Random Styles

Guess who's biiizzzaaack!! *insert dope instrumental here* lol

Hey y'all,


I'm about 2 weeks away from one year, but we're not here to talk about that today.  Today I'm just going to show you random styles I've had!


We'll start off with the rollers I told you about last time.  I used strips of paper and curled my hair.

Eh...

I didn't hate it... but I didn't love it.  There are some things I see I'll do different next time, but I'll definitely do it again.


The disappointment from that caused me to do this which I loved!

Thick cornrows

 

 

I love how this came out!

Y'ALL SEE THOSE LOCS!!! Yeah, I know I said it on the caption, but it feels so damn epic I had to say it again!! LMAO  I looked at that picture and I was like "Whoa, I've got locs!" :)

Y'ALL SEE THOSE LOCS!!

My girl NaturaLocs asked for a pic of my jacket I talked about in my last post, so I'll leave you with some of those.  If you haven't been to her blog, you need to go check it out.  She just had a post on baby locs and working out that is ON POINT!

The next time we talk, my locs will be one year old.  I'm excited!!  I can't say that I'm going to update on my exact anniversary, but I'll definitely take pics so you can see where I was and what it looks like on that day.

I love this jacket.

*flips locs* Deuces!!

11 Month Anniversary!!

I'm back in (barely) under a month lol

Not much has really been going on with my hair and I haven't been styling it that much until this week, so I haven't had much to talk about.  But since my anniversary was 9/29, I decided to stop in and show you what it's like right now.

Hi!!

So this week, I decided to get off my arse and do something cute with my hair.  I got some new products last week and after using them I decided to make my hair look as good as it felt lol.  This was the way I wore it for a couple of days.  It's a zipper braid and it looks so much thicker now than it did the last time I did one.

March 2012 (4 months) and October 2012 (11 months)

I don't really see my progress when I look in the mirror, but I can't deny it in a picture.  Yay!!


As I mentioned earlier, I tried some new products this week.  I tried the  Flower Power teapoo bar and herbal rinse from Earthbalisms.  The rinse is like a tea of flowers!  It smells like a meadow and it made my hair so soft!  I brewed it then put it in a spray bottle in the refrigerator.  I sprayed it in my hair daily for a week, then I poured the rest over my hair.  The teapoo bar made my locs tighten up and feel so soft... and again it smells like a meadow!  Not to mention, they are reasonably priced at about $5.50 each.  I'm already planning what to buy next.

Random, but today it was kind of chilly so I grabbed my fav leather jacket.  I pulled it on and flipped my locs over the collar (which felt powerful) then looked in the mirror.  I looked BADASS!! ♥♥♥


That's all for now.  I'll have another post this week as I've got rollers in my hair right now.  Whatever this turns into, I'll take pictures and post. And then of course, my 1 year anniversary is only a few weeks away!!

Talk to you soon.  Keep it nappy y'all!!

*Flips locs.*  Deuces!!

A Very Merry UnBirthday Pt. 2

Look how soon I'm back!!  LOL


I finally finished tightening my hair yesterday.  The re-twisting was cool and I definitely will use it in a pinch, but OMG I was so happy to wash my hair!!  I'm not used to having anything in my hair and that gel was making my scalp itch like crazy!!

I'm really here to tell you about something I've learned since starting.  When you first start your locs, you have this vision in your head of what they are going to be like.  When you first have your installation, it may or may not match what you pictured.  Don't sweat the small stuff!!

When I first started I had a few braids that I thought were going to produce locs that were too big for what I wanted.  I split them into 2 smaller braids.  In the last 10 months, I've learned that what I thought I wanted isn't what I actually want, and that super small locs are not for me.  I'm too damn lazy to be trying to tighten 200-300 locs myself lol

Most of the locs that I had separated, I have since combined. As a matter of fact yesterday, I turned 4 locs into 2.  I have 4 more that I plan to make 2 eventually, probably after the new year.  *shrug* We'll see.

Usually I just latch the roots together and twist them, but these have thick ends from budding, so I twisted, then rubberbanded. I'll take the rubberbands off on my 1 year anniversary, which gives them about a month and half to get with the program.  I know some people don't like to use rubberbands, but I used one on my loc that wouldn't lock and didn't have any problems with it.

New babies!!

I'm out for now, talk to you later!


*flips locs*

Deuces!!

Making Lemonade

Hello all!!

I know I'm a horrible blogger for being gone for so long, but summer is my favorite season and I try to spend as much of it outside with my family as possible. But I'm here now, so let's get to what's really important... the hair!!

I hit 10 months yesterday!  I was happy and nonchalant at the same time. The overall excitement has worn off for me, which I actually think is a good thing.  It means that my locs aren't new to me anymore.  They are another part of myself that I just expect to be there like my fingernails or eyelashes. :)  To be honest, I hit 3 years natural on 8/18 and didn't even remember until a couple of days later.  For someone who spent the first 2 years consumed by my hair and various products, the fact that I forgot was a moment of pride for me.

Here's a couple of pics of what my hair is looking like at 10 months.

Back view - still got a couple of braids in there. :)

Ponytail... I don't usually wear this out of the house, but I still sleep like this most nights.

Random basketweave.  I do this a lot when I want my hair out of my face.











So I know you're like what the heck does lemonade have to do with her hair?

Well tomorrow I'm going to a wedding.  My plan was to spend 2 days this week tightening my hair.  It's been about 9 weeks since the last time I've tightened. (What can I say... it's summertime and I'm lazy! lol)  So I got through about 1/4 of my hair and then my yarn needle broke!  So rather than keep buying things that will break, I ordered a nappylocs tool.  Great...except it won't be here until sometime next week. So in the meantime, I decided to try a retwist.  I don't normally do that because I wash my hair about every 3 days so it would be a waste of time, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

It actually came out pretty good!! 

So that's what's up with my hair.  I promise that it won't be 2 months before I update again!!

Texture shot!!

Until the next time, keep it nappy y'all!

*flips locs*  Deuces!!

A Very Merry UnBirthday!! Pt. 1

Hey y'all!!

I have decided that it's stupid to think I will be able to post an update on whatever anniversary I am currently at; I need to start updating whenever I get a moment and tell you what it's like at that moment.  Damn... that was the longest sentence ever. You'll have to forgive me. I'm excited about my hair! lol

To my Alice in Wonderland fans... Welcome to my tea party!!     

1. Frizz - I thought my hair was frizzy back at in month 2.  To that I say Ha!! It was a little fuzzy back then, it is frizzy now.  There is thick luscious frizz that makes my hair looks full and smooths down beautifully in a twistout.  I never thought the frizz would be something I like, but I love how it looks now.  I look exotic and wild.
2. I'm still not exactly sure how they are going to turn out - I don't know what they'll look like months from now.  I can't predict it because this wasn't what I thought they would look like 6 months ago. They are completely mine, flaws and all. They have my DNA stamped all over them, from the thick bottoms (lol), to the the random spirals cutting through, to the lumps, and even to the color.  I love the way the red grows out and gives me an ombre look.  I got that color thinking I was getting perfectly sized sisterlocks and I would keep the roots done.  I have ended up with randomly sized braidlocks that haven't been colored since installation and probably won't be any time soon.
3.  I love a 2-for hairstyle - I love styles that can be worn 2 ways like twists into a twist out.  I don't like the way just braids or twists look on my hair yet, so when setting my hair, I put it into an updo for several days, then wear it loose for the rest of the week. 
4. I've definitely calmed down - I'm not going to say that I don't still spend time talking about and looking at my hair.  I still take a lots of pics, but not as many as I did at the start.  I've really gotten into food and home blogs and have been considering putting together a blog about my other interests.  It's a thought, y'all see how long it took me to actually post a youtube video though. LOL
5. The front has finally started locking - Well, at least one side has.  It's still got about 3 that haven't but the right side is mostly locking now.  The left side...is still stubbornly protesting any type of change. :) If you look at the tri-fold pic you can see the progress.  But hey 2/3rd means I'm almost there right?
6. Bright accessories - I have always loved bright hair clips in the summer.  Now I've got lock jewelry, and clips, and headbands.  I usually have an accessory in daily.  There's so much pretty stuff that looks fab in locs. I've been eyeballing  these bobby pins from Target next. 

That's all for now...talk to you soon.

Keep it nappy!!

*flips locks* Deuces!!

My Routine

Hello all,


I got a message on my youtube channel a couple of weeks ago asking how often I wash my hair.  I realized I've never posted my routine on my blog.  Now is definitely the time to do that because I finally have one that works!  It took a couple of months of trial and error but it was worth it. It's pretty simple and it's all I shall be doing until my hair tells me it needs something else.

• I wash or rinse when my scalp feels like it needs it.  I don't have to use a particular shampoo, I can use anything sulfate or non-sulfate.  My favorite is Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingle... but I'll use whatever's at hand. I actually just washed tonight.  I sprayed my scalp with half water half acv, sprayed my hair, and let it sit for a few minutes. Then I shampooed with this:

  

• I moisturize with Qhemet Biologics Olive & Honey Hydrating Balm. It's the consistency of honey.  I only use it right after a shampoo or a rinse on damp hair. 

• I seal with Jamaican Black Castor Oil.  I love it!!  It makes my hair feel like little velvet ropes! :) I use this after the balm or on other days I spritz with plain water, then rub with JBCO. 

That's it y'all!!  3 steps and 3 products... that's all I do.  I stopped conditioning my hair when I realized that the Qhemet and JBCO combo makes my hair soft and moisturized without it.

I really want a steamer, but that's going to have to wait until my birthday in August.


What's your routine?

*flips locks* Deuces!!

7 Months...almost :)

Hi everyone,

I haven't been updating like I should have been.  No, this is not one of those instances where you follow a blog and then the person just disappears for 2 years!!  I'm actually getting ready to move in 2 weeks so things have been a little crazy.  I've been working overtime to get everything caught up before I'm off and I've been packing (which I hate!)


My 7 Month anniversary is in a few days and I had some time to update now so I decided to use it!  This is going to be just a short photo post to show you where I'm at now.  I promise to give you the update you deserve once I'm all moved and settled.

Half pony on a hot day!!

The back!!  Still have a couple braids that refuse to give in LOL
                                          











 

As you can see, some of the front has finally started to lock!! *snoopy dance*  














I latched my hair yesterday.  It had been 6 weeks since the last time I latched.  My new growth ranged from:

                





This...          

....to this!  Yeah... I know crazy right!













That's all I got for now.  I'll be back once I get moved.  In the mean time, keep it nappy y'all!!

*Flips locks* Deuces!!

I made it to 6 months!!

4/29/2012 marked my 6 month anniversary... and instead of telling you how I'm feeling... I'm going to show you!  :)  I finally made my first YT video!!  I'll do a post soon with an update but for now, enjoy.

Haute Dreads!!

Okay, I know I keep telling y'all I love my hair... but seriously!! It's amazing!!


This is going to be a quick style post. This is how I'm wearing my hair today.  Yesterday, I was surfing youtube (as I'm sure you do too lol)  and I searched for "short to medium length dreadlocks."  This video came up:

I loved it and the video was only 8 minutes long so I though I could achieve it.

I ended up with this:

This was my first time pinning bangs, loved it!!

So this morning, I decided to get a little creative and turn this into an updo.    I came up with this:

Photo by my son Joaquin  :) He's 7. 

So that's how I'm wearing it today. I've got a headband on to dress up the front.  Hope you enjoyed, don't forget to hit the follow button!

Keep it nappy y'all!!


*flips locks*

Deuces!!

5 Golden Months!!!

4 random locks,
3 ponytails,
2 sprouts and buds
and a baby lock with no rubberbands!!!  :)


Hello everyone!

I hit my 5th month and I'm still loving my hair. I pretty much like the way I look every single day. I haven't had a day where I've felt my hair looked bad.  I've had some styles I've had to adjust, but even with its locking craziness.... my hair is fly y'all!!

The back is definitely deep into the locking process.  They are stiff and the ends are heavy.  They are either swollen and full the entire length of the lock, or they are in several places along them.

The back!  I love the texture in this pic.

The front and sides.... not so much. They still look like braids all the way until you get to the part where I've latched. They are definitely thicker than they were 5 months ago, but most of them still look  brand new.  Not really sure how that will turn out, but I like how it looks now. *shrug* Hopefully it will get with the program, but if not, it'll grow out in a few years anyway.

Still looking like braids!!

I've got a style post and a product post coming up this month.  My hair has been super dry lately so I'm cutting back on the shampooing and I ordered Qhemet Biologics Olive & Honey Hydrating Balm and the Burdock Root Butter. The OHHB was one of my fav products with loose hair, so I'm thinking it might be helpful here. I was a little worried about build up but I contacted the company and they assured me it would be okay.


Here's another pic!  I'm out!!

*flips locks* Deuces!!

Dress It Up!!

I LOVE ACCESSORIES!!!

I mean we have always had a nice little friendship going on.  When I was loose, I was really into them when it was shorter and then when it got longer I sort of stopped sparkling it up.  I really don't have a reason why, I just got lazy I guess or too irritated with detangling to really want to do much else by the time it was finished.  I'm saying detangling wasn't horrible, but as I previously mentioned... I was lazy lol

So now I have all of this extra time and energy to devote to styling my hair instead of doing my hair.  I'm saying with my loose hair, before work I would have to at least spritz my hair, fluff it, and touch it up in several places.  That would take usually 15 - 18 minutes. If I did a full fledged wash and go, it would probably be about 22-26 minutes.  (Which contained so much wash and so little go!) .

Now I either spray it with a water bottle or rinse it in the shower, then immediately spend time styling. 2-6 minutes tops.  I feel sparkly again. :)

So let me show you how I've been decorating.

First I broke out some lock jewelry.  I bought them before I ever locked my hair and when I wore one on my installation day, I had to pull 3 braids through it to get it to stay on.  Now I only use one lock.  I've worn this as pictured and also dangling from the end of a ponytail I bought this on Etsy from MsLadyLocks.

I also have this cute feather headband! It's from Forever21. They have a bunch of really cute hair accessories ranging for $1 to about $10.  I bought 7 different things, and my bill was less that $25 with shipping and handling.

Now I've got this coil from Cherry! I actually got several different ones in gorgeous bright colors that I love, so be on the lookout for other colors/styles.  I got a bunch of compliments on it today when I ran to the store. (LOL I got it today and had to use it immediately!) BTW: I always like purchasing things from nice people, and Cherry was such a delight to purchase from.  Check out her website, I'll definitely be going back to it.










My 5 month anniversary is in 5 days (Whoop whoop!!) so I'll be back next weekend with an update.  I've also been working on a style post.  On top of that, I got a new moisturizer today that I'll be trying out, so I'll have a post about that coming up soon as well.

Keep it nappy y'all!!

*flips locks* Deuces!!

Rock It Out!!

Hey Y'all!!


I'm going to show you how I've been wearing my hair.  I've been trying to change it up regularly.  When I had permed hair I used to style it all the time. I never got really skilled at doing it with loose natural hair, but I have been having so much fun styling my locs!!

I call this my ballerina bun.  I know some people call it a high bun, or a topknot, or some other variation, but it reminds me of a ballerina. *shrug*

 

I saw this video on Nappturality

and decided to try the technique.  Just the top with the bottom loose. 

I really liked how this came out!  Not to mention, I kept it in for 3 or 4 days and slept on it without wrapping it up. (Still used my satin pillowcase though)  This might be my favorite style I've tried so far.  I did it on a chunky braidout to give some curl to my locs.

I'm about to go style hunting on youtube, so I'll be back in a week or so with more!

Keep it nappy y'all.

*flips locks* Deuces!!

One, Two, Three and to the Fo'

I'm 4 months in y'all!!

I'm not even going to do a long intro, let's get to the real!

1. My hair is locking and budding like crazy!! Last month I showed you pics of the nape of my neck that had started to bud and shrink up and lock.  Now the entire back of my hair is like that.  I have several buds along all of the braids in the back,  some are stiff from root  to tip.  Those locks that kept coming undone... are locking!  Even the one I had to put the rubberband on.  Took it off and it's locking baby!!
2. If this is the ugly stage, I can't tell!!  I love my hair! It always looks good, even if it's not exactly how I planned.  The versatility is AMAZING!! I wear it straight down, I do braidouts, I rock a high bun... the sky has been the limit with my styles.  I've done more styles in the last 4 months of locks than I ever did in the entire 2 years I was natural before them.  I'm enjoying it so much!
3. The craziness has died down.  In October, I was on 10 with excitement.  I would still say I'm at an 8, but I am no longer just hype about anything locks, or even the steps for my own.  I have calmed down on pictures.  I took 212 pics of my hair in October (IKR!!)...February I took 68.  I've started to develop my routine.  More on that in another post.
4. I've done my 3rd retightening and I like how it looks,  6 weeks seemed like a good cycle for me so I'll be sticking with that.  Even the fat crazy locks have still been able to fit through the eye of my needle, so that went smoothly.  Pretty sure I have the technique down now.
5. Creeping still annoys the hell out of me.  It's like once I have any amount of new growth, they start hugging.  But still, I'd rather pop locks, than detangle loose hair!!
6. Frizz... It's still frizzy, but either it's not as bad as it used to be or it has stopped bothering me.  I can't really tell which it is and I don't care enough to investigate. lol Frizzy or not, I like it.
7. They still look like braids in the front.  The front looks like the back did 2 months ago.  And that's fine because it doesn't look at lumpy and crazy around my face yet. 

Now I'm going to give you the pics.  I'll be back soon with some style posts, I've been taking pictures!!

Day 1, Month 1, Month 4     #POW

Texture Shot!!

Budded and Locking!

No more rubberbands!!  I call this one "the lock that could!" It thinks it can, it thinks it can!!

Until next time, keep it nappy y'all!

*flips locks* Deuces!!

Lock Rockin Styles!!

Hey y'all!!


I've been actually doing some styles these last few weeks!  (Shocking right? lol)  Nothing too fancy, my skill level isn't there yet, but more than I have been previously doing.

So here are some photos of how I wear my hair:

Bun with an EZ comb

Braid out with beads strung along several locks.

Half pony.  My go to when I don't want my hair in my face.










Until the next time, keep it nappy y'all!!

*flips locks* Deuces!!

3 Month Review - Time is FLYING!!

Hey y'all!!

I can't believe it's been three months already.  It seems like just a couple of days ago, I got out of bed at the crack of dawn and headed to braid shop.


We are rolling right along.  I don't have any complaints, my hair is growing, it's healthy and low maintenance.  I seem to be locking from the back up.  The back of my hair is much further along than the front, but it's all good as long as it all gets there eventually.

Routine:

1. Shampoo whenever I feel like it needs it.
2. Rinse at least every other day.
3. Grease my scalp with JBCO hair food when I think it needs it.
4. Condition once a month (usually on anniversary)

My ends at 2 months and at 3 months

The nape of my neck has shrunken and bunched into some weird shapes.  I'm assuming that's all going to work itself out on its own, so I'm trying to not be concerned by it.

I love this little lock. It is chugging right along and you can't tell it was ever a braid.  Grow baby grow!!

This was how I wore my hair yesterday. Can I just say I am all in on the size of my locks?  No more wondering if I need to make them smaller.  That fullness right there is everything I ever wanted!










That's all for now, talk to you all soon.

Until the next time... keep it nappy y'all

*flips locks* Deuces!!

Let's Talk About Latch Baby!!

Happy New Year Everybody!!!

Sorry I've been away so long.  School started back up and life got hectic.  I seem to have everything under control now, so I'm back on my blogging!


Let's talk about latching! 

I have a sensitive scalp, so I have to wash my hair at least every 3 days. This is the main reason I have decided to interlock my roots.  This is my 2nd time latching since I started locking.  The first time, I had 4 weeks of new growth and it took me between 2 and 3 hours.  This time I had 7 weeks of new growth and it took me 6.5 hours!  Lesson learned... I will be staying on a 5 week schedule! If I wanted to spend 6 hours doing my hair, I would have kept putting twists in every three weeks lol.

I used a yarn needle for the ones that haven't gotten too thick yet, and a latch hook for the nape of my neck which has bunched and locked into weird shapes. :)

My tools

To get my locks into the yarn needle, I fold one in half and thread it through the eye.

I use a 3-6-9-12 rotation although I have found a few that aren't growing as fast so for those I have been using 6-3-12 or 6-9-12.  I do try to always end at 12 so that my hair is pointing down when I'm finished.

Here's a before and after of my hair... as you can see, I clearly needed to tighten my hair lol

I have been storing up pics while I was on my blogging break so sometime this week, I'll have a style post... and then my 3 month anniversary is coming up!!

Until next time, keep it nappy!!

*flips locks* Deuces!!