoo 24oz cost me $18.00 but lasts a long while and is worth the money

~Parachute coconut oil (Heavy and not used to often) used for deep condition pre shampoo $2.99

~Organic Root Stimulator Lock and Twist gel & Royal Roots by Tahlia Wahjid (I payed 6.99 for each to me that is cheap considering I live in Canada and people always have to be so extra and charge more for gel of all things)

~Bottle 1 (white cap) is just plain water you can add any essential oil you like this I use for freshning up my locs throughout the day.

~ Bottle 2 (full white) is Sweet Almond oil which like Jojoba is close to mimicking natural sebum in our hair. Cost me $4.99 at Shoppers I use this after a wash my hair I use it liberally depending on how dry my hair gets.

~Bottle 3 (purple cap) Is water and rosemary which I boiled myself the seeds cost me $1.69 they help with itching dry scalp and dandruff

I also use Apple Cider Vinegar (not shown) if I do a coconut condition pre shampoo this was $16 I think bought it awhile back lasted a long time

Simple regimen:

Wash 1x or 2x a week depending if I worked out
spray a bit of almond oil in hair after towel dry and massage
Spritz hair throughout day if a little pick me up needed
Do rinse out in shower throughout week if needed
twist or interlock hair every 4~6 weeks (got to let those roots do them thangs)

At night I usually wear a satin bonnet but lately I cannot locate it for the life of me. At this point my hair is pretty soft so I dont suffer to much from lint. Will probably have to become more diligent as they mature however.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So technically everthing here did not break the bank. I was on Youtube the other day and I was listening to a lady rant on about how natural products are soooo exspensive and how during the recession with a family full of knatty heads was killing her pockets..... she wasnt lying bout that but personally I think she just wanted to bitch ya'll and youtube is paying her bills the more subcribers she has apparently she gets paid . She could just make her own no sweat ok so maybe people like to spend money cant be mad. All I'm saying is that your hair care regimen doesn't have to be difficult. Keep it light save your money and be happy in these tough times. Doing research will save you and your hair from less then stellar product.

Check this book by Julie Gabriel called "The Green Beauty Guide" a very good read for those of you wanting to switch to more greener ( the real green) products you can make at home or buy from green companies who dont fake the funk. Meaning they use real product that have benefits not some fake ass product that uses maybe less then a teaspoon of shea butter in each bottle and calls it organic. She tells it like it is and helps you make better decisions when purchasing products for your health or making them at home yourself. I hope you enjoy I certainly did.

Anyway peace out yall take care of them lovlies and be good to yourselves

Nat