Tuesday, June 29, 2010

No one ever told me....

Yes, it's all common sense, but when you don't know (as with most newbie wearers who do little research and/or were not told by consultants/trainees), you don't know. Here's to being empowered....


1. Sisterlocks provides videos for clients to watch before they have Sisterlocks installed. I've never seen them and only found out they existed through reading other blogs. I don't know if the information in the video is helpful or just a friendly, general introduction to wearing Sisterlocks, but I would have liked to have seen them before my installation. (For that matter, is all the information I list below mentioned in the videos?)

2. Separate locks. Whether you choose to do it everyday, every time you wash/condition your Sisterlocks, or as needed, you should do so to keep stray hair of each Sisterlock from growing with stray hairs of other Sisterlocks and thus combining them.


3. Locks attract and hold lint, so dry Sisterlocks with lint-free clothing/cloths. I have used both hair towels (you can purchase them online or in stores like Sephora) and old t-shirts.


4. Dilute (just about) everything. Locks also hold heavy, creamy substances and hair products (which is why new Sisterlock wearers are advised against using cream-based shampoos and conditioners). The substances can be very hard to rinse out. Diluting whatever you put on your hair will make it that much easier to rinse out.  


5. Don't skip retightenings (at least in the beginning). A funny thing happens when you skip retightenings: your Sisterlocks thin out, and in my case, because I have so many, thin out to only a few strands of hair. A funnier thing happens when you do finally get that needed retightening: you can tell in the Sisterlock itself when those missed retightenings happened. From the root, the Sisterlock starts out thick, and at some point it thins out, and then toward the end of the lock it is thick again...keep up with retightenings. If you are not financially able, save up/invest to take the Sisterlock retightening training class and then do the retightenings yourself.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Sabbatical

Since my last post, I've moved cities. I had forgotten how much effort it takes to move, and I've had no time to post, look at blogs, read up on hair, or even keep up with my own.

I did get my last retightening last Monday, and it was a wonderful experience, as usual. My consultant is wonderful, and she did a great job this time. She said my scalp was clean this time, but that the shampoo I used was too creamy, even though I diluted it. I used Design Essentials. I know, I know, why the heck would I use that ? Well, I was moving, and somehow my Sisterlock shampoo ended up in a box on a U-Haul miles away from where I was the week of the retightening. I had a choice: go to my consultant with dirty hair, or wash it. I diluted the Design Essentials A LOT, but apparently it still wasn't enough. BUT my scalp was clean. Ha!

This week I have been trying to get settled in, and I am still living out of boxes, but I will try to get back to my posts by next week.

I will make sure to post a picture of a new hairstyle I've been wearing. In Texas it is like 90 degrees outside (but "feels like" 200 degrees), so what I do to my Sisterlocks is put them in 3 ponytails. I put one ponytail at the top, one in the middle, and sometimes one in the back (sometimes I leave it be). I try to spike my hair as much as possible to make it look full. I've been told before that it looks similar to a Mohawk. I like it, no matter what comments I get. It keeps the Sisterlocks off of my face, and it keeps me cooler.

And at 200 degrees outside....I will do anything to keep cool!

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Healthy hair is knowing the difference between shampoo and conditioner

After my mishap with temporary color and recurring problems with dry and unhealthy (my opinion) hair, I have taken time to learn more about what healthy hair is.


Books (especially the library) have been a wonderful resource.


I lost a lock last week, I think due to the long period of time I went without having my Sisterlocks retightened at the end of last year/beginning of this year. As other Sisterlock wearers have observed, when you miss a retightening, the lock thins out from the root (opposite the end of the hair) and, depending on how long you wait to get your next retightening, this thinning ends up appearing right in the middle of the lock. Lesson learned: don't skip retightenings...at least not within the first year of having Sisterlocks. (I will post a picture of this soon.)


So, what have I learned about what makes healthy hair?....that I need to know the difference between shampoo, conditioner, and their functions.


Shampoo is used to clean the scalp and conditioner is intended for the hair.


This seems simple enough, and other ladies may say they already knew this, but I did not, and knowing it changed my entire product line-up and routine.


Shampoo has detergent, and clarifying shampoo has a very high level of detergent, intended to cleanse the scalp of products that someone may use a lot. I don't use products on my hair...just water. So, when I shampoo with clarifying shampoo EVERY week, wow!....my hair should be (and has been) very, very, very, very, very dry. Lessons learned: 1. Don't wash your hair every week; if you do, do not do it with a clarifying shampoo and 2. Use a shampoo for the state my hair is in...one that is gentle and intended for dry hair......


As far as conditioner goes, the lesson learned is: Use it! From what I've read, you shouldn't skip conditioning your hair in some way after shampooing. I skip it a lot. Consultants correctly advise newbie Sisterlock wearers not to use heavy, cream-based products, so to be safe, using the Sisterlock brand moisturizing treatment has been a good for me. But, if you just wear natural hair, be liberal and condition! condition!


I will post more information I learn as I learn it. There is no reason we all have to each experience the same problems just because no one is willing to share their good and bad experiences.