Loc Log #25: 2 years!

I am so overdue for this post. Please accept my apology for this travesty. Just kidding, but it is well overdue. Here are just a few pictures of my 2 year old locs.

Loc Log #24: It's Been Too Long!

I can't believe I've been gone away from my blog for this long.  It's been too long!  My hair has really been on a growth spurt over the last several months.  I'm so excited about it!  I've run into people that I haven't seen since early in my journey and they are amazed at how much my hair has grown.  Honestly, I'm just as amazed.  Well, here are a few recent pics of my journey.  22 months and 23 months.

 22 months (back)

22 months (front)

Latching @ 22 months

I've been a little slack with the pictures as I'm "growing" in my journey, but here are just a few more from 23 months.

Rod set @ 23 months

The rod set

Rod set (back)

 My first official ponytail. (It's two ponytails in one!)

A little loc jewelry in there!  (http://thaliascreations.com/)

I'll be back soon with my 2 year update.  See ya soon!

Mik

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Loc Log #23.........The Signature Style

Sorry the second one is a little blurry.

Loc Log #22.......21 months

I don't have a lot to report except my hair is still growing like crazy!  I really do love my locs!  Recently, I've started using Jamaican Black Castor Oil, and I must say that it is simply amazing.  I can really see and feel a difference in my hair.  It is very soft, and in some ways thicker at my roots.  I feel like it's a bit stronger considering I have interlocked in about two months.  I'm hoping to interlock this week.....will probably take all week.  Nonetheless, loving the locs! Pictures!

Thinking I may really need to get on the retightening.  But it's cool.....love it anyway.

Loc Log #21 8 months......20 months

Loc Log #20: Can't believe it's been 17 months!

I know that I could have waited one more month for that year and a half mark, but because it's been so long since I've posted, I decided to do it now.  In this my 17th month, I could not be more happy with my locs!  I just retwisted my hair today, and I can't stay out of the mirror!  Now some will shudder in horror when I say this, but just a little bit of Carol's Daughter's loc butter and Nubian Kinks locing pomade is just what my hair needed. So far, this is my best retwist/palmroll ever!  I just hope I feel like this in 5 days.  I'm just so excited about my hair.  Here are just a few pics within my 17th month.

Fresh retwist/palmroll with Carol's Daughter's loc butter and Nubian Kinks locing pomade

Freshly Shampooed with Paul Mitchell Three Shampoo

Remnants of a braidout

 

Receiving Teacher of the Year Award w/ 17 month old locs!

Mik

Loc Log #17 - Color

Can you tell I did some changing to my color?

Loc Log #16: Happy 1 Year Locversary to my Locs!

May 23, 2010 is the day that my locs turned 1 year old! Wow, who would have thought that I could basically keep one hairstyle for 1 year and looking forward to many more. But I suppose it's much more than a hairstyle, it's a hair lifestyle. Going natural and deciding to loc my hair are the single best hair decisions I have ever made. My how time flies! My natural hair two year anniversary will be here before you know it........August 20. I'm getting some anniversary pics together, so in the mean time here is my anniversary loc routine.

1. Gave myself an Ojon Restorative Treatment. Allow this to remain in hair until shampoo time.

2. I latched or interlocked my new growth with my hair pin tool. This pretty much took all day with a long nap in the middle. :-)

3. During shampoo time, I initially rinsed my hair really well then proceeding to do an ACV rinse. I allowed this to sit for awhile.

4. Next, I shampooed my hair three times with my Chagrin Valley Cafe Moreno shampoo bar. I love the way this stuff smells. Cloves!

5. Normally I would have oiled my scalp, but this time I just sprayed Taliah Waajid protective mist bodifier on my locs and sat under the dryer for a while.

My hair dried a bit, just enough to barely feel the dampness. Before bed, I'll spray them with my jojoba/sweet almond oil and aloe vera juice spray and wrap them for the night.

Pictures are coming!

Mik

Loc Log #14 - Nubian Kinks and other stuff

I am quickly approaching my 9th month with locs. I think this is my longest time with anything, (other than my husband...LOL!). Ok, so I promised that I would review the Nubian Kinks locing pomade. The first thing I noticed about the pomade was the obvious color and fragrance. It's kind of hard to describe the fragrance, but it's a sweet, perfumey kind of scent. It's quite pleasant. It has a tan color and has a creamy texture.

I initially used the pomade without adding any extras as I tend to do......you know another gel or honey. My hair was really pretty with minimal frizz (though I've embraced the frizz), BUT it didn't last very long. I loved the fragrance and the frizz minimizing factor, so I decided to try it again. This time I added my handy dandy TW loc it up gel and a bit of honey. PERFECTION!!! I love how this stuff leaves my hair smelling so good.

I also ordered the Herbal Mint Medley Shampoo. Loves it! I actually think this is my favorite shampoo to date since I've started locs. I accidentally received the mint scented oil rather than the green tea oil that I ordered. Loves it! Good mistakes are great!

Loc Log #13 - 7 months

Today is my 7th month with locs! yay! Not a lot has changed except that most if not all of my hair is locked!!!!!!!! Not mature, but locked. I still have quite a few curly ends, but many of them are sealed at the ends. I continue to have a tough time with frizziness, but I'm embracing it. My last concoction included TW's loc it up gel, ORS loc and twist gel, and honey. While this proved successful, it has also created a bit of an issue. Flakes and buildup. Dang! Well, the product junkie in me lives on and I move on to try something new. Yesterday, I received my order of Nubian Kinks' locing pomade. Can I tell you that that stuff smells like Heaven?! I can't wait to use it. The order I received yesterday was accidentally ordered (by me) from Amazon while waiting on my actually order directly from the salon in New York. Hopefully, my direct order will be here today......Green Tea Oil, Mint Medley Shampoo, and more locing pomade. I can't wait for it to get it here. More Christmas gifts! jk! I'll come back later with the results of these products.

Loc Log 12 1/2 3 days through 5 months

Loc Log #12 - 6 months!

Yay!! It's been 6 months since I started my braidloc journey. It's been great. I feel like I've had great success on this journey and must attribute this success to a few things.

1. Regular shampoos - It is impossible for me to wait two weeks between shampoos! I must shampoo once each week. This alone (the water factor) has really sped up the locing process for me. Back in late June I started periodically interlocking my new growth. When I did this, I started rinsing my hair daily. What a wonder! I started noticing that many of my ends were beginning to harden and seal. Because of this, I try to interlock my new growth at least every two months so that I can go through a rinsing cycle.

2. Apple Cider Vinegar Rinses - My hair thanks me when I do an ACV rinse. My hair is cleaner with no buildup. I try to do an ACV rinse every two weeks. Sometimes, I can't help myself, and just do it!

3. Hot oil treatments and oil in general - My hair has always been a fan of oil. Nothing is any different now that I am 6 months into the locing process (yay!). My bathroom is full of different oils. When I first went natural, I bought my own stash of sweet almond oil and jojoba oil along with several essential oils. I started out making my own oils, but kept buying new stuff. I now have so much oil, I'm about to drown in it. Of course I have my favorites. I love Oyin Handmade's After Bath Oil which is actually GREAT for the hair, Nyle Oil, and Afroveda's Shikakai Hair Growth Elixir.

4. Honey - I first used honey during the very early stages of locking, and absolutely hated it! I soon realized that I had used waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much. Now when I do my retwist I make a mixture using a favorite gel (ORS or Taaliah Wajid), small amount of loc butter or olive oil, and just a little bit of honey. Perfect combination with little to no buildup and excellent hold. And if there is buildup, the ACV along with a clarifying shampoo take care of that right away.

These are just a few things that I attribute my locing success to. Keeping it nappy!

Mik

Loc Log #11

Yay! Today (it's 2 days late!) marks the 5th month since beginning my braidloc journey! One more month and it will be half of a year! Can you sense the excitement? This journey has gone by much faster than I could have ever expected. My hair has totally transformed. What started out as some little braids that I had no clue what to do with have become locs! By no means is my hair fully locked, but they are well on their way.

I was just watching my first YouTube video that I made when I had only been locking for one

month. I had a head full of little coils that had transformed from braids. They were so cute and curly! My hair literally appears to have doubled in thickness and in length. I love it! I could go on and on and on, but I digress. This journey is a beautiful thing!

Loc Log #9 - Dilemma

First of all, "dilemma" is not a word that I spell very often, yet it is so simple and having trouble spelling it.....go figure. Alas, I do have a dilemma.

Since late June, I've been interlocking my roots. I've done this probably more than the average interlocker due to my hair growth and slippage. While interlocking has worked wonders with my "baby locs", I have found the need to continue to twist/palmroll periodically during the month. The twisting and palmrolling just seems to keep everything in place. It has been a month since I've interlocked, but I have AT LEAST a full inch of new growth/slippage. I am so ready to interlock, it's not even funny! My dilemma is whether or not both processes are ok to do to my hair, or should I just stick to one? Someone please help.....

Braidloc log #8 1/2 Pics